Q&A Queens: Melanie Marquez, Venus Raj, Shamcey Supsup, Gloria Diaz
(SPOT.ph) The most watched, most entertaining, and most dreaded (for contestants anyway) part in any beauty pageant has to be the question and answer segment. Candidates are put on the spot in a global fishbowl under the watchful eyes of one billion viewers, and the make-it-or-break-it moment determines their fate—usually in a minute or less—and whether or not their ability to think on their feet can win them the coveted crown. Yup, it's tough and certainly nerve-wracking out there... perhaps it only goes to show that winning is not just about looking great in a bikini and trying not to trip on that figure-hugging, floor-length evening gown, no?
At the height of Venus Raj’s “major major” brouhaha last year, Miss Universe 1969 Gloria Diaz speculated that the Bicolana beauty “thinks in Tagalog then answers in English,” leading her to suggest that Pinay beauty queens should have interpreters. English professor Jose Wendell Capili backed Diaz and told TV Patrol World that Raj should’ve have been allowed to speak in Bicolano, "not because she’s unintelligent or incapable of speaking in English,” but because having an interpreter would have allowed her the “opportunity to think about her answer twice or thrice." Meanwhile, Raj was unmoved by the controversy. She said in an ABS-CBN report that she had no regrets about her answer, and that she would say the same thing if asked again.
This list compiles the most memorable Q&A moments of beauty pageants past—where memorable isn’t always a good thing.
Take the SPOT.ph poll: Which beauty queen had the most unforgettable answer for you?
10. Jeannie Anderson, Binibining Pilipinas Pageant, 2006
The Scene: The one when she says, "Quiet please!"
The Question: "If you were given a chance to choose to become beautiful but not too smart or very smart and not too beautiful, what would you prefer to be and why?"
The Answer: "Well, um, quiet please! Okay. Well, I'd rather choose to be, uh, beautiful. Um, because, um, to be beautiful like, um, it's natural. But, um, being smart, you can learn. You can learn, um, a lot of things. You can learn from the experience. You can learn from a lot of things to be smart."
Looking pale as a ghost and like she was about to faint, Anderson appeared to be scared sh*tless when 1969 Miss Universe Gloria Diaz asked her the question (and we don't blame her). In theory, she had a point—how she got to it was the problem. We don’t know where she is now, but we sure hope she's doing well.
