Miss Germany
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Miss Germany is a national beauty pageant for unmarried women in Germany. In 1927, the contest was held for the first time.
In the past there were several organisations which claimed the title: In the 1920s already, German jurisdiction decided that the title Miss Germany could not be patented or registered, thus everybody was allowed to run a contest and name the winner Miss Germany. A similar decision followed in 1982. This resulted in having two titleholders in some years (as in 1928, 1931, 1953 and 1982), elected by different associations. In 1953, the new organiser and main sponsor of the pageant, the Opal stocking industries, acquired the international franchises for Miss Europe, Miss World, and Miss Universe and built up a kind of monopoly: Other promoters could not delegate their winners to international competitions, thus such rival contests became unattractive. The election of Heidi Krüger by the daily newspaper Hamburger Morgenpost remained an exception for many years.
After the bankruptcy of the Opal company, a period of decline followed. There were no financially strong sponsors. Members of the Revolution of 1968 and feminists mobilized against the "meat-inspects". Public interest diminished. Influential organisers became not active before the end of the 1970s. The international franchises held by Opal became vacant. In 1979, Miss Germany was elected live in the German television for the first time. In 1982, the first rival contest was held again after a long interval.
Since 1985, at least two organisations run rival pageants:
- The MGC (Miss Germany Corporation, Oldenburg) of Horst Klemmer, compère in preliminaries and finals of the 1960s, together with his son Ralf, send their winners to the Miss World and Queen of the World pageants. After an unsuccessful lawsuit of event-manager Erich Reindl in 1982, neither MGC nor another promoter can claim protection of the title. Not before 1999, MGC succeed in having registered Miss Germany as a trade mark at the Office for Harmonization in the Internal Market in Alicante (Spain), and secure the exclusive rights. From 2000 on, other organisers have to pick up other titles – not only for the pageants, but also for their companies‘ names. In addition to Miss Germany, MGC temporarily held also Miss World Germany, German Miss World, Queen of Germany, and Beauty Queen of Germany. Moreover, there are contests for Misses Germany and Mister Germany.
- The Miss Germany Company holds beauty pageants from 1985 to 1991: Miss Europe 1991 – Susanne Petry – came there. Not much is known about this company, besides the names of their winners. The company possibly is a predecessor of MGA.
- In 1991, the MGA (Miss Germany Association, Bergheim near Cologne) of Detlef Tursies run a Miss Germany pageant for the first time. The winners participate in Miss Universe, Miss Earth, Miss International, Miss Europe, and Miss Intercontinental. In 1999, MGA transforms into MGO (Miss Germany Organisation). From 2000, they award the title Miss Deutschland, and change their name again: MGO - Komitee Miss Deutschland. Furthermore, they hold the international franchises as mentioned above.
- A short time before the title gains exclusivity, the situation becomes most unclear: In 1999, a third Miss Germany appears – Yvonne Wölke from Berlin. In autumn of 1999, two other organisations chose their titleholders for the year 2000 – Model of Germany Productions in Mainz-Kastel (= Miss Germany No. 4), and the MGF (Miss Germany Foundation, Barby) in Magdeburg, who awards the title Miss Millennium Deutschland (from 2001, Princess of Germany).
[edit] Winners
During the National Socialist era there were held no beauty contests. The Nazi government prohibited them as a "Jewish-Bolshevik decadence", and instead of them publicised the election of (local) Harvest, Bloom, and Wine Queens. The government forbade Charlotte Hartmann the participation in the Miss Europe contest in Paris, France. She had been elected Miss Germany a few days before the begin of the Nazi rule, and secretly took part in the pageant, nevertheless. In substitution, the Saar Territory which was governed by the League of Nations chose a Miss, which was allowed to travel to international competitions.
In the GDR, beauty pageants were also forbidden as "degradation and exploitation of the woman by capitalism". Nevertheless, in the Eastern part of Berlin there were held some contests, camouflaged as culture-evenings, in the second half of the 1980s. The winners received a cake and a bouquet as a prize. In 1990, the MGC (see above) held the first and only official election for Miss DDR. The winner, Leticia Koffke, became the first all-German Miss Germany a few months later.
