The Miss Universe contest has been owned by Donald Trump since 1997.
The Miss Universe contest was started in 1952. The 1951 Miss America refused to wear a swimsuit made by that competition’s major sponsor, Catalina Swimwear. In retaliation, the company that owned Catalina pulled out of its sponsorship deal and started the Miss Universe competition.
The Miss Australia contest was cancelled in 2000. Australian compeitiors for the Miss Universe contest, like eventual champ Jennifer Hawkins, were picked by modelling agencies. The Miss Australia contest started up again in 2005, after Hawkins won her crown.
Only four countries have competed at every Miss Universe since it started in 1952: Canada, France, Germany, and the United States.
The Miss Universe contest explicitly bans transsexual contests.
The Miss Universe crown has 500 diamonds, 120 pearls and is valued at US $250,000.
The USA has won the most crowns (7), followed by Venezuela (6), Puerto Rico (5) and Sweden (3).
The highest score in a swimsuit competition is 9.886 by Miss Russia 2002, Oxana Fedorova.
The Miss Universe contest was held outside of the United States for the first time in 1973, when it took place in Athens.
Miss USA has missed the Miss Universe semi-finals just seven times.
Miss USA 1957, Leona Gage, was disqualified when it was found out that she was married and a mother.
Before becoming states in 1959, Alaska and Hawaii both regularly sent competitors to the contest.
Only one Miss Universe winner has died since the competition started.
Once the Miss Universe is crowned, the organization sets a maximum weight for winners. Miss Universe 1996, Alicia Machado was “officially warned” for going past the weight. Machado is also the only Miss Universe to pose for Playboy. She appeared in Mexican Playboy in 2006.|
Kosovo is the most recent nation to take part in the contest. Miss Kosovo first appeared in 2008.
No Miss Congeniality has ever won the Miss Universe crown.
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