Miss USA 1997

Miss USA 1997, the 46th Miss USA pageant, was held at Shreveport, Louisiana in January and February, 1997. Delegates arrived in the city on January 19, the preliminary competition was held on February 2, 1997 and the final competition on February 5, 1997.[1] The event, held at the Hirsch Memorial Coliseum was broadcast live on CBS.

Miss USA 1997
DateFebruary 5, 1997
PresentersGeorge Hamilton, Marla Maples Trump
VenueHirsch Memorial Coliseum, Shreveport, Louisiana
BroadcasterCBS, KSLA-TV
WinnerBrook Lee
Hawaii
CongenialityNapiera Groves
District of Columbia
PhotogenicAudra Wilks
Virginia

At the conclusion of the final competition, Brook Lee of Hawaii was crowned by outgoing titleholder Ali Landry of Louisiana, becoming the fourth Hawaiian to win the Miss USA pageant and the first win in 19 years, since Judi Andersen in Miss USA 1978. After Lee won the Miss Universe 1997 title three months later, first runner-Up Brandi Sherwood of Idaho inherited the Miss USA title. Sherwood became the first Miss Teen USA winner (Miss Teen USA 1989) and the third Miss Teen USA state delegate in a row to hold the Miss USA title. Upon Sherwood inheriting the Miss USA 1997 title, she also became the first Idaho delegate to hold the Miss USA title.[2]

The pageant was held in Shreveport, Louisiana for the first time, having been held in South Padre Island, Texas the previous three years and in Wichita, Kansas the four years prior.[3] The new location was announced in August 1996, and then reigning Miss USA, Louisiana native Ali Landry, was invited to attend the official contract signing.[3]

The pageant was hosted by George Hamilton for the only time, and Marla Maples Trump, soon-to-be ex-wife of pageant owner Donald Trump, offered colour commentary for the only time.[1] Randy Newman provided entertainment during the competition.

Just prior to the final event it was announced that broadcaster CBS had entered a partnership with Trump, becoming half-owners of the Miss USA pageant and the associated Miss Teen USA and Miss Universe competitions.[4]

While the delegates were in Louisiana, over sixty corporate sponsors provided funding for events, which included dinners, receptions and cocktail parties. There were over three hundred volunteers involved.[5] The delegates were involved in more than forty-five hours of rehearsals prior to the preliminary competition and final show.[6]

This was the first year in which delegates were allowed to choose whether they wanted to wear one-piece or two-piece bathing suits for the preliminary and final swimsuit competitions. In previous years, the delegates were all assigned to only wear either one or the other.

Results

Placements
Map showing placements by state
Final Results Contestant
Miss USA 1997
1st Runner-Up
2nd Runner-Up
Top 6
Top 10

∞ Lee won Miss Universe 1997. Due to protocol, Lee resigns her title as Miss USA 1997. 1st runner-up, Brandi Sherwood, replaces her as Miss USA.

Special awards

Historical significance
  • Hawaii wins competition for the fourth time.
  • Idaho earns the 1st runner-up position for the first time and surpasses its previous highest placement in 1964. Also it became the 25th state who wins the Miss USA title for the first time. She finished as 1st runner-up, but succeeded as Miss USA 1997 after Brook Lee became Miss Universe.
  • Tennessee earns the 2nd runner-up position for the fourth time and repeats the same position as the last year 1996.
  • Florida finishes as Top 6 for the second time. The last time it placed this was in 1995.
  • Texas finishes as Top 6 for the second time. The last time it placed this was in 1994. Also it reached its highest placement since Chelsi Smith won in 1995. Ironically, Smith went on to win the Miss Universe title in 1995.
  • Utah finishes as Top 6 for the first time and reaches its highest placement since 1982.
  • States that placed in semifinals the previous year were Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas and Utah.
  • Texas placed for the sixth consecutive year.
  • Oklahoma placed for the third consecutive year.
  • Tennessee and Utah made their second consecutive placement.
  • Florida and Rhode Island last placed in 1995.
  • Hawaii last placed in 1994.
  • New Jersey last placed in 1993.
  • Alabama last placed in 1992.
  • Idaho last placed in 1964.
  • Illinois and Louisiana break an ongoing streak of placements since 1994.

Scores

Preliminary competition

The following are the contestants' scores in the preliminary competition.

Final competition

Delegates

The Miss USA 1997 delegates were:

Crossovers

Ten delegates had previously competed in either the Miss Teen USA or Miss America pageants.

Delegates who had previously held a Miss Teen USA state title were:

Delegates who had previously held a Miss America state title were:

  • Jennifer Makris (New Jersey) - Miss New Jersey 1994 (Second runner-up at Miss America 1995)
  • Stacy Dawn Cenedese (Wyoming) - Miss Wyoming 1992
  • Tamara Henry (Arkansas) competed on RuPaul's Drag U Season 3 "Ex Beauty Queens" and Won.

Judges

References
  1. "Miss USA event plays Trump card". The Baton Rouge Advocate. 1996-12-26. p. 1-B.
  2. Associated Press (1997-05-19). "Miss Idaho Now Miss USA, thanks to Miss Universe". The Spokesman-Review.
  3. Associated Press (1996-08-23). "Miss USA pageant moving to Shreveport". The Baton Rouge Advocate. p. 1-A.
  4. "Beauty of a deal for CBS, Trump Enters into deal with Donald Trump to own and broadcast Miss Universe, Miss USA and Miss Teen USA pageants". Hollywood Reporter. 1997-01-22.
  5. "Shreveport treats Miss USA contestants like real royalty". The Baton Rouge Sunday Advocate. 1997-02-02. p. 9-b.
  6. "Miss USA contestants sweat it out long before wait for judges' decision". The Baton Rouge Advocate. 1997-02-05. p. 6-a.

See also
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