Miss Universe 1955

Miss Universe 1955 was the fourth Miss Universe pageant, held at the Long Beach Municipal Auditorium in Long Beach, California, United States on 22 July 1955.[1] This is the first time that the pageant was televised.

Miss Universe 1955
Hillevi Rombin
Date22 July 1955 (1955-07-22)
PresentersBob Russell
VenueLong Beach Municipal Auditorium, Long Beach, California, United States
BroadcasterCBS
Entrants33
Placements15
Debuts
  • Ceylon
  • Ecuador
  • England
  • Guatemala
  • Lebanon
  • Nicaragua
Withdrawals
  • Australia
  • Hong Kong
  • New Zealand
  • Panama
  • Peru
  • Singapore
  • Thailand
Returns
  • Venezuela
WinnerHillevi Rombin
 Sweden
CongenialityMaribel Arrieta
 El Salvador

At the end of the event, Miriam Stevenson of the United States crowned Hillevi Rombin of the Sweden as Miss Universe 1955.[2] It is the first victory of Sweden in the history of the pageant.[3]

Contestants from thirty-three countries and territories competed in this edition. The pageant was hosted by Bob Russell.

Background
Long Beach Municipal Auditorium, the venue of Miss Universe 1955

Selection of participants

Contestants from thirty-three countries and territories were selected to compete in the pageant. The age requirement in this edition is still from eighteen to twenty-eight, where women who are married and have children can also participate.[4]

Debuts, returns, and withdrawals

The 1955 edition saw the debuts of Ceylon, Ecuador, England, Guatemala, Lebanon, and Nicaragua, and the return of Venezuela who last competed in 1953.[5] Australia, Hong Kong, New Zealand, Panama, Peru, Singapore, and Thailand withdrew after their respective organizations failed to hold a national competition or appoint a delegate.

Expected to compete are Karin Rasmussen of Denmark, Gladir Leopardi of Egypt, Angelina Kalkhoven of Holland, and Suna Soley of Turkey. However, these women withdrew due to undisclosed reasons.[6]

Results
Miss Universe 1955 and her court (from left to right): Margit Nünke, Maribel Arrieta, Maureen Hingert, and Keiko Takahashi.

Placements
Placement Contestant
Miss Universe 1955
1st runner-up
2nd runner-up
3rd runner-up
4th runner-up
Top 15

Special awards
Award Contestant
Miss Friendship
Miss Popular Girl
Best Dressed Girl

Pageant

Format

From sixteen in the previous edition, fifteen semi-finalists were chosen at the preliminary competition that consists of the swimsuit and evening gown competition. Each of the fifteen semi-finalists gave a short speech during the final telecast using their native languages. Afterwards, the fifteen semi-finalists paraded again in their swimsuits and evening gowns, and the five finalists were eventually chosen.

Selection committee
  • Myrna Hansen – Miss USA 1953 from Illinois[8]

Contestants
Miss Universe 1955 participating countries and territories

Thirty-three contestants competed for the title.[9]

Country/Territory Contestant Age[lower-alpha 1] Hometown
Alaska Alaska Lorna McLeod[10] 22 Fairbanks
 Argentina Isabel Sarli[11] 25 Buenos Aires
 Belgium Nicole De Mayer[12] 19 Ghent
 Brazil Emília Barreto[13] 21 Fortaleza
Canada Canada Cathy Diggles[14] 20 Toronto
 Ceylon Maureen Hingert[15] 18 Colombo
 Chile Rosa Merello[16] 18 Santiago
 Costa Rica Clemencia Martínez 22 San José
 Cuba Gilda Marín[17] 26 Havana
 Ecuador Leonor Carcache[18] 21 Guayaquil
 El Salvador Maribel Arrieta[19] 19 San Salvador
 England Margaret Rowe[20] 19 London
 Finland Sirkku Talja[21] 19 Helsinki
 France Claude Petit[22] 18 Aulnay-sous-Bois
 Germany Margit Nünke[23] 24 Cologne
 Greece Sonia Zoidou[24] 18 Athens
 Guatemala María del Rosario Molina[21] 18 Guatemala City
 Honduras Pastora Pagán[25] 18 San Pedro Sula
 Israel Ilana Carmel[26] 19 Bat Yam
 Italy Elena Fancera[27] 20 Rome
 Japan Keiko Takahashi[28] 20 Tokyo
 Lebanon Hanya Beydoun[18] 18 Beirut
 Mexico Yolanda Mayen[29] 18 Tijuana
 Nicaragua Rosa Argentina Lacayo[30] 19 Managua
 Norway Solveig Borstad[31] 23 Oslo
 Philippines Yvonne de los Reyes[32] 19 Manila
 Puerto Rico Carmen Laura Betancourt 20 Rio Piedras
 South Korea Kim Mee-chong[33] 22 Busan
 Sweden Hillevi Rombin[10] 21 Uppsala
 United States Carlene King Johnson[34] 22 Rutland
 Uruguay Inge Hoffmann[35] 19 Montevideo
 Venezuela Susana Duijm[36] 18 Caracas
 West Indies Noreen Campbell 18 Port of Spain

