Hollywood Pioneer Maureen Hingert Dies in Pasadena at 88

Maureen Neliya Hingert, a pioneering Sri Lankan actress and beauty queen who broke barriers as the first representative from Ceylon to place at the Miss Universe pageant before launching a Hollywood career, died in late June in Pasadena. She was 88.

Her daughter Marisa Zamparelli confirmed the death, describing it as “a beautiful and peaceful passing.”

Ms. Hingert’s journey from colonial Ceylon to Hollywood began when she placed as second runner-up at the 1955 Miss Universe pageant in Long Beach, Calif., a breakthrough moment that many credited with putting Ceylon “on the map” internationally. Her success led to contracts with Universal International Studios and 20th Century Fox.

Born on Jan. 9, 1937, in Colombo to Lionel Hingert, president of the Bank of Ceylon, and Lorna Mabel del Run, both of Dutch Burgher ancestry, Ms. Hingert parlayed her pageant success into a film career. She appeared in “The King and I” (1956) as a royal wife and took roles in “Gun Fever” (1958) and “Gunmen From Laredo” (1959) under the stage name Jana Davi.

Beyond her film work, Ms. Hingert was an accomplished dancer who performed at major venues including the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles, serving as a cultural ambassador during a significant period in Sri Lankan history.

She married Mario Armond Zamparelli, chief designer for Howard Hughes’ empire, in 1958. They had three daughters before divorcing in 1970. She later married William J. Ballard in 1976.

Her daughter Gina Zamparelli, a pioneering concert promoter and the first woman in the United States to produce concerts in major venues with national-level artists, died in 2018.

Her death was first announced by Sri Lankan actress Angela Seneviratne on Facebook on July 1.