The winner of 1950's "Miss America 1951" pageant, Yolande Betbeze, refused to pose in a swimsuit from major sponsor Catalina swimwear. As a result, the brand's manufacturer Pacific Mills withdrew from Miss America and set up the Miss USA and Miss Universe contests. The first Miss Universe Pageant was held in Long Beach, California in 1952. It was won by Armi Kuusela from Finland, who gave up her title to get married to a Filipino tycoon shortly before her year was complete. Until 1958 the Miss Universe title (like Miss America) was post-dated, so at the time Ms. Kuusela's title was Miss Universe 1953.

The pageant was first televised in 1955. CBS began nationally broadcasting the Miss USA and Miss Universe pageants combined from 1960, and separately from 1965. In 2003, NBC took over the television rights.

The main pageant was held in the United States until 1972, when it was hosted by Puerto Rico. Since then it has usually been held in a different city each year, though Manila, Miami, Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Bangkok and Panama City have each hosted it twice.

The Miss Universe Organization, a New York-based partnership between NBC and Donald Trump, has run the contest since June 20, 2002. The current president is Paula Shugart. The Organization sells television rights to the pageant in other countries, and also produces the Miss USA and Miss Teen USA contests. The winner of Miss USA represents the USA in Miss Universe.
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Candidate selection

Each year, bids are received by the Miss Universe organizers from organizations who wish to select the Miss Universe contestant for a country. This allows competition between different pageants to hold a country's license, as happened for Miss Italy and Miss France for example when the licenses for their respective traditional organizations were revoked (the usual Miss France competition returned in 2004).

Usually a country's candidate selection involves pageants in major cities, with the winners competing in a national pageant, but this does not always occur. For example, in 2000 Australia's competition was abolished as a relic of a bygone era, with Australian delegates instead chosen by a modelling agency. Such "castings" are generally discouraged by the Miss Universe Organization, which prefers national pageants that preserve an aura of respectability and competition. Despite the "casted" Australian delegate, Jennifer Hawkins, being chosen as Miss Universe in 2004, Australia resumed its national pageant to choose Michelle Guy as Miss Universe Australia 2005.

Among the most important national pageants in the world are Miss India, Miss Philippines (which is actually known as Binibining Pilipinas in the Philippines, because another organization called Carousel Productions has since put up a pageant called Miss Philippines to represent the country in the environment-centered Miss Earth after their organization stopped producing Miss Asia-Pacific Quest), Miss USA, Miss Colombia, Miss Peru, Miss Puerto Rico, and Miss Venezuela Universe contests, which command consistently high interest and television ratings in their respective countries. Organizations attempting to build themselves up to the level of these established contests include Nuestra Belleza Mexico (Miss Mexico), Miss Universe Japan, and the triumvirate of Miss Bolivia, Miss Paraguay, and Miss Uruguay (all directed by Gloria de Limpias). Recent arrivals in the pageant include China (2002), Albania (2002), Vietnam (2004), Georgia (country) (2004), Ethiopia (2004), Latvia (2005) and Kazakhstan (2006); there have also been efforts to revive strong national pageants in Chile, Uruguay, Argentina, Miss Universe Canada, and the Caribbean, among other regions. There are continually efforts to expand the pageant, but the participation of some countries such as Indonesia and Algeria has proven difficult due to cultural barriers to the swimsuit competition, while others such as Mozambique, Armenia and Nepal have balked at sending representatives due to the cost (in fact, of all the major international pageants, the franchise fee for Miss Universe is the most expensive). As of 2005, only four countries have been present at every Miss Universe since its inception in 1952: Canada, France, Germany, and the United States|USA.

