From beauty queens to actresses

Halle Berry
Before she turned into a Bond girl, mutant superhero and multiple award winner, Halle Berry took part in several beauty pageants. The actress won Miss Ohio and Miss Teen All-American, finished second at the 1986 Miss USA contest and later on went to place sixth at Miss World. During her interview, Halle confessed she one day hoped to become a great artist. She sure did.


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Roselyn Sánchez
Television show 'Qué Vacilón' and beauty pageant 'Miss Puerto Rico Petite' in 1993 were her first steps towards acting. Her first role was in the soap opera 'As the World Turns' and ever since, she has carried a remarkable career spanning over movies, theatre, music and television, where she just ended her hit show 'Without a Trace'.

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Vanessa Williams
In 1983, Vanessa Williams made history when she became the first African-American woman to win Miss America. However, she had to give up the title, surrounded by controversy, when Penthouse magazine published naked pictures of herself she took before competing. Still, she turned into a major star, with both Tony and Grammy nominations, a successful musical career and considerable roles in both movies and TV, the most recent one being her outstanding part as scheming Wilhemina in 'Ugly Betty'.


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Monica Spear
Miss Venezuela 2005 began a career in her greatest passion: acting, of course. In 2007, she joined the cast of the telenovela 'Mi Prima Ciela'. Her performance ended up getting her an award called 'El Universo del Espectáculo', in the category of Best Young Leading Star.

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Cecilia Bolocco
In May 26, 1987 she became the first and so far, only Chilean girl to be crowned Miss Universe. Although hosting TV shows is what she does best, she decided in 2004 to start trying her luck as an actress, and she did it in 'Morelia', a Telemundo production transmitted in over 70 countries.

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Kelli McCarty
When she finished her reign as Miss USA 1991, she realized she wanted to become successful actress, so she began auditioning for soap operas and several TV shows. And even though Hollywood didn't welcome her with open arms, another industry did: in 2008, she took a drastic turn and became a porn star, starting with the film 'Faithless'.

Bob Galbraith, AP

Dayanara Torres
The beautiful Puerto Rican was long linked to singer Marc Anthony. She took part and won the Miss Universe pageant that took place in Mexico City, in 1993. She was barely 18 years old when the world surrendered to her looks. Since then, she's been a part of several films and soap operas. Now she's planning her big break into Hollywood.


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Amelia Vega
At only 18 years old, Dominican Amelia Vega was crowned the most beautiful woman on the planet in the 2003 Miss Universe pageant. She made her big screen debut along Andy Garcia in the film "The Lost City". Besides acting, Amelia wants to conquer the music world. A talent that, without a doubt, she inherited from her famous uncle, Juan Luis Guerra.

Darren Decker, AP

María Conchita Alonso
She had been a part of several beauty pageants before, but after placing seventh in Miss World 1975, she managed to get a boost into an acting career, and afterwards, in singing as well. Alonso has recently been seen in the hit show 'Desperate Housewives' and also in 'Material Girls'.

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Marjorie Wallace
She was the first woman from the United States to win the Miss World contest, back in 1973 in London. But her reign ended a little too soon when she was heavily criticized for dating way too many famous stars, including singer Tom Jones and many athletes. She later became a host for the television shows 'Good Morning Los Angeles' and 'Entertainment Tonight'.


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