Miss Universe
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Wikipedia-Article "Miss Universe"
Miss Universe is an annual international beauty contest, and the title for the winner of the contest, founded in 1952 by California clothing company Pacific Mills. The pageant became part of Kayser-Roth and then Gulf and Western Industries, before being acquired by Donald Trump in 1996. Despite its historical rivalry with the Miss World contest, Miss Universe retains unparalleled prestige in many parts of the world, particularly Latin America. The current holder is Natalie Glebova from Canada, though she was born in Russia.
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History
The winner of 1950's "Miss America 1951" pageant, Yolande Betbeze, refused to pose in a swimsuit from major sponsor Catalina Swimwear. As a result, the brand's manufacturer Pacific Mills withdrew from Miss America and set up the Miss USA and Miss Universe contests. The first Miss Universe Pageant was first held in Long Beach, California in 1952. It was won by Armi Kuusela from Finland, who gave up her title to get married shortly before her year was complete. Until 1958 the Miss Universe title (like Miss America) was post-dated, so at the time Ms. Kuusela's title was Miss Universe 1953.
The pageant was first televised in 1955. CBS began broadcasting the Miss USA and Miss Universe pageants combined from 1960, and separately from 1965. In 2003, NBC took over the television rights.
The main pageant was held in the United States until 1972, when it was hosted by Dorado, Puerto Rico. Since then it has usually been held in a different city each year, though Manila, Miami, Las Vegas, Bangkok and Panama City have each hosted it twice.
Amparo Munoz of Spain, Miss Universe 1974, was dethroned shortly before her reign ended and did not crown her successor, but she was not formally replaced. Amparo's runner-up, Helen Morgan of Wales, went on to represent the United Kingdom in the Miss World pageant later that same year. She won, only to resign a few days later when she was revealed to be an unwed mother.
Irene Sáez, Miss Universe 1981, ran for President of Venezuela in 1998 (losing to Hugo Chávez), after having been elected mayor of Chacao in 1992 and governor of Margarita Island in 1999.
Andrea Stelzer was Miss South Africa in 1985, but pulled out of Miss Universe because of anti-apartheid demonstrations. She competed in 1989 as Miss Germany, and was a top 10 semi-finalist.
Miss Lebanon 2001, Christina Sawaya, pulled out of the 2002 Miss Universe competition because of the participation of Miss Israel. She went on to win the rival Miss International competition in the same year.
2002's winner, Oxana Fedorova of Russia, became the first Miss Universe who officially did not finish her reign, making first runner-up Justine Pasek the first Panamanian to hold the title.
The 2005 Miss Universe Pageant was held in Bangkok, Thailand on May 31, 2005, to help the tsunami-struck nation win tourists back to the area. China and Chile also bid, but failed, to host the contest. Miss Canada, Natalie Glebova was crowned Miss Universe 2005 by Miss Universe 2004, Jennifer Hawkins of Australia. Miss Puerto Rico was first runner up while Miss Dominican Republic was the second runner up.
Eight cities have bid to host the contest in 2006: Cancun, San Salvador, Rio de Janeiro, Moscow, Perth, Montevideo, Bangkok, and Bayamon.
The contest today
The Miss Universe Organization, a New-York-based partnership between NBC and Donald Trump, has run the contest since June 20, 2002. The current president is Paula Shugart. The Organization sells television rights to the pageant in other countries, and also produces the Miss USA and Miss Teen USA contests. The winner of Miss USA represents the USA in Miss Universe.
Candidate selection
Each year, bids are received by the Miss Universe organizers from organizations who wish to select the Miss Universe contestant for a country. This allows competition between different pageants to hold a country's license, as happened for Miss Italy and Miss France for example when the licenses for their respective traditional organizations were revoked (the usual Miss France competition returned in 2004).
Usually a country's candidate selection involves pageants in major cities, with the winners competing in a national pageant, but this does not always occur. For example, in 2000 Australia's competition was abolished as a relic of a bygone era, with Australian delegates instead chosen by a modelling agency. Such "castings" are generally discouraged by the Miss Universe Organization, which prefers national pageants that preserve an aura of respectability and competition. Despite the "casted" Australian delegate, Jennifer Hawkins, being chosen as Miss Universe in 2004, Australia resumed its national pageant to choose Michelle Guy as Miss Universe Australia 2005.
