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1921 A unique American tradition begins as a promotional gimmick when Atlantic City hotelmen decide to stage a flashy fall festival, or "pageant"to entice summer tourists to stay in town past Labor Day. The fall festival includes a "National Beauty Tournament" on the beach to select "the most beautiful bathing beauty in America". Local newsman, Herb Test, adds
the crowning touch when he exclaims, "Let's call her 'Miss
America!'" Eastern newspaper editors are invited to run
photo contests to pick winners to represent their communities
at the new pageant. 1921 Margaret Gorman, who represents
the nation's capital as Miss Washington D.C., wins first Miss
America title. The sixteen-year-old schoolgirl is a dead ringer
for reigning matinee superstar, Mary Pickford. Mary Katherine Campbell becomes only woman to win the Miss America title two years in a row. A rule is instated that woman cannot hold the Miss America title more than once. 1923 The National Beauty Tournament has achieved such popularity with the public that over 70 contestants arrive in Atlantic City to compete for the crown. Unfortunately, after pageant officials forget to include a "no marriage" rule, they discover that "Miss" Alaska, Helmar Leiderman, is not only married, but a resident of New York City. 1920s The National Beauty Tournament quickly grows into a popular event attracting over seventy contestants from as far away as Canada. 1929 Atlantic City's Miss America contest is discontinued from 1929 to 1932, due to early effects of the Great Depression and bad press. |
Eight contestants compete for the first Miss America title.
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1932 Wildwood, New Jersey holds a "Miss America " contest for one year. Dorothy Hann, a 5'2" Camden woman, wins as 50,000 spectators watch. 1932 Atlantic City's Miss America contest is revived in 1933 under new management as The Variety Showman's Jubilee. Marian Bergeron, a 15-year-old cop’s daughter wins. She is the first winner to be crowned in an evening gown rather than a swimsuit. She is nearly disqualified when it is learned she is underage and her crown is stolen from the queen's hotel suite only hours after her victory. A financial failure, the contest is canceled. 1934 No Miss America contest is held, allowing Bergeron to unofficially reign for two years. 1935 The Miss America contest is revived permanently under the capable leadership of Lenora Slaughter. 1930s Reflecting the nation's fascination with Hollywood, the contest adds an optional talent competition. Winners receive Hollywood screen tests and Hollywood agents representing moguls such as Howard Hughes scour the contest for potential screen starlets. Some contestants make it to the big screen including Dorothy Lamour (1935) who later co-stars in Bob Hope’s Road to film series. 1937 Hours after being crowned Miss America, Bette Cooper disappears with her bachelor chaperone, Lou Off, in the middle of the night. The next morning when the queen is a no-show for a photo shoot, a statewide police search ensues and newspapers publish photos of an empty throne surrounded by runners-up. Rumors fly that, like Kind Edward, who had abdicated the throne to marry Wallis Simpson, the American queen had abandoned her throne for love. Actually, Bette, who wanted to return to school, had called Off and asked him to smuggle her out of her hotel and back home. 1938 The talent competition becomes a mandatory category of competition at the Miss America contest. |
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1942 During World War II thought is given to discontinuing the Miss America Pageant for the duration of the war, but the decision is made that it strengthens the American spirit. 1945 Lenora Slaughter,
the first female director of the Miss America Pageant, begins
a scholarship program to help contestants attend college. With
public attention focused on providing opportunities for returning
GIs, she faces a daunting challenge raising funds. Undeterred,
she prevails and raises the first pageant scholarship, a $5,000
award. Miss New York, Bess Myerson, wins the title and the first
scholarship.
