228. Queen of the Iloilo Carnival : AIDA KILAYKO

In one of the earliest petit fairs of Iloilo, the lovely Aida “Aiding” Kilayko reigned as the 1925 queen. Her parents were Eugenio Copa Kilayko and Celsa Lizares, both from landed families of Talisay, Negros Occidental, who owned large sugar haciendas and prosperous farm holdings. Aida was educated at the Assumption College in Iloilo, and excelled in piano. As a young member of the “buena sociedad Ilongga”, Aida was also known for being a cultured and refined young woman.

After her coronation as Iloilo’s carnival queen, she was back in Manila to continue her Pharmacy course at the Centro Escolar de Señoritas. By December 1925, she was in the front page again as one of the winners of Philipine Free Press’ search for the 4 most representative types of “Bellezas Filipinas”. Over two thousand pictures were received as entries of the popular Manila paper; these were whittled down to 72, then 24 finalists. A judging panel comprising of artists Fabian de la Rosa, Guillermo Tolentino, Fernando Amorsolo and Jorge Pineda chose the winners, headed by Manila Carnival contestants Rosario Panganiban, Salud Austria, Margarita Lacson and Aida Kilayko, who placed third. She won a gold panuelo pin for her win.

“Aiding” later married lawyer Julio Hernaez, whom she outlived. They had 4 children: Corazon, Maria Fe, Julian Jr. and Susan.

227. Carnival Beauties: ARMINDA MARTINEZ, 1926 Miss Isabela

ISABELA'S IDOL. The first Miss Isabela, Arminda Martinez in her official portarit as a candidadte to the 1926 Miss Philippines quest.

The second largest province in the Philippines (after Palawan), Isabela was created in 1856  carved out from the rich, expansive region of Cagayan Valley. The province was named after Queen Isabela II of Spain.

 After the end of the Philippine Revolution which saw the capture of Pres. Aguinaldo in Palanan, Isabela, the province was reorganized under the American regime through Act No. 210, passed August 24, 1901. The province was a noted corn and rice basket in the region and found a cause to drumbeat this reputation through its participation in the annual Manila Carnival.

Out also to prove that Isabela was not just a land of plenty but also of beauty, the provincial government sent its first-ever beauty delegate to compete in the 1st National Beauty Contest of the 1926 Manila Carnival. The pert and pretty Arminda Martinez was appointed for the job, which she did with aplomb at the national event. The title, however, went to Miss Batangas, Anita Noble.

226. THE 2ND NUEVA ECIJA CARNIVAL OF 1927

QUEEN AMPARING I. The queen-elect of the 2nd Nueva Ecija Carnival of 1927, held at Cabanatuan. However, the one who got to go to Manila for the Miss Philippines contest was Julita Matias.

Nueva Ecija, one of the rice and sugar-producing provinces of Central Luzon, was an early supporter of the Manila Carnival. Proud to showcase its achievements especially in the field of agriculture, the provincial government put up exhibition booths in the early years of the Carnival (1908-1909). Some Nueva Ecijanas also figured in the national search for the Manila Carnival Queen; Pacita Bantug de Guzman of San Isidro came close to winning the 1912 crown when she placed 2nd to Paz Marquez. The province was also represented in 1926 (candidate unknown) and in 1927 by Julita Matias.

Gripped with Carnival fever, Nueva Ecija soon started holding its own petit carnivals beginning in 1926. In 1927, the 2nd Nueva Ecija Carnival was staged, capped with the coronation of Queen Amparing I, as the festival royalty.

225. Carnival Beauties: ELIA SANCHEZ, 1926 Miss Masbate

MAS BELLA! MASBATE! Elia Sanchez, the first and only known Miss Masbate to represent her island province of Masbate, at the 1926 Manila Carnival search for Miss Philippines.

The island of Masbate was just 4 years old when the local government joined the Manila Carnival as a form of support to the national festivities as well as to breastbeat the progress it has attained as an autonomous Philippine province.

Previously, Masbate was a part of Albay; it was declared a separate province  in 1864 with Guiom as its capital. Pres. Emilio Aguinaldo however, moved the capital to Masbate town, just before the declaration of the Philippine independence in 1898. With the arrival of the Americans, Masbate was again annexed to Sorsogon in 1908. It was finally declared an independent province with the approval of a bill on 1 February 1922.

In the revamped Manila Carnival 1926, Masbate was proudly represented by the dark-eyed mestiza beauty, Elia Sanchez, who blazed the trail by becoming the first and only known Masbateña to vie for the the Miss Philippines title.

