Miss Universe 1994

All posts tagged Miss Universe 1994

65th Miss Universe Insights | The Difference Between Christelle Roelandts and Stephanie Geldhof

Posted by Norman on January 16, 2017
Posted in: 1 Pageant Pages, 2 Shout-out-Looks. Tagged: , , , , . 11 Comments

Two Belgian Beauties from 1994 and 2017


Unless you are a late millennial baby, chances are that the name Christelle Roelandts will definitely ring a bell. Who would forget Miss Belgium from Miss Universe 1994 who charmed all Filipinos with a beauty more endearing than Phoebe Cates? She became an instant favorite right from the get-go. And she was picked by most everyone as a contender for the title. But somehow, her star started to wane when it mattered most. If only the entire Filipino nation had a weighty vote to throw in, then Christelle would have been a shoo-in to the Top 10 and eclipsed the like of surprise qualifier Sweden. It’s as if her physical beauty was easily outpowered by the competitiveness of the Latinas and Sushmita Sen combined when the going got tough. It doesn’t help any that she had a relatively shy demeanor that effectively prevented her from hugging the spotlight everytime she had the chance to do so.

Fast forward to 2017 for the country’s 3rd hosting of Miss Universe. And we have another Miss Belgium who is starting to get noticed by most everyone I know in the media coverage group. Here is Stephanie Geldhof who – with or without makeup – looks so seriously beautiful. Her features are well-defined, but soft enough to project a quality of captivating appeal. She may not be as loud as the more aggressive contestants, but she is definitely not the type who cower under intimidation once the chance to shine comes. And I am starting to really like her.

That is where the main difference lies actually. Whereas Christelle Roelandts was like a flash-in-the-pan who effortlessly invited crowds everywhere during the pre-pageant activities, Stephanie is like a silent killer who is skillfully sizing up her opponents first before going for the jugular. If she keeps up the game plan, then Miss Belgium 2017 will definitely outperform Miss Belgium 1994. Maybe not by a mile just yet for now, but hopefully going that stretch in the coming two weeks.

Stephanie during the Cultural Terno Show wearing a Russ Cuevas

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65th Miss Universe Watch | Zuzana Kollárová of the Slovak Republic 

Posted by Norman on January 12, 2017
Posted in: 1 Pageant Pages, 2 Shout-out-Looks. Tagged: , , , , . 22 Comments

Gorgeous Zuzana Kollárová of the Slovak Republic for the 65th Miss Universe

A Victoria’s Secret Angel? A potential cover girl for Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Edition? Or a photographer’s eye candy? Zuzana Kollárová has such a captivating face that one can’t help but be pulled in with her Hollywood Supermodel looks that can easily be booked a screen test as the next Bond girl. She is gorgeousness personified. And I must admit that she is one of the more underrated contestants of the 65th Miss Universe.

The Miss Universe SR National Director – Silvia Lakatosova who finished in the Top 6 of Miss Universe 1994 also here in Manila and the very first from Slovak Republic to make it that far in the competition – is pinning her hopes that Zuzana will give Slovak Republic the top placement or victory that will give more credence to her organization and the country in general.

Zuzana Kollárová is underrated. She could be a spoiler.

There is a quality about Zuzana that makes me giggle in excitement with the thought of meeting her face-to-face. I want to see for myself if she will leave me the lasting impression that her amazing photographs project. If she does, then we could have a spoiler in our hands.

Your take on Zuzana Kollárová, dear readers?

Good luck in the 65th Miss Universe, Zuzana Kollárová!

courtesy of magazin Emma

Sunday Senti Specials: Charlene Gonzalez during Miss Universe 1994

Posted by Norman on June 14, 2015
Posted in: 1 Pageant Pages, 2 Shout-out-Looks. Tagged: , , . 10 Comments

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Charlene during Miss Universe 1994

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On the cover of Rogue, circa September 2013

It doesn’t take a lot to know why Bb. Pilipinas Universe 1994 Charlene Mae Bonnin Gonzalez remains as one of the top favorites among Filipina placers in Miss Universe. She is beautiful, and remains ravishing up to now. On top of that, she remained active in showbusiness for quite some time up until last year when she bowed out of ABS-CBN’s “The Buzz”. What’s more, it’s always a joy to watch her performance during Miss Universe 1994 when she made it all the way to Top 6.

