Maailman kauneimmaksi naiseksi valittu Armi Kuusela oli kimalteleva arvoitus, joka sai 50-luvun suomalaisten silmissä lähes kuninkaallisen sädekehän.
ARMI KUUSELA, as photographed for a Camay ad, "the soap of beautiful women" As the Miss Universe 2018 contest heads for its climax this Dec. 17, we look back at the extraordinary life and times of the first Miss Universe crowned 66 years ago in 1952—Armi Helena Kuusela of Muhos, Finland. Born to parents Arrne Kuusela and Martha Elisabeth Kyro on 20 Aug. 1934, Armi grew up in a household of 5 girls (a sister died young) and a boy. She attended local schools and was into gymnastics; she had planned on going to the University of Helsinki Gymnastics Institute. But fate intervened when, at 17, she won the title of Miss Finland in May 1952---and the right to represent her country to the first ever Miss Universe Pageant in Long, Beach, California. From a field of 30 world beauties, the 5’5”, 108 pound teen had the distinction of being crowned as the first Miss Universe on 28 June 1952, turning her into an instant international celebrity. She was feted back home in Finland with a biographical movie entitled Maailman kaunein tyttö (“The World's Most Beautiful Girl”) where she played herself. The tour package that came along with her prizes included a trip to the Philippines in February 1953, where she would meet young businessman Virgilio Hilario in Baguio. They would fall madly in love and after saying “yes” to Gil’s proposal, Armi decided not to continue with her reign to marry him in Tokyo, on 4 May 1953. WATCH ARMI KUUSELA OF FINLAND'S CROWNING MOMENT HERE: After a short honeymoon in the U.S. , Hawaii and Europe, the Hilarios settled in Manila where Armi was besieged with showbiz offers, interviews, invitations to countless socials, and lucrative endorsement deals. WATCH ARMI KUUSELA IN "NOW & FOREVER" HERE: The first thing that the Hilarios accepted to do was a movie offer that resulted in the film based on their love story, ”Now and Forever”, produced by Deegar Cinema, directed by Rolando del Mar. The movie quickly introduced her to and adoring nation who took to Armi's beauty and charm, claiming her their own. ARMI KUUSELA AS CAMAY GIRL, 1953 Armi was also signed up to endorse many prestigious products that included CAMAY Beauty Soap, “the soap of beautiful women”. She was the only foreign beauty who appeared alongside early Camay girls like Gloria Romero, Rosita Noble, Charito Solis, Norma Blancaflor and Nida Blanca. ARMI KUUSELA HILARIO IN A COKE AD, 1953,Credit: Jeune Brave Aside from CAMAY, she did advertisements for COCA-COLA, and the launch of her ad was timed with the release of her movie in 1953 and the 16th anniversary of Coke in the Philippines. ARMI & CHILD, IN A DARIGOLD MILK PRINT AD, 1958 The Finnish beauty also had a long-running campaign for DARIGOLD MILK. By this time, her children had started coming along, so she was the perfect brand endorser for this wholesome milk brand. The Hilarios would have five children: Arne, Anna-Lisa, Jose/Jussi, Eva-Maria and Miguel/Mikko. The children were featured in the DARIGOLD ads. The last advertisement where Armi and her children were featured was for a SCOTT’S EMULSION Cold Liver Oil print ad, in the early 1970s. ARMI KUUSELA-WILLIAMS today, by Tomi Hinkkanen Sadly husband Virgilio died of heart attack on 7 Sep. 1975. Armi carried on, buoyed by the love of her children. In 1978, she met American diplomat Albert Williams, who was posted in Spain at that time. The two fell in love, and Armi moved to Barcelona to start a new life with him. From Spain, Williams was assigned to exotic Turkey, until he retired with wife Armi in an exclusive enclave in La Jolla, California. Armi settled into a simple, quiet life of a retired socialite, and kept busy with her charity works and philanthropies. In 2012, Armi Kuusela was awarded by a grateful nation with the Order of the White Rose of Finland, with the rank of Knight. Armi Kuusela may have left th Philippines, but for many Filipinos who grew up in the 1950s, she would always be regarded as an adopted daughter of the country, worthy of also being called as a Philippine Miss Universe. SOURCES: NOW & FOREVER movie:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7vgWQC9Tqaw Published 21 Jan. 2013, by Miguel Hilario. ARMI KUUSELA'S CRWONING MOMENT: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5wKAyGqgV-I Published 1 Mar. 2012, by Portal Miss PHOTO OF ARMI KUUSELA TODAY: http://finntimes.com/?p=265, Credits to : Tomi Hinkkanen
Armi Kuusela had even relinquished her crown just to marry Filipino businessman Virgilio Hilario.
Armi Helena Kuusela (born 20 August 1934, Muhos, Finland) is Miss Universe 1952. In 1952 she won the national beauty contest Suomen Neito and was presented with a trip to the United States to participate in the first-ever Miss Universe pageant, becoming its first titleholder in history. At her crowning she was only 17 years old. At the time she weighed 49 kg (108 lb), and her height was 1.65 m (5 ft 5 in).
