Profits In Poise and Pulchritude

By Richard Woodbury/El Paso

When the Miss USA pageant takes place in Wichita this week, the smart money will be on the contestants from Texas and California. These young women, Stephanie Kuehne and Cynthia Nelson, both 22, may have a distinct advantage over the rest of the field. They have been groomed, draped and polished by two Texans, Richard Guy and Rex Holt, whose Lone Star protegees have walked away with the Miss USA crown five years in a row.

Guy, 51, and Holt, 49, have built a thriving business in poise and pulchritude. Their company, Guyrex Associates, oversees the Texas and California state franchises of the Miss USA competition as well as dozens of local pageants. Guy and Holt also serve as coaches and consultants to the young women as they strive for loftier titles. Says Holt: "We're selling a total product: glamour and all that goes with it."

In the century-old El Paso house that serves as their office, Guy and Holt have been busy striving to capture their sixth Miss USA crown. As the partners supervised fittings of Kuehne and Nelson in Guyrex-designed evening gowns, the two consultants delivered pointers and pep talks. For Kuehne, they had prescribed voice exercises to correct her high pitch and slight slur. To Nelson, who at 5 ft. 6 in. and 105 lbs. is too slim, they gave a gentle admonition to keep to daily milk shakes and peanut butter.

The two former dance instructors, who started their pageant business 19 years ago, earn a lucrative income from their operation of state and local pageants. That is because the Miss USA competition, unlike the rival Miss America system, is a profit-oriented venture. In Texas, Guy and Holt oversee a network of 40 local beauty shows. The splashy Miss Texas-USA pageant, which companies ranging from Subaru to Miller Brewing have been eager to sponsor, generates such high TV ratings across the state that the producers can charge advertisers $21,000 a minute.

The partners have expanded their services to include weeklong individual beauty-counseling sessions (fee: $6,000) for women of all ages. They will introduce a line of Guyrex gowns this month, to be followed by a self-help video. But success has had its pitfalls. The pair, who complain of sniping by envious rivals, recently lost their Miss California Teen-USA franchise when the agreement came up for renewal. They retaliated with a breach-of-contract lawsuit against the parent firm, Miss Universe Inc. The company denies any ill intent toward the two. But Holt wonders, "Was it jealousy? There's a lot of tension out there." Perhaps so, but winning another rhinestone tiara may take their minds off the stress.