Miss Universe 1957 was the sixth Miss Universe pageant, held at the Long Beach Municipal Auditorium in Long Beach, California, on 19 July 1957.
Gladys Zender of Peru won the contest, and was crowned by Carol Morris of the United States. Zender was the first representative of Peru to win the contest.
After her win, it was revealed that Zender was only seventeen years old, five months under the contest's minimum age requirement of eighteen. Pageant officials decided that she could keep the crown after they were told she was considered to be eighteen in her country due to an old custom explained to them by the then-Peruvian ambassador to the United States, Fernando Berckemeyer Pazos.
Contestants from thirty-two countries and territories competed in the pageant. It was hosted by Bob Russell for the sixth time.
Background
Selection of participants Contestants from thirty-two countries and territories were selected to compete in the pageant. It was the first where women who were married and had children could not compete, which in turn became the reason why one candidate was disqualified after the preliminary competition. One contestant was selected to replace the original winner.
Debuts, returns, and withdrawals This edition saw the debuts of Martinique, Morocco, and Paraguay, and the returns of Austria, Ceylon, Hawaii, and South Korea. Austria and Hawaii last competed in 1953, while Ceylon and South Korea last competed in 1955. The British Guiana, Chile, the Dominican Republic, and the United States withdrew after their respective organizations failed to hold a national competition or appoint a delegate. Corine Rottschäfer of Holland was set to compete, however she had just won another international contest that barred her entry. Rottschäfer competed the following year.
Disqualification of Miss USA Leona Gage, Miss USA 1957, was announced as one of the fifteen semi-finalists, but was removed from the contest on the afternoon before the final after it was discovered that she was married and the mother of two young children. Miss Argentina, Mónica Lamas, who was sixteenth in the preliminary competition, replaced Gage. Gage was also stripped of her Miss USA title, and was replaced by Charlotte Sheffield of Utah. Sheffield was unable to compete because the preliminary competition had already taken place. Sheffield competed at Miss World 1957, and was unplaced.
Results Placements Placement Contestant Miss Universe 1957 – Gladys Zender 1st Runner-Up – Terezinha Morango 2nd Runner-Up – Sonia Hamilton 3rd Runner-Up – María Gamio 4th Runner-Up – Gerti Daub Top 15 – Martha Lehmann Argentina – Mónica Lamas – Hannerl Melcher – Gloria Noakes Greece – Ligia Karavia Italy – Valeria Fabrizi – Kyoko Otani – Jacqueline Bonilla – Inger Jonsson – Gabriela Pascal
Special awards Award Contestant Miss Friendship – Mapita Mercado Miss Photogenic – Gerti Daub Miss Popular Girl – Gloria Noakes
Pageant Format As with 1955, fifteen semi-finalists were chosen at the preliminary competition that consisted of a swimsuit and evening gown competition. Each of the fifteen semi-finalists then gave a short speech during the final broadcast in their native language. Afterward, they paraded in their swimsuits and evening gowns, and the five finalists were chosen.
Selection committee Earl Wilson – American journalist and columnist Alberto Vargas – Peruvian-American painter known for his "Vargas Girls" Vincent Trotta – American artist Lois J. Swanson Roger Zeiler – French official from the Miss Europe Committee
Contestants
Thirty-two contestants competed for the title. Country/Territory Contestant Age Hometown Alaska 18 Fairbanks Argentina 20 Buenos Aires Austria 19 Vienna Belgium 19 Brussels Brazil 20 São Paulo de Olivença Canada 18 Toronto Ceylon 23 Colombo Costa Rica 18 San José Cuba 19 Havana Ecuador 19 Guayaquil England 23 London France 22 Argenteuil Greece 18 Athens Guatemala 18 Guatemala City Hawaii 19 Honolulu Iceland 19 Reykjavík Israel 18 Tel Aviv Italy 21 Bologna Japan 21 Tokyo Martinique 18 Fort-de-France Mexico 19 Mexico City Morocco 19 Casablanca Paraguay 19 Asunción Peru 17 Lima Philippines 21 Manila Puerto Rico 18 Santurce South Korea 21 Seoul Sweden 20 Malmö Turkey 18 Istanbul Uruguay 18 Montevideo Venezuela 20 Caracas West Germany 19 Hamburg
Notes
References
External links
Miss Universe official website