Virginia Ruth Ellis grew up in southern California and was introduced to music (and specifically the violin) at a very young age, becoming a member of the Hollywood Baby Orchestra at age 4. Soon after, she joined the Peter Meremblum California Junior Symphony, a popular training orchestra in the area for children and teenagers. Under the tutelage of Maestro Meremblum, Ellis's skills matured significantly.

In 1938, the Meremblum Orchestra was hired to perform in "They Shall Have Music", a Samuel Goldwyn movie designed to showcase virtuoso violinist Jascha Heifetz. The storyline of the movie was for Heifetz to save a struggling music school for children. Because the cute Ellis looked younger than her 13 years, she was given the role of Concertmaster (or Concertmistress if you prefer the old-fashioned term) in the movie (the actual position was jointly held during Ellis's tenure with the orchestra by Tom Facey and Reta Robbins and later by Shirley Cornell and Dorothy Wade). Ellis went on to appear in three other movies as a member of the orchestra: "There's Magic in Music", "Song of Russia", and "California Junior Symphony", the latter being a one-reeler about the orchestra itself.

After her schooling was finished, Ellis went on to become a member of various symphonies and chamber groups, as well as appearing as a soloist. While living in Sacramento, she frequently played in show orchestras at Lake Tahoe in support of various entertainers.

Ellis was married to Paul Beaver for most of her adult life. She passed away on December 8, 2008 from natural causes.