Ina Balin on AllMovie

A model turned actress, Ina Balin is best remembered for her courageous efforts to bring 200 Vietnamese orphans to safety during the 1975 Fall of Saigon. She later adopted three of those refugees. In 1980, she starred in an autobiographical television version of heroism in The Children of An Lac. Born Ina Rosenberg, Balin made her debut on the Perry Como television variety show. After that she appeared in a couple Broadway productions. In 1959, Balin appeared as the daughter of Anthony Quinn in The Black Orchid. By 1961, she was considered one of the brightest starlets in the 20th Century Fox stable, but her early promise of a great career never quite panned out, and though she was steadily employed up until her death, Balin was relegated to supporting roles and co-leads. In 1970, she got involved with Vietnamese refugees while touring Indochina in a U.S.O. show. The troupe visited An Lac, an orphanage in Saigon which held many Asian-American children as well as Vietnamese children. Conditions there inspired Balin to help.