Many European countries allow 17-year-old contestants to compete in their pageants, while Miss Universe's minimum age is 18, so national titleholders often have to be replaced by their runners-up. Miss Universe also prohibits transsexual applicants and age fabrication.
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Main pageant

The main Miss Universe Pageant, as of now is held over a two week period between May-July. In the 70s through the 1990s, the pageant was a month-long extravaganza. This allows time for rehearsals, appearances and the preliminary competition, with the winner being crowned by the previous year's titleholder during the final competition. According to the organisers, the Miss Universe contest is more than a beauty pageant: women who aspire to become Miss Universe must be intelligent, well-mannered and cultured. Often a candidate has lost because she did not have a good answer during the interview rounds; although this section of competition has held less importance during recent pageants than it did in the twentieth century. Delegates also compete in swimsuit and evening gown competitions.

Currently, the final placement of the finalists is determined by a ranked vote, where each judge ranks each of the final three/five candidates, with the contestant posting the lowest cumulative score becoming the winner. If there is a tie, which often happens when there are even members of the jury, the higher semifinal scores become decisive.

The winner is assigned a one-year contract with the Miss Universe Organisation, travelling overseas to spread messages about the control of diseases, peace, and public awareness of AIDS. Since Donald Trump took over the pageant, the winner has been given the use of a Trump Tower apartment in New York City for use during her reign.

Aside from the main winner and her runners-up, special awards are also given to the winners of the best National Costume, Miss Photogenic, and Miss Congeniality. Miss Congeniality is chosen by the delegates themselves, while in recent years Miss Photogenic has chosen by popular internet vote (the winner used to be chosen by media personnel covering the event).

The Preliminaries

The competition for the Miss Universe title has seen many changes, although there have been several constants throughout its history. All the contestants compete in a preliminary round of judging (nowadays called the "Presentation Show") where the field is narrowed to a select number of semi-finalists. This number has fluctuated over the years. The very first Miss Universe pageant had ten semi-finalists. The next two years, the number of semi-finalists grew to 16. In 1955, the number dropped to a stable 15, which remained through 1970. In 1971, the number was reduced to 12. That number was further reduced to a mere 10 in 1984. This lasted until 2003, when the number of 15 was re-instated.

In the early years, the contestants were judged in swimsuit and evening gown only. In later years, the contestants also competed in a preliminary interview round in a one-on-one meeting with each individual judge.

The Final Competition

In the early years of the pageant, the ladies who make the cut are announced after the preliminary competition. From 1965 until the present day, the semi-finalists were not announced until the night of the main event. The semi-finalists once again competed in evening gown and swimsuit and a top 5 was announced. An interview portion was introduced in 1960. From there, the runners-up and winner was selected. However, in 1959 through 1963, there was no cut to 5 finalists; the runners-up and winners were called from the assembled 15 semi-finalists.

In 1964, the top 15 became a top 10, and after a round of interview, the winner and runners-up were called from the 10 finalists.

In 1965, the pageant returned to a cut to 5 finalists, and remained so until 1989. Also, in 1969, a final question was posed to the last five contestants. The final question was an on-and-off feature of the pageant, especially in the 1980s. In 1990, it had taken root and every pageant since the final 5 contestants have to answer a final question.

In 1990, the pageant implemented major format changes in the competition itself. Instead of five finalists, the field was reduced from 10 semi-finalists to six (in 1998, the number of finalists return to 5). Each contestant then randomly selected a judge and answer the question posed by the judge. After that, the field is narrowed down further to a final three. However, in 2001, it became a final five again.

In 2000, the interview portion of the semi-finals was quietly dropped and the contestants once again, as in the early days of the pageant, competed only in swimsuit and gowns.

Since 2003 a final fifteen has been called, followed by the evening gown competition. The number of competing delegates is then reduced to ten, and these women compete in the swimsuit competition. The number is then cut to five, and these finalists compete in the "final question" or interview round. At the end of competition the runners-up are announced and the winner crowned by the outgoing queen.

From 1960 to 1990, the Miss Universe Creed was read at each pageant:

"We, the young women of the universe, believe people everywhere are seeking peace, tolerance and mutual understanding. We pledge to spread this message in every way we can, wherever we go."

