and the Golden Anniversary of her Coronation as
Miss Universe
JULY 2007
During the entire month of July, Critical Beauty pays homage to Gladys Zender,
the first Miss Universe from Peru and the first one from Latin America. Gladys was crowned fifty years ago in
Long Beach, California. A product of a private religious education, Gladys excelled in sports like volleyball.
She studied art and languages, and at one point she wanted to be an aviator. During her early teenage years, her
beauty and her personality drew positive comments especially when she won the Reinado de Primavera (Spring Pageant)
in her school, and years later, the Reinado de los Carnivales (Carnival Pageant) of Miraflores. Before being crowned
Miss Peru, the representative of Max Factor company, Roman Toporow, while visiting Lima, was impressed by the style
and the very Latin features of the young Gladys and affirmed that she "was a perfect beauty."
In the beginning, her family was opposed to her joining the national pageant,
but later they supported her by traveling with her to Long Beach (in photo with her parents). During the sixth edition of the Miss Universe
pageant, there were all sorts of surprises. It was rumoured that the pageant preferred candidates from countries
that were experiencing political crises: Miss Greece Lygia Karavias did not go past the second round. Experts
predicted that two favorites - Misses Germany and England - would win and keep the crown in Europe. Some observers
believed that the delegates from Brazil, Argentina, Peru, Canada, Martinique and Italy would enter the finals.
Many of the girls from Latin America thought that they had been invited for the sake of formality only.
There was some sort of uneasiness in the region since two Latin beauties
had failed to win in two consecutive finals. In 1954, the Brazilian Martha Rocha was adjudged as very beautiful, but
her hips were two inches wider than the ideal measurement and thus lost to the American Miriam Stevenson. In 1955,
the heavy favorite Maribel Arrieta Galvez of El Salvador - who resembled Marilyn Monroe - lost by two points to
Hillevi Rombin of Sweden.
Gladys Zender's victory in 1957 had taken the Peruvians and the rest of Latin
America by surprise. According to the U.S. press, the traits that made Gladys deserve the title were these:
"her captivating personality and her aristocratic bearing," and that "she had been educated in the traditional system
of Latin American women." In the end, it was her whistlebait figure that won her the crown and beat the beauties
from Brazil, England, Cuba and Germany.
Her victory was not without controversy. After she was crowned, it was revealed
that she was 17 years old; a few months under the minimum age requirement of the pageant. Pageant officials decided
that she would keep the crown because in Peru, a person is considered one year older if they are more than six months
of their current age. Once this news hit Peru, Gladys became an instant celebrity in her country. During her homecoming
on August 10, 1957, a million of her compatriots lined up along the streets to welcome her. When Gladys appeared,
the crowd never tired of shouting, "Viva Gladys!". "I cried with joy. I never imagined this welcome," remarked
the beauty queen during an interview.
Soon after, the Caretas magazine, one of Peru's most popular political magazines,
featured her on their cover. She was also featured on that publication's first all-color cover. She married Antonio Meier in
1965, soon secluding into a family life. They had four children together. Their son Christian Meier is well-known in
Peru as an actor and singer, and has achieved some notoriety in other Latin American countries. In 1982 when the Miss
Universe pageant was held in Lima, the Miss Universe Organization presented Gladys with a special trophy to honor her
25th coronation anniversary. In 2003, she let the photographers of Caretas back inside the mansion she and Meier share, showing various artifacts
the couple have acquired through their years together, including a collection of Incan art.
Today, Gladys Zender remains as beautiful, elegant and glamorous as the day
she was crowned Miss Universe 1957!
Source: Bellezas de Perú, Wikipedia
