6 Unusual Beauty Pageants
Beauty may only be skin deep, but beauty pageants go a lot deeper, right to the heart of what makes us Americans. We don't just love the Miss America pageant, we love everything leading up to it, from Miss Ohio all the way down to Miss Drumsticks.Check out some of America's more unusual beauty pageants.
First up: Miss Drumsticks
1. Miss Drumsticks
Every October, Yellville, Arkansas, gets ready for Thanksgiving with
two days worth of turkey-related fun and games, culminating with the
selection of Miss Drumsticks. Contestants are judged on their legs
only, with their faces and bodies hidden behind a picture of a turkey,
so as not to influence the judges. The prize is nothing to shake a tail
feather at -- past winners have received trips to Los Angeles to
compete on game shows and to New York for appearances on the Late Show with David Letterman.
2. Miss Klingon Empire
Beam me down, Scotty, there's a Miss Klingon Empire beauty pageant held every year in September at the Star Trek Convention at Dragon*Con in Atlanta. Contestants assume the persona of a female Klingon character from any Star Trek
TV series or movie. The Klingon babes are judged on beauty,
personality, and talent, which includes singing and dancing but no
planetary destruction allowed. Winners receive a trophy, a tiara, and a
satin sash outlined in blue and green -- the official colors of the
Klingon Empire.
3. Mr. or Ms. Mosquito Legs
To become Miss America, contestants need good-looking legs, but to win
the title of Mr. or Ms. Mosquito Legs, guys and gals need skinny legs.
Clute, Texas, hosts the pageant as part of the Great Texas Mosquito
Festival, held each July. Anyone attending the festival is eligible to
strut their skinny legs in short shorts for the honor of being named
Mr. or Ms. Mosquito Legs.
4. Miss Sweet Corn Queen
It's tough buttering up judges who are buttering their sweet corn, but
that's the task of competitors in the Miss Sweet Corn Queen pageant
held each August in Mendota, Illinois. Local high-school girls compete
for the coveted title and a place of honor in the parade held at one of
the largest harvest festivals in the Midwest.
5. Miss Exotic World
True practitioners of the dance form known as the striptease flock to
the Exotic World Burlesque Museum and Striptease Hall of Fame in Las Vegas
every Memorial Day weekend for the annual Miss Exotic World Pageant.
Ranging in age from 18 to 80, these burlesque beauties flirt with the
judges with smiles, winks, and teases. The winner of the Miss Exotic
World pageant gets a trophy and the right to be called the Miss America
of Burlesque.
6. The Armpit Queen
In Battle Mountain, Nevada, nobody raises a stink about the Armpit Beauty Pageant. After humorist Gene Weingarten of The Washington Post
dubbed Battle Mountain "the armpit of America" for its "lack of
character and charm," the small town's residents turned the joke into
an annual celebration of all things smelly every August. Sweaty T-shirt
contests, deodorant throws, and a "quick-draw" antiperspirant contest
lead up to the selection of the Armpit Queen. The pageant and festival
are sponsored by Old Spice deodorant and draw an estimated 3,500
visitors with signs along the highway proclaiming: "Make Battle
Mountain Your Next Pit Stop."
CONTRIBUTING WRITERS:
Helen Davies, Marjorie Dorfman, Mary Fons, Deborah Hawkins, Martin
Hintz, Linnea Lundgren, David Priess, Julia Clark Robinson, Paul
Seaburn, Heidi Stevens, and Steve Theunissen
