Net Worth

Miss Grand International 2020 Contestants Reveals Secret Marriage

Miss Puerto Rico and Miss Argentina are currently married, making them Missus.

In an Instagram post, beauty queens Mariana Varela and Fabiola Valentín shared that they have already tied the knot. Notably, Varela represented Argentina while Valentín ran for Puerto Rico in her 2020 Miss Grand International pageant.

The IG post marks the first time the couple has gone public with their relationship.

Then, 26-year-old Varela and 22-year-old Valentin walked down the aisle to a courthouse in San Juan, Puerto Rico on October 28, according to their joint Instagram post.

They wrote: “After choosing to keep our relationship private, we opened the doors to them on a special day.” 

The pair uploaded a set of candid photos of them together, including the at-home, closed-door proposal, which she made with “Marry Me?” balloons. Moreover, they included a moment in front of the courthouse after they wed. 

In 2020, the newlyweds met while running their respective countries in the Miss Grand International contest. Organizers gathered to congratulate Varela and Valentin on Instagram.

“Congratulations to both of you,” they said. “MGIO always support ‘LOVE’ without boundaries.” 

The couple’s colleagues during the contest, such as Miss Grand International 2020 title holder, Abena Akuaba, sent their greetings. Additionally, Akuaba is the first black woman to receive the crown.

“MGI brought together a beautiful union,” Akuaba said in the comments of the pair’s post. 

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Miss Grand International: The Event They Met

Varela made it to the top 10 at the Miss Grand International 2020. To note, she’s a model for several campaigns. Furthermore, she has participated in various initiatives that counter gender violence. 

Meanwhile, Valentin also ended up in the top 10 of the Miss Grand International 2020. In addition, she has served in several modeling agencies, like one headquartered in Miami. 

Miss Grand International started its runoff in 2013. Here is the list of winners and venues of the show: 

2013: Miss Grand Puerto Rico 2013 Janelle Chaparro, 22 (Puerto Rico) 

2014: Miss Grand Cuba 2014 Lees Garcia, 27 (Cuba) 

2015: Miss Grand Dominican Republic 2015 Anea Garcia, 20 (Dominican Republic) 

           Miss Grand Australia 2015 Claire Elizabeth Parker, 24 (Australia) 

2016: Puteri Indonesia Perdamaian 2016 Ariska Putri Pertiwi, 21 (Indonesia) 

2017: Miss Grand Peru 2017 Maria Jose Lora, 27 (Peru) 

2018: Miss Grand Paraguay 2018 Clara Sosa, 24 (Paraguay) 

2019: El Concurso by Osmel Sousa 2018 Valentina Figuera, 19 (Venezuela) 

2020: Miss Grand United States of America 2020 Abena Appiah, 27 (United States) 

2021: Miss Grand Vietnam 2021 Nguyen Thuc Thuy Tien, 23 (Vietnam) 

2022: Miss Grand Brazil 2022 Isabella Menin, 25 (Brazil)

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‘Harry Potter’ Alum Daniel Radcliffe Contradicts J.K. Rowling’s Statements on Trans

The boy who lived contradicts statements by Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling. In particular, the author made controversial comments about transgender people.

As many might already know, Daniel Radcliffe played Harry Potter in the film adaptation of Rowling’s beloved book series.

In a June 2020 interview with The Trevor Project, Radcliffe disagreed with the author’s statement on trans issues. However, Rowling is always sharing her opinions on social media and in published articles these days.

Radcliffe told IndieWire that he made the statement because he felt he had something to say, especially to Harry Potter fans.

“Transgender women are women,” he wrote. 

“Any statement to the contrary erases the identity and dignity of transgender people and goes against all advice given by professional health care associations who have far more expertise on this subject matter than either Jo [Rowling] or I.” 

Radcliffe added to his statement: “Particularly since finishing Potter, I’ve met so many queer and trans kids and young people who had a huge amount of identification with Potter on that. And so, seeing them hurt on that day, I was like. 

“I wanted them to know that not everybody in the franchise felt that way. And that was really important.” 

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Radcliffe Mimics Harry Saves

The actor went on to say he wouldn’t have felt comfortable if he didn’t say something about it.

“It was really important as I’ve worked with the Trevor Project for more than ten years. And so I don’t think I would’ve been able to look myself in the mirror had I not said anything,” he said. “But it’s not mine to guess what’s going on in someone else’s head.” 

Radcliffe initially entered the Trevor Project’s Circle of Hope in 2009. The program is a community of huge donors who play a vital role in the organization’s financial figurehead. 

The Trevor Project is a national leader offering crisis mediation and suicide prevention services to the LGBTQ community. 

