Christiane Martel (born Christiane Magnani on 18 January 1935) is a French and Mexican actress, model and beauty queen. She became the second woman to win the

Miss Universe Miss Universe is an annual international major beauty pageant that is run by a Thailand and Mexican-based Miss Universe Organization.Natalie Tadena (July 2, 2015"Donald Trump's Miss USA Pageant Lands on Reelz Cable Channel". ''The Wall Stree ...

beauty pageant in

1953 Events January * January 6 – The Asian Socialist Conference opens in Rangoon, Burma. * January 12 – Estonian émigrés found a Estonian government-in-exile, government-in-exile in Oslo. * January 14 ** Marshal Josip Broz Tito ...

. She was the only French woman to hold the Miss Universe title until

Iris Mittenaere Iris Mittenaere ( ; ; born 25 January 1993) is a French television personality, model and beauty pageant titleholder best known for winning the title of Miss Universe 2016. The second Miss Universe from France after Christiane Martel, Mittenae ...

2016 2016 was designated as: * International Year of Pulses by the sixty-eighth session of the United Nations General Assembly. * International Year of Global Understanding (IYGU) by the International Council for Science (ICSU), the Internationa ...

. She is one of the last surviving stars from the

Golden Age of Mexican cinema The Golden Age of Mexican Cinema (Spanish: la Época de Oro del Cine Mexicano), spanning the 1930s to 1950s, was a prolific era during which Mexico emerged as the leading film producer in Latin America. Filmmakers during this period tackled themes ...

Life and career

Martel was born in

Nancy, France Nancy is the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the northeastern Departments of France, French department of Meurthe-et-Moselle. It was the capital of the Duchy of Lorraine, which was Lorraine and Barrois, annexed by France under King Louis X ...

to a modest family of Italian ancestry and was raised in Piennes. Amid the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, her family moved to Western France, and later, in 1940, to

Loudun Loudun (; ; Poitevin: ''Loudin'') is a commune in the Vienne department and the region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine, western France. It is located south of the town of Chinon and 25 km to the east of the town Thouars. The area south of Loudun ...

19521953: Pageantry

She was Miss

Châtellerault Châtellerault (; Poitevin-Saintongeais: ''Châteulrô/Chateleràud''; ) is a commune in the Vienne department in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region in France. It is located in the northeast of the former province Poitou, and the residents are cal ...

in 1952. She was crowned Miss Cinémonde and represented

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

Miss Universe 1953 Miss Universe 1953 was the 2nd Miss Universe pageant, held at the Long Beach Municipal Auditorium in Long Beach, California, United States of America on 17 July 1953. At the end of the event, actress Julie Adams crowned Christiane Martel from Fr ...

where she became the second Miss Universe. She was crowned by actress

Julie Adams Julie Adams (born Betty May Adams; October 17, 1926 – February 3, 2019) was an American actress, billed as Julia Adams in her early career, primarily known for her numerous television guest roles. She starred in a number of films in the 1 ...

as Miss Universe 1952,

Armi Kuusela Armi Helena Kuusela-Williams (née Kuusela, formerly Kuusela-Hilario; born 20 August 1934) is a Finnish-American beauty queen and philanthropist, best known for being the first-ever Miss Universe. In 1952, she gained national recognition by winn ...

Finland Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bothnia to the west and the Gulf of Finland to the south, ...

, had given up her crown. Martel's runners-up in the

pageant was

Myrna Hansen Myrna Hansen (born August 5, 1934) is an American actress, model, and beauty pageant titleholder who won Miss USA 1953. Education Hansen is the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Raymond E. Hansen. She graduated from Carl Schurz High School in Chicago, ...

of the

USA The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 contiguous ...

, followed by delegates of

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

, and

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

19541962: Acting career

Shortly after her reign, Martel embarked on a successful career in international films, appearing in movies such as '' Yankee Pasha'', '' So This Is Paris'', ''

Drop the Curtain ''Drop the Curtain'' (Spanish: ''Abajo el telón'') is a 1955 Mexican comedy film directed by Miguel M. Delgado and starring Cantinflas, Christiane Martel and Beatriz Saavedra.Lezcano, p. 98. The film's art direction was by Gunther Gerszo. Plot ...

