The Big Four consists of the four major international beauty pageants for women - Miss World, Miss Universe, Miss International and Miss Earth. The group was first described by the China Daily newspaper in 2004 as "the world's four major beauty contests", and the Chosun Ilbo newspaper in 2010 described them as "the world's top four beauty pageants".
Video Big Four international beauty pageants
The Big Four pageants
The Wall Street Journal, BBC News, and global news agencies such as Reuters, Agence France-Presse, collectively refer to the four major pageants as "Big Four" namely:
- Miss World is the oldest existing major international beauty pageant. It was created in the United Kingdom by Eric Morley in 1951. Since his death in 2000, Morley's wife, Julia Morley, co-chairs the pageant.
- Miss Universe is an annual international beauty contest that is run by the Miss Universe Organization. The contest was founded in 1952 by California clothing company Pacific Mills. The pageant became part of Kayser-Roth and then Gulf+Western Industries, before being acquired by Donald Trump in 1996 and is currently owned by WME/IMG.
- Miss International, also called "Miss International Beauty". The contestants are expected to serve as "Ambassadors of Peace and Beauty", showing tenderness, benevolence, friendship, beauty, intelligence, ability to take action, and great international sensibility. The ultimate goal of the Miss International beauty pageant is to promote world peace, goodwill, and understanding.
- Miss Earth is an annual pageant organised by Philippine-based Carousel Productions through the Miss Earth Foundation. The non-profit organization aims to promote awareness levels and knowledge on current environmental issues and what actions can be done by power of broadcasting and other media campaigns globally where the annual winners are expected to spend a year delivering talks to schools and other organizations and work on projects with other institutions, including Greenpeace, World Wildlife Foundation, and United Nations Environment Program.
Most victorious countries
The first country to win all four major international pageant titles was Brazil, when it won Miss Earth 2004. Brazil has won two Miss Universe crowns, two Miss Earth crowns, one Miss World crown, and one Miss International crown.
In winning Miss Earth 2005, Venezuela became the second country to win titles for each of the Big Four pageants. It has produced seven Miss Universe titles, seven Miss International titles, six Miss World titles, and two Miss Earth titles. By winning Miss Earth 2013, Venezuela became the first country to win all four pageants multiple times.
After winning Miss World 2013, the Philippines was the third country to win all titles of the Big Four pageants. The Philippines currently has six Miss International crowns, four Miss Earth crowns, three Miss Universe crowns, and one Miss World crown. By winning Miss World 2013, Miss International 2013, Miss Earth 2014, Miss Earth 2015, and Miss Universe 2015, the Philippines became the fastest country to win all four major titles by achieving the feat in a span of only three calendar years. The country continued its streak after winning Miss International 2016 and Miss Earth 2017.
The following countries have won all the titles of the Big Four pageants:
Longest streak of wins
The Philippines currently holds the longest streak of winning at least one title in a year in the Big Four pageant titles with wins in five consecutive years from 2013 to 2017 (Miss World 2013 and Miss International 2013, Miss Earth 2014, Miss Universe 2015 and Miss Earth 2015, Miss International 2016, Miss Earth 2017). This is followed by Venezuela's wins in four consecutive years from 2008 to 2011 (Miss Universe 2008, Miss Universe 2009, Miss International 2010, Miss World 2011).
Multiple wins in the same year
France became the first nation in the world to win at least 2 of the Big 4 beauty pageant titles in the same year, winning in 1953 (Miss Universe and World), followed by Brazil in 1968 (Miss Universe and Miss International), Australia in 1972 ( Miss Universe and Miss World), Venezuela in 1981 (Miss Universe and Miss World) as well as in 2013 (Miss Universe and Miss Earth), India in 1994 and 2000 (Miss Universe and Miss World), Ecuador in 2011 (Miss International and Miss Earth); and the Philippines in 2013 (Miss World and Miss International) and 2015 (Miss Universe and Miss Earth).
Back-to-back wins
In Miss World, three back-to-back victories have been recorded. In its first two editions, Sweden recorded back-to-back with Kiki Hakansson and May-Louise Flodin in Miss World 1951 and Miss World 1952, respectively. United Kingdom contestants Ann Sidney and Lesley Langley duplicated this feat in Miss World 1964 and Miss World 1965, respectively, in London. The most recent back-to-back Miss World victories came from India, with Yukta Mookhey in Miss World 1999 and Priyanka Chopra in Miss World 2000 edition.
