The Miss America pageant has provided many opportunities and millions of dollars in scholarships for its contests since the first event more than 85 years ago.
This week in Las Vegas , 52 contestants will appear in the Miss America pageant. Preliminary competitions start Tuesday, and the finale will be broadcast Saturday on The Learning Channel, channel 58 in the Oneonta area.
Elisabeth Baldanza, 24, of East Meredith, is competing as Miss New York .
Preliminary competition includes artistic expression (talent); presentation and community achievement (interview); presence and poise (evening wear); and lifestyle and fitness (swimsuit). The final night of competition includes the swimsuit, evening gown, talent, peer respect and knowledge contests. Contestants are between 17 and 24 years old.
After Miss America is selected, she embarks on a year-long national speaking tour, traveling about 20,000 miles a month, to a different city every other day and promoting her platform, according to the organization.
The Miss America pageant began as a gimmick in Atlantic City to extend the tourism season. There were seven contestants from East Coast cities in the first event on Sept. 8, 1921. The event was closed down in 1927 because of growing criticism and charges of immorality and lack of financial support, according to a Public Broadcasting Service documentary.
The pageant was reorganized in 1933, and Lenora Slaughter, executive director, later added state competitions, the scholarship program and the personal interviews as part of the competition.
The Miss America Organization today is a not-for-profit corporation that includes the pageant, scholarships and a foundation division. It grants franchises to the state-level competitions. Miss America contestants must qualify through state and local competitions to be eligible for the national pageant.
In 1955, pageant host Bert Parks first sang ``There She Is, Miss America'' to Miss America 1956. The piece by Bernie Wayne became a theme song, and Parks was host for the pageant for 25 years.
Parks became an American icon as the host until 1980, when he was fired by producers seeking a younger image for the show, according to the Public Broadcasting Service website for its documentary, ``Miss America.'' Parks was known for his ability to put contestants at ease and for his talent helping contestants look their best, it said, and he presented himself as a father figure and helped give the show a wholesome image in the 1950s and 1960s.
In more recent years, hosts have included Regis Philbin, Kathie Lee Gifford, Meredith Vieira, Donnie and Marie Osmond and Tony Danza.
This year, the host will be Entertainment Tonight co-anchor and correspondent Mark Steines, who is married to Leanza Cornett, Miss America 1993.
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