In some years, no national contests were held: The German delegates for international pageants were hand-picked out of the regional winners, without a final. So it happened from 1972 to 1978. In 1971, the term of Irene Neumann was even extended for another year.
[edit] Prior to World War II
| Year | Name | Site of election |
| 1927 : | Hildegard Quandt | Berlin |
| 1928 : | Hella Hoffmann | Berlin |
| 1928 : | Margarete Grow | Berlin |
| 1929 : | Elisabeth Rodzyn | Berlin |
| 1930 : | Dorit Nitykowski | Berlin |
| 1931 : | Ruth Ingrid Richard | Berlin |
| 1931 : | Daisy d’Ora | Berlin |
| 1932 : | Liselotte de Booy-Schulze | Berlin |
| 1933 : | Charlotte Hartmann | Berlin |
Notes : Daisy d’Ora was a pseudonym. The real name of the 1931 winner was Daisy, Baronesse von Freyberg. – In 1935, Elisabeth Pitz from Saarbrücken participated in the Miss Europe Pageant in Paris as last German delegate before World War II. But she was not Miss Germany.
[edit] 1949 to 1984
| Year | Name | Qualified as | Site of election |
| 1949 : | Inge Löwenstein | ? | Bad Homburg |
| 1950 : | Susanne Erichsen | Miss Schleswig-Holstein | Baden-Baden |
| 1951 : | Vera Marks | ? | Baden-Baden |
| 1952 : | Renate Hoy | ? | Baden-Baden |
| 1953 : | Christel Schaack | ? | Wiesbaden |
| 1953/54 : | Heidi Krüger | ? | Hamburg |
| 1954 : | Regina Ernst | ? | Baden-Baden |
| 1955 : | Margit Nünke | Miss Nordrhein-Westfalen | Baden-Baden |
| 1956 : | Marina Orschel | Miss Berlin | Baden-Baden |
| 1957 : | Gerti Daub | Miss Hamburg | Baden-Baden |
| 1958 : | Marlies Behrens | Miss Bayern | Baden-Baden |
| 1959 : | Carmela Künzel | Miss Berlin | Baden-Baden |
| 1960 : | Ingrun Helgard Moeckel | Miss Rheinland | Baden-Baden |
| 1961 : | Marlene Schmidt | Miss Baden-Württemberg | Baden-Baden |
| 1962 : | Gisela Karschuck | Miss Hessen | Travemünde |
| 1963 : | Helga Carla Ziesemer | Miss Bayern | Travemünde |
| 1964 : | Martina Kettler | Miss Berlin | Berlin |
| 1965 : | Ingrid Bethke | Miss Nordrhein-Westfalen | Berlin |
| 1966 : | Marion Heinrich | Miss Nordrhein-Westfalen | Berlin |
| 1967 : | Fee von Zitzewitz | Miss Schleswig-Holstein | Berlin |
| 1968 : | Lilian Atterer | Miss Bayern | Munich |
| 1969 : | Gesine Froese | Miss Bayern | Munich |
| 1970 : | Irene Neumann | ? | San Juan (Puerto Rico) |
| 1971 : | Irene Neumann | — | term extended without election |
| 1972 : | Heidi Weber | Miss Bayern | appointed without election |
| 1973 : | Ingeborg Martin | ? | Munich |
| 1974 : | Monja Bageritz | Miss Rheinland | appointed without election |
| 1975 | Marina Langner | ? | appointed without election |
| 1976 : | Monika Schneeweis | ? | Baden-Baden |
| 1977 : | Dagmar Winkler | Miss Bayern | Baden-Baden |
| 1978 : | Monika Greis | Miss Süddeutschland | appointed without election |
| 1979 : | Andrea Hontschik | Miss Berlin | Bremen, Studio Radio Bremen (1) |
| 1980 : | Gabriella Brum | Miss Berlin | Berlin |
| 1981 : | Marion Kurz | Miss Bayern | Munich |
| 1982 : | Kerstin Paeserack | Miss Niedersachsen | Palma de Mallorca (Spain) |
| 1982 : | Monika Baier | ? | Nuremberg |
| 1983 : | Loana Radecki | Miss Berlin | Badgastein (Austria) |
| 1984 : | Brigitte Berx | Miss Nordrhein-Westfalen | Bad Mondorf (Luxembourg) |
Note: (1) In 1979, the Miss Germany election was broadcasted live in the German TV for the first time.