In a significant
first for the evolving pageant, Myerson becomes the first Jewish
woman to be named Miss America. In an ironic historical coincidence,
she her victory occurs shortly after World War II ends and Germany
surrenders, freeing Jews from Hitler's concentration camps. 1947 Barbara Jo Walker becomes the first Miss America to officially marry during her reign. Her judges attend the glamorous wedding. 1948 After Miss America director Lenora Slaughter announces that the winner will be crowned in a modest gown rather than the traditional swimsuit, upset reporters dismantle their equipment and attempt a boycott--until their editors order them back. That night, Bebe Shopp, Miss Minnesota, is crowned in a gown. As a concession, her runners-up pose in swimsuits. |
1945
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1950
1950 The new Miss
America (1951) Yolande Betbeze, refuses to pose in a swimsuit,
insisting that she is a classical singer, not a pin-up. Officials
support her decision.
The first Miss World Pageant is held to promote the Festival of Britain. Miss Sweden, Kiki Haakonson, wins. The contest adopts the slogan "Beauty with a Purpose" and aligns itself with Variety Clubs International to raise funds for world charities. 1952 Catalina holds
the Miss USA-Miss Universe sister pageants together in Long Beach,
California.
1953 The Coronation of Queen Elizabeth inspires royal mania which influences public ideas about pageantry and American queens. 1954 Coronation of an American queen.....The first live coast-to-coast broadcast of the Miss America Pageant airs on September 11th, 10 p.m. Lee Meriwether is awarded the crown by a panel of judges that includes movie queen Grace Kelly. 1954 Songwriter, Bernie Wayne, of Blue Velvet fame, reads an article about the upcoming first live broadcast of the Miss America Pageant. Inspired, he writes the song, There She Is, Miss America, in an hour flat. 1955
1957 The newly-crowning Miss USA, Leona Gage, resigns after her mother-in-law informs the press that 18-year-old Gage is not only married to an Air Force sergeant, but is also the mother of two small sons. In a sad scene, the teary-eyed titleholder explains that she entered the competition to earn prize money to supplement their family's military salary. 1958 Jaycees expand Mobile's Azalea contest into the America's Junior Miss Pageant, a scholarship program to recognize outstanding achievement by high school seniors. The pageant judges contestants on talent, poise, community service, and school grades. Rather than present the teenagers in swimsuits, officials substitute a choreographed physical fitness competition. Phyllis Whitenack, of West Virginia, is the first winner. |
As the nation approaches
the half-century mark, pageants have achieved such popularity
that parents are often heard to remark that every little girl's
dream is to grow up to be Miss America.
Miffed, Catalina swimwear
quits as a major sponsor of the Miss America Pageant and starts
planning its own promotional vehicle, the sexier sister pageants,
"Miss USA" and "Miss Universe."
Thirty
American women compete for the first Miss USA title, won by New
York’s Jackie Lougherty. Twenty-nine international contestants
compete for the first Miss Universe title. Actress Piper Laurie
crowns the first winner, Finland’s Armi Kuusela.
Television personality, Bert Parks is hired
as the Miss America Pageant's master of ceremonies. He introduces
Wayne's tune, There She Is. The man and the music are
instant hits.
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is chosen as America’s Junior Miss.
She later attends Wellesley College, works as a press aide to
President Nixon, and becomes anchor of PrimeTime Live
and one of the highest paid female anchors in television history.
Late 1960s
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1970 In an important racial milestone, Cheryl Browne, win the Miss Iowa title and becomes the first African-American woman to compete in the Miss America Pageant. Although she fails to make the semifinals, her achievement paves the way for the selection of the first black Miss America. 1971 The Miss National
Teen-Ager Pageant is founded in Atlanta as a scholarship pageant
for girls. Sharon McLarty of Mississippi wins. The Miss Universe 1973 Marjorie Wallace, the first American to be named Miss World, is stripped of her title after rumors of affairs with a string of famous bachelors. 1974 Philippine First Lady, Imelda Marcos spares no expense to host the Miss Universe Pageant, only to have the event threatened by an approaching typhoon. Marcos calls in the military to seed monsoon clouds in an effort to diffuse the storm. Amparo Munoz, Miss Spain, wins the crown. 1974 Feminists return
to Atlantic City where they stage a feminist conference and protest
the Miss America Pageant.
