TONGUE IN CHEEK | Miss Universe host says 'Merry Easter'

Washington, United States - Steve Harvey, the man who famously gave the Miss Universe crown to the wrong contestant, has now offered the world Easter greetings – on Christmas Day.

"Merry Easter, y'all!" ran the caption to a picture of smiling Harvey, smoking a cigar and flashing a peace sign. The picture was posted Friday (early Saturday in the Philippines) on Harvey's social media accounts.

Harvey poked fun at himself – and his gaffes – in his first public appearance since the high-profile fiasco.

Harvey, a 58 year-old comedian and talk show host, misread his cue card in front of a global television audience at the Miss Universe pageant on December 20 and announced that Miss Colombia, Ariadna Gutierrez, had triumphed.

Moments later he apologized and announced Miss Philippines, Pia Alonzo Wurtzbach, was the actual winner.

Harvey apologized on Twitter for what he called "an honest mistake," but identified the women as "Miss Philippians and Miss Columbia." He quickly corrected the spelling mistakes and deleted the tweet.

Viewers can expect to see a lot more of him: "Steve Harvey Signs Multi-Year Deal to Host Miss Universe" ran the headline on the web site Comedyhype.com. Harvey posted a link to the site on his Facebook page.

The contract was signed just before the pageant aired, and the deal "is for at least three years, possibly even as many as six or seven," read the brief text, quoting an ET Online story.

After the pageant mixup several people took to Twitter to claim that the affair was a publicity stunt aimed at boosting both Harvey and the event's sagging TV ratings.

"I generally don't buy into conspiracy theories, but this is the most attention the Miss Universe pageant has gotten since, well, ever," said newspaper sportswriter Les East.

"Steve Harvey's mistake was all a conspiracy created for two purposes: Make Miss Universe relevant again. Make Steve Harvey relevant again," another tweet said.

The online magazine Salon dismissed the doubters as "Miss Universe truthers" – an American term for conspiracy theory devotees – that "show how paranoid we've become."

source: interaksyon.com

Miss Colombia Paulina Vega is Miss Universe 2014

For the first time in 56 years, Miss Colombia is Miss Universe.

Living up to her frontrunner billing, 22-year-old Paulina Vega bested 87 other hopefuls on her way to winning the coveted crown in the 63rd edition of the prestigious beauty pageant held Sunday, January 25 (Monday, January 26, Manila time) in Doral, Florida.

Vega, a business administration student at the Universidad Javeriana in Bogota, seemed destined for victory right from the start as her name was the first to be called when hosts Thomas Roberts and Natalie Morales announced the Top 15 semi-finalists.

It was smooth sailing from there for the sweet-faced Latina as she ultimately topped a formidable field of beauties that included runners-up Miss USA Nia Sanchez, Miss Ukraine Diana Harkusha, surprise finalist Miss Netherlands Yasmin Verheijen and Miss Jamaica Kaci Fennell, who drew the loudest applause.

However, Vega’s coronation was marred by the loud and prolonged booing at the Florida International University Arena in Doral after Miss Jamaica was called as the fourth runner-up.

The last time Colombia won the crown was in 1956 when Luz Marina Zuluaga took home the title.

Vega spoke proudly of her country, and said in the question round Colombia “has been a role model for the rest of the world.”

“We are persevering people, despite all the obstacles, we keep fighting for what we want to achieve. After years of difficulty, we are leading in several areas on the world stage.”

Vega won highest possible score of 9.9 in every presentation at the Miss Universe Colombia contest, according to the pageant’s website.

The five-foot-nine model from Barranquilla is the granddaughter of legendary tenor Gaston Vega and 1953 Miss Atlantico, Elvira Castillo.

The 63rd edition of the Miss Universe pageant selected the pageant’s 2014 winner after the Miss Universe organization failed to stage the event last year.

Ten judges were tasked to select this year’s winner, including Cuban-American music mogul Emilio Estefan, Cuban soap opera star William Levy and Philippine boxing great Manny Pacquiao.

The contest, owned by Donald Trump, is watched by about 600 million worldwide, pageant officials say.

There was some criticism of the $2.5 million contribution that the city of Doral made to the pageant, as local politicians were divided over whether the promotion for the city near Miami is worth that money.

The Miss Universe contest started out in 1952 as a local “bathing beauty” competition organized by a swimwear company in Long Beach, California.

Today, the competition is more than a beauty pageant and contestants “compete with hope of advancing their careers, personal and humanitarian goals and… seek to improve the lives of others,” according to the Miss Universe website.

