Mary Ann Mobley, the first Mississippian to be crowned Miss America, eventually parlaying a career in acting and later on devoting her life to humanitarian causes, passed away in her Beverly Hills home.

She was 77 at the time she succumbed to breast cancer.

Born in Biloxi, Mississippi, on Feb. 17, 1939, Mobley was crowned Miss America in 1959, the first time someone from Mississippi won the coveted title.

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After her stint as Miss America ended, what followed was a hectic career on stage, in TV and movies.

She started as a stage actress in Guys and Dolls and The King and I .

She proceeded to Hollywood where she was Elvis Presley's leading lady in Harum Scarum and Girl Happy in 1965. She won the Golden Globe Award for New Star of the Year- Actress in 1965.

Mobley also had a thriving career on television, where she was regularly seen on shows like Circus with the Stars. She also graced series like Fantasy Island, Love Boat and Falcon Crest.

Her first TV appearance was in Burke's Law from 1963-1965. She also made a guest appearance on Perry Mason in 1964 and 1966.

In 1967, she tied the knot with actor-host Garry Collins and had since dedicated her life to philanthropy and humanitarian causes. She traveled extensively in a bid to fight world hunger.

Even when she was young and her show business career was thriving, her support for charitable causes had been such that she was awarded Outstanding Young Woman of the Year in 1966 by Lady Bird Johnson.

Collins died in 2012

Mobley is survived by two daughters, Clancy and Melissa; a son, Guy William; a sister, Sandra Young; and two grandsons, Garrett and Gaston.

Services are scheduled December 15 in Jackson, Mississippi.

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