International Mr Gay Competition
The International Mr. Gay (IMG) Competition is the largest and oldest running international contest to select an Ambassador or spokesman to support the mission of the sponsoring nonprofit corporation, the Noble Beast Foundation. President of the Noble Beast Foundation is Don Spradlin, who founded and produced the first three Competitions with a team of dedicated volunteers. The mission statement is:
"(To) advocate International Equal Rights by confirming the essential nature and contributions of gay men to a healthy society where "gay" is not a stereotype." [1]
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[edit] Origins
The IMG was started in 2004 by Don Spradlin with an initial contest in San Francisco, California called the "Cutest of the Castro Contest" that showcased 12 men representing local businesses in the gay district of San Francisco known as the Castro District. These twelve men were judged on-stage during the 2004 Castro Street Fair and the winner of that contest was Blair Sheppard, who became the San Francisco representative to the first United States Mr. Gay Competition in October 2005.
[edit] International Mr Gay 2005- 2006
The first International Mr. Gay Competition, was a three day outdoor/indoor series of judged events in Palm Springs, California, including Rock Climbing at Joshua Tree National Park. The host hotel for the 2005 Competition was the Riviera Resort Hotel in Palm Springs. Six international Delegates from Bosnia, Germany, Norway, Lapland, the Netherlands and Bulgaria attended that first IMG Competition. The first half of that Saturday evening’s stage show featured the US Finale Competition between New York City, Palm Springs, San Francisco, Los Angeles and San Diego’s Finalists.
| International Mr Gay Competition | |
|---|---|
| Date | October 7–9, 2005 |
| Venue | Riviera Resort Hotel, Palm Springs, California, USA |
| Debuts |  Austria Netherlands Germany Bosnia and Herzegovina Norway Bulgaria USA Lapland |
| Winner | Jesse Bashem, represented San Diego, California in first half. United States |
| Congeniality | United States Robert Ficco Jr. represented Palm Springs, California |
The winner of the US Competition was San Diego’s Jesse Bashem, who then participated in the second half of the evening’s stage show as the US Delegate. He was joined by the six International Delegates for the first International Mr. Gay (IMG) Competition that evening in October 2005. That event resulted in the first International Mr. Gay title which was won by the US Delegate, Jesse Bashem. Official photographers for the event were Tom Bianchi and Jim Cox. Associate producer was John Michael Beck and music was provided by DJ Mike Mitchell.
In a cliffhanger competition, where a tie-breaker was averted on a second ballot, the first ever Mr. Gay 2006 International title was captured by San Diego's Jesse Bashem, who—just one hour earlier—had won the title of U.S.A. Mr. Gay.
The Competition, which took place at the Riviera Resort in Palm Springs, California, Columbus Day Weekend—October 7–9, 2005 included eleven additional contestants from cities such as, San Francisco, Los Angeles, New York, Palm Springs, and national representatives from the Netherlands, Norway, Lappland, and .
Austria's Aaron Michael Jackson was the first runner up and Germany's Suat Bahceci landed in the second runner up slot.
The title for Mr. Congeniality, voted on by his fellow contestants, was awarded to Palm Springs resident Robert (Bobby) Ficco Jr., leading Mayor Ron Oden (also a competition judge) to comment, "How gratifying to see a Palm Springs resident recognized for what the city prides itself on, a friendly nurturing community to all the world's visitors."
"Competitions such as these have been popular in Europe for years and we're thrilled to now have a U.S. based component looking for the 'boy next door' to represent the broader gay community," said Producer Don Spradlin. "The winner will serve as a spokesman to raise the visibility of gay men, humanize gays in the media, create a positive role model and confront homophobia in today's culture."
[edit] International Mr Gay 2007
| International Mr Gay Competition | |
|---|---|
| Date | October 28, 2006 |
| Venue | Palm Springs International Convention Center, Palm Springs, California, USA |
| Winner | Nathan Shaked Israel |
| Congeniality |  Philippines |
The 2nd Annual US and International Mr. Gay Competitions were also held in Palm Springs, California the following October 2006 with three days of indoor/outdoor event ending with two stage shows at the Palm Springs Convention Center. Despite being held two months before the New Year, the title was credited as 2007. The US Mr. Gay Competition Finale was on Friday night and the winner was Grant Ermis of Sacramento, California. The IMG Grand Finale was the following night in the same room at the Convention Center and the winner of that event was Nathan Shaked from Israel. Grant Ermis, the US Delegate was 1st Runner up and the Netherland’s Joep Mesman was 2nd Runner Up. The Associate producer was again John Michael Beck, music was provided by DJ Mike Mitchell, who was joined by Delegate Manager Nick Urbom and stage Director Kevin ?? The Judge for last year's show was and the stage show Master of Ceremonies was Bruce Vilanch.
The 2nd annual International Mister Gay Competition, took place at the Palm Springs International Convention Center in Palm Springs, California, USA. Unlike the first year's cliffhanger decision, where a second round of judging was needed to break a tie, the judges in 2006 were united in their decision.