1952 Miss Universe Beauty PageantLong Beach Municipal Auditorium Long Beach, California, USA June 28 On-stage Master of Ceremonies: Bob Russell Winner: FINLAND - Armi Kuusela 1st Runner Up: HAWAII - Elza Kananionapua Edsman 2nd Runner Up: GREECE - Daisy Mavraki 3rd Runner Up: HONG KONG - Judy Dan 4th Runner Up: GERMANY - Renate Hoy 10 SEMI-FINALISTS: FINLAND - Armi Kuusela GERMANY - Renate Hoy GREECE - Daisy Mavraki HAWAII - Elza Kananionapua Edsman HONG KONG - Judy Dan MEXICO - Olga Llorens Perez Castillo SOUTH AFRICA - Catherine Edwina Higgins SWEDEN - Anne Marie Tistler URUGUAY - Gladys Rubio U.S.A. - Jackie Loughery AWARDS: Miss Friendship: BELGIUM - Myriam Lynn aka Marriane Mullender Most Popular Girl: CHILE - Esther Saavedra Yoacham
Armi Helena Kuusela (born 20 August 1934, Muhos, Finland) is Miss Universe 1952. In 1952 she won the national beauty contest Suomen Neito and was presented with a trip to the United States to participate in the first-ever Miss Universe pageant, becoming its first titleholder in history. At her crowning she was only 17 years old. At the time she weighed 49 kg (108 lb), and her height was 1.65 m (5 ft 5 in).
85098-p28 blush gold snake print leather The first Armi sandal was designed 70 years ago! In 1952, Pertti Palmroth designed the sandals for the Maiden of Finland Armi Kuusela, for the Miss Universum competition. Armi Kuusela was crowned the world's first Miss Universe and the shoe style became such a great success in Finland that the summer holidays at the factory had to be postponed. Designed in Finland. Sustainably made in Portugal.
MOTHER AND CHILD, With daughter Ana Lisa, Print Ad, 1959. The leading milk brand in the late 1950s was DARIGOLD MILK, which had been advertising since 1953. It was produced in the Philippines beginning in 1957, under the Seattle-based dairy agricultural marketing cooperative, Darigold Inc. Advertising began in 1958, and it would find stiff competition from Liberty Milk for over two decades. At the peak of its popularity, DARIGOLD had a commanding presence on TV (remember “Darigold Jamboree” hosetd by Eddie Ilarde, Leila Benitez and Bobby Ledesma?), Radio ( on DZXL, it sponsored Darigold Daily Jamboree and Darigold Jumbo Jamboree) as well as Print. ARMI AND SON, JUSSI, Darigold Print Ad, 1959. DARIGOLD scored a coup when it enlisted the very first Miss Universe 1952, Armi Kuusela to appear in its print ads that began appearing in 1959. By then, the Finnish world beauty had already been married to millionaire businessman, Virgilio Hilario for 7 years. Their fairytale romance began when Kuusela visited the country as guest of the First Philippine International Fair, where the Filipino swain swept her off her feet. Ten months into her reign, Kuusela resigned from her Miss Universe job to marry Hilario in Tokyo. ARMI WITH SON JUSSI, Darigold print Ad, 1961. In 1959, the Hilarios were raising 4 kids—Arne, Anna-Lisa, Jussi and Eva-Maria (they would have one more boy—Mikko), which made Armi a perfect choice as celebrity mother-endorser. (arch rival Liberty Milk had the iconic Paquita Goyena as model). The DARIGOLD print series that you see here—all in color-- ran from 1959 to 1961. The ads not only featured Armi, but also her children and husband, Virgilio.The campaign further boosted the milk brand’s popularity to greater heights, BEST FOR THE WHOLE FAMILY. Darigold Print Ad, 1961. Everything was going for the brand—from its familiar red and white logo with a blue diamobg in the center to its far-reaching media visibility. Its commercial jingle resonated with kids : “Gusto ko ng gatas ng DARIGOLD, DARIGOLD, DARIGOLD, …DARIGOLD ang inyong bilhin!”. ALL IN THE FAMILY, "Kuusela-Hilario Family", Darigold Print Ad, 1961 But in the 1970s, the local DARIGOLD partner—Consolidated Dairy Products Inc.—figured in a dispute with the mother company, and the two were soon locked in a bitter legal bottle. This would lead to the discontinuation of the production of DARIGOLD MILK in the Philippines in 1976. We have these print ads as reminders of DARIGOLD's glory days--when it persuaded the most beautiful girl in the Universe to push the milk that's " so good for babies..and best for the whole family!"
Armi Helena Kuusela Miss Finland Miss Universe 1952 ,vintage press photo with husband Virgilio Hilario ,rare 1950s press black white photo.#7 Dimensions:17 x 14 cm. Very nice for decor. Used in very good condition. What you see is what you get. We dont accept returns.
Friday marks the 60th anniversary of Finnish beauty queen Armi Kuusela's coronation as the first Miss Universe in Long Beach, California.
Armi Helena Kuusela (born 20 August 1934, Muhos, Finland) is Miss Universe 1952. In 1952 she won the national beauty contest Suomen Neito and was presented with a trip to the United States to participate in the first-ever Miss Universe pageant, becoming its first titleholder in history. At her crowning she was only 17 years old. At the time she weighed 49 kg (108 lb), and her height was 1.65 m (5 ft 5 in).
Miss Universe 2011 creates Buzz as agathering of beauties from 89 countries all over the world... The Day of Beauty.... Miss Universe is an ...
Armi Helena Kuusela (born 20 August 1934, Muhos, Finland) is Miss Universe 1952. In 1952 she won the national beauty contest Suomen Neito and was presented with a trip to the United States to participate in the first-ever Miss Universe pageant, becoming its first titleholder in history. At her crowning she was only 17 years old. At the time she weighed 49 kg (108 lb), and her height was 1.65 m (5 ft 5 in).
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Armi Helena Kuusela (born 20 August 1934, Muhos, Finland) is Miss Universe 1952. In 1952 she won the national beauty contest Suomen Neito and was presented with a trip to the United States to participate in the first-ever Miss Universe pageant, becoming its first titleholder in history. At her crowning she was only 17 years old. At the time she weighed 49 kg (108 lb), and her height was 1.65 m (5 ft 5 in).
