- Miss Asia USA Bridges Cultural Relationships
In its continuing effort to strengthen cultural relationships amongst many of the various Asian communities in America, the Miss Asia USA organization participates in an exciting variety of cultural celebrations. Recent collaborative efforts include the following highly attended events.
The National Costume Fashion Show for Saigon TV, produced and aired in celebration of the Vietnamese New Year, the queens and delegates presented a dazzling showcase of traditional costumes which included twenty of the Miss Asia 2010 delegates gracing the stage in National Costume dress. The costumes, rich in color and tradition, were applauded with delight as the ladies supported the celebration with characteristic poise and beauty. Mayor Margie Reese of Westminster and over 800 other attendees enjoyed the show held at the Rose Theatre in the city of Westminster, Orange County .
The Tet Festival Vietnamese Parade celebrated on February 13th provided another opportunity for cultural celebration and exchange within the Asian communities. Miss Asia USA and Mrs. Asia USA delegates also participated in this Orange County event which is one of the largest Southern California parades. Bridging cultural relationships continued with the annual Indonesian Fair celebration on February 20th where the Miss Asia USA 2010 delegates performed their National Costume Fashion Show. The fair produced by Indonesian Media was joyously attended by a broad range of Asian and cross cultural people impressed with the delegate’s show of traditional costumes.
Reigning queens Mrs. Asia USA Kimberly Vodang, and First Runner Up Elizabeth Yang along with 2010 Delegates representing Russia and Armenia also joined in the Chinese New Year of the Tiger celebration by participating in the Golden Drag on parade in Downtown Los Angeles on February 20.
On the same day the Queens and delegates went on to the largest Persian TV network TAPESH TV to do a full hour live satellite interview with anchor TV Jimmy Sedji. The Delegates were individually interviewed about their goals, their passi on as cultural ambassadors and their aspirati on of becoming the next Miss Asia USA.
The organization continues its quest to bridge Asian communities with current preparations for several major Persian New Year events, a myriad of fundraisers and ribbon cuttings. The reigning queens and its 2010 Delegates plan to share their culture, poise, friendship, and joy in this coming month of March.
Miss Asia USA and Mrs. Asia USA are now accepting applications to participate in the pageant set for Saturday, August 21, 2010. For more information , contact Tel. 818-641-7779 or Angela@virgeliaproductions.com / info@MissAsiaUSA.org or visit our website: www.MissAsiaUSA.org
- History will be made again (Indonesia Media; February 7, 2010)
Miss Asia USA – Mrs. Asia USA – Miss Teen Asia USA are the premiere cultural pageants participated in by Asian women in the United States, who trace their ancestry to the fifty-four countries/regions considered part of the Asian continent… Read the rest of the article here. - Virgelia’s Miss Asia USA wins trademark case (India Post; February 12, 2010)
- Miss Asia USA Cultural Pageant vanquishes Miss Universe/Miss USA Pageant in historic trademark case (LA Times; January 30, 2010)
A five year long legal dispute finally came to an end when the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York recently ruled in favor of Virgelia Villegas and Virgelia Productions, Inc. in the trademark infringement lawsuit brought against them by MISS UNIVERSE, L.P., LLLP., owner of the MISS USA Pageant (Miss Universe, L.P., LLLP is co-owned by NBC Pageants, Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of NBC Universal, Inc. and Trump Pageants, Inc.)(hereafter, “Miss USA ”). Because Miss USA chose not to appeal the Court’s decision, it is now final and the ongoing legal dispute that began in 2004 is now over. In response to the Court’s ruling that dismisses Miss Universe’s challenge to Virgelia Production’s use and registration of its trademark, Virgelia Villegas , Chairman and President of Virgelia Productions, Inc. issued this statement:
“I am overwhelmed by both a sense of relief and excitement. Throughout this ordeal, I have been on an emotional rollercoaster, but I never wavered in my commitment to produce our cultural pageants to continue promoting culture and unity among all the Asian communities. My faith and determination sustained me as we continued year after year to fight for the right to showcase the beauty and rich traditions of the Asian cultures represented in our cultural pageants. My faith, passion and determination provided the strength and resolve to face Miss USA ’s daunting legal onslaught. I want to thank Patrick Hanes, Monica McCarroll, and Thomas Bergert, my talented legal team at the Williams Mullen Law firm in Washington, DC, and my legal advisors Mark Robertson of Potomac Global Advisors, LLC and Geoffrey Denempont for their outstanding legal work and support. I also want to thank our loyal sponsors and advertisers, the dedicated staff and volunteers, my family, and most of all, the Asian communities that inspired me and continued to support our cultural pageants over the past six years. Now that the lawsuit is over, I promise to keep working each day to improve the pageants and bring our annual celebrations of Asian cultures to larger and larger audiences so that we can continue to pursue our goal of unifying the Asian communities by sharing their rich heritage and traditions.”