'', the '' 1956 version'' of '' Corazón salvaje'' (playing the villain Aimée), ''Viva el Amor!'', ''

Rosa Blanca ''La rosa blanca'' (''The White Rose'') is a 1961 Mexican film starring Ignacio López Tarso Ignacio López Tarso (born Ignacio López López; 15 January 1925 – 11 March 2023) was a Mexican actor of stage, film and television. He acted in ...

'' and her last film to date, 1961's ''Leoni al Sole''.

Later activities

Later, Martel served as a judge at the

Miss Universe 1978 Miss Universe 1978 was the 27th Miss Universe pageant, held on 24 July 1978 at the Centro de Convenciones de Acapulco in Acapulco, Mexico. It was the first time in the pageant's history that the event was held in Mexico. Margaret Gardiner of S ...

pageant. She would also make television appearances at the

pageants held in

1989 1989 was a turning point in political history with the "Revolutions of 1989" which ended communism in Eastern Bloc of Europe, starting in Poland and Hungary, with experiments in power-sharing coming to a head with the opening of the Berlin W ...

1993 The United Nations General Assembly, General Assembly of the United Nations designated 1993 as: * International Year for the World's Indigenous People The year 1993 in the Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands had only 364 days, since its ...

, and

2007 2007 was designated as the International Heliophysical Year and the International Polar Year. Events January * January 1 **Bulgaria and Romania 2007 enlargement of the European Union, join the European Union, while Slovenia joins the Eur ...

, all of which were held in Mexico. Her most recent television appearance in France was on 3 December 2011 at the

Miss France Miss France is a national beauty pageant in France held annually in December. The competition was first held in 1920, and has been organized continuously since 1947. The trademark for the pageant is owned by the company Miss France SAS, and is ...

pageant. She appeared in the Mexican television show, ''Sale el sol'' in 2017 where she was interviewed.

Personal life

Martel was married briefly to Ronnie Marengo, a department store heir, whom she divorced in 1955. In 1961 she married

Miguel Alemán Velasco Miguel Alemán Velasco (born 18 March 1932) is a Mexican politician, businessman and philanthropist. He is a former senator and governor of Veracruz. Alemán Velasco is the son of former Mexican president Miguel Alemán Valdés (1946–52), t ...

, who would become

Governor of Veracruz The governor, according to the Political Constitution of the Free and Sovereign State of Veracruz, Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave in Mexico, the Executive Power is invested in one individual, called "''Constitutional Governor of the Free and Sov ...

and is the son of

Miguel Alemán Valdés Miguel Alemán Valdés (; 29 September 1900 – 14 May 1983) was a Mexican politician who served a full term as the President of Mexico from 1946 to 1952, the first civilian president after a string of revolutionary generals. His administ ...

, former

president of Mexico The president of Mexico (), officially the president of the United Mexican States (), is the head of state and head of government of Mexico. Under the Constitution of Mexico, the president heads the executive branch of the federal government and ...

. They have three daughters and one son. Their son,

Miguel Alemán Magnani Miguel Alemán Magnani is a Mexican tycoon who was the president and CEO of Mexican airline Interjet, which was facing liquidation on a federal court order as of April 2023. Magnani is the son of ex-politician and Grupo Alemán president and CEO M ...

, is a stakeholder of

Televisa Grupo Televisa, S.A.B., simply known as Televisa, is a Mexican telecommunications and broadcasting company. A major Latin American mass media corporation, it often presents itself as the largest producer of Spanish-language content. In April ...

and is the former owner of

low-cost airline A low-cost carrier (LCC) or low-cost airline, also called a budget, or discount carrier or airline, is an airline that is operated with an emphasis on minimizing operating costs. It sacrifices certain traditional airline luxuries for cheaper fa ...

Interjet InterJet was a private jet charter operator in the Greek business aviation market. InterJet was based in Athens Athens ( ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. A significant coastal ...

.Christiane Martel Profile
glamourgirlsofthesilverscreen.com

References

External links

* 1936 births 20th-century French actresses Actresses from Paris French beauty pageant winners French emigrants to Mexico French female models French film actresses French people of Italian descent Living people Miss Universe 1953 contestants Miss Universe winners {{France-film-actor-1930s-stub