- Miss France
-
Alexandra Rosenfeld, Miss France 2006
Rachel Legrain-Trapani, Miss France 2007 at Miss World 2007 in Sanya, China
Maréva Galanter, Miss France 1999Miss France is the trademark of an annual beauty pageant. Rights to the trademark were obtained in 2002 by the Dutch television production company Endemol[1] through its subsidiary Miss France SAS,[2] whose director general is Sylvie Tellier, Miss France 2002.[3] Endemol also holds the rights in France to send contestants to the Miss World and the Miss Universe pageants. Local and regional pageants that provide entrants for the Miss France contest are organized by the Comité Miss France, whose president is Geneviève de Fontenay.[3]
The pageant is held each year in December, and the winner is designated by the year that begins in the ensuing January.[4] Miss France 2010, Malika Ménard, was chosen December 5, 2009. Her prizes included a new car, use of a Paris apartment for one year, and a monthly net salary of 4,000 euros.[5] The Miss France 2011 contest to determine the next Miss France was filmed in the Maldives from the 11th to the 18th of November 2010.[6]
Contents
Rules
The pageant is contested by regional winners of local contests from Metropolitan France and its overseas territories. The method of choosing the winner has varied over the years, ordinarily with a jury of celebrities choosing a set of finalists. The winner in recent years was chosen by a weighting of the jury's opinion and votes of television viewers of the pageant (who pay a fee for each vote). For the Miss France 2010 contest, the winner was chosen entirely by the votes of viewers for the first time.[7]
To become Miss France, it is necessary:[4]
- to be born female and of French nationality or naturalization,
- to have an age of 18 to 24 years on November 15 of the year of the contest,
- to be at least 1.7 meters tall,
- to be never married and without children (until 2011)
- to have a clean police record
One should not:
- have had her image exploited in a manner that could be incompatible or pose an obstacle to the organizers' rights,
- have taken part in a competing pageant,
- have appearance prosthetics (wig, colored contact lenses, etc.),
- have visible tattoos or piercings (except earrings).
History
Before World War II
The first organizer of the Miss France contest was Maurice de Waleffe, a journalist. In 1920 he organized a beauty contest whose winner was to be chosen by filmgoers. The contest was called "La plus belle femme de France" -- "France's most beautiful woman".[8]
The first contest had 1,700 entrants, from which a jury chose 49 finalists. Each week for seven weeks, filmgoers received a ballot with seven different names. The winner was Agnès Souret.[9] The contest was repeated in 1921, with the winner Pauline Pô, after which it was discontinued.
In 1926, the contest winner was called "Miss France" for the first time. The contest was discontinued after the 1940 contest because of World War II, and de Waleffe died in 1946.[9]
After World War II
Starting in 1947, several different groups organized national beauty contests, some of which carried the name Miss France. One of them, founded by Jean Raibaut, was formally organized under the name "Club Charly's" in 1950.[9] The contest organized by Endemol traces its roots to a contest run by an informal group led by Guy Rinaldo and Louis de Fontenay that called itself "Comité Miss France" and crowned its first winner in 1947. After the commencement of the Miss World contest in 1951 and the Miss Universe contest in 1952, the "Comité Miss France" formally organized in 1954, with Rinaldo as president, under the name "Comité Miss France - Miss Europe - Miss Universe."[1]
In these early days, however, the organizers of the global contests did not necessarily have entrants who had won what might be considered the corresponding national contest. The entrant for Miss Universe 1953 from France, for instance, was Christiane Martel, who had won the Miss Cinémonde contest, also organized by Rinaldo, and not Sylviane Carpentier, who had won the Miss France contest.[10] Similarly, the entrant for Miss World 1953 was Denise Perrier. As a result, even though France won both the Miss World and Miss Universe contests in 1953, two different women were the winners, and neither was the winner of the Miss France contest.