Among the most important national pageants in the world are Miss India, Miss Philippines, Miss USA, Miss Colombia, Miss Peru, Miss Puerto Rico, and Miss Venezuela Universe contests, which command consistently high interest and television ratings in their respective countries. Organizations attempting to build themselves up to the level of these established contests include Nuestra Belleza Mexico (Miss Mexico), Miss Universe Japan, and the triumvirate of Miss Bolivia, Miss Paraguay, and Miss Uruguay (all directed by Gloria de Limpias). Recent arrivals in the pageant include China (2002), Albania (2002), Vietnam (2004), Georgia (2004), Ethiopia (2004), and Latvia (2005); there have also been efforts to revive strong national pageants in Chile, Uruguay, Argentina, Canada, and the Caribbean, among other regions. There are continually efforts to expand the pageant, but the participation of some countries such as Indonesia and Algeria has proven difficult due to cultural barriers to the swimsuit competition, while others such as Mozambique, Armenia and Nepal have balked at sending representatives due to the cost. As of 2005, only four countries have been present at every Miss Universe since its inception in 1952: Canada, France, Germany, and the USA.
Many European countries allow 17-year-old contestants, while Miss Universe's minimum age is 18, so national titleholders often have to be replaced by their runners-up. Miss Universe also prohibits transsexual applicants.
The main pageant
The main Miss Universe Pageant is held in May or June each year, with the winner being crowned by the previous year's titleholder. According to the organisers, the Miss Universe contest isn't won just on looks. Women who aspire to become Miss Universe must be intelligent, well-mannered and cultured. Often a candidate has lost because she did not have a good answer during the question and answer round.
Nowadays the final placement of the finalists is determined by a ranked vote, where each judge ranks each of the final three/five candidates and the contestant with the lowest cumulative score becomes the winner. If there is a tie, which often happens when there are even members of the jury, the higher semifinal scores become decisive. The winner is assigned a one-year contract with the Miss Universe Organization, travelling to several countries to spread messages about the control of diseases, peace, and public awareness of AIDS.
Statistics
As of the 2005 contest, there have been seven US American, four Puerto Rican, four Venezuelan, and three Swedish Misses Universe. Many other countries have won the contest once or twice.
Venezuela has enjoyed the most successful overall performance of the last decade at Miss Universe (and in the world pageant circuit): from 1983 to 2003 its representatives placed in the semifinals without interruption, and for the last decade every Miss Venezuela reached the finalist (top five/top six) position. In 2004, this pattern was broken by Ana Karina Anez's failure to place in the top 15 in Ecuador. Although Venezuela is tied for second with Puerto Rico for the most crowns won, it has had a far superior record in terms of overall placement. While Alicia Machado has been the only Venezuelan Miss Universe in the last decade, of the nine pageants that have followed her victory, four have seen Venezuela's representative come in second.
India and Sweden have reached the semi-finals most often, with India having two winners while Sweden has had three. Trinidad and Tobago has also had a great deal of success, consistently placing in the top ten in recent years.
Four Black contestants have won the pageant: Janelle Penny Commisiong of Trinidad and Tobago in 1977, Chelsi Smith from the USA in 1995, Wendy Fitzwilliam of Trinidad and Tobago in 1998, and Mpule Kwelagobe of Botswana in 1999.
A new trend of delegates representing countries they were not born in has developed. Miss Universe 2002 Justine Pasek was born in Kharkiv Ukraine. Miss Israel 2005, Elena Ralph was also born in Ukraine and moved to Israel when she was 8 years old. The most famous country-swapper was probably Natascha Borger. After placing 12th in the 2000 Miss Venezuela pageant she moved to Germany where she easily won the crown of Miss Germany Universe. Other notable contestants who represent countries other than their birth place include Miss Universe 2005 Natalie Glebova who is Russian by ethnicity.
Peru is the only Latin American country to host, win a Miss Universe crown, and compete since the very beginning. The USA's delegate in 1957 was disqualified for being married, though she had qualified for the semi-finals. The USA missed the semi-finals only three times: 1976, 1999, and 2002.
Georgina Rizk, Angela Visser, and Mpule Kwelegobe were all Miss Universe title holders who did not even place in Miss World.
Trivia
- Cartoonist Sergio Aragonés once satirized the implication that the contest represents the universe, by portraying grotesque extraterrestrial contestants in his drawings.
- The first Miss Universe (from Finland), the first Miss Asia (from Malaysia), and the first Miss International (from Colombia), all married Filipinos.
- The strong rivalry among Puerto Rico and Venezuela is so well-known in popular culture, that their struggle has been immortalized in several Spanish-language television commercials in the United States for such companies as Mastercard and Budweiser. In the latter, former Miss Universe winners Dayanara Torres of Puerto Rico and Alicia Machado of Venezuela cause mayhem in a sports bar as they compete to win the admiration of the men present in a comical manner.