USA's Jesse Bashem turned-over the title to his successor, Nathan Shaked of Israel, at the conclusion of the International Grand Finale. Nathan will now work as an International Mr Gay Ambassador to improve the visibility of gay men, confront Homophobia, and create a positive role model in his travels around the world. On the other hand, some of the prizes for Mr Israel includeed a modeling contract, a Caribbean cruise and a trip to Puerto Vallarta.In 2009 was in Manila,Philippines.
[edit] Contestants
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[edit] Results
- INTERNATIONAL MISTER GAY 2007: Nathan Shaked (Israel)
- The runners-up were:
- 1st runner-up: Grant Ermis (USA)
- 2nd runner-up: Joep Mesman (Netherlands)
[edit] Awards
- Special awards went to:
- Congeniality: Robert Tarroza Stewart (Philippines)
- Fitness: Wil Sabin (Australia)
- Popularity: Nándor Gyöngyösi (Hungary)
[edit] Delegates
- Mister Hungary (Nándor Gyöngyösi) is the winner of Mister Gay Europe 2006 held in Amsterdam.
- Mister USA (Grant Ermis) compete for the title US Mister Gay a day before the International Mr Gay (IMG) Grand Finale to represent his country.
[edit] International Mr Gay 2008
The following year – the third anniversary of the Mr. Gay Competition - was the first year that the US Finale and the International Mr. Gay (IMG) Grand Finale were moved to separate dates. The US Finale was held in Hollywood, California at the Henry Fonda Theater, Music Box Theatre in October 2007 with 19 US Finalists. The winner of that showcase with MC Alex Mapa was San Francisco’s J. T. Taylor, but he was replaced by a Board vote by Green Bay’s Josh Robers shortly thereafter, who became the US title holder. The IMG Grand Finale was held at the same location, the Henry Fonda Theater in Hollywood in January 2008 and also hosted 20 International Delegates. The winner of that Grand Finale was Argentina’s Carlos Melia, first Runner Up was Venezuela’s Juan Bracho and the 2nd Runner up was the United Kingdom’s Mark Edward Carter.
Melia, who is a 33 year old travel agent from Buenos Aires, was a last minute stand-in for the actual winner of the Mr. Gay Argentina pageant, Jorge Schmeda, who worked in the adult film industry.
Melia came in ahead of Mr. Gay Venezuela, 33 year old Juan Bracho, and Mr. Gay UK, 25 year old Mark Edward Carter, who is a police officer. Mr. Gay Brazil, Luciano Lupo, won the title of Mr. Popular by getting the most votes online.
The same production team managed these two event and was supported by web master Steve Harris with new stage director Red Savage. For the first time, the Noble Beast Foundation – the beneficiary of the Mr. Gay Competition event series – awarded their "HERO Awards". The first winners of that award was Senator Mark Leno for the US Finale in October 2007 and Russian Activist Nikolai Alekseev, Chief Organisator of the Moscow Pride at the IMG Grand Finale Awards Show in January 2008.
[edit] Results
- INTERNATIONAL MISTER GAY 2008: Carlos Melía (Argentina)
- The runners-up were:
- 1st runner-up: Juan Bracho (Venezuela)
- 2nd runner-up: Mark Edward Carter (UK)
[edit] Contestants
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[edit] International Mr Gay 2009 - 2010
The next US Finale was held in San Francisco’s Museum of Performance and Design in November 2008 when Michael Jarvis was named the US Delegate to the IMG. The International Competition was assigned to the Philippine producers for May 2009, in preparation for the first time the IMG Competition would be produced outside of the United States.
The IMG was scheduled for Manila in the Philippines for the summer of 2009, but the Manila team failed to produce the contest.[2]
The 2009 IMG winner was selected by an online popularity vote that named Switzerland’s Ricco Muller as the International Mr. Gay title holder for 2009 (Australia was 1st Runner Up and the US was 2nd Runner Up). Riccco is an Student and Artist, Traineeship Daniel Libeskind Architects. Ricco will now work as an International Mr Gay Ambassador to improve the visibility of gay men and Supports for AIDS-aid, Europride 2009 and Deaf Community
[edit] Results
- INTERNATIONAL MISTER GAY 2009: Ricco Müller (Switzerland)
- The runners-up were:
- 1st runner-up: Byron Adu (Australia)
- 2nd runner-up: Michael Austin Jarvis (USA)
[edit] Contestants
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[edit] International Mr Gay 2011
| International Mr Gay Competition | |
|---|---|
| Date | January, 2011. |
| Broadcaster | http://www.MRGAYCOMPETITION.com |
| Debuts | CHILE |
| Winner | Pablo Salvador Sepúlveda Chile |
After over 20 days of voting with thousands of votes cast, the winner of the title International Mr. Gay for 2011 is Pablo Salvador Sepúlveda from Chile. The voting took place online at www.MrGayCompetition.com beginning January 10, 2011 and when it ended at midnight on January 31, 2011, Pablo Salvador Sepúlveda was way ahead in the number of votes cast. The winner said that: "For me it is an honor to represent Chile for the first time in this contest and won the title. I`m grateful for the support of so many persons that vote for me. Now I will continue working for the rights of my community, for the definitive equality, because it is necessary that we all are aware that the diversity us enriches as society and that only being inclusive we will be to be really democratic and happy ".
