Yolande Fox
| Yolande Fox | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born |
Yolande Margaret Betbeze November 29, 1928 Mobile, Alabama |
| Died |
February 22, 2016 (aged 87) Washington, D.C. |
| Ethnicity | Basque American |
| Alma mater | New School for Social Research (Philosophy) |
| Occupation | Opera singer, activist |
| Term | Miss America 1951 |
| Religion | Roman Catholic |
| Spouse(s) | Matthew Fox (1954-1964; his death) |
| Children | 1 |
Yolande Margaret Betbeze Fox (November 29, 1928 – February 22, 2016) was an American singer and beauty pageant titleholder who was crowned Miss America 1951.
Early life
Yolande Margaret Betbeze was born on November 29, 1928 in Mobile, Alabama,[1][2] to William, a butcher, and Ethel Betbeze of Mobile. Betbeze was raised in a strict Roman Catholic family of French Basque descent, and she attended convent schools.[3]
Career
She captured her first crown in 1949 when she won Mobile's "Miss Torch" pageant.[3] In 1950, Fox (then Betbeze) entered Miss Alabama for the scholarship opportunities the pageant presented.[4] As Miss Alabama, she traveled to Atlantic City, New Jersey, to compete in the Miss America 1951 pageant. Having been educated in a convent school, she was reluctant to pose in a swimsuit and refused to do so after she won Miss America.[5] That led the swimsuit company, Catalina, to withdraw their sponsorship of the Miss America pageant and eventually brought about the creation of the rival Miss USA pageant.[2]
Fox's Miss America title, although won in 1950, was for 1951 and is the first Miss America title to be "postdated" in this manner. Due to the change, there was no Miss America 1950. The Miss America Organization has claimed that Fox's (then Betbeze's) actions were pivotal in directing pageant progress towards recognizing intellect, values, and leadership abilities, rather than focusing on beauty alone. From then on the Miss America pageant concentrated more on scholarship than beauty.[2]
Fox was active in the feminist movement. After her one-year reign as Miss America, she served as an ambassador to Paris; was active in the NAACP, CORE (Congress of Racial Equality), and SANE (The Committee for a SANE Nuclear Policy); and studied philosophy at the New School for Social Research in New York City. Fox was an opera singer and did gain a reputation in that area. She continued to sing, appearing with the Mobile Opera Guild (now the Mobile Opera), and helped found an off-Broadway theater.[3]
Personal life
She married movie magnate Matthew Fox, the former president of Universal Pictures, in 1954. They had one daughter, Yolande “Dolly” Fox Campbell.[5] Her husband died after 10 years of marriage.
After her husband's death, she moved to Georgetown, Washington, D.C., purchasing the Newton D. Baker House from Michael Whitney Straight and his then wife Nina Gore Auchincloss. The home had previously been the residence of Jacqueline Kennedy after the assassination or John F. Kennedy in 1963.[6] Fox had a relationship with Cherif Guellal, with whom she raised her grandchild, Yolande "Paris" Campbell, until Guellal's death in 2009.[7]
Yolande Fox died on February 22, 2016 in Washington, D.C. of lung cancer.[1]
References
- 1 2 Bernstein, Adam (2016-02-25). "Yolande Betbeze Fox, a Miss America who rebelled, dies at 87". The Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2016-02-26.
- 1 2 3 Ericson, Sally Pearsall (April 17, 2014). "A famous Mobilian you should know: Yolande Betbeze Fox, an outspoken beauty queen". Press-Register (Mobile, AL: Advance Publications). Retrieved June 10, 2015.
- 1 2 3 "Yolande Betbeze". Encyclopedia of Alabama. Retrieved August 24, 2013.
- ↑ "Miss Alabama History". Miss Alabama. Retrieved June 11, 2015.
- 1 2 Watkins, Mia (September 9, 2014). "Yolande Betbeze Fox: Alabama's first Miss America reflects on title more than 60 years later". The Huntsville Times (Huntsville, AL: Advance Publications). Retrieved June 10, 2015.
- ↑ Staff (December 7, 1975). "Mrs. Onassis, 'Gracious Full of Pep,' D.C. Socialite Says". The Cincinnati Enquirer. Retrieved 14 March 2016.
- ↑ Bernstein, Adam (April 13, 2009). "Cherif Guellal dies at 76; Algerian resistance fighter and diplomat". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved December 26, 2014.
External links
| Awards and achievements | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Jacque Mercer |
Miss America 1951 |
Succeeded by Colleen Kay Hutchins |
| Preceded by Freida Roser |
Miss Alabama 1950 |
Succeeded by Jeanne Moody |
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