1984 Miss Universe Pageant

  • VENUE: MIAMI, FLORIDA
  • NO. OF CONTESTANTS: 81
  • HOST: BOB BARKER
  • CO-HOST: JOAN VAN ARK

    The opening sequence was an aerial view of Miami, with the song "Moon Over Miami", in the background. The contestants arrived by boat at the newly constructed Miami Convention Center, greeted by dancers and well wishers.

    I noticed that the opening number, to the tune of "All Night Long", was a little too fast for the contestants. Maybe it was just the coreography that didn't fit the song. Most of the contestants were barefooted, which was probably smart on their part. They had to run down through the aisles, where the audience were seated, up the stage, to do the opening number. I can't imagine doing that in high heels!

    Well, I had to play nationalistic here but from the moment they showed a close up of Miss Philippines in the opening number, I knew she had to make it in the top 10. I was even more sure when I saw here score in the swimsuit segment. My hunch was quite good because she actually placed 2nd in the overall preliminary competition. Miss Guatemala was my second favorite, who also made it in the top 10. By the way, this was the year they changed the number of semi-finalists from 12 to 10.

    I noticed that people were especially rooting for 2 contestants.....Miss Venezuela and Miss Colombia. Aside from Miss USA, these two contestants got the loudest cheers!

    PRELIMINARY SCORES

    Miss Germany - 8.136

    Miss USA - 8.093

    Miss Thailand - 8.088

    Miss Sweden - 8.500

    Miss Holland - 8.345

    Miss Guatemala - 7.956

    Miss Philippines - 8.470

    Miss South Africa - 8.048

    Miss Venezuela - 8.430

    Miss Colombia - 7.935

    The interview portion was quite entertaining. I most enjoyed Miss Sweden's and Miss Thailand's interviews. During Miss Sweden's interview, I found out that Bob Barker was born in Darrington, Washington, which is only about 15 miles from where I live now. As Yvonne said, there is no monument nor a refrigirator to commemorate Bob Barker in this little town north of Seattle.

    The interview portion is definitely not Miss Philippines' strongest point. I was actually quite embarassed when Bob asked her if she makes her own clothes and she replied...."Well, I have lots of friends who are designers and if they want to get me....they will get me!" Which I believe was supposed to come out as..."I have friends who design their own clothing line and if they would like me to model their creations, they would contact me."

    The swimsuit stage was a replica of a famous tourist spot in Miami called "Vizcaya". I personally think that Miss Holland and Miss Venezuela stood out during this competition. However, you can not deny the fact that Miss Sweden has the killer bod. Miss Philippines and Miss Germany actually tied for third place in this competition, which was a first since they've started showing the scores on TV.

    The traditional little sisters serenaded the girls in the evening gown competition. I almost died when Miss Venezuela tripped and tried to hide it by singing along with the tune.

    SEMI FINAL SCORES

    Miss Germany - INT(8.175) - SS(9.140) - EG(9.027) = 8.781

    Miss USA - INT(8.195) - SS(8.670) - EG(8.975 = 8.573

    Miss Thailand - INT(8.610) - SS(9.130) - EG(8.975) = 8.905

    Miss Sweden - INT(9.090) - SS(9.460) - EG(9.540) = 9.363

    Miss Holland - INT(8.555) - SS(8.950) - EG(9.175) = 8.893

    Miss Guatemala - INT(8.590) - SS(8.820) - EG(8.805) = 8.738

    Miss Philippines - INT(9.050) - SS(9.140) - EG(9.255) = 9.148

    Miss South Africa - INT(9.100) - SS(8.635) - EG(9.025) = 8.920

    Miss Venezuela - INT(9.140) - SS(9.280) - EG(9.285) = 9.235

    Miss Colombia - INT(9.200) - SS(8.530) - EG(9.220) = 8.983

    Once again, the final interview made the difference for one contestant. Miss South Africa was 5th going into the final round and still ended up as 1st Rrunner Up. Miss Guatemala did not make the top 5 but she's not a total looser because a few months after that, she was crowned as the 1984 Miss International. I was happy that Miss Philippines finished as 3rd Runner Up even though her final interview answer was not the best. The heavy favorites, Miss Venezuela and Miss Colombia, both made the top 5 as well. I just wanted to comment on Miss Sweden's evening gown....I'm sorry but is she supposed to be some Swedish super hero or something? That gown made my worst list of gowns worn by the winning candidate.

    FINAL RESULT

    4th Runner Up - Miss Colombia

    3rd Runner Up - Miss Philippines

    2nd Runner Up - Miss Venezuela

    1st Runner Up - Miss South Africa

    1984 Miss Universe - Miss Sweden (Yvonne Rydding)

    As a final note...Leticia Snyman would be the last entry of South Africa to the Miss Universe before their 10-year long absence from the pageant.

    THE PAGEANT STAYS IN MIAMI FOR ANOTHER YEAR AS WE HEAD FOR THE 1985 MISS UNIVERSE PAGEANT!!!

    This page has been hit

    times.

    This site was last updated on June 24, 1998.

    All rights reserved. Copyright © 1998, Ben Kramer