[edit] From 1985 : MGC - Miss Germany Corporation GmbH (Oldenburg)
| Year | Name | Qualified as | Site of election |
| 1985/86 : | Patricia Patek | Miss Hessen | Wangerooge |
| 1986/87 : | Anja Hörnich | Miss Saarland | Oberstdorf |
| 1987/88 : | Susann Stoss | Miss Rheinland-Pfalz | Bonn - Bad Godesberg |
| 1988/89 : | Nicole Reinhardt | Miss Baden-Württemberg | Cologne |
| 1989/90 : | Claudia Weins | Miss Nordrhein-Westfalen | Schwäbisch-Gmünd |
| 1990/91 : | Leticia Koffke | Miss Brandenburg | Wesseling (near Cologne) |
| 1991/92 : | Ines Kuba | Miss Berlin | Oldenburg |
| 1992/93 : | Astrid Kuhlmann | Miss Bayern | Berlin |
| 1993/94 : | Cornelia Oehlmann | Miss Baden-Württemberg | Hanover |
| 1994/95 : | Beate Almer | Miss Bayern | Cologne |
| 1996 : | Yasemine Mansoor | Miss Berlin | Berlin |
| 1997 : | Sabrina Paradies | Miss Norddeutschland | Berlin |
| 1998 : | Michalina Koscielniak | Miss LR-Kosmetik | Berlin |
| 1999 : | Alexandra Phillips | Miss Süddeutschland | Berlin |
| 2000 : | Sandra Hoffmann | Miss Mitteldeutschland | Berlin |
| 2001 : | Mirjana Bogojevic | Miss Hamburg | Berlin |
| 2002 : | Katrin Wrobel | Miss Berlin | Berlin |
| 2003 : | Babett Konau | Miss Schleswig-Holstein | Rust (near Freiburg) |
| 2004 : | Claudia Hein | Miss Nordrhein-Westfalen | Rust (near Freiburg) |
| 2005 : | Antonia Schmitz | Miss Nordrhein-Westfalen | Rust (near Freiburg) |
| 2006 : | Isabelle Knispel | Miss Berlin | Rust (near Freiburg) |
| 2007 : | Nelly Marie Bojahr | Miss T-Online | Rust (near Freiburg) |
[edit] 1985-1991 : Miss Germany Company
| Year | Name | Qualified as |
| 1985 : | Anke Symkowitz | Miss Baden-Württemberg |
| 1986 : | Birgit Jahn | Miss Bayern |
| 1986/87 : | Dagmar Schulz | Miss Nordrhein-Westfalen |
| 1987/88 : | Christiane Kopp | Miss Berlin |
| 1988/89 : | Andrea Stelzer | ? |
| 1989/90 : | Christiane Stöcker | Miss Hessen |
| 1990/91 : | Susanne Petry | Miss Saarland |
| 1991/92 : | Monika Resch | Miss Thüringen |
[edit] 1991-1999 : MGA - Miss Germany Association GmbH (Bergheim near Cologne)
| Year | Name | Qualified as | Site of election |
| 1991 : | Petra Hack | ? | ? |
| 1992 : | Meike Schwartz | ? | ? |
| 1993 : | Verona Feldbusch | Miss Hamburg | Bremen |
| 1994 : | Tanja Wild | Miss Baden-Württemberg | ? |
| 1995 : | Ilka Endres | Miss Rheinland-Pfalz | ? |
| 1996 : | Miriam Ruppert | Miss Arabella TV | ? |
| 1997 : | Nadine Schmidt | Miss Rheinland-Pfalz | ? |
| 1998 : | Katharina Mainka | Miss Rheinland-Pfalz | Trier |
| 1999 : | Diana Drubig | Miss Sachsen | Trier |
[edit] 1999/2000 : other organisers
| Year | Name | Site of election | Company |
| 1999 : | Yvonne Wölke | Berlin | Rolf Eden |
| 2000 : | Sonja Strobl | Mainz-Kastel | Model of Germany Productions |
Notes : Yvonne Wölke became Miss Berlin and participated in Miss Deutschland in 2002. – The pageant and the title of Model of Germany Productions later had to be renamed Model of Germany.
