Las Vegas Weekly

August 23, 2010 · 8:41 AM

Photos: Donald Trump arrives for Miss Universe at Mandalay Bay

By Robin Leach

Donald Trump greets contestants of the 2010 Miss Universe pageant at Mandalay Bay on Aug. 22, 2010.

Photo: Patrick Prather/Miss Universe

The big day is finally here, and 83 gorgeous women from as far away as Australia and Africa and Trinidad and Thailand compete for the 2010 Miss Universe Pageant crown as Stefania Fernandez of Venezuela crowns her successor.

It’s a night of swimsuits, evening gowns, interviews and outrageous national costumes in the ultimate beauty broadcast of glitz and glamour that Las Vegas stages better than any other place on Earth.

Keep your eyes on our new Miss USA Rima Fakih of Dearborn, Mich., because we’re betting that she’ll wind up in the Top Five, possibly alongside Miss Ireland and maybe with Miss Australia, Miss Haiti and Miss Norway (alas, no three-peat for Miss Venezuela, following Stefania and 2008 Miss Universe Dayana Mendoza). But as we all know, they face the dreaded live interview questions from the judges that can instantly spell disastrous defeat or tremendous triumph.

Vegas DeLuxe is all set with our team -- yours truly, Editor Don Chareunsy, contributing photographers and a videographer -- to report from the red carpet as of 3:45 p.m. PT and during the show starting at 6 p.m. at VegasDeLuxe.com and on Twitter @robin_leach. We’ll post the name and photographs of the new Miss Universe as Stefania Fernandez crowns her successor.

Pageant owner Donald Trump flew into Las Vegas yesterday to meet all of the contestants and to watch the rehearsals of the 59th annual pageant held on The Strip for the first time since 1996, when it was at the Aladdin (now the site of Planet Hollywood, the current home of the Miss America and Miss USA pageants). Poison singer Brett Michaels, who won The Donald’s Season 3 of Celebrity Apprentice, is the host with Natalie Morales of NBC’s Today.

Said Donald: “The Miss Universe Pageant is a worldwide phenomenon, and you won’t want to miss the excitement. When you combine the world’s most beautiful women, bikinis, a rock star and a panel of top celebrity judges, you have a recipe for success.”

The celebrity panel of judges who holds the future of just one winner in its hands is Luxor headliner Criss Angel from Cirque du Soleil’s Believe; 2010 Olympic figure skating gold medalist Evan Lysacek; actor Chazz Palminteri, who returns to The Venetian in A Bronx Tale in October; international supermodel Niki Taylor; actress Jane Seymour; actor, writer and producer William Baldwin; singer and drummer Sheila E; singer Chynna Phillips; and MSNBC anchor Tamron Hall.

The two-hour spectacular being broadcast live to more than 100 countries from Mandalay Bay Events Center at 6 p.m. PT/9 p.m. ET also features entertainment from John Legend and The Roots and the cast of Cirque du Soleil’s Viva Elvis, which calls MGM CityCenter’s Aria home.

TV cameras have recorded all the pageant princesses during their 21-day stay in Las Vegas, and highlights of their visits in town will be shown on the telecast, giving an extra-valuable boost to Las Vegas’ tourist attractions (Las Vegas, incidentally, is the top attraction this upcoming Labor Day weekend).

The contestants’ final appearance together was Saturday night with a swimsuit parade at Moorea Beach Club at Mandalay Bay Beach before they wound down and watched the Michael Franti and Spearhead concert.

After tonight’s show, the contestants will celebrate with the new Miss Universe at LAX in the Luxor. We’ll have full photo coverage and reports from behind the scenes and at the party here tomorrow, along with our interview with the new Miss Universe. Then on Wednesday, we’ll post another photo gallery of the first full day in the life of the winner as she sets out to travel the globe.

Robin Leach has been a journalist for more than 50 years and has spent the past decade giving readers the inside scoop on Las Vegas, the world’s premier platinum playground.

Follow Robin Leach on Twitter at Twitter.com/Robin_Leach.

Follow Vegas DeLuxe on Twitter at Twitter.com/vegasdeluxe.

Follow VDLX Editor Don Chareunsy on Twitter at Twitter.com/VDLXEditorDon.

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