The Miss France War
The administrative secretary of the "Comité Miss France - Miss Europe - Miss Universe" was Geneviève Mulmann, who along with Louis de Fontenay ousted Rinaldo on September 14, 1956. Louis and Geneviève subsequently both took the name de Fontenay, presented themselves as a married couple and had two children together, though they never married. Rinaldo formed a rival association called the "Comité Miss France de Paris". And "Club Charly's" continued to name its own Miss France. Several lawsuits and countersuits ensued.[1]
The war claimed its first injury in April 1983. The de Fontenay committee had deposed Isabelle Turpault for posing for nude photographs. After Turpault made some disparaging remarks about Geneviève de Fontenay, Turpault alleged that one of the de Fontenay children, Xavier, punched her on the Champs-Élysées.[11]
In 1986, Geneviève de Fontenay registered the trademark "Miss France" with the Institut National de la Propriété Intellectuelle (INPI), and defended it from a challenge by the Rinaldo committee. She renewed the trademark in 1996.[1]
In 1999, Eric Morley, founder and organizer of the Miss World contest, revoked the license of the de Fontenay committee and awarded it to the Rinaldo committee, headed by Antoine de Villejoie after Rinaldo's death in 1991.[12] The license was subsequently awarded to Endemol, and starting in 2005 the winner of the Endemol contest or her designated replacement has participated in Miss World.
Disputes and vacancies
The title has been declared vacant on several occasions, with the runner-up generally fulfilling the term of the winner.
Year Winner Replacement Reason 1935 Elisabeth Pitz Giselle Preville Pitz returned her crown after 2 hours and was replaced by Preville.[13] 1954 Irène Tunc Danielle Génault No reason given,[13] though Tunc was already starting to appear in movies.[14] 1956 Maryse Fabre Gisèle Charbit Fabre's election rescinded after public protests. Charbit was elected the following evening.[13] 1961 Luce Auger Michèle Wargnier Auger deposed for being a mother, even though she had informed the organizers.[15] 1966 Michèle Boulé Monique Boucher No reason given,[13] although Boulé competed in both the Miss World and Miss Universe pageants. 1972 Chantal Bouvier de la Motte Claudine Cassereau Resigned because of injuries from a fall from a horse.[13] 1978 Pascale Taurua Brigitte Konjovic Taurua resigned to return to New Caledonia rather than stay in France for a year. The first runner-up, Kelly Hoarau from Reunion Island, declined also, but competed in the Miss World contest. Konjovic, second runner-up, took the position and competed in Miss Universe.[13] 1983 Isabelle Turpault Frederique Marcelle Leroy Deposed for posing nude in a magazine.[13] 1988 Sylvie Bertin Claudia Frittolini Deposed for refusing to participate in Miss Universe contest.[13] 2004 Laetitia Bléger Lucie Degletagne Deposed for six months for posing nude in Playboy. Restored after apologizing. Successfully sued her agent for manipulating her.[13] 2008 Valérie Bègue Laura Tanguy Repudiated by Geneviève de Fontenay for "scandalous" photos in a magazine,[16] but retained her title with the support of Endemol. She agreed not to compete in the global contests. The first runner-up, Miss New Caledonia, Vahinerii Requillart, decided to not compete in Miss Universe because she wanted to continue studying.[17] Tanguy, the second runner-up, competed in the Miss World and Miss Universe contests.[13] Miss World and Miss Universe
In the early years of the Miss World and Miss Universe contests, it was rare for the winner of the Miss France contest to compete in both (see table below). From 1961 to 1993, however, the winner of Miss France, or her runner-up, generally competed in Miss World.
The first winner of the Miss France contest to compete in both the Miss World and Miss Universe contests was Michèle Boulé in 1966. However, she was stripped of her Miss France title by the de Fontenay committee for unspecified reasons.[13]
In 1971, the Miss France winner, Myriam Stocco, competed in both the Miss World and Miss Universe contests. From then until 1993, 17 of the 23 Miss France winners competed in both global contests.
Starting in 1994, the de Fontenay committee stopped sending the winner or runner-up to Miss World, a situation that led to the shift of the license to the Rinaldo committee in 1999.[12] Since 2005, however, the entrant in both global contests has been the winner of the Miss France contest organized by Endemol or her designated replacement.
