Miss Universe 1971 was the 20th Miss Universe pageant, held at the Miami Beach Auditorium in Miami Beach, Florida, on 24 July 1971.
At the conclusion of the event, Marisol Malaret of Puerto Rico crowned Georgina Rizk of Lebanon as Miss Universe 1971. It is the first victory of Lebanon in the competition.
Contestants from sixty countries and territories participated in this year's pageant. The pageant was hosted by Bob Barker in his fifth consecutive year, while June Lockhart provided commentary and analysis throughout the event. The Singing Lettermen performed in this edition.
Background Selection of participants Contestants from sixty countries and territories were selected to compete in the pageant. One candidate was selected to replace the original dethroned winner, and another was selected after another national pageant was held to replace the original winner.
Replacements Miss Virgin Islands 1971, Utha Williams, was disqualified for exceeding the age limit and was replaced by her first runner-up, Cherrie Creque. Williams was 28 years old at the time of the competition.
Miss Italy 1970, Alda Balestra, was supposed to represent her country in this edition. However, Enzo Mirigliani, the organizer of Miss Italia, decided not to send her to the competition, expressing concerns that American judges often overlooked Italian contestants. As a result, a separate competition was quickly arranged by Mario Pedretti to select a new representative for Miss Universe, ultimately won by Mara Palvarini.
Palvarini was shocked to discover that the Miss Universe competition had a policy prohibiting married women from participating. Consequently, on her wedding day, just three days after winning the title of Miss Italia Universo, Palvarini decided to postpone her wedding to compete in Miss Universe in Miami. Her fiancé fully supported her decision to participate in the event.
Returns and withdrawals This edition saw the returns of Trinidad and Tobago which last competed in 1966, the United States Virgin Islands which last competed in 1968, and Thailand which last competed in 1969.
Miroslava Jancíková of Czechoslovakia withdrew after the Czechoslovak government banned beauty pageants in their country. Dorrit Weinrich withdrew due to feminist actions in her country. Marite Tomassone of Paraguay withdrew after a few days in Miami for undisclosed reasons. Ceylon, Chile, and Hong Kong after their respective organizations failed to hold a national competition or appoint a delegate.
Results
Placements Placement Contestant Miss Universe 1971 – Georgina Rizk 1st Runner-Up – Toni Rayward 2nd Runner-Up – Pirjo Laitila 3rd Runner-Up – Beba Franco 4th Runner-Up – Eliane Guimarães Top 12 – Marilyn Ward – Myriam Stocco – Ester Orgad – Shigeko Taketomi – Josefina Román – Michele McDonald – Cherrie Creque
Special awards AwardContestant(s)Miss Amity – Magnolia MartínezMiss Photogenic – Vida DoriaBest National Costume – María Luisa LópezTop 10 Best in Swimsuit – Toni Rayward – Eliane Guimarães – Marilyn Ward – Pirjo Laitila – Ester Orgad – Shigeko Taketomi – Georgina Rizk – Beba Franco – Michele McDonald – Cherrie Creque
Pageant
Format Several changes were implemented in this edition. The number of semi-finalists was reduced to twelve compared to fifteen in previous years. The results of the preliminary competition and the closed-door interview determined the twelve semi-finalists selected. The twelve semi-finalists participated in the casual interview, swimsuit, and evening gown competitions. From twelve, five finalists were shortlisted to advance to the final interview.
Selection committee
Margareta Arvidsson – Miss Universe 1966 from Sweden Eileen Ford – American model and founder of Ford Models George Fowler – American lawyer; former New York State Commissioner for Human Rights Yousuf Karsh – Armenian-Canadian photographer Jean-Louis Lindekens – Belgian columnist Dong Kingman – Chinese-American painter Line Renaud – French actress and singer Edilson Cid Varela – Brazilian journalist Itsuro Watanabe – President of the Japan-America Association Earl Wilson – American columnist and journalist
Contestants Sixty contestants competed for the title. Country/TerritoryContestantAgeHometown ArgentinaMaría del Carmen Vidal21Santa Fe ArubaVallita Maduro19Santa Cruz AustraliaToni Rayward19Sydney AustriaEdeltraud Neubauer18Vienna BahamasMuriel Rahming24Nassau BelgiumMartine de Hert18Antwerp BermudaRene Furbert20Paget Parish BoliviaAna María Landívar18Sucre BrazilEliane Guimarães21Mariana CanadaLana Drouillard20Ancaster ColombiaPiedad Mejía23Manizales Costa RicaRosa María Rivera18San José CuraçaoMaria Vonhogen19Willemstad Democratic Republic of the CongoMartine Mualuke19Kinshasa Dominican RepublicSagrario Reyes20El Seibo EcuadorXimena Moreno18Quito EnglandMarilyn Ward21Hampshire FinlandPirjo Laitila20Helsinki FranceMyriam Stocco20Languedoc-Roussillon GreeceAngela Carayanni18Athens GuamLinda Avila18Mangilao HollandLaura Mulder-Snid18Amsterdam HondurasDunia Ortega19Santa Bárbara IcelandGuðrún Valgarðsdóttir18Skagafjörður IndiaRaj Gill21Dhule IrelandMarie Hughes22Dublin IsraelEster Orgod19Eilat ItalyMara Palvarini20Mantua JamaicaSuzette Wright19Clarendon JapanShigeko Taketomi21Tokyo LebanonGeorgina Rizk18Beirut LuxembourgMariette Francoise Fay18Mersch MalaysiaYvette Maria Bateman21Terengganu MaltaFelicity Carbott19Valletta MexicoMaría Luisa López21Mexico City New ZealandLinda Ritchie21Rotorua NicaraguaXiomara Paguaga20Managua NorwayRuby Reitan23Oslo PanamaGladys Isaza18Panama City PeruMagnolia Martínez24Lima PhilippinesVida Valentina Doria20Binmaley PortugalMaria Celmira Bauleth18Portuguese Angola Puerto RicoBeba Franco24San Juan ScotlandElizabeth Montgomery18Ayr SingaporeJenny Wong23Singapore South KoreaMi-ae Noh19Seoul SpainJosefina Román24Cádiz SurinameMarcelle Darou19Paramaribo SwedenVivian Oihanen20VaxholmAnita Andrini19Ticino ThailandWarunee Sangsirinavin19Bangkok Trinidad and TobagoSally Karamath22San Fernando TunisiaAida Mzali18Tunis TurkeyFiliz Vural18Istanbul United StatesMichele McDonald19Butler United States Virgin IslandsCherrie Creque20Saint Croix UruguayAlba Techira19Montevideo VenezuelaJeannette Donzella18Monagas WalesDawn Cater19Cardiff West GermanyVera Kirst22Bavaria
Notes
References
External links
Official website