The Miss America Pageant 100th Anniversary (Part 1: 1954-1958)

Описание: Every once in a while we reach a milestone in television, and American pop culture, that beacons us to take a pause and reflect. That's what we will be doing this Labor Weekend as we introduce a four-part special on the 100th Anniversary of the Miss America Pageant. I got the idea to try this special presentation last January when I flipped through the FM radio dial early one morning and stumbled upon an NPR interview with former (1990) Miss America (Dr.) Debbye Turner. Ms. Turner, who is one of only three black women to hold the crown of Miss America (along with Vanessa L. Williams and Suzette Charles in 1984), was being interviewed to discuss the production of a program she had developed to commemorate the 100th anniversary of The Miss America Pageant. Not only did the 19th Amendment and the Women's right to vote take place 100 years ago in 1920, but The Miss America Pageant started out that same year. I bounced the idea around with the guys here at Television Vanguard, and this is the four part presentation we found in our video library.

The Miss America Pageant for years, for decades, was the main event that helped to kick off each fall television season in September. Only until recently (in the past decade or so) did the pageant move to airing on broadcast television (or cable television) early (or earlier) in the calendar year. For decades it aired right after Labor Day, sometime around the second week in September, 'live, from Atlantic City, New Jersey', leading to the start of the new fall season in the third week in September.

This year, 2020, marks the one hundredth anniversary of The Miss America Pageant, and although the pageant for 2020 has already taken place earlier this year (pre-COVID-19), and the next pageant may not take place until post-COVID-19, we here at Television Vanguard felt it was important to try to share some sort of tribute to this national institution that at one time was 'a really big thing', particularly in that 1954 to 1970 era when television viewership and importance was growing by leaps and bounds.

Hence, this Labor Weekend, we'll be sharing a big four-part special on the pageant spanning those important years from 1954 to 1970. Part One, today, starts off in 1954, the first year the pageant was shown live on broadcast television (on the ABC network). Miss America 1955 was crowned that year, and her name was Lee Ann Meriweather, who became the second Miss Americas to reach television stardom and become a household name with television shows such as Batman and The Time Tunnel. The first household name that had been crowned Miss America was Bess Myerson (1945), and Ms. Myerson would be brought aboard the ABC broadcast to add hostess and commentary and a sense of sophistication to the event.... a connection with the audience at home. Also on board this telecast was actress Grace Kelly, who was one of the judges for the event. It all worked very, very well for ABC, the Miss America staff and team, and for a young woman from San Francisco named Lee Ann Meriweather.

The second year (1955) of the pageant on ABC took on a more 'television-like' mode of operation, becoming an even bigger event as ABC, television and the audience at home began to realize what a super nova Miss America had the potential to become. In that second broadcast of 1955, two key components to the broadcast were added.. The first was Bert Parks, who was brought on the show to act as on-stage emcee and host. Parks would become a television star with this yearly production. The second key component to the 1955 program that was introduced was the famous song 'There She Is, Miss America'.

All the pieces were now in place, and The Miss American Pageant was on its way to becoming a national phenomenon.

Note that this video clip is an excerpt from a PBS special back in 2004, with narration by Cherry Jones, and was produced as a special for PBS under the American Experience program. We'll have more information on ordering full programs for The American Experience at the end of 'part 2' of our video clips.

This video clip is presented here on YouTube for the entertainment and informational value of the viewer, and no copyright infringement is intended.

Enjoy.

Part 2 tomorrow as the pageant enters the end of the 1950s, and American welcomes the third Miss America to reach household name status...a young woman from Mississippi named Mary Ann Mobley.