I’m feeling nice today, so I decided to discuss the Miss USA pageant, which aired last night. Miss USA is part of Donald Trump’s empire now – whoever wins Miss USA gets a luxury apartment in Trump Tower for a year and they get a national platform to work on their issues. The winner of this year’s title is… Miss Connecticut, Erin Brady (the photos of the girl in white, with Trump). Erin is pretty for sure, but her reminds me a little bit of Audrina Patridge. The first runner-up was Miss Alabama, who looks like a cross between Selena Gomez and Denise Richards (the orange bikini and black gown photos).
From 51 to the one and only Miss USA 2013: Congratulations, Miss Connecticut Erin Brady!
Reigning Miss USA Nana Meriwether has relinquished her crown – and the posh New York apartment that comes with it – to her successor.
Brady, 25, will become a spokeswoman for breast and ovarian cancer awareness and travel the world for various charity work. The first runner-up, Miss Alabama Mary Margaret McCord, will take over should Brady not be able to complete her duties. The second through fifth runners-up were Miss Illinois Stacie Juris, Miss Utah Marissa Powell, Miss Texas Ali Nugent and Miss South Carolina Megan Pinckney.
At the top of the show, the final 15 were announced after being chosen based on competitions and interviews during the week leading up to the telecast.
They included: Texas, South Carolina, California, Ohio, Louisiana, Pennsylvania, Alabama, Massachusetts, North Carolina, West Virginia, Maryland, Illinois, Nevada, Connecticut and Utah.
But Miss Connecticut USA wasn’t the night’s only winner. Miss Oregon Gabrielle Neilan was named Miss Congeniality, and Miss Utah Marissa Powell took Miss Photogenic honors.
Last year, Olivia Culpo became the first Miss USA to ascend to Miss Universe in 16 years. Meriwether, who had been first runner-up, took over for her for the remainder of the year.
Miss Universe will take place in Moscow on Nov. 9.
I always feel like my home state girl, Miss Virginia, never makes it to the highest placements. What is Virginia doing wrong, y’all? Anyway, congrats to Miss Connecticut, now Miss USA. I’m saying a prayer that she manages to avoid getting The Donald’s spit on her in every situation.
But really, the part of the pageant that everyone is talking about this morning came courtesy of Miss Utah and a question about equal pay. Gurl…
Photos courtesy of WENN.
Congratulations.
Bless her heart.
Miss Utah clearly has absolutely no idea what she is saying.
They all look the same to me…
my first thought. I swear I really can’t tell them apart, although they are indeed very good-looking women. Plus, it is really embarrassing that they are not able to sustain an opinion or answer a basic question..it’s not rocket science.
LOL. Me and my friends thought the same when we’re watching the show last night. Same hair style, same big white pearly smile, same tan, nothing really stood out. They look kinda…what’s the word?? Generic??
I don’t want to be mean or anything, but they all look really cheap, to me.
The heavy, piled-on make up, the super fake orange tan, the too-white bleached teeth, the too-wide and plastered-on smile, the overly-processed and stiff hair…
Once upon a time, pageants were about being gorgeous, sure, but more natural and girl-next-door.
Wow, Miss Utah is a moron! Great rack, though.
Miss Alabama is very pretty. The winner is a bit too Oompa-Loompa Orange for my taste.
You mean you can actually tell them apart?
I’m from Utah And in a family where I will soon be the bread winner. No shade at my awesome hubby who makes a great living and is supportive of my career without losing his ambition! But this woman is dumb as a box of rocks! Don’t they have to practice public speaking in between workouts, spray tans and waxing?
Man. I really hate her dress.
The whole things is gross. The girls look like muscular yet starving orange insects in drag makeup. Why is this ‘pagent’ still happening? What ideal does it actually reflect? Bah.
Well said LadyJane.
It’s still happening because there’s money to be made for whatever reason. I’ve personal met several contestants from recent years and they’re all so sweet and bubbly, but they’re programmed to be that way and something comes off fake. The pancake make up in 90degree weather did not help. Unless they use their platform to support causes that breed hate or hot button topics they’re harmless.
I had a nice conversation with a former Miss Connecticut maybe 4 years back. The contestants get everything covered. Meals, makeup, hair, trainers, gyms, implants, and even therapists, but when the year is up the adjustment is hard and girls will crash diet to deal with it.
Such a contest needs to go.
@FLORC- this is really interesting to me…so every contestant gets all those things paid for by Trump’s people for the entire year leading up to the competition? Even implants? Seems crazy expensive (and lame, etc).
I’m pretty sure it still happens because Trump is always on the hunt for his next wife.
