Akiko Kojima biography: 13 things about Miss Universe 1959

1959: Akiko Kojima, Japan. pic.twitter.com/WF7475kgo9

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Who is Akiko Kojima?

Akiko Kojima (児島明子) is the Japanese model and beauty queen. Here are 13 more things about her:

1. She is the first Miss Universe from Asia.
2. Her father was a retired soldier.
3. She was born at Gotokuji in Setagaya, Tokyo, Japan.
4. She graduated from Ushioe Elementary School, Tosa Girls’ Junior and Senior High School and Kochi Commercial High School, which are all in Kochi, Kojima.
5. After the death of her father, she, her older sister and her younger brother were singlehandedly raised by their mother.
6. After high school, she went back to Tokyo.
7. She was the second among three children.
8. She and Akira Takarada have two sons and one daughter together.
9. She is 5’6″ tall.
10. She was in the second grade when she and her family moved from Tokyo to Kochi, Shikoku, Japan due to the Pacific War, which lasted from December 7, 1941 to September 2, 1945.
11. She joined the Fashion Model Group (FMG), which was founded in Minato, Tokyo by Miss Universe 1953 second runner-up Kinuko Ito, Masako Ajima and Keiko Iwama.
12. In 1961, she announced her engagement to a Japan Airlines pilot but their planned wedding in 1962 did not take place.
13. From 1966 to 1984, she was married to Takarada.

TIMELINE

1941

• In 1941, she started swimming.

1950

• In 1950, her father passed away.

1953

• She represented Shikoko at Miss Japan 1953 at the Imperial Theatre in Marunouchi, Chiyoda, Tokyo. She was runner-up to Ito, who later became Miss Universe 1953 second runner-up.

1956

• In 1956, she and Takarada started dating.

1958

• She was supposed to represent Tokyo at Miss Japan 1958 but during a parade of candidates on June 4, 1958 in Tokyo, the car she was in was involved in a rear-end collision, injuring her and her fellow candidates Tanegashima Kaie and Kobayashi Kikue. She withdrew from the competition while Mori Takeko won the title.

1959

• On June 12, 1959, she won Miss Japan 1959 and was crowned by Takeko along with Ichinose Chieko, who was crowned Miss World Japan 1959.
• On July 24, 1959, she represented Japan at Miss Universe 1959 and competed against 33 other candidates at the Long Beach Municipal Auditorium in Long Beach, California, United States. She won the title.

1960

• On July 7, 1960, she crowned her successor Miss Universe 1960 Linda Bement at the Miami Beach Auditorium in Miami Beach, Florida, USA.

1961

• In January 1961, she visited Metro Manila, Philippines with an all-Japanese troupe with 61 members.
• She graced the cover of the February 4, 1961 edition of the Philippines’ Free Press.

1965

• The June 1965 edition of Harper’s Bazaar featured her in a dress by Tiffeau and Busch.

1966

• On April 29, 1966, she and Takarada got married at the Palace Hotel Tokyo in Marunouchi, Chiyoda, Tokyo.

1967

• On April 25, 1967, she gave birth to Michiru Kojima in Tokyo.

1974

• In January 1974, she gave birth to her second son.

1976

• On July 11, 1976, she, Margarita Moran and Armi Kuusela attended the Miss Universe 1976 coronation ceremony at the Lee Theatre in Hong Kong, China.

1984

• In 1984, she and Takarada divorced.

2022

• On March 14, 2022, Takarada, her former husband, died in Tokyo at age 87.

2024

• On October 29, 2024, she turned 88.