Wishing you a safe and happy New Year!

Constants, have fun, but don't post the pictures online. ;)

HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

Above: Miss Ohio Karissa Martin
Below: Miss Ohio International Amanda Stevens
and Miss Ohio Teen USA Kelsey Stevens

Tone-up with Miss Teen USA

She may not have been crowned on TV, but millions of young women are meeting Miss Teen USA, Stevi Perry, in CosmoGirl.

[These images were copied from a message board.]

* cricket * cricket * cricket *

As far as pageants are concerned, there's not a lot going on right now. So instead, let me once again share a product that I think pageant-types might like...

Last night I saw a two minute infomercial-like commercial for the Miche bag. It's a purse with interchangeable shells. A blessing and annoying curse I picked up from years of pageantry is the need to match, with no detail left unnoticed. Good luck catching me with black shoes and a brown purse, for example...

Anyway, the great thing about these Miche bags is that instead of moving all your stuff from one purse to another (like I do on a daily basis), you can simply change the outside of the purse thanks to thin magnets. For the website, CLICK HERE. If I didn't already have a few designer bags that I love, I'd seriously be considering it. If you order one, let me know, I'm curious of the quality.

Russia Rules the World

Miss Russia, Ksenia Sukhinova won Miss World, held in Johannesburg, South Africa. CLICK HERE for articles.

Friday Tune-in Alert: Don't Forget the Lyrics

The MAO sent out the following reminder; the current and two former Miss America's will be on the show Don't Forget the Lyrics. I think Wayne Brady is ridiculously talented but unappreciated in Hollywood, as this show is conceptually lame! Nonetheless, it's great exposure for the program and it's always great to see the outstanding Heather French Henry.

An Unforgettable Miss America Holiday Special Feature on FOX's Don't Forget the Lyrics,with Wayne Brady

Friday, December 12, 2008

9 P.M. EST* on FOX

Miss America 2008 Kirsten Haglund, Miss America 1981 Susan Powell and Miss America 2000 Heather French Henry will be featured in a special holiday episode of Don't Forget the Lyrics, hosted by Wayne Brady.

As a part of the celebrity charity series, our Miss Americas will be in the national spotlight to try their best at guessing song lyrics to capture prize money to benefit the Miss America Scholarship Fund. Kirsten, Susan and Heather step up to the microphone for some holiday fun
and to hopefully earn winnings in this spirited season of giving!

Be sure to tune in and celebrate the season!

*Check your local listings.

Beauty and Bliss!

Love was in the air this fall... At least three of my fellow, former pageant ladies were wed or engaged.

Leslie (Ondrey) Andrews wed her longtime boyfriend Chris on Halloween weekend, which was very appropriate since they share the hobby of ghost hunting! That's a fun fact Leslie would share about herself while competing at Miss Ohio, where she was a three-time Top Five finalist.

Days after giving up her Miss Ohio crown this summer Roberta Camp said yes to a life-long appearance as Mrs. Albert. Her boyfriend Steve tricked her, with the help of pageant staff, by saying she needed to do one more Miss Ohio appearance that Karissa couldn't make. Instead of a dedication ceremony at the Franklin Park Conservatory, Roberta found her dedicated boyfriend, waiting with a ring!

Finally, you may remember Nikole Danner, a beautiful opera singer who competed at Miss Ohio as Miss Marion Popcorn Festival, in 2004 I believe... She is now a graduate of Kent State University and recently married Matt Holman.

I am friends with these three ladies on Facebook and happened to notice when they uploaded these photos; but my Facebook use fluxuates and there are lots of current and former pageant women I'm not in contact with. So, if don't be offended if I don't blog about your wedding, child birth, etc... And please, don't hesitate to email me your updates and photos!

Miss Ohio USA Pictures

A word about the USA system...

This week on the Miss Ohio (America) message board discussion about the Ohio USA pageant turned nasty for absolutely no reason at all. Of course, that's the nature of anonymity, but still no excuse. I totally agree that Miss America and Miss USA, arguably the two largest pageant systems, have their distinct differences. However, the fanatics who insist upon pitting them against each other are giving all Teen and Miss pageants a bad name. What really bothers me is the stereotyping. Many women, myself included, have competed in both systems. Some Miss America fans want to believe that "their girls" represent the Madonna, while USA girls are all the whore. That's just not true. Miss America contestants drink, have sex and take stupid pictures too, while there are Miss USA contestants as pure as the driven snow.

How ironic, those who claim to be from the more refined system actually make themselves seem more unsophisticated by the way they label an entire group of women because of the actions of a few and based on their shortsighted "ethics."

I guess I'll step off my soapbox now. Here are some great pictures, from what I consider a very worthy pageant:

The new Miss Ohio Teen USA Kelsey Stevens and Miss Ohio USA Natasha Vivoda
The final moment...
Fun in the dressing room, including something you'd never see at Miss Ohio America: CELL PHONES! Oh the horror! :)
Why, oh why, must every pageant begin with a horrible dance number?
The contestants are divided alphebetically by title into groups of fifteen; after each woman models, the whole group comes back onstage.
The photos above were snagged from the Facebook albums of Natasha Vivoda, Brooke Waddles, Tiffany Schramm, Marianna Hewitt, Jen Ciccone and Alexis Semach.

