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Publications International, Ltd., the Editors of. "10 Notable Beauty Pageant Moments." 13 September 2007. HowStuffWorks.com. <http://people.howstuffworks.com/10-notable-beauty-pageant-moments.htm> 11 May 2008.
10 Notable Beauty Pageant Moments
In 1921, Atlantic City businessmen created a two-day beauty contest to keep tourists in town past Labor Day. This wasn't the first beauty pageant the world had seen, but it was the one that spawned the Miss America contest. Hundreds of beauty contests have followed, but it hasn't been all roses and tiaras. Here are a few highlights (and lowlights) in the history of beauty pageants.
1. Sideshow/Freak Show
The first American beauty pageant was staged in 1854 by circus magnate P. T. Barnum. But even before women's suffrage changed the role of women in modern society, no one was terribly excited about their wives and sisters being part of a circus sideshow, and the competition didn't last long.
2. You're Never Too Young for Drama
Marian Bergeron won the Miss America crown in 1932. Trouble was, she was only 15 years old at the time. Pageant officials were duly upset, but another scandal kept them from setting things straight: Before they could reclaim the crown, someone stole it from Bergeron's dressing room.
3. Like Beauty Queens to the Slaughter
In 1935, beauty pageants needed a little boost. Enter Lenora Slaughter, a woman who would forever shape the world's concept of the beauty pageant. Slaughter was a savvy businesswoman who pandered to the nation's Hollywood fever, offering screen tests to Miss America winners -- Dorothy Lamour was "discovered" this way. Slaughter was also the brain behind adding the talent competition in 1938 and offering college scholarships to winners beginning in 1945. She ruled the pageant for more than 30 years.
4. Mazel Tov, Miss America!
In 1945, America crowned its first Jewish Miss America when New York's Bess Myerson won the title, even after being told that unless she changed her name to something "less Jewish," she would never win the competition. Myerson refused and won anyway, though her reign was not without controversy. Catalina swimsuits, the Miss America swimsuit supplier, did not ask Myerson to be a spokeswoman for their product, even though every queen before her had inked a deal. Myerson wasn't fazed and went on to serve in politics and won numerous awards for her philanthropic work.
5. Miss Black America Fights Back
Not until 1983 did an African-American woman win the Miss America crown. However, African-Americans didn't wait around to be recognized in the beauty pageant circuit; instead, they organized the first Miss Black America contest in 1968. The pageant started as a local contest in Philadelphia but went national a year later. In the 1969 contest, The Jackson 5 made their first television appearance, and an ambitious young woman named Oprah Winfrey competed as Miss Black Tennessee in 1971.
Keep reading the highs and lows in beauty pageant history on the
next page.
1. Sideshow/Freak Show
The first American beauty pageant was staged in 1854 by circus magnate P. T. Barnum. But even before women's suffrage changed the role of women in modern society, no one was terribly excited about their wives and sisters being part of a circus sideshow, and the competition didn't last long.
2. You're Never Too Young for Drama
Marian Bergeron won the Miss America crown in 1932. Trouble was, she was only 15 years old at the time. Pageant officials were duly upset, but another scandal kept them from setting things straight: Before they could reclaim the crown, someone stole it from Bergeron's dressing room.
3. Like Beauty Queens to the Slaughter
In 1935, beauty pageants needed a little boost. Enter Lenora Slaughter, a woman who would forever shape the world's concept of the beauty pageant. Slaughter was a savvy businesswoman who pandered to the nation's Hollywood fever, offering screen tests to Miss America winners -- Dorothy Lamour was "discovered" this way. Slaughter was also the brain behind adding the talent competition in 1938 and offering college scholarships to winners beginning in 1945. She ruled the pageant for more than 30 years.
4. Mazel Tov, Miss America!
In 1945, America crowned its first Jewish Miss America when New York's Bess Myerson won the title, even after being told that unless she changed her name to something "less Jewish," she would never win the competition. Myerson refused and won anyway, though her reign was not without controversy. Catalina swimsuits, the Miss America swimsuit supplier, did not ask Myerson to be a spokeswoman for their product, even though every queen before her had inked a deal. Myerson wasn't fazed and went on to serve in politics and won numerous awards for her philanthropic work.
5. Miss Black America Fights Back
Not until 1983 did an African-American woman win the Miss America crown. However, African-Americans didn't wait around to be recognized in the beauty pageant circuit; instead, they organized the first Miss Black America contest in 1968. The pageant started as a local contest in Philadelphia but went national a year later. In the 1969 contest, The Jackson 5 made their first television appearance, and an ambitious young woman named Oprah Winfrey competed as Miss Black Tennessee in 1971.
Keep reading the highs and lows in beauty pageant history on the
next page.
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Please copy/paste the following text to properly cite this How Stuff Works article:
Publications International, Ltd., the Editors of. "10 Notable Beauty Pageant Moments." 13 September 2007. HowStuffWorks.com. <http://people.howstuffworks.com/10-notable-beauty-pageant-moments.htm> 11 May 2008.
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