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A raven-haired Miss Japan, Riyo Mori, was crowned Miss Universe 2007 on Monday in a contest marked by protests, a banned dress and the withdrawal of one beauty queen on the ground the pageant degrades women.
Mori, 20, the 56th winner of the title, was given her $250,000 diamond-and-pearl crown by last year’s winner, Zuleyka Rivera of Puerto Rico, watched by a live audience of 10,000 and some 600 million television viewers worldwide.
A lifelong ballet dancer from a village near Mount Fuji, Mori wore a striking black gown with colored lapels for the final. Winning surpassed the ambition of her grandmother, who told her as a child she wanted her to be Miss Japan one day.
“My mind went blank,” she said of the winning moment.
During the evening gown parade, Miss USA, Rachel Smith, slipped on the runway and landed on her bottom, although the slip didn’t stop her earning fifth place.
This year’s contest was marked by controversy, with a handful of Mexicans booing Smith in the run-up to the finals because of what they saw as U.S. unfriendliness toward illegal immigrants.
Miss Sweden, Isabel Lestapier Winqvist, unexpectedly pulled out of the event because of complaints in her country that it degrades women. Sweden has won the Miss Universe crown three times in the past.
In another hitch, Miss Mexico was made to change her outfit for the regional dress contest after her original dress, decorated with brutal images of rebels in a 1920s religious uprising being hanged or shot, drew accusations of poor taste.
DREADLOCKS
The annual Miss Universe pageant — which tries to present itself as something more meaningful than a swimwear parade — was first held in Long Beach, California, in 1952. The event was taken over in 1996 by U.S. real estate mogul Donald Trump.
This year, it attracted protesters wearing white dresses splashed with fake blood and sashes proclaiming “Miss Juarez,” “Miss Atenco” and “Miss Michoacan” in reference to places in Mexico made infamous by killings or sexual abuse of women.
In another quirk for 2007, the long, twisted dreadlocks of Miss Jamaica, the contest’s first ever Rastafarian participant, and the close-shaved head of Miss Tanzania stood out from the lacquered manes of the other contestants.
Last year’s Miss Universe event in Los Angeles also made its mark when winner Rivera caused gasps by slumping to the ground in a faint during a post-pageant news conference.
As well as strutting in cocktail dresses and bikinis, the 77 contestants from nations ranging from Albania to Zambia traveled in Mexico in the lead-up to the event, visiting Mayan ruins and learning about endangered animals.
They also had to answer questions to put their personalities and public speaking ability to the test.
This was the fourth time the pageant was held in Mexico, which in 1991 won the crown with beauty queen Lupita Jones.
Mori — the second Japanese woman to win the Miss Universe title — will spend her year-long reign traveling the world to speak out on humanitarian issues like poverty and disease.
from www.yahoo.com
starstruck4′s ultimate winners:mart&kris aljur and jewel
it was indeed another starstruck phenomenon that heat the philippine primetime viewing ..again and again .trully last nights final judgement was very intense, very heart pounding evening @ the marikina sports park where almost ten thousand people are watching at the said venue all of the diehard fans of the six final survivors where shouting for their starstruck bets…..to win in the said reality comp. the host of the reality tv comp. composed of raymond ,jolina and dingdong where also very excited for who will be this nights ultimate winners …. and also the starstruck council composed of louie ignacio ,lorna tolentino and mr. douglas quijano with there special council ms.wilma galvante and ms.anette gozon abrogar are now ready to critique in the presentations of the survivor 6. Read the rest of this entry »
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(clockwise from left) Antonella Barba, Jarred Cotter, Sabrina Sloan and Sundance Head Photo by: |
On Thursday, another round of Idol hopefuls were given their walking papers. It wasn’t a huge shock that Antonella Barba, who’s been scandal-plagued since racy photos of her began circulating the Internet, was cut. But when Sundance Head was ousted while Sanjaya Malakar advanced to the Top 12, even Sanjaya’s mouth dropped. PEOPLE chatted with the eliminated contestants about their experience – and what’s next for them. Read the rest of this entry »