Georgina Rizk: The Woman Who Showed Lebanon To The Universe

As Lebanon’s most famed beauty queen, Georgina Rizk is something of an icon in the land of milk and honey. Her beauty is unparalleled, and her grace and charm follow suit. She was a model, a beauty queen, an actress, a singer, and a socialite, but the role she says she became most comfortable with was being a mother. She captured Lebanese hearts in 1970 and would go on to capture the world’s attention when she was crowned Miss Universe in 1971.

Here are a few things you should know about the former beauty queen:

1. About her family
Rizk was born to a Lebanese father and a Hungarian baroness, her half-sister Felicina Rossi is an Italian model and fashion designer.

(Image via Tumblr)

2. About her first job
At the age of fourteen, Georgina Rizk landed her first job modeling at Carlton Beach for a boutique prêt-a-porter called Mic Mac.

(Image via Tumblr)

3. About the Miss Universe pageant:
During a rare interview in 1999, Rizk revealed that on the night of the Miss Universe pageant, she had done her own hair and makeup with absolutely no help since that is what she was used to.

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4. About her personal interview:
Rizk’s personal interview during the pageant was adorably vapid.
Host: If you had a friend who was going to enter the Miss Universe contest, what advice would you give her?
Rizk: “I don’t know how to say in English… (continues in French) it would be a great experience to enter a contest even if you do not win, it is still lots of fun and a wonderful experience.”

(Image via Wikipedia)

5. About the big moment:
Rizk has previously shared that just seconds before the results were announced, she actually glanced at the card in the presenter’s hand and saw that she had won.

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6. About Hollywood:
After she was crowned Miss Universe, Rizk was offered many leading roles in Hollywood movies, all of which she turned down claiming she doesn’t like cinema and filmmaking at all. Any movies she eventually appeared in were personal favors to friends. Additionally, her primary goal after being crowned was to return to Lebanon.

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7. About her first marriage:
In 1979, seven years after becoming Miss World, Georgina Rizk would marry Ali Hassan Salameh, described as a playboy and nicknamed the Red Prince. The couple met at a dinner party and would shortly after find themselves married and honeymooning in Hawaii and then Disneyland. Salameh was the head of operations for the infamous Black September organization that was responsible for the Munich massacre as well as other Palestinian resistance operations.

(Image via missosology)

8. About the criticism:
When she began her relationship with Salameh, the civil war was in full swing. Salameh was allegedly married when he began his romantic relationship with Rizk, which led to a lot of scrutiny from the public. Additionally Salameh was a Muslim and a Palestinian while Rizk was a Christian– which caused further controversy from some in the Christian community.

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9. About Salameh’s death:
Salameh was assassinated by the Mossad as he drove away from his house in January 1979. Rizk, who was four-months pregnant with their son at the time, heard the blast from the couples’ balcony.

(Image via mawtani)

10. About her kidnapping:
Under strange circumstances, Rizk was kidnapped along with her son and her sister by the Lebanese Forces in 1982. They were released the same day.

(Image via mawtani)

11. About her second marriage:
After meeting him at a concert he was holding in Damascus, Rizk married Lebanese singer Walid Tawfik. They have two children and are still married. Rizk has one son named Ali, after his father from her first marriage, and Walid Jr. and Nourhan from her marriage to Tawfik.

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12. About her, today:
Rizk and her husband currently live in Hazmieh. I see her at the supermarket, and she is still stunning at 62.