Interview With Giuliana Rancic: Co-Hosting the 2011 Miss USA Pageant

Interview With Giuliana Rancic said it plainly: "I'm not going to be stiff. I'm not going to be boring. If we want to make a comment about something that everyone is thi…" — and Premier Guide Miami was in the room when it happened.

Premier Guide Miami caught up with Giuliana Rancic, co-host of E! News, to dish about her hosting duties on the 2011 Miss USA Pageant. The pageant aired Sunday, June 19, live from the Planet Hollywood Resort and Casino in Las Vegas at 9 PM Eastern on NBC.

PREMIER GUIDE MIAMI: How did you get involved with the Miss USA Pageant?

GIULIANA RANCIC: They called and I was thrilled. It was always something I wanted to do. We all have strange goals or different things we want that other people sometimes think are quirky or funny. Like, people ask what did you always want to do? I'm like, well, ultimately I'd like to maybe host a daytime talk show — oh, and host Miss USA. I've always thought it would be so cool to host Miss USA, probably because I grew up watching it every year and obsessing over it. So I was thrilled when they asked.

PREMIER GUIDE MIAMI: Do you usually watch the pageant every year?

GIULIANA RANCIC: I do, since I was a kid.

PREMIER GUIDE MIAMI: What do you think of pageants in general?

GIULIANA RANCIC: It has a Cinderella factor to it that girls and women love. When I was a little girl — I moved to America when I was about 7 or 8 years old — I used to watch Miss USA every year and I just thought, wow. These girls are so glamorous and so beautiful. And at the end of the night they got a tiara, and then they went on the whole year and got to do cool things around the country. It was just beautiful — wanting to be Cinderella, like this fairy tale. And kind of the same reason we all tuned in to watch Kate Middleton get married. I think there is something just really wonderful about a young girl realizing her dreams. It's just a really sexy, beautiful, cool show to watch.

PREMIER GUIDE MIAMI: What will you bring as host?

GIULIANA RANCIC: Live television and just interacting with people in a very natural, fun, live way. That's what I'm going to bring to this pageant. I am not going to be stiff. I am not going to be boring. You've just got to watch what happens live.

PREMIER GUIDE MIAMI: What are you looking forward to as co-host?

GIULIANA RANCIC: I'm just excited to be there and do a big, live show like this. Millions and millions of people watch this show and there is a lot of excitement behind it. And being with Andy is going to be fun. Girls with personality tend to win these pageants — you've got to have a cool, fun persona. And I think that's kind of our approach to hosting it. We're not going to be really stiff and boring. We're going to just have fun and go with where the show goes. And if we want to make a comment about something that happened that everyone is thinking about but no one is saying, we're going to make it. That's why they brought Andy and me in — because we can have sharp tongues sometimes and we roll with it. I'm looking forward to the fact that it is not safe. It's live and anything can happen.

PREMIER GUIDE MIAMI: Are you looking forward to the rehearsal for the pageant?

GIULIANA RANCIC: Yes. Our parts will be initially scripted but Andy and I will go through and change up whatever we need to — put everything in our words and make it feel very natural and fun. We want people tuning in to feel like anything could happen at any time. And with Andy from Watch What Happens: Live, anything can happen. Also with all the red carpets I do — the Oscars, the Globes — you never know what celebrity might give you the greatest interview or might say something totally inappropriate. You don't ever know what's going to happen at these shows. So we want to be sure we totally capture all the crazy moments.

PREMIER GUIDE MIAMI: What look are you going for at the pageant?

GIULIANA RANCIC: À la Beyoncé, Cher. I'm doing three wardrobe changes, which is very exciting — and it means we have to move very quickly. My first fitting is Thursday. I have an amazing stylist coming in for the show — she does Eva Longoria and lots of great people in Hollywood. We've called in from very big designers. What I've seen women who have hosted it do in the past — they tend to look kind of similar to the girls, just in a more mature fashion. And I definitely don't want to do that. I think I want to let the girls shine. I want to focus more on the fashion of it — maybe do something daring. I might play with a menswear look. I think that would be a cool contrast for such a feminine event. High fashion, very different, and maybe with some irony in it.

PREMIER GUIDE MIAMI: Will you spend any time with the contestants?

GIULIANA RANCIC: We'll spend some time with them. We're doing long rehearsals. The funny thing is a lot of these girls — at least in past pageants — a lot of them want to be broadcasters and hosts. So I'm sure we'll be dishing out advice and helping some of these girls out. It's good that we are not judges, because we can have much more interaction with them.

PREMIER GUIDE MIAMI: What do you think of Kelly Osbourne as the commentator?

GIULIANA RANCIC: Kelly Osbourne and I had a two-hour conversation the other day about work and everything. I was cracking up on the phone — like she didn't know, but I was just pointing the phone away from my face because she is a straight shooter. She does not hold back, and I think that's how she is on Fashion Police. Kelly doesn't feel the need to be loud or yell things. But what she says — when you look at her you can see she does this little tilt and squints her eyes when she is looking at something. And she'll just tell you. What comes out of her mouth is so raw and real. And I think that's going to be really cool about Kelly. She won't hold back. Kelly is very uncensored, especially on live television. So I think it's going to be very interesting. I can't guarantee what she'll say that night, because she is unpredictable. But she will definitely bring a very raw and strong opinion to the pageant that we have never seen before.

PREMIER GUIDE MIAMI: What was it like for you meeting Donald Trump?

GIULIANA RANCIC: My husband was the first Apprentice — Donald hired him. So if it wasn't for Donald I would be Mrs. Kwame Jackson. I owe Donald my marriage and my future children. I owe him everything. I have met Donald several times throughout the years. And what I love most about him is he is such a fan of pop culture. Like he knows everything going on in entertainment news — and so does Melania. And I just think it is hilarious. So I'm a big fan. And I'm very excited that he asked me to do this with Andy.

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