The International Mr Gay Competition is the first gay contest developed worldwide where persons are selected by his physicist and commitment by the lesbians' human rights, gays, bisexuals and transsexuals. The Chilean delegate adds to the previous winners of this contest who have been the representatives of USA, Israel, Argentina and Switzerland. Pablo Salvador Sepúlveda(31) is teacher of History and Master in Communication, it was imposed in the online voting on 27 men, even of zones where the homosexuality can cost the life as Iran.
The president of the Noble Beast Foundation, Don Spradlin, said to be "Very satisfied with the voting of this year since it is the highest registered in the history of the contest ".
About the victory of Chile in the contest Rolando Jimenez, President of the Movimiento de Integración y Liberación Homosexual, MOVILH, the principal gay Chilean organization, said: " We are tremendously happy for the victory of Salvador, the first Chilean who win an international contest of this type. Pablo has demonstrated an excellent availability to fight against the discrimination and also solidarity with the children and girls with HIV / AIDS and / or in social risk.
Next in the vote rankings was New Zealand’s Zann Maxwell who is now 1st Runner Up for 2011. Zann is followed by Mr. Gay Czech Republic, Martin Goga who is 2nd Runner Up.
Pablo Salvador Sepúlveda was Mr. Gay Chile 2009 - 2010, assumes his title as International Mr Gay from 2010 winner, Switzerland’s Ricco “Rimus” Müller. The 2011 class of Delegates was the largest in the six year history of the International Mr Gay Competition which featured a total of 27 international Delegates.
The International Mr Gay Competition(IMG) is produced by the Noble Beast Foundation, a nonprofit organization which depends on donations for support. The Foundation’s Mission is to “Advocate International Equal Rights by confirming the essential nature and contributions of gay men to a healthy society.” These Delegates are clearly handsome, and the Foundation’s goal is to identify men with the individual flair, charisma and intelligence to serve as a successful and popular role models in confronting gay stereotypes.
Pablo will now work as an International Mr Gay Ambassador to improve the visibility of gay men, confront Homophobia, and create a positive role model in his social campaigns.
You can browse the articles & photos about the reigning International Mr. Gay on www.PABLOSALVADOR.cl.
[edit] Results
- INTERNATIONAL MISTER GAY 2011:Pablo Salvador Sepúlveda (Chile)
- The runners-up were:
- 1st runner-up: Zann Maxwell (New Zealand)
- 2nd runner-up: Martin Goga (Czech Republic)
[edit] Contestants
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'US Mr. Gay 2010'
[edit] Results
- US Mr. Gay: Eddie Rabon Mr. Columbia SC
- US Mr. Congeniality: Clint Hudler Mr. Nashville TN
The runners-up were:
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- 1st runner-up: Ryan Mattis Mr. Philly
- 2nd runner-up: Mario Godiva Green
[edit] International Mr. Gay Titleholders
| Year | Country | International Mr. Gay | 1st. Runner | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| International Mr. 2011 | Chile |
Pablo Salvador Sepúlveda | Zann Maxwell, NZ | 27 delegates compete for the title. The president of the Noble Beast Foundation, Don Spradlin, said to be "Very satisfied with the voting of this year since it is the highest registered in the history of the contest ". |
| International Mr. Gay 2009 - 2010 |  Switzerland |
Ricco Muller | Byron Adu, AUSTRALIA | The IMG was scheduled for Manila in the Philippines for the summer of 2009, but the Manila team failed to produce the contest |
| International Mr. Gay 2008 |  Argentina |
Carlos Melia | Juan Bracho, VENEZUELA | Melia, was a last minute stand-in for the original winner of the Mr. Gay Argentina pageant, Jorge Schmeda, who worked in the adult film industry. |
| International Mr. Gay 2007 | Israel |
Nathan Shaked | Grant Ermis, USA | The 2nd Annual US and International Mr. Gay Competitions were held in Palm Springs, California with three days of indoor/outdoor event ending with two stage shows at the Palm Springs Convention Center. |
| International Mr. Gay 2005 - 2006 | USA |
Jesse Bashem | Aaron Michael Jackson, AUSTRIA | Six international Delegates from Bosnia, Germany, Norway, Lapland, the Netherlands and Bulgaria attended that first IMG Competition. |
[edit] By Number of Wins
| Country/Territory | Titles | Winning years |
|---|---|---|
| Chile |
1 | 2011 |
| Switzerland |
1 | 2009–2010 |
| Argentina |
1 | 2008 |
| Israel |
1 | 2007 |
| USA |
1 | 2006 |
[edit] External links
- Official Website mrgaycompetition.com
- Noble Beast Foundation, Beneficiary of the Competition
- Pablo Salvador's website
[edit] References
- ^ "Pageant Aims to Blast Stereotypes". http://www.pe.com/localnews/inland/stories/PE_News_Local_D_dspot18.35f7a86.html. Retrieved 20 August 2009.
- ^ "INTERNATIONAL MR. GAY COMPETITION MOVES TO MANILA". http://www.mrgaycompetition.com/press.htm. Retrieved 20 August 2009.
