As Barsi became more famous, her father József, an alcoholic and unemployed plumber, became increasingly abusive, jealous, and paranoid. He would mentally abuse her and once held a knife to her throat while threatening to kill her, because he was convinced that his wife and daughter would leave for a photo shoot or movie shoot and never come back. Barsi was taken to a child psychologist after breaking down in front of her agent. The psychologist identified severe physical and emotional abuse, and reported her findings to the authorities. József would often stay home drunk and refused to let Maria work. The family was on welfare for a brief period until Barsi's career started taking off in around 1984. By the time she entered 4th grade, she was earning an estimated $100,000 a year which helped her buy the family a 3-bedroom house in the West Hills section of Los Angeles. József suffered from paranoia and had their house surrounded by a high-fence which could only be opened from inside the house. József remained a recluse and threatened to kill his wife and daughter many times. Child Protective Services was called numerous times, but as Maria was reluctant to press any charges, the case was never followed up. Maria rented an apartment for her daughter and herself as a daytime safe haven away from József.