In Miss Universe, Venezuela became the first country to win back-to-back in Miss Universe 2008 and Miss Universe 2009. StefanÃa Fernandez won the Miss Universe 2009 title in which Venezuela earned a Guinness World Records to have the first Miss Universe winner succeeded by her compatriot, Miss Universe 2008 Dayana Mendoza.
In Miss Earth, the victory of Angelia Ong in Miss Earth 2015 in Austria, succeeding Jamie Herrell, Miss Earth 2014 made the Philippines the first country to win back-to-back in the Miss Earth pageant.
Maps Big Four international beauty pageants
Dethronements and resignations
The Miss World pageant has experienced 3 cases of dethronement or resignation instances:
- In 1973, Marjorie Wallace from the United States, who was crowned Miss World and once stated that "as Miss World I can get laid with any man I pick", was dethroned of her title for dating a string of celebrities including George Best. Photographs of her also emerged with the married singer Tom Jones in Las Vegas and kissing him in Barbados, which prompted Miss World organizers to dethrone her just 104 days after she was crowned.
- After being crowned Miss Wales and then Miss United Kingdom, Helen Morgan, competed and won Miss World 1974. However she was discovered to be an unwed mother of an 18-month-old boy. While there had been a rule in Miss World since 1958 that married women are not allowed to enter the pageant, there was nothing in 1974 to prevent women with children from taking part in the beauty contest. As negative publicity emerged, the Miss World organizers offered Morgan to resign but she would be allowed to keep half the guaranteed earnings she would have made during her year long reign, but she refused the deal. Then she was cited in a divorce papers by a married former Cardiff nightclub manager for having an affair; this prompted Morgan to accept the deal of the Miss World organizers and became the first Miss World to resign four days after she was crowned. She was replaced by first runner-up of South Africa, Anneline Kriel.
- Gabriela Brum of Germany had the shortest reign in Miss World history when she resigned her title just 18 hours after being crowned Miss World 1980. She indicated that her boyfriend disapproved of the contest, but it later revealed that she had posed for naked photographs; she later relocated to the United States and modelled nude for Playboy. Second place Kimberley Santos of Guam replaced Brum by default.
In Miss Universe, Oxana Fedorova of Russia was crowned Miss Universe 2002 and was dethroned 4 months later as she was unable to fulfill her obligations. She was the first to be dethroned in the history of Miss Universe. She was replaced by first runner-up Justine Pasek of Panama. In its early years, there were only 2 instances where the reigning Miss Universe opted to resign from her position: Armi Kuusela, Miss Universe 1952 from Finland, who held the distinction of being the first Miss Universe winner gave up her crown in less than a year to marry Filipino businessman Virgilio Hilario while Amparo Munoz, Miss Universe 1974 of Spain refused to travel to Japan and instead resigned after six months of her reign. However, since the pageant had no concrete rule on resignation at that time, they were allowed to keep their titles.
In Miss Earth, the 2002 winner, Dzejla Glavovic of Bosnia and Herzegovina was dethroned of her crown six months into her reign, after she failed to show up at several environmental events. According to Carousel Productions, organizer of the Miss Earth contest, Glavovic was dethroned because of "her inability to fulfill the duties and responsibilities as the Miss Earth titleholder, in accordance with the rules and regulations set forth in the Miss Earth contract that she signed." She was succeeded by first runner-up Winfred Omwakwe of Kenya as Miss Earth 2002.
In Miss International, Ikumi Yoshimatsu, Miss International 2012 was the first titleholder of the pageant from Japan to be dethroned shortly before the end of her reign. She was ordered by The International Culture Association (Miss International organizer) to skip the succession ceremony and "play sick and shut up" out of fear of scandal. The Miss International organizer cited the reason for her dethronement was due to her involvement in a contract dispute with a talent agency in which she claimed that she was pressured to sign by Burning Productions, a film production company which is rumored to be linked with the Japanese underworld, but she refused and went ahead by starting her own company. Yoshimatsu then filed criminal charges against one of Japan's most powerful talent agency executives, Genichi Taniguchi of Burning Productions, for allegedly stalking, intimidating, and harassing her. Instead of crowning her successor (who would be Bea Rose Santiago of the Philippines), Miss International 2008 Alejandra Andreu of Spain, who was also part of the panel of judges formally took over the duty of crowning.
Big Four pageant winners by year
See also
- List of beauty pageants
References
External links
- Miss World country participation lists
- Miss Universe country participation lists
- Miss International country participation lists
- Miss Earth country participation lists
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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