As we navigate forward, this landmark victory opens the doors to a bright future for Virgelia Productions, Inc. and the cultural pageants it produces and promotes. Our production team, executive committee and volunteers are focusing on the upcoming Miss Asia USA and Mrs. Asia USA Cultural Pageants set forth on Saturday, August 21, 2010. We are excited about the new venue for this year’s pageants, the La Mirada Civic Theater in La Mirada , California . This modern venue offers exciting new opportunities to dazzle our audience with a new stage production and will improve the total audience experience. The same passion, dedication and faith that inspired her throughout the legal process continues to drive Virgelia to produce cultural pageants that promote the beauty, values and traditions of the Asian communities that represent the 57 countries of the Asian continent. With all her heart, Virgelia believes that when we celebrate and share our cultural heritage, traditions and unite diversity, the closer and more unified our unique Asian communities will become.
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A five year long legal dispute finally came to an end when the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York recently ruled in favor of Virgelia Villegas and Virgelia Productions, Inc. in the trademark infringement lawsuit brought against them by MISS UNIVERSE, L.P., LLLP., owner of the MISS USA Pageant (Miss Universe, L.P., LLLP is co-owned by NBC Pageants, Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of NBC Universal, Inc. and Trump Pageants, Inc.)(hereafter, “Miss USA ”). Because Miss USA chose not to appeal the Court’s decision, it is now final and the ongoing legal dispute that began in 2004 is now over. In response to the Court’s ruling that dismisses Miss Universe’s challenge to Virgelia Production’s use and registration of its trademark, Virgelia Villegas , Chairman and President of Virgelia Productions, Inc. issued this statement:“I am overwhelmed by both a sense of relief and excitement. Throughout this ordeal, I have been on an emotional rollercoaster, but I never wavered in my commitment to produce our cultural pageants to continue promoting culture and unity among all the Asian communities. My faith and determination sustained me as we continued year after year to fight for the right to showcase the beauty and rich traditions of the Asian cultures represented in our cultural pageants. My faith, passion and determination provided the strength and resolve to face Miss USA ’s daunting legal onslaught. I want to thank Patrick Hanes, Monica McCarroll, and Thomas Bergert, my talented legal team at the Williams Mullen Law firm in Washington, DC, and my legal advisors Mark Robertson of Potomac Global Advisors, LLC and Geoffrey Denempont for their outstanding legal work and support. I also want to thank our loyal sponsors and advertisers, the dedicated staff and volunteers, my family, and most of all, the Asian communities that inspired me and continued to support our cultural pageants over the past six years. Now that the lawsuit is over, I promise to keep working each day to improve the pageants and bring our annual celebrations of Asian cultures to larger and larger audiences so that we can continue to pursue our goal of unifying the Asian communities by sharing their rich heritage and traditions.”As we navigate forward, this landmark victory opens the doors to a bright future for Virgelia Productions, Inc. and the cultural pageants it produces and promotes. Our production team, executive committee and volunteers are focusing on the upcoming Miss Asia USA and Mrs. Asia USA Cultural Pageants set forth on Saturday, August 21, 2010. We are excited about the new venue for this year’s pageants, the La Mirada Civic Theater in La Mirada , California . This modern venue offers exciting new opportunities to dazzle our audience with a new stage production and will improve the total audience experience. The same passion, dedication and faith that inspired her throughout the legal process continues to drive Virgelia to produce cultural pageants that promote the beauty, values and traditions of the Asian communities that represent the 57 countries of the Asian continent. With all her heart, Virgelia believes that when we celebrate and share our cultural heritage, traditions and unite diversity, the closer and more unified our unique Asian communities will become.
- Virgelia Productions Inc. receives Entrepreneur of the Year Award 2009 (Entertainment Category) at the 16th National Annual Asian Entrepreneur of the Year Awards.
- Immigrant Magazine releases an issue featuring Miss Asia USA 2009. Click on image to view the magazine in its entirety.