Representatives of France
La plus belle femme de France
Year Winner 1920 Agnès Souret 1921 Pauline Pô Pre-World War II
Year Miss France 1926 Roberte Cusey 1927 Raymonde Allain 1928 Germaine Laborde 1929 Madeleine Mourgues 1930 Yvette Labrousse 1931 Jeanne Juillia 1932 Lucienne Nahmias 1933 Emilienne Quesson de Souza 1934 Simone Barillier 1935 Elisabeth Pitz 1936 Lynne Lassal 1937 Jacqueline Janet 1938 Annie Carrigues 1939 Ginette Catriens 1940 Joséphine Ladwig Post-World War II
Boldface indicates winner of the Miss World or Miss Universe pageant ( the only winners from France were in the two contests held in 1953.)
- Entrant in Miss World or Miss Universe was winner of Miss France contest
- Entrant was first runner-up in Miss France contest
- Entrant was second runner-up in Miss France contest
Year Miss France Miss World France Miss Universe France 1947 Yvonne Viseux 1948 Jacqueline Donny 1949 Juliette Figueras 1950 Maryse Delort 1951 Nicole Drouin Jacqueline Lemoine 1952 Josiane Pouy Nicole Drouin[18] Claude Godart 1953 Sylviane Carpentier Denise Perrier (Miss World) Christiane Martel (Miss Universe) 1954 Irène Tunc Claudine Bleuse (3rd runner up) Jacqueline Beer (Top 16) 1955 Véronique Zuber Gisele Thierry Claudie Petit 1956 Maryse Fabre Genevieve Solare Anita Treyens (Top 15) 1957 Sylvie-Rosine Numez Claudette Inés Navarro[19] Lisa Simon 1958 Monique Negler Claudine Auger (1rst runner up) Monique Boulinguez 1959 Monique Chiron Marie Hélène Trové Françoise St-Laurent (Top 15) 1960 Brigitte Barazer de Lannurien Diane Medina (Top 15) Florence Eyrie 1961 Luce Auger Michèle Wargnier (3rd runner up) Simone Darot (Top 15) 1962 Monique Lemaire Monique Lemaire (2nd runner up) Sabine Surget 1963 Muguette Fabris Muguette Fabris (Top 7) Monique Lemaire (Top 15) 1964 Jacqueline Gayraud Jacqueline Gayraud (Top 16) Edith Noël (Top 10) 1965 Christiane Sibellin Christiane Sibellin (Top 16) Marie-Thérèse Tullio 1966 Michèle Boulé Michèle Boulé (Top 15) Michèle Boulé 1967 Jeanne Beck Carole Noe (Top 15) Anne Vernier 1968 Christiane Lillio Nelly Gallerne (Top 15) Elizabeth Cadren 1969 Suzanne Angly Suzanne Angly (Top 15) Agathe Cognet 1970 Micheline Baurain Micheline Baurain Françoise Durand-Behot 1971 Myriam Stocco Myriam Stocco (Top 7) Myriam Stocco (Top 12) 1972 Chantal Bouvier de la Motte Claudine Cassereau Claudine Cassereau 1973 Isabelle Nadia Krumacker Isabelle Nadia Krumacker Isabelle Nadia Krumacker 1974 Edna Tepava Edna Tepava Brigitte Marie Flayac 1975 Sophie Sonia Perin Sophie Sonia Perin Sophie Sonia Perin 1976 Monique Uldaric Monique Uldaric Monique Uldaric 1977 Véronique Fagot Véronique Fagot (Top 15) Véronique Fagot 1978 Pascale Taurua Kelly Hoarau Brigitte Konjovic 1979 Sylvie Hélène Marie Parera Sylvie Hélène Marie Parera Sylvie Hélène Marie Parera 1980 Patricia Barzyk Patricia Barzyk (2nd runner up) Brigitte Choquet 1981 Isabelle Sophie Benárd Isabelle Sophie Benárd Isabelle Sophie Benárd 1982 Sabrina Belleval Martine Marie Philipps Martine Marie Philipps 1983 Isabelle Turpault Frederique Marcelle Leroy Frederique Marcelle Leroy 1984 Martine Robine Martine Robine Martine Robine 1985 Suzanne Iskandar Nathalie Jones Suzanne Iskandar 1986 Valérie Pascale Catherine Carew Catherine Carew 1987 Nathalie Marquay