[edit] Pageants with other names
From the following competitions, certainly, only Miss Deutschland is of importance. In the inland it does not have the same prestige as Miss Germany, but compensates this, as the election always takes place (and is announced in the media) some weeks before. One can estimate the international presence of the organization by the four assigned titles for 2006.
For the other contests there are no complete data available. Also it is not always known whether they still exist. They are only shown here in order to obtain an impression how unclear the situation still is, although there is only one Miss Germany since 2000.
[edit] Miss Deutschland from 2000 : MGO - Komitee Miss Deutschland (Bergheim near Cologne)
| Year | Name | Qualified as | Site of election |
| 2000 : | Sabrina Schepmann | Miss Ostdeutschland | Kaiserslautern |
| 2001 : | Claudia Bechstein | Miss Thüringen | Kaiserslautern |
| 2002 : | Natascha Börger | Miss Hamburg | Kaiserslautern |
| 2003 : | Alexandra Vodjanikova | Miss Bayern | Bielefeld |
| 2004 : | Shermine Shahrivar [Sharivar] | Miss Süddeutschland | Duisburg |
| 2005 : | Asli Bayram | Miss Nordrhein-Westfalen | Aachen |
| 2006: | Daniela Domröse | Miss Bayern | Krefeld |
| 2007 : | Svetlana Tsys | Miss Ostdeutschland | Hurghada (Egypt) |
[edit] Model of Germany from 2000 : Model of Germany Productions (Stuttgart)
| Year | Name | Qualified as | Site of election |
| 2000 : | Sonja Strobl | Saarland Model | Mainz-Kastel |
| 2001 : | Slata Hellmann | Thüringen Model | ? |
| 2002 : | Pamela Schneider | Berlin Model | ? |
| 2003 : | Kristin Wünsche | Mitteldeutschland Model | ? |
| 2004 : | pageant not held | ||
| 2005 | Yvonne Maier | Baden-Württemberg Model | ? |
Note : The first pageant was held in the end of 1999 under the title of Miss Germany, but later had to be renamed.
[edit] Miss World Germany : MGC
| Year | Name |
| 1992 : | Carina Jope |
| 1993 : | Petra Klein |
| 1994 : | Marta Hellberg |
| 1995 : | Isabell Brauer |
| 1996 : | Melanie Ernst |
| 1997 : | Katja Glawe |
| 1998 : | Sandra Ahrabian |
| 1999 : | Susan Hoecke |
[edit] German Miss World : MGC
| Year | Name |
| 2000/01 : | Natascha Berg |
| 2001/02 : | Adina Wilhelmi |
[edit] Beauty Queen of Germany : MGC
| Year | Name |
| 2000 : | Agnes Glowacki |
[edit] Beauty-Queen of Germany : BQOG-Management
| Year | Name |
| 2004/05 : | Nadine Trompka |
[edit] Queen of Germany : MGC
| Year | Name |
| 1999 : | Julienne Grötsch |
| 2000 : | pageant not held |
| 2001 : | ? |
| 2002 : | Claudia Grohmann |
| 2003 : | Melanie Eder |
| 2004 : | Ann-Cathrin Schmidt |
[edit] Queen of Germany : QGE - Queen of Germany Entertainment (Neuhardenberg, near Frankfurt/Oder)
| Year | Name |
| 2000 : | Yvetta Leogrande |
| 2001-04 : | ? |
| 2005 : | Stephanie Schießl |
| 2006 : | Alis Scharkoi |
[edit] Miss Millennium Deutschland : MGF - Miss Germany Foundation (Barby, Sachsen-Anhalt)
| Year | Name |
| 2000 : | Nadin Becker |
[edit] Princess of Germany : Princess Entertainment & Media Group (Barby, Sachsen-Anhalt)
| Year | Name |
| 2001 : | Mirjana Bogojevic |
| 2002 : | Nicole Kratochvil |
| 2003 : | Katrin Reimann ? |
| 2004 : | Josephina Balasus |
Princess Entertainment is successor of MGF (renamed because the title Miss Germany must not be used any longer). – The pageants concentrate on the new (eastern) lands of the Federal Republic.
