MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE
2015 Regular Session
To: Rules
By: Senator(s) Kirby, Browning, Bryan, Burton, Butler (38th), Carmichael, Fillingane, Frazier, Gollott, Hopson, Jackson (32nd), Jolly, Lee, Montgomery, Parker, Simmons (12th), Wilemon, Younger
A CONCURRENT RESOLUTION MOURNING THE LOSS AND REMEMBERING THE HISTORICAL AND CHARITABLE LEGACY OF MISSISSIPPI'S FIRST MISS AMERICA MARY ANN MOBLEY.
WHEREAS, Mary Ann Mobley Collins, a Brandon, Mississippi, native who was Mississippi's First Miss America in 1959, passed away at her home in Beverly Hills, California, on December 9, 2014, at age 77. She was an actress and singer in movies and television and on Broadway, later became a documentary filmmaker, and was known for her extensive charity work; and
WHEREAS, Mary Ann grew up in Brandon and was the first Miss Mississippi to be selected as Miss America. She graduated from Ole Miss in 1958, the same year she won the Miss America Crown. Mary Ann Mobley of Mississippi was crowned Miss America 1959 by outgoing Miss America Marilyn Elaine Van Derbur at the annual Miss America Pageant in Atlantic City, New Jersey, on September 6, 1958. When Lynda Lee Mead, another Ole Miss student, won Miss America the following year, Sports Illustrated magazine published an article "Babes, Brutes and Ole Miss." It focused on the Rebels' gridiron accomplishments and the back-to-back Miss Americas; and
WHEREAS, Mary Ann Mobley was born in Biloxi and spent many of her formative years in Brandon. Mobley's long acting career included two starring roles opposite Elvis Presley and a run on ABC's "Diff'rent Strokes" as Mr. Drummond's wife in Season 8. Mobley moved to Los Angeles after claiming the Miss America tiara and studied under legendary acting Coach Lee Strasberg, eventually signing a multipicture film contract with MGM. From there she landed a role on Aaron Spelling's "Burke's Law," appearing on five episodes through 1965. That same year she starred in "Girl Happy" opposite Presley, who had by then established himself as a prolific actor and rock'n'roll legend. Mobley again starred opposite Presley in "Harum Scarum," MGM's 1965 assassination thriller, and was named Most Promising Newcomer at that year's Golden Globes, a title she shared with Mia Farrow and Celia Kaye. Her 1960s TV appearances included one-off stints on "The Man from U.N.C.L.E.," "Perry Mason" and "Mission: Impossible." Her other notable film credits include "The Kings Pirate," "The Legend of Custer" and "For Singles Only." She remains one of only a handful of Miss America winners to have achieved a successful Hollywood career, including Phyllis George and Vanessa Williams. After the 1960s, she went on to star on multiple episodes of "Fantasy Island," "The Love Boat," and "Falcon Crest"; and
WHEREAS, Sam Haskell, Chairman of the Board and CEO of the Miss America Organization, was friends with Mobley for 40 years. Mobley's extensive charity work earned her the Outstanding Woman of the Year Award in 1966, presented to her by First Lady, Lady Bird Johnson. According to the University of Mississippi, in recent years, Mobley dedicated her time to charity, raising money and awareness for both the March of Dimes and the United Cerebral Palsy Association. She also visited various developing Asian and African countries to make documentary films which chronicled the struggles of those countries' homeless and starving children; and
WHEREAS, Mobley met her husband, late Television Host Gary Collins, in 1966 while starring alongside Jerry Lewis in the film "Three on a Couch." The couple married a year later. Mobley and her late husband, Gary Collins, had one daughter, Clancy Collins-White; and
WHEREAS, Mary Ann Mobley will be sorely missed and we pay tribute and cherish fondly the memory of this most public spirited citizen of Mississippi whose enormous civic energy will never be forgotten:
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SENATE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI, THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES CONCURRING THEREIN, That we do hereby mourn the loss and remember the historical and charitable legacy of Mississippi's First Miss America, Mary Ann Mobley, and extend the sympathy of the Legislature to her surviving family.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That this resolution be presented to the surviving family of Mary Ann Mobley, forwarded to the Chancellor of the University of Mississippi and the Mississippi America Organization, and made available to the Capitol Press Corps.