Janelle "Penny" Commissiong, TC (born June 15, 1953) is a Trinidadian politician, model and beauty queen who was crowned

Miss Universe 1977 Miss Universe 1977, the 26th Miss Universe pageant, was held on 16 July 1977 at the National Theater in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. It was the first time in the pageant's history that the event was held in Dominican Republic. Janelle Comm ...

Biography

She studied at

Bishop Anstey High School Bishop Anstey High School (BAHS), also known as Bishop Anstey or St. Hilary's, is a government-assisted all-girls secondary school in Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago. It was founded by the Anglican Bishop Arthur Henry Anstey and opened on Jan ...

. migrated to the United States at the age of 13, and returned to

Trinidad and Tobago Trinidad and Tobago (, ), officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, is the southernmost island country in the Caribbean. Consisting of the main islands Trinidad and Tobago, and numerous much smaller islands, it is situated south of ...

ten years later. After winning the Miss Trinidad and Tobago Universe title, she went on to be crowned Miss Universe 1977 in

Santo Domingo , total_type = Total , population_density_km2 = auto , timezone = AST (UTC −4) , area_code_type = Area codes , area_code = 809, 829, 849 , postal_code_type = Postal codes , postal_code = 10100–10699 ( Distrito Nacional) , webs ...

Dominican Republic The Dominican Republic ( ; es, República Dominicana, ) is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean region. It occupies the eastern five-eighths of the island, which it shares with ...

and in the process became the first black woman to win the prestigious pageant crown. After winning the title, she was most commonly known as 'Penny' because she was small as a penny. In

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

, she studied fashion at the

Fashion Institute of Technology The Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT) is a public college in New York City. It is part of the State University of New York (SUNY) and focuses on art, business, design, mass communication, and technology connected to the fashion industry. ...

, but returned to Port of Spain in 1976. The following year, Commissiong was selected to represent the country at the 1977 Miss Universe competition in

. She was elected Miss Photogenic four days before the final, becoming the first black woman to win these awards in Miss Universe history. On July 16, in the National Theater of Santo Domingo, Commissiong was crowned Miss Universe, attracting international attention as the first black winner in the chronology of Miss Universe. During her reign, she was an advocate for black rights and world peace. Commissiong was awarded the

Trinity Cross The Trinity Cross (abbreviated T.C.) was the highest of the National Awards of Trinidad and Tobago, between the years 1969 and 2008. It was awarded for: "distinguished and outstanding service to Trinidad and Tobago. It was awarded for gallantry ...

, the country's highest

award An award, sometimes called a distinction, is something given to a recipient as a token of recognition of excellence in a certain field. When the token is a medal, ribbon or other item designed for wearing, it is known as a decoration. An awar ...

, in 1977. Three

postage stamp A postage stamp is a small piece of paper issued by a post office, postal administration, or other authorized vendors to customers who pay postage (the cost involved in moving, insuring, or registering mail), who then affix the stamp to the f ...

s were also issued in her honour. In 2017, Queen Street located in the capital of Port of Spain, was renamed to Queen Janelle Commissiong Street in tribute of her 1977 Miss Universe win. Commissiong was named chair of the newly formed Tourism Trinidad Destination Management Company in October 2017. From 2012 to 2015 she had served as vice-chair of its predecessor agency, the Tourism Development Company. She married Brian Bowen, founder of Bowen Marine, who died in an accident in November 1989. After his death, she married businessman Alwin Chow.

References

Janelle Commissiong
at bestoftrinidad.com

- biography at nalis.gov.tt {{DEFAULTSORT:Commissiong, Janelle 1953 births Fashion Institute of Technology alumni Living people Miss Universe 1977 contestants Miss Universe winners Recipients of the Trinity Cross Trinidad and Tobago beauty pageant winners Trinidad and Tobago female models

Biography

See also

References