Maureen Hingert obit

Sri Lanka’s First Hollywood Starlet and Miss Universe Finalist, Passes Away at 88

 

She was not on the list.

Maureen Nelia Ballardney Hingert, Sri Lanka’s first beauty queen to break into Hollywood, has passed away at the age of 88. The news was announced by former Miss Sri Lanka and actress Angela Seneviratne via Facebook.

Maureen made history by winning the Miss Ceylon title in 1955 and went on to represent the country at the Miss Universe pageant, where she was crowned second runner-up—a milestone achievement at the time.

Following her success, she entered the film industry and starred in several Hollywood productions. In 1958, she appeared in the film Gun Fever, and a photograph from the movie shoot was later published in Playboy magazine in September 1957—making her the first and only Sri Lankan woman to be featured in the magazine.

She signed with major studios like 20th Century Fox and Universal International Studios, and her filmography includes titles such as The King and I, Fort Bowie, The Rawhide Trail, Gunman from Laredo, Pillars of the Sky, and The Adventures of Hiram Holiday, among others. During her peak, she was regarded as one of the most beautiful actresses in Hollywood.

Maureen married Marion Zamperelli in 1958, later separating in 1970, and married William J. Ballard in 1976. She had two children, and after the tragic passing of her daughter due to cancer, Maureen chose to live a private life away from the public eye in Los Angeles, where she remained until her death.

 

Actress

Captain David Grief (1957)

Captain David Grief

6.3

TV Series

Anura

1959

1 episode

 

Maureen Hingert and Robert Knapp in Gunmen from Laredo (1959)

Gunmen from Laredo

5.1

Rosita (as Jana Davi)

1959

 

Fort Bowie (1958)

Fort Bowie

5.8

Chanzana (as Jana Davi)

1958

 

The Rawhide Trail (1958)

The Rawhide Trail

5.7

Keetah (as Jana Davi)

1958

 

Death Valley Days (1952)

Death Valley Days

7.5

TV Series

Weeka

1958

1 episode

 

Maureen Hingert and Mark Stevens in Gun Fever (1958)

Gun Fever

5.5

Tanana (as Jana Davi)

1958

 

Wally Cox in The Adventures of Hiram Holliday (1956)

The Adventures of Hiram Holliday

8.0

TV Series

Yassmin

1957

1 episode

 

Jeff Chandler, Keith Andes, and Dorothy Malone in Pillars of the Sky (1956)

Pillars of the Sky

6.2

Indian Woman (uncredited)

1956

 

Deborah Kerr and Yul Brynner in The King and I (1956)

The King and I

7.4

Royal Wife (uncredited)

1956

 

Elephant Walk (1954)

Elephant Walk

6.3

Dancer (uncredited)

1954

 

Kristina Söderbaum in Circus Girl (1954)

Circus Girl

4.7

Girl (uncredited)

1954

 

Self

Maureen Hingert, Margit Nünke, Hillevi Rombin, Keiko Takahashi, and Maribel Arrieta Gálvez in Miss Universe (1955)

Miss Universe

3.9

TV Special

Self - Miss Ceylon (2nd Runner-Up) (as Maureen Neliya Hingert)

1955