Miss Philippines Mary Jean Lastimosa fell short of her bid to win the country’s third Miss Universe title as she was able to make it as far as the Top 10. Lastimosa’s semifinals finish broke the Philippines’ string of runner-up placements that started with Venus Raj in 2010 and was followed by Shamcey Supsup, Janine Tugonon and Ariella Arida.

Lastimosa’s loss was a big letdown for Filipino pageant fans as she was considered a frontrunner in fearless forecasts leading up to the pageant’s coronation night.

In a statement furnished to Interaksyon, the Binibining Pilipinas Charities, Incorporated still congratulated the 27-year old North Cotabato native for her performance in pageant.

“Title or no title, her participation in Miss Universe’s global discussions on peace, cultural exchange and other charity initiatives has beautifully showcased the Filipina’s beauty, intellect and compassion,” the statement read.

(With a report from Agence France-Presse)

source: interaksyon.com

Philippines vs. Colombia showdown looms in Miss Universe

It sounded like Stella Marquez Araneta displayed her bias for her native country when she picked Miss Colombia Paulina Vega as the “biggest competition” of Miss Philippines Mary Jean Lastimosa in the coming 63rd Miss Universe beauty pageant.

But the observation of the controversial Binibining Pilipinas founding madam is spot-on. As pageant experts post their final predictions with only hours to go before the coronation night, Paulina, 22 and MJ, 27, could be on a collision course with destiny as both seek Miss Universe’s crowning glory to put an end to their respective countries’ title drought.

MJ hopes to become the Philippines’ third Miss Universe since Margie Moran last won the title in 1973, while Paulina is seeking to become her country’s only second Miss Universe after Luz Marina Zuluaga first won it for Colombia in 1958.

They hold the number 1 and 2 spots in Missosology’s Final Hot Picks for Miss Universe.

In choosing Paulina as their top pick, the reputable pageant analysis says Miss Colombia is “that ethereal beauty that screams royalty and class.”

“What makes Paulina stand out is her ability to project herself as an elegant woman onstage. Her beauty is also top notch and her body has the correct proportions. In overall, she is a perfect package. Her presence is undeniable and she has a very strong showing at the preliminaries.”

Missosology concedes that MJ is “in it to win it” and praised both her “divine body figure” and “top-notch catwalk”.

“She is by far the most superior among the 88 contestants when it comes to the runway and she will nail way higher scores when finals night comes,” the site added.

In the Final Prediction of Miss Universe fan site MissUniversePageant Hotspot, Paulina figured in the Top 10, but it was MJ who made the Top 5.

“Paulina seemed to stay in the limelight as a frontrunner and if we look back at the past winners, most of them weren’t frontrunners. So that can be a let-down too for her. Now, to pop the question up—it’s a YES for the placement, and NO for the crown,” the site said about Miss Colombia.

“If they didn’t crown the other four Filipinas due to lack of one or two aspects, then we guess it’s the right time for a Filipina to win…If she doesn’t place, we’ll surely cut someone’s throat. DEFINITELY YES for the placement, and she could PROBABLY snatch the crown,” the site posted about MJ.

Both girls also figured prominently in other fearless forecasts. In Ranker.com, which ranked MJ as No. 1, Paulina is No. 6.

Miss Colombia is likewise included in the unranked Top 10 of the pro-Latina Latin Times which is no surprise but MJ is also right there.

The Jamaica-based Daily Veritas also had the two ladies in their Top 16 predictions with Paulina ranked No. 2 and MJ ranked as No. 8.

Even the UK-based betting odds aggregate Nicer Odds had the two in their radar with Paulina having the second highest betting odds of 4/1 while MJ has the sixth highest likelihood of winning the pageant with a 9/1 odds.

Of course, the actual outcome of Miss Universe will still be up to the pageant’s panel of judges to determine. And as formidable as both Paulina and MJ look right now, there are other top contenders for the coveted crown, including Miss USA Nia Sanchez, Miss Brazil Melissa Gurgel, Miss Spain Desiree Cordero Ferrer and Miss Venezuela Migbelis Castellano.

Incidentally, Paulina and MJ also share one designer in common: Alfredo Barraza who, like Marquez Araneta, is of Colombian nationality. Barraza has been repeatedly slammed for his designs for Miss Philippines for years.

source: interaksyon.com

Can Ariella Arida really win Miss Universe? How pageant experts see it

Prior to the Miss Universe 2013 preliminary competition last Tuesday, Miss Philippines Ariella Arida had been tipped as the top contender for the title. Was she able to maintain and even boost that momentum after her performance in the swimsuit and evening gown competitions? Is Miss USA Erin Brady still her closest competitor in the pageant? More importantly, can she live up to her frontrunner status and win?