1976 The Miss United
Teenager Pageant is started. The Cinderella Pageant begins, quickly
becoming a leading children's scholarship pageant. 1977 The Miss Teen
All America Pageant is started. David Marmel purchases the defunct Mrs. America Pageant. He revamps the cooking and sewing contest for homemakers into a glamorous televised beauty pageant for married women. 1977 In a major racial breakthrough, Janelle Commissiong of Trinidad-Tobago, becomes the first black woman to win the coveted Miss Universe title. The historic moment is televised live by satellite from the Dominican Republic. 1978 In a surreal moment in pageant history, the first black Miss Universe, Janelle Commissiong, crowns her successor, Margaret Gardiner, a white Miss South Africa. 1979 Moments after the credits roll
for the 1979 Miss Universe Pageant in Australia, the stage collapses
as 200 reporters and contestants rush forward to congratulate
the winner, Maritza Sayalero, of Venezuela.
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pageant is broadcast live worldwide via satellite for the first
time. The beautiful broadcast from the Parthenon in Athens, Greece
begins a tradition of televising Universe Pageants from exotic
locales around the globe. 
Oddly, that year, the
pageants two most accomplished winners share the spotlight--Rebecca
King, the no-nonsense 1973 titleholder who tells reporters she
entered to earn money for law school, and her successor, Shirley
Cothran (1974), a master's degree recipient who later earns her
doctorate.
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1980 After 25 years as emcee of the Miss America Pageant, Bert Parks is dismissed. Fans are outraged and talk show host Johnny Carson starts an unsuccessful "Bring Back Bert" campaign. Parks is replaced by Ron Ely, television's Tarzan. 1980 The Miss T.E.E.N. Pageant, a program honoring teen excellence, is founded. Susan McDonald wins the first title. 1980 Lenola Sullivan, Miss Arkansas,
is the first African-American woman to make the top five at the
Miss America Pageant. She also wins the swimsuit competition.
1981
1983 CBS televises the first Miss Teen USA Pageant from Lakeland, Florida. Ruth Zakarian, of New York, wins. 1983 Marking the most important racial milestone in pageant history, Vanessa Williams becomes the first African-American to win the Miss America title. 1984 A media frenzy ensues after reporters reveal that Williams posed for sexually explicit pictures before her victory. When Penthouse publishes the photos, officials request that Vanessa step down. She resigns during a nationally televised press conference. William's first runner-up, Suzette Charles, becomes the second African-American woman to hold the title.
For the first time, an Eurasian woman wins the Miss USA title, Mai Shanley, of Philippine and Irish parentage.
1985 In another racial breakthrough,
1985 The Mrs. World Pageant is founded. Rosie Senanayake, Mrs. Sri Lanka, wins the first title. 1985 The Mother/Daughter Pageant is
started. The first beauty contest television
series is started, the syndicated Dream Girl USA Pageant.
It lasts one season before being canceled. The Mrs. United States Pageant is founded. Sharon Kirkby wins the first title (1987). 1987 Kaye Lani Rae Rafko,
1988 For the first time, an American wins the Mrs. World title, Mrs. America, Pamela Nail of Mississippi. 1989 The Mrs. International Pageant is founded. Rhonda Berglan, of Oklahoma, the mother of two children, wins the first title. 1989 The Lone Star state achieves a monopoly on the Miss USA title when Texans win the national crown for five consecutive years, 1985-1989. All five women prepare under the tutelage of Richard Guy and Rex Holt, the flamboyant founders of GuyRex, Inc. |
Collins had starred in the film Born Free, while Mobley
had appeared in two Elvis Presley movies.
1984
1985 became the year of the Latina beauties.
Laura Martinez Herring, a naturalized Mexican-American, is named
Miss USA, making her the first Hispanic to win a major U.S. pageant
title. She later marries a European count. Deborah Carthy-Deu,
Miss Puerto Rico, wins the Miss Universe title the same year.
an
oncology nurse from Michigan, wins the 1988 Miss America title.