Pageant Press: Mario Lopez to Host Miss America

Today the Miss America organization issued a press release regarding the judges, but this years host, Mario Lopez, was announced via news outlets.

After admiring him as children on Saved by the Bell, this years contestants met Mario while on Ellen. He has previously hosted Miss America and Miss Teen USA.

Click here for articles.

Miss America Press Release: Spotlight on National Judges

2009 Miss America Pageant Puts the Spotlight

On National Judges

Saturday, January 24, 2008
Live from Planet Hollywood, Las Vegas, on TLC

Linwood, N.J., December 1, 2008 – The 2009 Miss America Pageant promises to be an exciting event with the announcement of the strikingly diverse panel of national judges. This year’s panel of seven esteemed judges includes a Broadway star; a renowned denim designer; a Miss America-turned-philanthropist; an Olympic gold medalist; a casting genius; a celebrated entertainment news reporter and anchor; and the hottest hairdresser in Hollywood. They will evaluate the contestants from the preliminaries through the final night of competition, which will be broadcast live from Planet Hollywood Resort and Casino in Las Vegas on Saturday, January 24, 2009 at 8:00PM ET live/PT tape-delayed, exclusively on TLC.

The judges were announced by Sam Haskell, III, Chairman of the Board for the Miss America Organization (MAO), Art McMaster, President and CEO of MAO, and Anthony Eaton, Producer of the 2009 Miss America Pageant. This year’s panel of judges is comprised of experts in each of the fields in which a young woman must excel in, in order to be named Miss America. Miss America must be beautiful, talented, intelligent and well-spoken, a leader, have a commitment to her community, be contemporary in her style and fashion - a relatable and individual ‘it girl’ who can connect with today’s modern woman, as well as being physically fit. To determine who will be Miss America 2009 the following panel of judges has been selected:

From the Field of Fashion – Paige Adams-Geller – Adams-Geller is a former fit model-turned-denim designer who was once lauded as “the perfect body for jeans fitting,” and the most-requested fit model by the top denim designers in the industry. She is now the owner of Paige Premium Denim, PPD for men, Paige Petites, Paige Maternity, Paige Kids and Paige Black Label.

From the Field of Entertainment - LAURA BELL BUNDY – Most notably known for her role as Elle Woods in “Legally Blonde: The Musical,” this triple-threat has received nominations for a Tony and Drama Desk Award and has received a Drama League Honor. Bundy has several film and small screen credits and has released two albums.

From the Field of Community Service – Nicole Johnson – Johnson is Miss America 1999 and has spent her time since her year of service educating and raising awareness and funds for Type I Diabetes. She has won several awards for her advocacy and has created her own foundation to continue her commitment towards this terrible disease.

From the Field of Fitness – Cullen Jones – Jones is the second African American in history to win an Olympic gold medal in swimming and also helped his team win additional gold medals and set world records in the 2008 Summer Olympic Games. Jones is heavily involved with the USA Swimming Foundation’s Make A Splash program, helping minorities learn how to swim.

From the Field of Talent – BETH KLEIN – A renowned casting genius, Klein is the Senior Vice President of Talent and Casting for Showtime networks. She currently oversees casting on all Showtime series including Weeds, The L Word, Dexter, and The Tudors.

From the Field of Communications/Interview – Jim moret – Moret has covered entertainment news for over 20 years and is currently the chief correspondent for Inside Edition. He is a regular guest contributor both as a legal analyst and entertainment reporter for CNN’s Headline News, Fox News Channel, Court TV, and MSNBC.

From the Field of Beauty - KEN PAVES – Dubbed by the media as one of the hottest hairdressers in Hollywood, Paves has remained one of the most sought after hairstylists in the world for the past 12 years. His work has appeared in all of the top industry magazines and his celebrity clientele include Jennifer Lopez, Jessica and Ashlee Simpson, Celine Dion, Kerry Washington, Marcia Cross, Eve and Jessica Alba.

MISS AMERICA: COUNTDOWN TO THE CROWN
TLC presents the four-part reality series MISS AMERICA: COUNTDOWN TO THE CROWN, capturing the excitement as the 52 Miss America contestants live together and face off in challenges that help them better prepare for the iconic pageant. Each one-hour episode, hosted by Tyler Harcott, will follow the contestants as they navigate through a series of team and individual competitions that will help them prepare for the pageant and prove they have what it takes to be a modern-day Miss America. This year, the stakes are higher than ever – viewers at home will have the power to vote four contestants directly into the pageant’s Top 15. Tune in starting Friday, January 2, 2009 at 10 PM ET as the 52 contestants compete to have their ultimate crowning moment.

###