The UK edition of the International Business Times reported on Friday that Arida and Brady are still the top favorites to win the title according to “popularity, betting and online pools”.

In assessing why Arida has a strong chance of taking home the pageant’s Diamond Nexus Crown, the IBTimes report written by Simi John noted Arida’s “smooth ride” in the competition following her arrival in Moscow two weeks ago.

“She impressed all during the Tony Ward Couture Fashion Show, and appeared twice on the ramp in the designer’s ensemble. She was one of the five beauties, out of the 89 contestants, chosen for the television advertisement of luxury car maker Mercedes-Benz. She bagged the top prize for the photo shoot for Italian lingerie brand, Yamamay, taken by New York-based Fashion Photographer Fadil Berisha. Most recently she was one of the ten contestants who attended internationally renowned culinary expert Chef Nobu’s Moscow Demo Show,” the IBTimes wrote.

The news site did not cite as many reasons why Miss USA is a top contender for Miss Universe other than saying that Brady is the top choice of bookies according to one betting odds site, Bet365. A check with the website of betting sites aggregate Nicer Odds UK, however, revealed that Miss Philippines remain the top pick of another betting site, BetFair which gave her a 3.85 Euro odds of winning the title, way ahead of Miss USA who is ranked 6th with a 12.0 odds of winning.

A win by either Miss Philippines or Miss USA would be a history-making achievement. If Arida triumphs, the Philippines would be the first country to bag the Miss World and Miss Universe titles in a single year since India’s Aishwarya Rai Sushmita Sen achieved the rare feat back in 1994.

If Brady wins, her country would have the first back-to-back Miss Universe titleholders since erstwhile powerhouse Venezuela romped off with the crown in 2008 and 2009.

A check with the fearless forecasts and preliminary competition reports of other reputable pageant sites, however, revealed that neither Arida nor Brady are locks to win Miss Universe. Over the last few days, other strong contenders for the crown have emerged and are still gaining momentum.

One of them is Miss Ukraine Olga Storozhenko now ranked as No. 1 in the top 20 Hot Picks of Missosology.org, a site that specializes in analyzing beauty pageants. Miss Philippines is ranked No. 10 while Miss USA is not even on the list.

Storozhenko is also at the top of the site’s Top 10 evening gown picks and No. 4 in their swimsuit top 10. Arida is at No. 10 in evening gown and No. 7 in swimsuit. Again, Brady is not even on both lists.

Miss USA is also not in the Top 5 list of Prestigious Beauty Pageants dubbed as “a haven of world beauty contests news”. The site has boldly predicted that Arida will win the title followed by Miss Poland Paulina Krupinska (1st runner-up), Miss Puerto Rico Monic Perez (2nd runner-up), Miss Spain Patricia Rodriguez (3rd runner-up) and Miss Australia Olivia Wells (4th runner-up).

Brady, however, is right up there in Miss Universe Pageant Hotspot, another reputable fansite of the pageant has also posted their top 5 that names USA, Puerto Rico, Spain, Ukrainer and Philippines as the last women standing in the final reckoning.

“She can be considered as one of the dark horses. Many might have foretold her to win it all, but it’s not the case in many pageant sites. Many forumers and pageant experts have already taken her off their lists… Based on how she performed in the prelims, she’s in for the top 5. We even chose her as one of the best candidates in long gown because no one registered well on stage like the way she did,” the site posted in its justification of Miss USA’s inclusion on their prediction.

On the other hand, the site described Arida as “controversial, one of the most-talked about candidates, she’s a frontrunner, and a real standout.”

It also noted that she is riding the Philippines’ current streak, with ascending runner-up finishes of the country’s last three representatives.

“She did an outstanding performance in the preliminary competition and aced every single battle in Moscow. She deserves every single right to be in the top list. She will be there like Janine [Tugonon], Shamcey [Supsup], and Venus [Raj].”

Other candidates who are also figuring prominently in online predictions are Miss Brazil Jakelyne Oliveira, Miss India Manashi Moghe, Miss Venezuela Gabriela Isler, Miss Vietnam Truong Thi May, Miss Panama Carolina Brid and Miss France Hinarani de Longeaux.

