QUESTION: What would have happened if Miss Teen USA 1998, Vanessa Minnillo would have competed in the Miss USA system? Would she have won Miss USA?
Our experts responded in unison..."Well, duh?!" They all believed that Vanessa would not have only won Miss USA, but Miss Universe as well. It is rare to have a complete package when it comes to a pageant contestant. When they do, they normally take it all. Vanessa has the beauty, the brains, the charm and a knock-out body on top of it all.
This rare and exotic beauty hails from one of the most pageant-craze countries in the world, the Philippines. Can you imagine what would have happened if Vanessa did not immigrate to the United States and decided to compete for Binibining Pilipinas? Oh my goodness, the endless possibilities, the endless "what ifs?"
Beauties of Asian decent didn't do very well at Miss USA until Mae Shanley in 1984. Mae, who is part Korean broke that barrier and opened the door for other Asian beauties like Brooke Lee, who won the title in 1997 and continued on to win Miss Universe.
"You should have tried Miss USA, Vanessa!"
COULDA
QUESTION: What could have happened if Miss Colombia in 1992, 1993 & 1994 won the Miss Universe titles successively?
Our experts say that this would have elevated Colombia to a new level in pagentry. No country has ever won back to back, let alone 3 times in a row. India and Venezuela came close in 1995 and 1997 respectively.
Colombian women are a definite force
SHOULDA
QUESTION: Do you think that Alicia Machado should not have been allowed to continue her reign because she gained weight?
Our experts responded an overwhleming NO! Donald Trump did the right thing and allowed her to finish her reign.
But our experts disagreed on how Alicia handled herself in the midst of all the controversy. Just look at how she acted during the 1997 Miss Universe telecast...how she couldn't wait to leave her post as Miss Universe that she literally just slapped that crown on Brooke's head and walked away without even checking if the crown would have stayed in place.
That was a real sad ending to what should have been a wonderful year in Alicia's life. She was our bet for the Miss Universe crown the minute she won the Miss Venezuela title, representing Yaracuy.
She was fresh, charming and NOT your typical Venezuelan beauty. She just exuded confidence during the competition in Las Vegas and she was the crowd favorite. There was no doubt that she had that title from day one.
Our experts still believe that Alicia is one of the most beautiful Miss Universe winners of all time. However, they wished that things would have turned out different at the end.
Oh well, you're still beautiful, Alicia! You deserved that crown!
JANUARY 2009
WOULDA COULDA SHOULDA
A look at past pageant contestants and winners and explore the possibilities of...
WHAT WOULD HAVE HAPPENED?
WHAT COULD HAVE HAPPENED?
WHAT SHOULD HAVE HAPPENED?
to be reconed with in the world of pageants. However, as successful as they have been in other pageants, they've yet to win another Miss Universe title after Luz Marina Zuluaga, who won it in 1958. In the 90's, Colombia produced some of the most beautiful and talented contestants in the Miss Universe Pageant but still failed to nab the crown.
Our experts went back to their "it's all about timing" theory. Let's revisit some of these note-worthy Colombian contenders. 1990, Lizeth Mahecha, should have won the crown if it wasn't for that stupid interpreter that needed an interpreter. 1992, Paola Turbay Gomez, if competed the year before, would have given Lupita Jones a run for her money. 1993, Paula Andrea Betancur, if competed in 1995, would have given Chelsi Smith a run for her money. 1994, Carolina Gomez Correa, if competed in 1997, would have given Brooke Lee a run for her money.
Since Colombia declared Luz Marina Zuluaga tax free for life when she won Miss Universe in 1958, that would not have been a really good idea in the 90's. Can you imagine if all of these women won the Miss Universe title? It would have bankrupt Colombia all together!
