Ratna Assan

Ratna Setiawati Assan (born December 16, 1954) is an actress, model, dancer, and singer of Indonesian descent. She is the only daughter of Devi Dja with her third husband, Ali Assan, and became the first woman of Indonesian descent to be featured in Playboy magazine. Assan started her career as a singer and dancer, then began acting in television series before rising to stardom as an Indian girl Zoraima in Papillon (1973).

Ratna Setiawati Assan was born on December 16, 1954, in Torrance, Los Angeles, as the only child of Ali Assan from Gresik, and Devi Dja, an actress and dancer from Yogyakarta. She was named after Ratna Asmara, a friend of her mothers from the Dardanella theatre company and co-star in Dr. Samsi (1937).

Assan's mother migrated to the United States in 1940 to develop her career as a dancer.^[1] At the age of three, Assan was trained by her mother to dance, sing, and model.^[2] During her high school years, she joined the cheerleading squad, and received a brown belt in Karate.^[3]

Assan was married to a carpenter from Las Vegas, Nevada, and had a daughter, Aisah Dewi, before later divorcing.^[3]

Assan began her career at the age of seven as a srimpi dancer and singer at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles, California, and was featured in the far eastern ballet and dance troupes led by her mother.^[2][3] She made her acting debut in Bonanza as a child actress. She also appeared in episodes of the Western Destry (1964) and the sitcom Mister Roberts (1965), and performed as one of Yul Brynner's wives in Anna and the King.^[2]

In September 1972, Assan auditioned for the film Papillon (1973), and was cast to play the role of an Indian girl, Zoraima, co-starring with Steve McQueen.^[1][2] During filming, Assan expressed her discomfort at catcalls by the film crew.^[2] The film was a box office success, and Assan was praised for her role and audacity to appear topless.^[1][2] During the screening of Papillon in Indonesia, Assan's scene was censored to the point of being almost non-existent.^[1] Later, Assan signed a contract with Playboy, and became the first woman of Indonesian descent to be featured in Playboy magazine, in February 1974.^[1]

In an interview with Wimar Witoelar in 1973, Assan expressed excitement to start a career in Indonesia.^[1] But because the media business in Indonesia at that time was not yet developed, Indonesia was unable to contract a Hollywood star,^[1] and Assan did not continue her film career. She received criticism, with claims that she did not want to memorize her scripts, or travel to the shoot location.^[3]

• Ratna Assan at IMDb