I know that so many throwback posts and articles have already been made about her. But let’s do it one more time for Charlene. After all, she was Miss Philippines during the very first Miss Universe I covered for personal enjoyment (aside from being able to pull some strings at the Manila Hotel where they were billeted at the time). 😉

courtesy of skiace

Easter Sunday SEN-ti Specials: To Sushmita, Miss Universe 1994

Posted by Norman on April 5, 2015
Posted in: 1 Pageant Pages, 2 Shout-out-Looks. Tagged: , , , , . 16 Comments

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Sushmita Sen, India's first Miss Universe, during her victorious time in Manila back in 1994

courtesy of skiace

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From one Miss Universe to the next: Dayanara Torres (left) and Sushmita Sen

1994 was a particularly splendid year in the Philippines, pageant-wise. Manila hosted Miss Universe for a second time and everyone was in a fiesta mood with the arrival of beautiful ladies from all over the world and to witness the eventual crowning of the successor of Dayanara Torres.

Miss India Sushmita Sen was not among the list of favorites for the title. In fact, she would always be overshadowed by the likes of Venezuela’s Minorka Mercado, Belgium’s Christelle Roelandts and Australia’s Michelle Van Eimeren. But in due time, people took notice of this tall and elegant beauty from Hyderabad as she slowly crept her way to the top. By the time preliminaries took place, she excelled in all areas of competition and held on to the status of highly potential winners up to that fateful moment at the Philippine International Convention Center (PICC) when she defeated all the contenders to become India’s first Miss Universe.

image The win made Sush a very popular celebrity in her native country. In fact, it opened a lot of doors that led to her becoming a top Bollywood actress (she won several acting awards in the process) and one of the most highly-regarded Indian women considered as an icon of beauty, intelligence and grace.

When time came for her to look at the possibility of restoring the powerhouse status of India in Miss Universe, she was at the forefront. She got the franchise of the same and started “I Am She-Miss India Universe” back in 2010 but lasted only until 2012. While her efforts were deemed less successful, she never regretted the three year-involvement.

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Sush with the married Vikram Bhatt - her most controversial affair

Personally, Sush has two daughters, both adopted. At the age of 25, she took the guardianship of her eldest, Renée, in 2000. And ten years later, she did the same with Alisah. As far as relationships are concerned, she had an almost unending string of affairs – the most controversial of which was her time with the married Vikram Bhatt. From there, she got on with the likes of hotelier Sanjay Narang, Head of hotmail.com Sabeer Bhatia, actor Randeep Hooda, businessman Imtiaz Khatri, filmmaker Manav Menon, Globosports’ Bunty Sachdeva, director Mudassar Aziz, Wasim Akram, Anil Ambani and, of late, nightclub owner Rhitik Basin.

In search of Mr. Perfect, Sush always considered marriage as an option, but never really got into settling down with a guy who can fit the mold of what a life partner should be in her own standards.

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Sushmita with her two daughters during the 'It's My Life' guesting

During a 2014 interview with The Times of India, she was quoted as saying, “I don’t think I should walk with the system. Our society has made this system that get graduate at 18, by 22 start panicking to get married and by 27 have your first child. I don’t believe in that…” “Every person’s DNA is different. I will certainly get married and for sure it’s going to be a beautiful wedding (Masha allah bahut khoobsurat hogi meri shaadi).”

Watch one of Sushmita’s TV interviews with Raveena Tandon on It’s My Life below.

courtesy of NDTV

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"You never get a second chance to make a first impression", updated Sushmita in one of her now inactive Facebook accounts

Credits for all the Miss Universe 1994 images above goes to Maja Mundial Narvaez.

Throwback Thursday 2: The Little Sisters of 1983-1995

Posted by Norman on November 13, 2014
Posted in: 1 Pageant Pages, 2 Shout-out-Looks. Tagged: , , , , , , . 20 Comments

courtesy of thechenesful

Miss Philippines Geraldine Asis (center in black gown) with her little sister during Miss Universe 1987

Miss Philippines Geraldine Asis (center in black gown) with her little sister during Miss Universe 1987

Aren’t they just the cutest?

I’m talking about the Miss Universe Little Sisters who – while lip-synching the song “You Are My Star” – added just the right amount of cuteness to the Long Gown Competition of thirteen (13) editions from 1983 to 1995. All of the Miss Universe delegates during this period experienced having a little sister during the finals, but only the ladies who made it to the semifinals were actually able to walk down the stage hand-in-hand with the cuties. And for the record, only three (3) Filipinas were able to do so – Desiree Verdadero from 1984, Geraldine Edith Asis from 1987 (see photo on the left) and Charlene Gonzalez from 1994.