* As of the 2005 contest the United States have won the event the most times, with seven Miss Universe crowns, followed by Puerto Rico and Venezuela with four each, Sweden with three and Australia, Brazil, Canada, Finland, India, Philippines, Thailand, and Trinidad and Tobago with two each.

* USA is the country that has made the semi-finals most often, missing the cut only three times (1976, 1999, & 2002, with one disqualification in 1957). The USA is followed by Venezuela (33), Sweden and Brazil (both 27), Colombia (26), Germany (21), Israel (20), England (19), Finland and Greece (both 18), Norway and India (both 17), Peru and South Africa (16 each), and Canada, Japan, and Puerto Rico (15 each). Of these countries, only England has yet to win the contest.

* The electronic voting was introduced to televiewers in 1978 when the pageant was held in Acapulco, Mexico and for the first time in a televised pageant, the audience get to see how the judges vote for the scores were televised. After twenty-four years, in 2003, pageant officials decided to eliminate the electronic voting system in favor of traditional judging system.

* In terms of successive placements, Venezuela has performed the most successfully overall during the last two decades: for 21 years, from 1983 to 2003, its representatives placed in the semifinals without interruption, nearly beating the United States' 22-year streak between 1977-1998. In the last decade every Miss Venezuela who has made the finals progressed to the top five or top six. Although Venezuela has won fewer crowns than the USA, it has had a far superior record in terms of overall placement. While Alicia Machado has been the only Venezuelan Miss Universe in the last decade, of the nine pageants that have followed her victory, four have seen Venezuela's representative place first runner-up (1997, 1998, 2000, and 2003).

* Other than Venezuela and the USA, the countries that have made the semi-finals the most in a row are India (who in recent years have emerged as a pageant powerhouse) with 11 (1992-2002) consecutive placements; Germany with ten (1952 to 1961); and Finland with 8 (1962-1969).

* Colombia had three first-runner up placements from 1992-1994, a streak that has been unparalelled in competition history. The only country to have done better is Venezuela. They had a winner in 1996 followed by 2 first runner-ups in 1997 and 1998

* Peru is the only Latin American country to compete since the beginning, win a Miss Universe, and host the Miss Universe pageant.

* England, the Philippines and Puerto Rico all have won the Miss Photogenic award 5 times. Puerto Rico has won all 5 of its awards within the last 7 years (1999, 2001-2004).

* Colombia has won the Best National Costume Award six times.

* Guam and Trinidad/Tobago have both won the Miss Congeniality awards three times (and both within a four-year period).

* It seems like it doesn't pay to be nice at Miss Universe. No Miss Congeniality has ever gone on to win Miss Universe. The closest was Miss El Salvador 1955, who was 1st runner-up.

* In addtion to winning the Miss Universe title in 2001, Denise Quiñones (Miss Puerto Rico) also won Miss Photogenic and the Clairol Best Style Award, making her the only Miss Universe to win 2 other awards on pageant night.

* Four Black contestants have won the pageant: Janelle Penny Commisiong of Trinidad and Tobago in 1977, Chelsi Smith from the USA in 1995, Wendy Fitzwilliam of Trinidad and Tobago in 1998, and Mpule Kwelagobe of Botswana in 1999.

* Six contestants of Far Eastern descent have won the pageant: Akiko Kojima of Japan in 1959, Apasra Hongsakula of Thailand in 1965, Gloria Diaz and Margarita Moran of the Philippines in 1969 and 1973 respectively, Porntip Nakhirunkanok of Thailand in 1988, and Brook Mahaelani Lee from the state of Hawaii in 1997.

* In terms of successive placements in the runner-ups, Finland is the country that has made them most often: for five years, from 1965 to 1969, its delegates placed among the five finalists without interruption (1965: Virpi Miettinen, first runner-up, 1966: Satu Ostring, first runner-up, 1967: Ritva Lehto, third runner-up, 1968: Leena Brusiin, second runner-up, and 1969: Harrieti Eriksson, first runner-up).