Marjorie Wallace

For the writer and charity worker, see Marjorie Wallace (SANE).

Marjorie Wallace (born 23 January 1954) is an American model, actress, beauty queen and television presenter. In 1973, Wallace made history as the first American to be crowned Miss World. But just 104 days later, pageant officials stunned the UK when they announced Wallace would be the first Miss World to have her title taken from her. Years later, Wallace helped launch the groundbreaking American syndicated showbiz TV program Entertainment Tonight as an original co-host.

Early life

Wallace was born in Indianapolis, Indiana, where her family ran an industrial supply business and raised her in the suburbs, she told People magazine. With a population of about 740,000 in 1970, "dancing at the Holiday Inn was the biggest thing in town," she joked.

When she was 14, her parents divorced and Wallace was already showing her wild side, People reported. Once she suddenly took off with a girlfriend on a 1,200-mile roadtrip to Miami, Florida. But her teen years also included typical high school pursuits -- such as competitive swimming and cheerleading, according to the magazine. Men began to play a larger role in her life. At age 17 she found herself smitten enough to move in with a guitarist in the Indy rock band "Pure Funk."^[1]

"My mother always says that if I ever have a daughter, I deserve to have one like myself," she told People in 1976. ^[2]

Wallace also began traveling the 180 miles between Indianapolis and Chicago, Illinois, to work as a model. A modeling agent pushed her to enter the Miss Indiana World and Miss World USA beauty pageants, which she won, opening the door to the 1973 Miss World contest in London. ^[3]

Wallace's decision to compete in the London pageant triggered a series of life-changing tragedies during the following year, which would be marked by disappointment, death and a serious overdose of drugs.

The world stage

On November 23, 1973, Wallace defeated 53 competitors at Royal Albert Hall as the first American to be crowned Miss World.

During her time in the UK, the British tabloids were full of reports and photos describing Wallace's dates with a string of celebrities including Tom Jones, Northern Irish soccer star George Best, and American Indianapolis 500 and Formula One driver Peter Revson, with whom she was reportedly engaged to be married. According to People, this violated Wallace's Miss World contract, which prompted pageant authorities to take away her title on March 7, 1974. ^[4] Contest officials announced Wallace "had failed to fulfill the basic requirements of the job." ^[5]

First runner-up, Evangeline Pascual of the Philippines was not offered the title but only the winner's official duties. The second runner-up, Patricia Teresa Yuen Leung of Jamaica accepted the offer to complete the Miss World duties without being officially crowned as Miss World. Pageant officials would later say that a decision was made by the Miss World organization to not offer the title to any of the runners-up. ^[6]

Personal loss

Only 15 days after Wallace was stripped of her crown, Revson was killed in a fiery crash while practicing for the South African Grand Prix. Revson was exiting a turn at more than 110 mph when his car “shot off” the track, “flipped end-over-end and burst into flames,” the Associated Press reported. The vehicle “was still burning when we turned it over and lifted him out,” famed British driver Graham Hill — who would die in November the next year while piloting a small airplane — told AP. “… we managed to keep the flames … away from Revson while we got him out.” ^[7] He died en route to a hospital, according to People. Revson was wearing a gold locket Wallace had given him, People reported. The locket was engraved, “If not for you ..." ^[8]

Wallace attended Revson's closed-casket funeral at Manhattan’s Unitarian Church of All Souls. The event was attended by about 350 people including 1972 Indy 500 champion Mark Donohue, who would also die in a racing crash the next year. ^[9]

Overdose

Less than three months later, Wallace was rushed to St. Vincent Indianapolis Hospital after Wallace's sister Nancy found her in her apartment unconscious, apparently the victim of an overdose of the sleeping pill doriden, according the AP. One doctor told the AP Wallace was “comatose, and in pretty bad shape.” Doctors put her on a dialysis machine to clear her kidneys, the AP reported. ^[10]

“She might have felt like she couldn’t go on,” Wallace's mother was quoted by Alabama’s Florence Times Daily. ^[11]

Despite her mother's speculation, Wallace told People two years later, "I was depressed and OD'd on a few too many sleeping pills. I never attempted suicide." ^[12]

TV career

After the overdose, life appeared to improve for the troubled beauty queen. According to imdb.com, Wallace won TV acting roles on some of the top shows of the 1970s, including Baretta with Robert Blake and Get Christie Love! with Teresa Graves. Wallace also appeared as a panelist on the smash daytime TV game show, Match Game 73. ^[13]

By 1976, Wallace was back in the news in a celebrity romance. She moved into the Los Angeles apartment of eight-time Grand-Slam tennis champ Jimmy Connors following the destruction of his high-profile relationship with 18-time Grand-Slam winner Chris Evert, according to the Miami News.

