Akiko Kojima
Miss Universe 1959
competition(s)
(Winner)
Miss Universe 1959
(Winner)
Akiko Kojima (児島 明子, Kojima Akiko, born October 29, 1936) is a Japanese model and beauty queen. She was crowned Miss Universe 1959, making her the first Japanese and Asian woman to win the title.[1]
Biography
Kojima was a 22-year-old model from Tokyo, Japan when she won over four other finalists from Norway, the U.S., England, and Brazil for the 1959 Miss Universe crown in Long Beach, California. At 5 ft 6 in (167.6 cm), Akiko measured 37–23–38 inches (94.0–58.4–96.5 cm).[1][2] She denied press reports on having undergone breast surgery.[3] A year later, Akiko crowned Linda Bement from the United States in 1960.
In 1966, Kojima was married to Japanese actor Akira Takarada, who rose to fame in the Toho movie studios doing the Godzilla movies since 1954. Kojima settled into a quiet married life. They later had a daughter, Michiru Kojima, in 1967. They divorced in 1984, and Kojima left with their daughter.
Forty eight years later after her reign, Japanese Riyo Mori won the Miss Universe pageant in 2007.
References
Awards and achievements | ||
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Preceded by Luz Marina Zuluaga † | Miss Universe 1959 | Succeeded by Linda Bement |
Preceded by Tomoko Moritake | Miss Japan 1959 | Succeeded by Yayoi Foruno |
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- Armi Kuusela (1952)
- Christiane Martel (1953)
- Miriam Stevenson (1954)
- Hillevi Rombin (1955)
- Carol Morris (1956)
- Gladys Zender (1957)
- Luz Marina Zuluaga (1958)
- Akiko Kojima (1959)
- Linda Bement (1960)
- Marlene Schmidt (1961)
- Norma Nolan (1962)
- Iêda Maria Vargas (1963)
- Corinna Tsopei (1964)
- Apasra Hongsakula (1965)
- Margareta Arvidsson (1966)
- Sylvia Hitchcock (1967)
- Martha Vasconcellos (1968)
- Gloria Diaz (1969)
- Marisol Malaret (1970)
- Georgina Rizk (1971)
- Kerry Anne Wells (1972)
- Margie Moran (1973)
- Amparo Muñoz (1974)
- Anne Marie Pohtamo (1975)
- Rina Messinger (1976)
- Janelle Commissiong (1977)
- Margaret Gardiner (1978)
- Maritza Sayalero (1979)
- Shawn Weatherly (1980)
- Irene Sáez (1981)
- Karen Baldwin (1982)
- Lorraine Downes (1983)
- Yvonne Ryding (1984)
- Deborah Carthy-Deu (1985)
- Bárbara Palacios (1986)
- Cecilia Bolocco (1987)
- Porntip Nakhirunkanok (1988)
- Angela Visser (1989)
- Mona Grudt (1990)
- Lupita Jones (1991)
- Michelle McLean (1992)
- Dayanara Torres (1993)
- Sushmita Sen (1994)
- Chelsi Smith (1995)
- Alicia Machado (1996)
- Brook Lee (1997)
- Wendy Fitzwilliam (1998)
- Mpule Kwelagobe (1999)
- Lara Dutta (2000)
- Denise Quiñones (2001)
- Oxana Fedorova/Justine Pasek (2002)
- Amelia Vega (2003)
- Jennifer Hawkins (2004)
- Natalie Glebova (2005)
- Zuleyka Rivera (2006)
- Riyo Mori (2007)
- Dayana Mendoza (2008)
- Stefanía Fernández (2009)
- Ximena Navarrete (2010)
- Leila Lopes (2011)
- Olivia Culpo (2012)
- Gabriela Isler (2013)
- Paulina Vega (2014)
- Pia Wurtzbach (2015)
- Iris Mittenaere (2016)
- Demi-Leigh Nel-Peters (2017)
- Catriona Gray (2018)
- Zozibini Tunzi (2019)
- Andrea Meza (2020)
- Harnaaz Sandhu (2021)
- R'Bonney Gabriel (2022)
- Sheynnis Palacios (2023)
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