I’m pretty sure most of you have watched Season 2 of the Netflix series “Insatiable” which had the special appearance of Miss Universe 1969 Gloria Diaz. Below are all of her scenes cut together in one clip.
Miss Universe 1969
All posts tagged Miss Universe 1969
This one has not been confirmed yet by the Miss Universe Organization. But talks are getting loud that our very Miss Universe – Gloria Diaz from 1969 – will be one of the judges in the all-female panel that will choose Miss Universe 2019.
If this holds up as true, then her 50th Anniversary as the titleholder will be more significant.
In commemoration of the 50th Anniversary of her winning the country’s very first Miss Universe title last July 19, 1969, I am sharing with you the full video of the 1969 Miss Universe where our very own Gloria Diaz made the entire country proud when she defeated 60 other delegates on the way to the top.
Photos from the Tony Paat Collection
This is a Super #Throwback for Easter Sunday:
While the actual Coronation Night of Binibining Pilipinas 1969 was held June 13 of that year, 2019 marks the Golden Anniversary of Gloria Diaz – both as Binibining Pilipinas Universe and (our country’s first) Miss Universe. Let us focus on her conquest of the national pageant.
FYI, the Bb. Pilipinas 1969 Honor Roll is as follows:
Binibining Pilipinas-Universe – Gloria Maria Aspillera Diaz
Binibining Pilipinas-International – Margaret Rose “Binky” Orbe Montinola
1st Runner-Up – Nelia delos Reyes Sancho (who later became Queen of the Pacific ’71)
2nd Runner-Up – Cynthia Commans Quirino
3rd Runner-Up – Maricar Azaola
4th Runner-Up – Carmina Cuervo Gutierrez (she happens to be the aunt of Bb. Pilipinas World 1993 Sharmaine Ruffa Gutierrez)
Let us now look back at nostalgic photos which the great pageant collector Townee F Paat graciously shared with your blogger for this intent – from her graduation photo in the St. Scholastica College Yearbook at age 17 to her participation in Bb. Pilipinas 1969 at age 18 and eventually winning the right to represent the country in Miss Universe 1969.
The Philippines’ three Miss Universe winners (Gloria and Margie homecoming photos shared by Felix Manuel)
Back in 1969 and 1973 when the Philippines experienced its first two tastes of Miss Universe glory, both Gloria Diaz and Margarita Moran were welcomed back to the country with such funfare that their respective parades (while seated on a top down car) around Manila were attended by so many proudly cheering Filipinos showing their joy in seeing a Filipina being crowned the most beautiful in the universe. The arrangements were not yet as complex back then – with no lockdowns from the organizers and uber restrictions on protocol and how the homecoming proceeded from Day 1. Their schedules were not clamped down in terms of how long they can stay in the country or how soon they need to go back to the home base in the US.
Nowadays, becoming Miss Universe means chasing time. The upcoming arrival of Miss Universe 2015 Pia Alonzo Wurtzbach in the country was scheduled to jibe with a MUO-committed annual visit to Djakarta where she will crown the winner of Puteri Indonesia 2016. This is the reason why she will be flying in from the Indonesian capital on January 23, and not New York City. And it’s not like she will be given enough “me” time in Manila. With all the scheduled Press Conferences, ticker tape parade, Malacañan Palace courtesy call and countless appearances and reception, it’s good that she was able to negotiate for an extra few days so that she can settle personal items like her rented apartment, personal effects and a previously-agreed date to attend the wedding of her best friend (actress) Pauleen Luna to actor/comedian Vic Sotto.
It’s going to be a whirlwind of a homecoming such that you will certainly start missing Pia even before her scheduled stay in the country starts. But we all want this crown. And in return, we should whole-heartedly share our Queen to the Universe. Her reign has just started and the months ahead will surely be so jet-settingly busy, let alone hectic. 🙂
Miss Universe Pia Alonzo Wurtzbach in photos provided by Associated Press Entertainment
Miss Universe 1969 Gloria Diaz posed in front of the Hotel Intercontinental Manila when it was still spanking new
Hotel Intercontinental Manila is one of the most iconic hotel structures in the Philippines. It is, in fact, the oldest standing hotel from a global chain in the country. And here, I have so many wonderful memories, both personal and pageant-related.
This is where I celebrated a few important milestones in my life, like when I turned 25 and 50. This is also where family members marked theirs. And some people ask why we always find ourselves going back to Hotel Intercontinental Manila. It’s the people, the service, the warmth and the all around shower of unending greetings from everyone. It’s like a halfway home when going to the south of Manila becomes a tricky traffic and typhoon proposition.
I will miss this place so bad. And by New Year’s Eve, tears of joy and sadness will flow in all four corners of the institution. By January 1, 2016, what will be left are memories to linger long after Hotel Intercontinental Manila disappears in front of our eyes. 🙂
The movie that launched Miss Universe 1969 to movie stardom and which started the “wet look” in Philippine cinema.
It took Miss Universe 1969 Gloria Diaz five years to finally splash her way from pageantry to movies (Photo credit: Tony Paat)
When she finally decided to make her first appearance on the big screen, the project was for a major production that would have her doing the big lead and directed by the respected Celso Ad. Castillo. And if that’s not enough, she agreed to do a daring turn that was considered eye-poppingly trend-setting. While the “wet look” was considered tamer at a time when softcore bold movies were still at its peak, “Ang Pinakamagandang Hayop sa Balat ng Lupa” (The Most Beautiful Animal on the Face of the Earth) successfully combined the elements of a serious/artistic masterpiece with the commercial formula that insured box-office success. And the rest is history, so to speak.
From 1974 up to the present, Gloria parlayed her worldwide beauty title into a successful career in film and television where she has also been honored with acting awards and the respect of colleagues in the industry.
Watch a 15-minute clip from the said movie now.
courtesy of gobitz69
Do you have a favorite Gloria Diaz movie? Mine would be this one. But my guiltiest pleasure of a performance from her was a relatively obscure (read: forgotten) one from 1983 titled “Hayop Sa Ganda” which she did with Miss Universe 1974 Amparo Munoz. Their scenes together were too delightful to pass up on. 😉