Don’t you wish these little girls would make an adorable comeback in Doral Miami for old times’ sake? I have a feeling Donald Trump would thumb down the idea, but I don’t see why he can’t be prevailed upon by the organization for something heartwarming. After all, he already started revamping the Miss Universe image by pushing for more charity-driven causes (like what Gabriela Isler has been up to the past full year). Why not include a touch of wholesome presence in the finals? 😀

Let’s reminisce a little more and watch a video of the Little Sisters of Manila during Miss Universe 1994.

courtesy of zarly

Throwback Thursday: Six Degrees of Separation with Dayanara Torres

Posted by Norman on October 9, 2014
Posted in: 1 Pageant Pages, 2 Shout-out-Looks. Tagged: , , , , , . 43 Comments

Miss Universe 1993 Dayanara Torres sitting on her throne

Miss Universe 1993 Dayanara Torres sitting on her throne

It was fate that Dayanara Torres was crowned Miss Universe 1993 – the victory that made this lovely Puerto Rican connected by fewer than six degrees of separation to the Philippines and millions of Filipinos.

When it was time to fly to Manila to crown her successor during Miss Universe 1994, little did she know that her arrival would start a close relationship with the country. Right after relinquishing the title to Sushmita Sen, several doors of showbiz opportunity started opening one after the other. She went into appearances in a number of local movies (at least three), hosted her own dance show (Eezy Dancing) plus a similar hosting stint on ASAP. Heck, she was even involved in a relationship with actor Aga Muhlach at one time.

Below is a video which contains the movie “Basta’t Kasama Kita” (As long as I’m with you) which introduced Dayanara Torres and where she starred with former matinee idol Aga Muhlach.

courtesy of Vanessas barfeny

And now, here’s a vid featuring one of Dayanara’s dance numbers on ASAP.

courtesy of dolsotbibimbop

And finally, here is the interview Dayanara gave where she talked about her four memorable years in the Philippines.

courtesy of Proyectos Saluda

Dayanara considers her stay in the country as some of the best years in her life. And the Filipinos couldn’t agree more.

We all loved Dayanara, and Miss Universe 1993 loved the Philippines in return. Four years long and with just two degrees of separation at that. 😉

Remember Carolina Gomez?

Posted by Norman on April 25, 2012
Posted in: 1 Pageant Pages, 2 Shout-out-Looks. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , . 12 Comments

Telenovela Actress and 1994 Miss Universe 1st Runner-Up Carolina Gomez Correa of Colombia

Let’s cruise down memory lane today. The year was 1994 and it was the second time that the Philippines was awarded hosting chores for Miss Universe. There were so many beautiful candidates then. Miss USA Lu Parker was such a sweetheart, just as Silvia Lakatosova of Slovak Rep had a childlike quality hiding beneath her glam facade. Belgium’s Christelle Roelandts was the solid fave of Filipinos, while the country’s bet Charlene Gonzalez made sure that she projected a most gracious sister image to all the girls. Anyways, I pulled some strings to get a well-located room at the Manila Hotel (The Official Residence of MU1994) so that I can ‘stalk’ the ladies for three solid days that they were constantly rehearsing for finals night. I got all the photo ops I wanted, but sought one particular lady who caught my attention from the day the delegates landed on Philippine soil – Miss Colombia, Carolina Gomez Correa. This Latina was one of my top 2 favorites to win the crown (the other one being Venezuelan Goddess Minorka Mercado). And she was dead close to becoming her country’s 2nd Miss Universe when she landed 1st Runner-Up honors to eventual winner Sushmita Sen of India. Unfazed by the same, she went to become a top model and actress (she starred in a number of hit telenovelas) in Bogota. She also starred with Fil-Am actor Rob Schneider in the movie ‘The Chosen One’. As for her lovelife, she was twice married to and separated from long-time boyfriend Nicolas Hoyos to whom she bore a son named Tomas.

Below is the latest photo of Carolina Gomez with her son…

Carolina Gomez posing with her handsome son, Tomas. (Photo credit: Jose Gomez and Miss Colombia Official)

How about you, dear readers? Any stand-out memories of Miss Universe 1994? 🙂