However, it is worth noting that all these predictions could be for naught because the pageant’s coronation night on November 9 (November 10, 2AM, Manila time) at the Crocus City Hall in Moscow, Russia will be judged by a new set of judges who will presumably look at the candidates with a fresh set of eyes.

source: interaksyon.com

Miss USA crowned Miss Universe, Miss Philippines 1st runner-up

LAS VEGAS – A 20-year-old beauty queen who plays the cello and is a breast cancer advocate was crowned Miss Universe on Wednesday, the eighth time an American has won the pageant where the world’s most beautiful women parade in bikinis and ball gowns.

Olivia Culpo, 20, a brunette from Rhode Island, was chosen by a 10-judge panel from 89 contestants representing countries ranging from India to Kosovo and Britain.

Culpo, wearing a red, long-sleeved dress for her final look, was the eighth winner from the United States in the contest’s 60-year history — the sixth to win on home soil — and the first Miss USA to take the title since 1997.

Miss Philippines, 23-year-old pharmacy graduate Janine Tugonon, was the runner-up and Miss Venezuela, Irene Sofia Esser Quintero, came third after the top five answered brief questions posed by the judges.

Culpo takes the place of last year’s winner Leila Lopes, who was the first ever Miss Universe from Angola.

Miss Guatemala, Laura Godoy, was chosen Miss Congeniality after the two-hour pageant that featured live performances by U.S. pop group Train and Nigerian-born Australian singer and dancer Timomatic.

Contestants must be aged between 18 and 27, unmarried and with no children.

The contest was broadcast live on U.S. television from the Planet Hollywood hotel and casino in Las Vegas and seen by an estimated 1 billion viewers on TV and online in 190 countries, organizers said.

Culpo will travel the world for the next year representing the Miss Universe Organization and a charity of her choice.

After reaching the top five, Culpo was asked to name one thing she would never do again. “Picking on my siblings growing up,” she replied.

The contest, owned jointly by businessman Donald Trump and the NBC network, held a moment of silence for the 20 children and six staff gunned down at an elementary school in Newtown, Connecticut, on Dec. 14.

source: interaksyon.com

Ms. Philippines Janine Tugonon is first runner up in Ms. Universe 2012

Bataan native Janine Tugonon came in as first runner up in the Miss Universe pageant 2012, placing second to Miss USA.

Making up the Top 5 in the pageant held in Las Vegas, Nevada, were Venezuela, Brazil, Philippines, USA, Australia.

Fourth runner up was Ms. Brazil. Third and second runner up were Australia and Venezuela respectively.

First runner up: Philippines. Tugonon improved upon last year's second runner up placing of Shamcey Supsup. In the year previous that, Venus Raj was third runner up.

This is the seventh time in the history of the pageant that the home candidate won Miss Universe - and the sixth time for the USA to accomplish the feat.

In the question-and-answer portion, Tugonon was asked: "As international ambassador, do you believe that speaking English should be a prerequisite for Miss Universe?"

She replied, "I don't think speaking English is about speaking a specific language. Being Miss Universe is about being able to influence and inspire people, regardless of language."

An online poll may have given Miss Philippines a big boost. The contestant with the highest number of votes was rewarded with an automatic spot in the semifinals round.

Ms. China won the award for Best in National Costume.

Considered an early favorite in the race because of her extensive exposure so far in talk shows and charitable activities like the “Art for Auction” event which benefited the non-profit organization Cure 4 The Kids, Janine is also known for her now famous “cobra walk” that could lead her all the way to the Miss Universe crown.

A native of Orion, Bataan, Janine actually placed first runner-up in last year’s Binibining Pilipinas pageant which was won by Shamcey Supsup, who went on to finish third runner-up in that year’s Miss Universe competition.

Janine decided to join the Bb. Pilipinas pageant again this year, to the mixed reactions of her own family. Given that Janine once rescued her sister’s cell phone from a mugger, she is certainly not the type who easily gives up and backs down from a challenge.

Fortunately, the second time turned out to be a charm as the determination of the 23-year old Pharmacy graduate paid off when she finally won the title and the right to represent the country in this year’s Miss Universe pageant.

With the back-to-back impressive showings of Shamcey and Venus Raj who placed fourth runner-up in Miss Universe 2010, expectations were naturally high for Janine to duplicate, if not surpass, the Top 5 finishes of her two predecessors, who have also served as her mentors for this year’s tilt.

Janine was also up for two other special awards in the pageant namely Miss Congeniality (formerly called Miss Friendship) and Best National Costume where she paraded a Muslim-inspired gown.

Earlier, the Miss Photogenic title was awarded to Miss Kosovo Diana Avdiu.

source: interaksyon.com