Miss USA 1961

Miss USA 1961, the tenth Miss USA pageant, took place in Miami Beach, Florida on July 13, 1961. The pageant was won by Sharon Brown of Louisiana, who was crowned by outgoing titleholder Linda Bement of Utah. Brown's win gave Louisiana a second title in four years, marking the first time a state had won two Miss USA titles outright (Utah had two titleholders in 1957 and 1960, but Charlotte Sheffield in 1957 originally placed 1st runner-up, and inherited the crown after the disqualification of the winner). Two days after her victory, Brown went on to place as 4th runner-up at Miss Universe 1961.

Miss USA 1961
Date	July 13, 1961
Venue	Miami Beach, Florida, U.S.
Entrants	43
Placements	15
Winner	Sharon Brown Louisiana

Results

Final results	Contestant
Miss USA 1961	Louisiana – Sharon Brown
1st runner-up	California –Pamela Stettler
2nd runner-up	Nevada – Karen Weller
3rd runner-up	New York – Alexa Currey
4th runner-up	Alabama –Suellen Robinson
Top 15	Connecticut – Florence Mayette Kentucky – Marcia Chumbler Massachusetts – Elaine Cusick Michigan – Patricia Squires Mississippi – Marlene Britsch Nebraska – Gail Weinstock New Jersey – Diane Giersch Rhode Island – Joan Zeller Utah – Janet Hawley West Virginia – Kathy McManaway

Historical significance

• Louisiana wins competition for the second time.
• California earns the 1st runner-up position for the first time and reaches the highest placement since Terry Huntingdon won in 1959.
• Nevada earns the 2nd runner-up position for the second time. The last time it placed this was in 1957.
• New York earns the 3rd runner-up position for the first time.
• Alabama earns the 4th runner-up position for the first time.
• States that placed in semifinals the previous year were Alabama, California, Connecticut, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Michigan, New York, New Jersey, Utah and West Virginia.
• California and New York placed for the fifth consecutive year.
• Alabama and Louisiana placed for the fourth consecutive year.
• West Virginia placed for the third consecutive year.
• Connecticut, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Jersey and Utah made their second consecutive placement.
• Nevada last placed in 1959.
• Nebraska last placed in 1958.
• Kentucky last placed in 1953.
• Mississippi and Rhode Island placed for the first time.
• Iowa and Missouri break an ongoing streak of placements since 1959.
• Florida breaks an ongoing streak of placements since 1958.

Delegates

The Miss USA 1961 delegates were:

Alabama – Suellen Robinson Alaska – Judy Onstad Arizona – Shyrle Owens Arkansas – Mickey Lambert California – Pamela Stettler Connecticut – Florence Mayette Delaware – Nina Lou Ringler District of Columbia – Patricia Brunette Florida – Peggy DeFreitas Georgia – Patsy Giddens Idaho – Delcene Rossiter Illinois – Dianne Duffey Indiana – Janice Oliver Iowa – Deanne Ostermann Kansas – Dixie Lee Cook Kentucky – Marcia Chumbler Louisiana – Sharon Brown Maine – Barbara Dyer Maryland – Gail Baxter Massachusetts – Elaine Cusick Michigan – Patricia Squires Mississippi – Marlene Britsch

Missouri – Joan Roberts Nebraska – Gail Weinstock Nevada – Karen Weller New Hampshire – Ellen Lipson New Jersey – Diane Gierson New Mexico – Georgi Edwards New York – Alexa Currey North Carolina – Marie Clyburn Ohio – Alice Englemann Pennsylvania – Gayle Nelson Rhode Island – Joan Zeller South Carolina – Yvonne Quick South Dakota – Sharon Hoffman Tennessee – Anita Atkins Texas – Sheila Wade Utah – Janet Hawley Vermont – Susan Nielsen Virginia – Bonnie Jones West Virginia – Kathy McManaway Wisconsin – Karen Reisweber Wyoming – Judy Walton

No state delegate sent: Colorado, Hawaii, Minnesota, Montana, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, Washington

External links

• Miss USA official website