Sanchez was educated at the Colegio de San Juan de Letran and married Genaro D. Briz, (lawyer-governor of Bicol-Masbate, 1932-1934, later Justice of the Peace of Masbate, Masbate, 1946)  in her later life. Papa Naroy and Mama Eyang had four children: Jose  (a doctor who moved to the U.S.), Rafael (who remained in Masbate), Soledad, and Natividad Briz-de Matera. The couple raised their children in Masbate where they had a large and thriving coconut plantation. Mama Eyang was just in her 30s when she died unexpectedly of pneumonia in her 30s which she caught due to exposure. 

224. Carnival Beauties: VIRGINIA LEJARDE, 1930 Candidate of "Alitaptap"

ALLURE OF ALITAPTAP. Virginia Lejarde, the official candidate of Alitaptap Magazine to the 4th National Beauty Contest search for Miss Philippines 1930. 

With the great success of the 1929 Manila Carnival queen search that saw the participation of the country's leading schools and institutions, the 1930 Manila Carnival was touted by publicists to be even more spectacular. Sure enough, in the search for th queenship of the Carnivsl, magazines and newspapers came back in full force to field their own candidates--this, in addition to the school bets.

Publications like The Manila Times, Liwayway,  The Philippine Herald and Tribune sponsored their own beauty bets together with schools that included Philippine Collegian, U.P. and the Centro Escolar de Senoritas. Even smaller dailies like Atalaya and Alitaptap were ably represented by lovely Filipina belles.

Alitaptap was a popular Tagalog magazine that was first published in 1928, and which had a successful run till the '30s, ceasing publication with its 29 December 1932 issue. Of its Carnival candidate, Virginia Lejarde, not much is known. The 1930 Miss Philippines crown went to an Ilongga teenager, Consuelo Acuna.

223. Carnival Beauties: PILAR LIWANAG, 1930 Candidate of "Liwayway"

LIWANAG NG LIWAYWAY. Liwayway's bet to the first Miss Philippines quest of 1926, was an all-Filipina beauty with an all Filipina name so appropriate to the Tagalog magazine: Pilar Liwanag.

The oldest Tagalog weekly magazine in the country, Liwayway (Dawn) was begun way back in 1922 by Don Ramon Roces. The popular magazine featured short stories, serialized Tagalog novels, human interest and entertainment news, plus comics.

Famous Filipino literary figures wrote for the magazine, a roster that includes Jose Corazon de Jesus, Julian Cruz Balmaceda, Cecilio Apostol Borromeo, Lope K. Santos, Romualdo Ramos, Francisco Lacsamana and Pedrito Reyes, the son of Don Severino Reyes, who was the first editor of Liwayway

As a leading magazine, Liwayway joined the biggest of the Carnival festivities--including fielding its own delegate to the search for the Manila Carnival Queen. In 1930, their lovely bet had a name as Filipino as the magazine's name--Pilar Liwanag, who may perhaps be the first Miss Liwayway. Nothing came out of her participation though, as the competition was very tough that year, resulting in the crowning of two queens--Anita Noble of Batangas (Miss Philippines) and Carmen Fargas of Zamboanga (Miss Pearl of the Orient).

After the Carnival years, the still-popular magazine which by now had expanded to include sister publications Bannawag, Hiligaynon and Bisaya--mounted its search for its own Bb. Liwayway beginning in 1938, determined by ballot voting. The Bb. Liwayway contest had a national appeal, remaining popular from the late 30s to the 50s.

222. Carnival Beauties, MANUKI MAKARIMBANG, 1927 Miss Lanao

THAT LADY FROM LANAO. Manuki Makarimbang, Miss Lanao 1927, made a splash at the national beauty contest with her colorful wardrobe of malongs and headgears that were a hit with the crowd. 

The first beauties to represent the Mindanao minority groups at the  very first Miss Philippines pageant of the 1926 Manila Carnival came from the provinces of Lanao and Sulu--Bala Amai Miring (Miss Lanao) and Scott Rasul (Miss Sulu). With Miss Zamboanga and Miss Davao, there were only 4 contestants from the predominantly Muslim region. It was clear that their chances of winning a regional title was rather high; back then, to win the regional titles of Miss Luzon, Miss Visayas and Miss Mindanao, one had to be a provincial delegate from that particular island group.

Emerging as the first ethnic queen of the Mindanao region was the moon-faced beauty, Bala Amai Miring of Lanao. Quick to smile and regalling the crowds with her exotic malong costumes, Bala Amai Miring edged provincemate Rasul for the title of the first Miss Mindanao 1926. In winning the title, Miring joined the court of Miss Philippines-elect Anita Noble in her year-long Carnival activities.

Next year, it was Miss Sulu's turn to hog the limelight, with the Manila-educated Nora Maulana copping the Miss Mindanao 1927 title. Miss Lanao 1927, Manuki Makarimbang,  had to take a back seat, but nevertheless, she stamped her presence with her regal bearing, her demure deportment and her fabulous Muslim wardrobe. Not much is known about Miss Makarimbang, although their clan is well-known all over Lanao del Norte and Lanao del Sur.