Note : Mirjana Bogojevic had been elected also as Miss Germany of MGC in 2001.
[edit] Top Model of Germany : MGA/MGO Komitee Miss Deutschland (Bergheim near Cologne)
| Year | Name |
| 1993-99 : | ? |
| 2000 : | Heike Schmidt |
[edit] Top Model of Germany : Yet-Set Corporation (Cologne)
| Year | Name |
| 2001 : | Daniela Dürr |
| 2002-04 : | ? |
| 2005 : | Sarah Zöllner |
This pageant was promoted by MGA and MGO from 1993 to 2000. In 2001, Yet-Set Corporation in Cologne claims title protection (Titelschutz) according to German law (§ 5 Abs. 3 MarkenG).
[edit] Miss Allemagne : Yet-Set Corporation (Cologne)
For this pageant Yet-Set Corporation in Cologne also claims title protection in 2001. For winners' names there are contradictory information: In 2001, both Jennifer Dietrich and Eileen Bali are named. In 2003, the pageant happened in Kiel (winner unknown). It seems to have been the last edition.
[edit] Miss pageants in the GDR
Miss DDR and predecessors (1986-1988 private events, 1990 MGC)
| Year | Name | Site of election | Title |
| 1986 : | Katrin Gawenda | Berlin | Miss Frühling (Miss Spring) |
| 1987 : | Cornelia Franzke | Berlin | Miss Frühling (Miss Spring) |
| 1988 : | Gabi Kirmihs | Berlin | Miss Sommer (Miss Summer) |
| 1990 : | Leticia Koffke | Schwerin | Miss DDR (Miss GDR) |
Note : Leticia Koffke later became Miss Germany for united Germany.
[edit] Titles at major international competitions
[edit] Miss World
- 1956 : Petra Schürmann
- 1980 : Gabriella Brum
Notes : Petra Schürmann only reached rank three in Miss Germany pageant, but was delegated to Miss World because of her better knowledge of English. – Gabriella Brum resigned the day after her election as Miss World. Allegedly her friend had objections against her new obligations. More probably is that there existed nude photos from her.
[edit] Miss Universe
- 1961 : Marlene Schmidt
[edit] Miss International
- 1965 : Ingrid Finger
- 1989 : Iris Klein
[edit] Miss Intercontinental
- 1992 : Susanne Petry
- 1993 : Verona Feldbusch
- 2000 : Sabrina Schepmann (is not Miss Germany but Miss Deutschland)
[edit] Queen of the World
- 1988 : Susann Stoss
- 1992 : Ines Kuba
- 1996 : Yasemine Mansoor
[edit] Miss Europe
- 1954 : Christel Schaack, disqualified for being a widow.
- 1956 : Margit Nünke
- 1961 : Ingrun Helgard Moeckel
- 1965 : Juliane Herm
- 1972 : Monika Sarp
- 1991 : Susanne Petry, later disqualified
- 2005 : Shermine Shahrivar (is not Miss Germany but Miss Deutschland)
[edit] Sources
- Veit Didczuneit, Dirk Külow: Miss Germany. Die deutsche Schönheitskönigin. S & L MedienContor, Hamburg, 1998; ISBN 3-931962-94-6 (German)
- For Miss Germany Company: http://www.jimmyspageantpage.com/germany.html
- Former Website of MGA - Miss Germany Association: http: //www. missgermany. cmsonline. de (German)
