The popularity of beauty contests increased in the 1880s. The first title of ‘beauty queen’ was awarded to an 18-year-old Creole contestant in Spa, Belgium, in 1888. The participants had to submit a photograph and a short description of themselves to enter, and a formal panel judged a final selection of 21. Such events were not considered respectable. After the first modern “Miss America” contest in 1921, beauty contests were considered more respectable.
In the 1950s and beyond, other organizations started holding similar contests due to the popularity of the Miss America pageant. The National Donut Queen contest was one of many that were significant, while others were trivial. Miss World began in 1951, Miss Universe in 1952, Miss USA in 1960, and Miss International in 1961. The first and oldest beauty pageant in Asia is Miss Asia Pacific International, founded in 1968. Miss Teen USA was launched in 1983 by the Miss Universe Organization for the 14-19 age group. Miss Earth was founded in 2001 to use the beauty pageant entertainment industry to promote conservation of the environment actively. The contests are still held today.
Below are some stunning photos by Tommy Napier that show the participants of a Sun Girl beauty contest at Gold Coast, Queensland, on January 27, 1957.