Nathalie Marquay Nathalie Marquay 1988 Sylvie Bertin Claudia Frittolini Claudia Frittolini 1989 Stephanie (Peggy) Zlotkowski Stephanie (Peggy) Zlotkowski Pascale Meotti 1990 Gaëlle Voiry Gaëlle Voiry Gaëlle Voiry 1991 Maréva Georges Maréva Georges (Top 10) Maréva Georges (Top 10) 1992 Linda Hardy Linda Hardy Linda Hardy 1993 Véronique de la Cruz Véronique de la Cruz (Top 10) Véronique de la Cruz 1994 Valérie Claisse Radiah Latidine Valérie Claisse 1995 Mélody Vilbert Hélène Lantoine Corinne Lauret 1996 Laure Belleville Séverine Deroualle Laure Belleville 1997 Patricia Spehar Laure Belleville[18] Patricia Spehar 1998 Sophie Thalmann Véronique Caloc (1rst runner up) Sophie Thalmann 1999 Maréva Galanter Sandra Bretones Maréva Galanter 2000 Sonia Rolland Karine Meier Sonia Rolland (Top 10) 2001 Élodie Gossuin Emmanuelle Chossat Élodie Gossuin (Top 10) 2002 Sylvie Tellier Caroline Chamorand Sylvie Tellier 2003 Corinne Coman Virginie Dubois Emmanuelle Chossat 2004 Lætitia Bléger Lætitia Marciniak Lætitia Bléger 2005 Cindy Fabre Cindy Fabre Cindy Fabre 2006 Alexandra Rosenfeld Laura Fasquel[20] Alexandra Rosenfeld 2007 Rachel Legrain-Trapani Rachel Legrain-Trapani Rachel Legrain-Trapani 2008 Valérie Bègue Laura Tanguy Laura Tanguy 2009 Chloé Mortaud Chloé Mortaud (3rd runner up) Chloé Mortaud (Top 10) 2010 Malika Ménard Virginie Dechenaud (Top 25) Malika Ménard (Top 15) 2011 Laury Thilleman Clémence Oleksy Laury Thilleman (Top 10) External links
- Miss Grand Slam
- Miss World
- Miss Earth
- (French) Official site
- Official Maldives partner page for 2011
- Passion Miss (Site for fans, in French)
- La vérité tirée du chapeau ("The truth pulled out of the hat", in French)
- Miss France controversy (summary, in English, of parts of "La vérité tirée du chapeau")
References
- ^ a b c d WIPO Domain Name Decision (in French)
- ^ MISS FRANCE SAS sur SOCIETE.COM (in French)
- ^ a b L'entreprise "Miss France" (in French)
- ^ a b Miss France registration form (in French)
- ^ Miss France 2010 : Malika Ménard : son élection va lui rapporter gros ! (in French)
- ^ Official Maldives partner page for Miss France 2011
- ^ Miss France 2010 : Malika Ménard élue avec 34% des votes du public (in French)
- ^ La société Miss France (in French)
- ^ a b c Historique
- ^ Critical Beauty - The Miss France Controversy
- ^ Critical Beauty - The Miss France Controversy
- ^ a b "Miss World and Miss France Statement Issued by Eric Morley", reprinted in "La vérité tirée du chapeau," pp. 132-133
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Palmarès des Miss France depuis 1920 à nos jours (in French)
- ^ Irène Tunc at IMDB.com
- ^ "Il lui a fallu six ans de procedure pour reconquerir son titre de Miss France", L'Aurore, 7 April 1967, reprinted in "La vérité tirée du chapeau", p. 85 (in French). Despite the title of the article, Luce Auger did not regain her title.
- ^ Miss France Valerie Begue Photos Scandal
- ^ Vahinerii Requillart décline l'offre du Comité Miss France
- ^ a b Won previous year's Miss France contest.
- ^ Official Site Miss France 1957
- ^ Miss World 2006: Meet the Contestants Rosenfeld declined to participate in Miss World after a "sour experience" at Miss Universe.
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