“Marji (sic) and I don’t even have to talk to each other if we don’t feel like it,” Connors reportedly said. “But I feel I have found someone to share the things I like, and that makes it all worthwhile.” Connors, Wallace said, was “a fantastic person. A very different person off the court.” ^[14]

The relationship with the tennis star didn't last long. After the breakup, Wallace moved to New York where she auditioned for TV sportscasting positions with ABC and CBS, according to People. She also appeared in TV commercials for Ultra Brite toothpaste, Wella products and American Express. ^[15]

In the summer of '77 Marjorie met film producer Michael Klein at a Beverly Hills party, People reported. They didn't hit it off at the beginning. Wallace told the magazine, "I thought, 'Here is the epitome of the kind of guy I can't stand—a guy who dates a new girl every three days.'"

People quoted Klein saying he was turned off by Wallace's fur coat, red boots and heavy makeup. "She looked like a magazine cover, and I had no interest in going out with a magazine cover," Klein told People. ^[16]

By May 1978 they were wed. Parade magazine reported Klein's father was Eugene V. Klein, owner of the NFL's San Diego Chargers. The marriage yielded a son named Adam. ^[17]

Entertainment Tonight

Then — in 1981 — came what could have been a life-changing career break. Wallace was tapped to co-anchor a new 30-minute syndicated showbiz TV show based in Hollywood called Entertainment Tonight.

ET eventually would change how TV reported the entertainment industry and it would create success for future hosts such as John Tesh, Maria Menounos and Mary Hart. Wallace was not destined to be one of those names. Just months after ET's debut, producers decided to make a change, offering Wallace a reporter position on the program, which she declined.

In 1982, Wallace's marriage with Klein ended in divorce. Soon after, newspapers reported she was dating Richard Cohen, the then-estranged husband of Tina Sinatra. ^[18]

Notes

1. ^ Smilgis, Martha. Marjie & Her Men. People magazine, November 22, 1976, p. 34, line 44. Accessed September 2, 2011.
2. ^ Smilgis, Martha. "Margie & Her Men." People magazine, November 22, 1976, p 34, line 33. Accessed September 2, 2011.
3. ^ Smilgis, Martha. Marjie & Her Men. People magazine, November 22, 1976, p. 32, line 26. Accessed September 2, 2011.
4. ^ Smilgis, Martha. "Margie & Her Men." People magazine, November 22, 1976, p 34, line 10. Accessed September 2, 2011.
5. ^ Associated Press. "Britons Dethrone Indianapolis Girl as 'Miss World'". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, March 8, 1974, p. 4, line 8. Accessed September 2, 2011.
6. ^ pageantopolis.com. Accessed September 2, 2011.
7. ^ Associated Press. "The Lakeland Ledger," Lakeland, Florida, Racing Great Revson Killed March 23, 1974, p. 1B. Accessed September 1, 2011.
8. ^ "'The Last Race for Peter Revson". People magazine, April 8, 1974, p. 11. line 46. Accessed September 2, 2011.
9. ^ United Press International. "The Bryan Times," Bryan, Ohio, "Revson Rites Are Held," March 29, 1974, p. 10. Accessed September 1, 2011
10. ^ Associated Press. Ex-Beauty Queen Suffers Overdose. "St. Petersburg Independent," St. Petersburg, Florida, June 5, 1974, p. 24A. Accessed September 1, 2011.
11. ^ Knight, Ben. Another Fad Arrives on Scene". "The Times Daily," Florence, Alabama, June 11, 1974, p. 4. Accessed September 1, 2011
12. ^ Smilgis, Martha. Marjie & Her Men. People magazine, November 22, 1976, p. 34, line 22. Accessed September 2, 2011.
13. ^ Internet Movie Database. Accessed September 1, 2011
14. ^ Merkin, Robert. Jimmy's a Big Boy Now,. The Miami News, June 25, 1976, p. 1B. Accessed September 1, 2011.
15. ^ Smilgis, Martha. Playgirl Marjie Wallace Meets Playboy Michael Klein. People magazine, January 29, 1979, Vol. 11. No. 4. Accessed September 1, 2011.
16. ^ Smilgis, Martha. Playgirl Marjie Wallace Meets Playboy Michael Klein. People magazine, January 29, 1979, Vol. 11. No. 4. Accessed September 1, 2011.
17. ^ Scott, Walter. Parade Magazine, Personality Parade. "The Spokesman-Review," Spokane, Washington, June 24, 1978. Accessed September 1, 2011.
18. ^ Martin, Jack. Garbo Tired of Being Alone?. "The Evening News," Newburgh, New York, Copley News Service, November 20, 1982, p. 3B. Accessed September 1, 2011.

External links

• Marjorie Wallace at the Internet Movie Database

Preceded by none

Host of Entertainment Tonight with Ron Hendren and Tom Hallick 1981

Succeeded by Ron Hendren and Dixie Whatley

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Name	Wallace, Marjorie
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Date of birth	23 January 1954
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