Macel Patricia Leilani Wilson (born May 5, 1943) is an American beauty pageant titleholder who was crowned Miss USA 1962. Previously crowned Miss Hawaii USA 1962, Wilson was the first entrant from Hawaii, first

Asian American Asian Americans are Americans with ancestry from the continent of Asia (including naturalized Americans who are immigrants from specific regions in Asia and descendants of those immigrants). Although this term had historically been used fo ...

, and first woman of color to win Miss USA. Later in life, Wilson relocated to Denmark and became a

film editor Film editing is both a creative and a technical part of the post-production process of filmmaking. The term is derived from the traditional process of working with film stock, film which increasingly involves the use Digital cinema, of digital ...

for the Danish Broadcasting Corporation (DR) and a visual artist.

Pageantry

Wilson began competing in pageantry after she was crowned Miss Hawaii USA 1962. As Miss Hawaii USA, Wilson competed at Miss USA 1962 in

Miami Miami is a East Coast of the United States, coastal city in the U.S. state of Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade County in South Florida. It is the core of the Miami metropolitan area, which, with a populat ...

. She went on to win the title, becoming the first entrant from Hawaii, first

, and first woman of color to win the title. As Miss USA, she went on to place in the Top 15 at Miss Universe 1962, also held in Miami, behind winner Norma Nolan of Argentina. After Miss Universe, Wilson was asked to fill in for Nolan during a Miss Universe event at the

Orange Bowl The Orange Bowl is an annual American college football bowl game played in the Miami metropolitan area. Played annually since 1935 Orange Bowl, January 1, 1935, it is tied with the Sugar Bowl and the Sun Bowl as the second-oldest bowl games in ...

Parade in Miami when Nolan fell ill with the

measles Measles (probably from Middle Dutch or Middle High German ''masel(e)'', meaning "blemish, blood blister") is a highly contagious, Vaccine-preventable diseases, vaccine-preventable infectious disease caused by Measles morbillivirus, measles v ...

Personal life

Macel is Portuguese, Hawaiian, Filipino, Chinese and English descent. Wilson attended President Theodore Roosevelt High School and

Miami Dade College Miami Dade College (MDC) is a public university, public college located in Miami, Miami, Florida, United States. Established in 1959, MDC operates eight campuses and numerous outreach centers throughout Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade Count ...

. In 1967, Wilson married Danish

civil engineer A civil engineer is a person who practices civil engineering – the application of planning, designing, constructing, maintaining, and operating infrastructure while protecting the public and environmental health, as well as improving existing i ...

Jens Henrik Packness and relocated with him to

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a population of 1.4 million in the Urban area of Copenhagen, urban area. The city is situated on the islands of Zealand and Amager, separated from Malmö, Sweden, by the ...

. While in Denmark, Wilson began studying film at the

University of Copenhagen The University of Copenhagen (, KU) is a public university, public research university in Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark. Founded in 1479, the University of Copenhagen is the second-oldest university in Scandinavia, after Uppsala University. ...

and taking private painting classes. They returned to Copenhagen in 1976. Wilson became a

at the Danish Broadcasting Corporation (DR) in 1978, until her retirement in 2000, and has held art exhibitions in Danish galleries since 1999.

References

External links

* ''Archive of Macel Wilson's web site, in Danish and English'' * 1943 births 20th-century American people American beauty pageant winners American beauty pageant winners of Chinese descent American emigrants to Denmark American film editors American people of English descent American people of Native Hawaiian descent American people of Portuguese descent American women film editors Living people Miami Dade College alumni Miss Universe 1962 contestants Miss USA 1960s delegates Miss USA winners People from Honolulu University of Copenhagen alumni {{Hawaii-stub