When she voluntarily devotes part of her year of service to advocating
hospice care and promoting the nursing profession, she sets a
new precedent of social activism for titleholders. Her actions
are so positively recieved by the public, that the pageant begins
developing an official "platform" through which future
titleholders can be role models for public service.
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1990 Ten years after being fired,
Bert Parks is welcomed back for the 70th anniversary of the Miss
America Pageant. Sadly, Bert misses several cue cards and fails
to introduce a dozen former winners standing behind him onstage.
As the show closes, the aging legend sings There She Is
to a Miss America (Marjorie Vincent) for the last time. For the first time, Russia sent
a Miss USSR (Evia Stalbovska of Latvia) to compete in the Miss
Universe Pageant. The decade begins with several
racial milestones:
1991 Talk show hosts Regis Philbin and Kathie Lee Gifford are signed as co-hosts of the Miss America Pageant, making Gifford the first full-fledged woman co-host. 1991 The first authorized guide to
the
1991 After appearing as a celebrity guest at the Miss Black America Pageant, world heavy weight boxing champion Mike Tyson is arrested for raping a contestant, Desiree Washington, during pageant week. After the national winner and other contestants claim he groped them, the pageant’s director labels the boxer a "serial buttocks fondler " and sues for damages. The case creates a media frenzy and Tyson is later convicted of rape and sentenced to six years in prison. 1991 Dr. Deborah Williams becomes the first African-American woman to win a national pageant for married women. She is a practicing psychologist and mother of one, from Texas. 1991 Carolyn Sapp, Miss America 1992,
achieves national 1992 As Hurricane Andrew threatens to hit Biloxi, Mississippi, site of the Miss Teen USA Pageant, producers decide to hold the contest early. To maintain suspense, they tape the crownings of two winners, Miss Iowa and Miss Oklahoma, and keep the name of the actual winner a secret. Later that night, the pre-taped pageant airs and Miss Iowa, Jamie Solinger, is revealed as the new Miss Teen USA. 1992 The Miss Teen of America Pageant is founded. Macy Jarrett, of Kansas, wins the first title. 1992 Leanza Cornett wins the Miss America title and achieves national recognition for her platform, AIDS Education and Prevention. 1993 For the second time in pageant
history, black women hold the Miss USA and Miss America titles
simultaneously: Kenya Moore, Miss USA 1993, and Kimberly Aiken,
Miss America 1994 (selected in September 1993). In a pageant first, Sandra Earnest, the mother of ten children, wins a pageant for married women, Mrs. International. 1993 Charlotte Lopez, Miss Teen Vermont, wins the hearts of judges and viewers as she shares the heartbreaking story of her 13 years as a foster child. After she is crowned Miss Teen USA, Prime Time airs a feature on her life, and she writes a book about her experiences, Lost in the System. 1994 After performing a ballet to music she could not hear and interviewing with Regis Philbin on live national television, Heather Whitestone becomes the first woman with a physical handicap to win the famous title. An inspiration to Americans, the profoundly deaf Miss America is the first national titleholder interviewed on a Barbara Walters' special. 1995 Viewers call in to vote on whether
or not the Miss America swimsuit competition will be kept or
canned. By a 3-1 margin, callers vote for the swimsuits to stay. Chelsi Smith, Miss USA, becomes the first bi-racial American to be named Miss Universe during the first Miss Universe Pageant held in Africa. 1995 Just months after the infamous Oklahoma bombing, Oklahomans win both the Miss America and Mrs. America titles. 1997 Business tycoon Donald Trump purchases the Miss Universe system which consists of the "triple crown"--the Miss Teen USA, Miss USA, and Miss Universe pageants. 1997 Miss America contestants are
allowed to wear two-piece swimsuits for the first time since
1947. The winner, Kate Shindle, Miss Illinois, makes a statement
of wholesome altheticism wearing a two-piece suit with modest,
bicyclist-style swim-shorts. Her advocacy of needle exchange
programs as part of her AIDS Education and Prevention platform,
is viewed as progressive by some, extremist by others. 1998 In a surprising upset in a competition often dominated by pageant powerhouse states, Miss Massachusetts-USA, Shawnea Jebbia, walks off with the Miss USA title. 1988 Virginia's Nicole Johnson, a diabetic who wears an insulin pump on her hip, becomes the first woman with a long term physical illness to win the Miss America title. She champions diabetes awareness as her platform and inspired millions of Americans with diabetes, who, like herself, work to lead healthy, successful lives despite the illness. 1999 The nation
1999 In another stunning upset, the tiny state of Delaware boasts the Miss Teen USA title, after its adorable representative, Ashley Coleman, charms the judges with her fresh, unaffected teen style. |
Miss
America Program is published, Miss America: In Pursuit of the
Crown. For the first time, an author collects and commits to
public record the memories of over 30 winners ranging from Miss
America 1933 to the current titleholder.