The actor’s statements come after another Potter star came to Rowling’s defense, telling The New York Times that “the verbal abuse” on the author was “disgusting” and “appalling.” 

Ralph Fiennes, who portrays Voldemort, said: “I mean, I can understand a viewpoint that might be angry at what she says about women. 

“But it’s not some obscene, uber-right-wing fascist. It’s just a woman saying, ‘I’m a woman. And I feel I’m a woman, and I want to be able to say I’m a woman.’ And I understand where she’s coming from. Even though I’m not a woman.” 

Harry Potter Series

Harry Potter spans seven books and eight films. Warner Bros. produced and distributed the film series. 

Here are the film titles: 

Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone (2001) 

Chamber of Secrets (2002) 

Prisoner of Azkaban (2004)

Goblet of Fire (2005)

Order of the Phoenix (2007)

Half-Blood Prince (2009)

Deathly Hallows Part 1 (2010)

Deathly Hallows Part 2 (2011)

The film series stars Radcliffe, Emma Watson (Hermione Granger), and Rupert Grint (Ronald Weasley).

Read also: Matthew Perry Once Wrote Quantum Physics Paper for Julia Roberts

Matthew Perry Once Wrote Quantum Physics Paper for Julia Roberts

Matthew Perry demonstrated the significance of uniqueness with his proposal to Julia Roberts. He tried to get her to star in Friends.

An excerpt from his forthcoming memoir, Friends, Lovers and the Big Terrible Thing, reveals that the sitcom actor sent the Eat Pray Love star an entire paper on quantum physics.

Perry attempted to persuade Roberts to be on board in the 1996 Season 2 episode “The One After the Superbowl, Part 2.”

“Julia had been offered the post-Super Bowl episode in season 2, and she would only do the show if she could be in my storyline,” Perry said, according to an excerpt from The Times. 

“Let me say that again. She would only do the show if she could be in my storyline. (Was I having a good year or what?) But first, I had to woo her.” 

The actor tried to get Roberts to say yes by sending “three dozen roses” and a note. (Friends co-creator Marta Kauffman inspired him to do so.)

The note read: “The only thing more exciting than the prospect of you doing the show is that I finally have the excuse to send you flowers.” 

But Perry didn’t get a classic answer.

“Her reply was that if I adequately explained quantum physics to her, she’d agree to be on the show,” Perry recounted. “Wow. First of all, I’m in an exchange with the woman for whom lipstick was invented. And now I have to hit the books.” 

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Quantum Mechanics

He then immediately plunged into the world of quantum mechanics. It was all worth it, because he was rewarded triumphantly.

“The following day, I sent her a paper about wave-particle duality and the uncertainty principle and entanglement. And only some of it was metaphorical,” he said. 

“Not only did Julia agree to do the show, but she sent me a gift. Bagels – lots and lots of bagels. Sure, why not? I was Julia f—king Roberts.” 

The two quickly became friends through the fax machine. And it bloomed into something more. 

“I did let her in, both figuratively and literally. And a relationship began,” he recalled. “We would already be a couple by the time we started filming the Friends Super Bowl episode.” 

In the episode, Roberts portrays Chandler’s elementary school classmate Susie Moss. The two came together and started to go out. However, Susie has just planned the scheme to get back to Chandler. During their date, she steals all of his clothes for shaming her in the fourth grade. 

Kevin Bright, the series’ executive producer, recounted the academic paper and exchange of faces between Roberts and Perry in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter in 2021. 

“Matthew asked her to be on the show. She wrote back to him. ‘Write me a paper on quantum physics, and I’ll do it,” he stated. “My understanding is that Matthew went away and wrote a paper and faxed it to her the next day.” 

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Perry Cut the Ties

Alexa Junge, a scriptwriter, also remembers the notes vividly.

“There was a lot of flirting over faxing. She was giving him these questionnaires like, ‘Why should I go out with you?’” she stated. 

“And everyone in the writers’ room helped him explain to her why. He could do pretty well without us. But there was no question we were on Team Matthew and trying to make it happen for him.” 

However, Perry ultimately backed down two months into their relationship because of his insecurities, as stated in his memoir. 

“Dating Julia Roberts had been too much for me,” he said, according to the Times. 

“I had been constantly certain that she was going to break up with me. Why would she not? I was not enough. I could never be enough. And I was broken, bent, unloveable. So, instead of facing the inevitable agony of losing her, I broke up with the beautiful and brilliant Julia Roberts. 

“She might have considered herself slumming it with a TV guy. And TV guy was not breaking up with her. I can’t begin to describe the look of confusion on her face.” 

Friends, Lovers and the Big Terrible Thing will be available on November 1.