How to Pronounce Penelope Coelen
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Apr 15, 1940 Durban, KwaZulu Natal, South Africa 84 years old
South African beauty pageant contestant
AriesPenelope Coelen - Place of Birth, Date of Birth, Age, Wiki, Facts, Net Worth, Birthday, Biography and Family
Penelope Coelen, Date of Birth, Place of Birth, Family, Facts, Age, Net Worth, Biography and More in FamedBorn.com
About Penelope Coelen
- Penelope Anne Coelen (born 15 April 1940) is a South African actress, model and beauty queen who was Miss World 1958. In 1958, the Miss World Pageant was still in its early years.
- A total of 22 contestants from Europe, the Americas, Asia and Africa competed in the finals.
- Europeans dominated the semi-finals with 9 out of 12 places secured by women from the host continent.
- Five of the 6 finalists were from Europe as well, but it was a striking young woman from the Union of South Africa who took home the coveted crown. Penelope Anne Coelen, or Penny to her friends and fans, was elected Miss World and was the first major international titleholder to come from Africa.
- The 18-year-old secretary from Durban enraptured the audience with her poise and beauty.
- She gained widespread international attention during her reign and received several lucrative modelling offers.
- After her reign as Miss World 1958, she tried her luck out in Hollywood with the help of James Garner, but failed her screen test.
- She later managed her own line of clothing and endorsed beauty products, particularly perfumes. Coelen swore that she would never go through the terror of competing again, noting that it was "too nerve-wracking," yet that being a Miss World contestant and titleholder was "something I would not have liked to miss."She appeared as a contestant on the television game show To Tell the Truth on 25 November 1958.Later she returned to South Africa, married wealthy sugar cane farmer Michel Rey from the Natal Province and she remains today a prominent socialite in South Africa.
- She runs a guesthouse and has five sons and five grandchildren from one son.