recognition for
her campaign against domestic violence after reporters reveal
that she was physically assaulted by her former fiancé,
an NFL player. She makes the cover of People and stars
in a film about her life, Miss America: Behind the Crown.
of Botswana sends its first ever delegate,
a statuesque, elegant beauty named Mpule Kwelagobe, to the Miss Universe Pageant. In a stunning upset,
the African beauty beats the powerhouse nations of the United
States and Venezuela to walk away with the coveted international
title and over a quarter million dollars in cash and prizes.
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1999-2000 Nicole Johnson, the last Miss America of the 1990s, crowns her successor as the new Miss America 2000, the first major titleholder of the new millennium. Heather Renee French, Miss Kentucky, is awarded the first Miss America title of the new millennium. She is a University of Cincinnati Masters candidate who teaches fashion illustration. The daughter of a disabled Vietnam veteran, her platform as Miss America is "Homeless Veterans Outreach." She became the first ever Miss America to also receive the Miss America Woman of Achievement award. In previous years the distinction had been bestowed upon First Ladies Barbara Bush and Betty Ford. 2001 Miss Colombia, Andrea Noceti, threatened to
sue David Letterman, host of the famous late night talk show, for quipping
that her talent performance would include swallowing bags of heroin.
"I don't know if you've seen a beauty pageant lately, but you know what's
really gotten very impressive, the talent competition...For example, Miss
Colombia ... swallowed 50 balloons full of heroin." Letterman later
apologized. 2002 Oksana Fyodorova, a police lieutenant from St.Petersburg, became the first Miss Russia to win the Miss Universe title when judges selected her as Miss Universe 2002. She was stripped of her title on September 23rd, 2002 for failing to fulfill her duties. Fedorova claimed that no one informed her of the demanding schedule she would face if she won the international title. Justine Pasek of Panama assumed her duties as Miss Universe. As Miss World contestants gathered for the international pageant in Nigeria, a predominantly Muslim country, anti-pageant protests and rioting broke out. The violence was ignited after a woman journalist penned a story suggesting that Mohammed, Islam's prophet, might well have married one of the Miss World contestants. Several hundred people were killed in the violence that ensued. Worldwide outrage had already put pressure on Nigeria after their Islamic court sentenced a woman to death by stoning after she was charged with adultery. Julia Morley, director of the pageant, moved it to London, England on short notice after several contestants left the country for safety. At this Miss Universe Pageant, Miss Lebanon, Christina Sawaya, dropped out of the competition after stating that she would not compete in a pageant with Miss Israel. Miss Isreal, Yamit Har-Noy. Miss Isreal hesitated to wear her titleholder sash in public due to security concerns. Halle Berry, the first runnerup in the1986 Miss USA pageant and the first African American to represent the USA at the Miss World pageant, wins the 2002 Academy Award for Best Actress for her role in the film, Monster's Ball.
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