Born in Reno, Nevada, Dawn represented her home state in the Miss America pageant in 1959. That opened the door for her to start a career in Hollywood where she appeared in a multitude of television shows, including “77 Sunset Strip,” “Maverick,” “Bonanza,” “The Joey Bishop Show” and “Hawaiian Eye.” She beat out 350 other actresses to nab the role of girl-next-door Mary Ann on “Gilligan’s Island,” which aired on CBS from 1964 to 1967 and later in syndication.