Notes
  1. Ages at the time of the pageant

References
  1. "'Miss Universe' crowned tonight". The Pittsburgh Press. 22 July 1955. p. 1. Retrieved 18 July 2023 – via Google News Archive.
  2. "They're favored in Miss Universe Contest". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. 23 July 1955. p. 3. Retrieved 28 July 2023 – via Google News Archive.
  3. Mosby, Aline (23 July 1955). "Swedish beauty wins "Miss Universe" title". The Pittsburgh Press. p. 1. Retrieved 14 May 2023 – via Google News Archive.
  4. Williams, Vera (23 March 1952). "Pageant of Pulchritude". Long Beach Press-Telegram. p. 50. Retrieved 7 July 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. "Miss Ceylon is Dutch". The Straits Times. 27 June 1955. p. 2. Retrieved 18 July 2023 – via National Library Board.
  6. "Miss Holland trok aller aandacht" [Miss Holland attracted everyone's attention]. De Telegraaf (in Dutch). 1 June 1955. p. 3. Retrieved 18 July 2023 – via Delpher.
  7. "Finalists". The Logan Daily News. 23 July 1955. p. 1. Retrieved 14 May 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. Bacon, James (23 July 1955). "Judges pick Swedish beauty for '55 Miss Universe title". The Day. p. 1. Retrieved 25 July 2023 – via Google News Archive.
  9. "Here's official list of Miss Universe charmers". Long Beach Press-Telegram. Long Beach, California. 17 July 1955. p. 8. Retrieved 14 May 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. "First "Universe" aspirants named". Fairbanks Daily News-Miner. 19 May 1955. p. 1. Retrieved 18 July 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. "Beauty seeking guy who bathes". Daily News. New York, New York. 12 July 1955. p. 269. Retrieved 26 July 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. "It might be sex appeal, Sonia says". The Singapore Free Press. 12 July 1955. p. 3. Retrieved 26 July 2023 – via National Library Board.
  13. "Corpo de ex-miss Brasil Emília Barreto vai ser cremado neste sábado no Rio". G1 (in Brazilian Portuguese). 4 February 2022. Retrieved 28 July 2023.
  14. "43 Miss United States candidates start prancing for judges tonight". Panama American. 20 July 1955. p. 10. Retrieved 28 July 2023 – via Digital Library of the Caribbean.
  15. "Ceylonese beau-tea". The News-Dispatch. 14 July 1955. p. 10. Retrieved 19 July 2023 – via Google News Archive.
  16. "Two are lucky". The Daily News. Perth, Australia. 19 July 1955. p. 3. Retrieved 28 July 2023 – via Trove.
  17. "Filmará en México la Señorita Cuba 1955, se dijo" [Miss Cuba 1955 will be filmed in Mexico, they said]. La Opinion (in Spanish). 5 September 1955. p. 4. Retrieved 25 August 2023 – via Google News Archive.
  18. "US and foreign beauties in California for Miss Universe contest". Youngstown Vindicator. 15 July 1955. p. 17. Retrieved 25 August 2023 – via Google News Archive.
  19. Vargas, Andrew S. (8 November 2016). "Remembering Maribel Arrieta, the "Salvadoran Marilyn Monroe" Who Turned Down Hollywood". Remezcla. Retrieved 25 August 2023.
  20. "Miss England and Sweden favoured". The Singapore Free Press. 23 July 1955. p. 3. Retrieved 25 August 2023 – via National Library Board.
  21. "Beauty queens wilt". The Central Queensland Herald. 21 July 1955. p. 31. Retrieved 25 August 2023 – via Trove.
  22. "Here come the tears". The Daily News. 28 June 1955. p. 3. Retrieved 25 August 2023 – via Trove.
  23. "Feuilleton Kompakt" [Feuilleton Compact]. Die Welt (in German). 26 February 2015. Archived from the original on 4 June 2018. Retrieved 25 August 2023.
  24. "Life's darkest hour; she has to go home". The Los Angeles Times. 18 December 1955. p. 165. Retrieved 19 July 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  25. Gámez, Sabino (20 August 2010). "Pastora Pagán, 55 años después de la hazaña" [Pastora Pagán, 55 years after the feat]. La Prensa (in Spanish). Retrieved 25 August 2023.
  26. "Miss Israel gets 29 marriage bids". ⁨⁨The American Jewish World. 9 September 1955. p. 1. Retrieved 25 August 2023 – via National Library of Israel.
  27. "Italy's choice". Daily Press. 8 July 1955. p. 16. Retrieved 25 August 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  28. "Asian misses just miss". The Straits Times. 24 July 1955. p. 1. Retrieved 25 August 2023 – via National Library Board.
  29. ""Miss Universe" beauties on Western film lot". The Enid Daily Eagle. 19 July 1955. p. 14. Retrieved 25 August 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  30. Mendoza, Tammy Zoad (13 January 2013). "La primera Miss Nicaragua" [The first Miss Nicaragua]. La Prensa (in Spanish). Retrieved 25 August 2023.
  31. "Our secrets–by beauties". The Singapore Free Press. 21 July 1955. p. 3. Retrieved 25 August 2023 – via National Library Board.
  32. Lo, Ricky (12 February 2010). "Misses RP for Miss U pageant, 1952-'63". Philippine Star. Retrieved 11 May 2023.
  33. "Meet Miss Korea, 1955". The Daily News. 22 June 1955. p. 7. Retrieved 25 August 2023 – via Trove.
  34. Bacon, James (21 July 1955). "Miss Vermont named Miss U.S.A." The Boston Globe. p. 1. Retrieved 14 May 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  35. "Miss Uruguay cut down to size". The Daily News. 15 July 1955. p. 1. Retrieved 25 August 2023 – via Trove.
  36. Roterman, Natalie (19 June 2016). "Susana Duijm Dead: First Latina To Ever Win Miss Mundo Passes At 79". Latin Times. Retrieved 25 August 2023.
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