Hahaha!!!
*How* is this still a thing? And asking generic social conscience questions doesn’t make a beauty pageant any more valid in the twenty-first century.
And OH MY GOD is that chick right about needing to “sort out education better” (or whatever the hell it was). She can start by heading back to school herself.
Unfortunately LIFE is a beauty pageant, as anyone with gorgeous acquaintances who sail through it can no doubt testify. In a recent anonymous UK survery employers even admitted to picking the most beautiful of equal candidates.
Miss Universe, like Michael Bay, is just more honest about it.
Graduate school applicants are also judged on their weight when it comes to admission:
“It was found that applicants with a higher body weight had significantly fewer post-interview offers of admission into graduate programs, especially for female applicants, even though their body weight was not related to the overall quality of their letters of recommendation. Of notable interest is that those with a higher body weight actually had more positive adjectives in their letters of recommendation.”
http://www.npr.org/blogs/13.7/2013/06/06/188891906/the-fat-shaming-professor-a-twitter-fueled-firestorm
True, but in my opinion, watching some flighty ditz fumble a question every single year is the only thing that makes the show the least bit entertaining.
We can safely assume she wont be enrolling in Mensa anytime soon?
…but she’s a WOmensa!
Did they travel with the Deloreon from an 80’s soap?
Of course Connecticut.. they have all the money and everyone wants to live there right next to Manhattan
Tia, I live in Connecticut. And believe me when I say not everyone here has money. Trust me on this.
I’m pretty sure this is the first time CT has ever won
“to create an education better” what does that even mean? ahah..
she looked half asleep too.
Their evil ‘stage-mothers’ probably have to drug them. I know I’d have to be high to paste that robotic smile on my face & flounce about in some God-awful Prom-reject that looks like it’s throwing up a petticoat.
Yes, we definitely need to do something about education in this country.
I can’t believe these pageants still exist.
This!
Wow, Miss Alabama is a gorgeous woman.
The whole pageant thing strikes me as being very superficial and antiquated. *clears throat* Excuse me–SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM.
Is it a scholarship program? Scholarships for what?
That was just a joke from the movie Miss Congeniality.
Oh 😀 I don’t know how US pagents work 😀
Considering most have already graduated. I did pageants (eons ago). When there actually was a scholarship program, wearing a 2 piece was tabu, you actually knew how to speak, having curves was considered healthy, and if anything was fake in your body you were disqualified (meaning breast or enhancements of that nature). I stopped watching way back in the 90’s… But caught one here & there. Not so Trump took over, now it just looks like implants and orange tans on parade. Chespeded .
Considering most have already graduated. I did pageants (eons ago). When there actually was a scholarship program, wearing a 2 piece was tabu, you actually knew how to speak, having curves was considered healthy, and if anything was fake in your body you were disqualified (meaning breast or enhancements of that nature). I stopped watching way back in the 90’s… But caught one here & there. Not so Trump took over, now it just looks like implants and orange tans on parade. Cheapened.
Lol, THIS!
The whole scholarship thing would be in Miss America not Miss USA. Miss USA is handled by the Trumps. Winner there will be rewarded cash and modeling contracts and will also represent US in the Miss Universe.
That’s Miss America. The far superior pageant in my opinion. Scholarships. You have to be enrolled as a college student if you are over 18. Those girls are generally much much smarter than the Miss USA girls.
And my most favorite part-Miss America has a TALENT portion. This year’s winner was a tapper, but there were 2 baton twirlers, and a couple of opera singers. One year there was a classically trained ballet dancer. It’s awesome-I love it.
I can`t be too harsh on the Utah girl. She just blanked out, it could happen to anyone.
I like it that they`re not all blonde.
Amazing bodies though…
Wow.. Miss Connecticut got makeup tips from the Middletons sisters
ha, good one! 🙂
Wow. Miss Alabama’s hot!
their skin tones are like… i really hope that is just a tanning lotion or something and not their real skin tone. can you imagine when they reach 40.. the leather skin…omg
Their tans are horrendous! I hope they used tanning lotions and not UV
No blondes?! I always associate pageants with (fake) blondes, so good to see some diversity 🙂
They all look identical to me…
make the education better? what does that even mean? why are they even allowed to speak? if it’s a beauty contest let’s just let them have their moment in a bikini where they can show their body and be judged on that.
Miss Utah’s answer was painful to watch. I hope it was the nerves and not her intellect.
Congrats to the winner!
I’m kind of surprised by comments saying this should be abolished. Listen, as a feminist I find the whole pageant system kind of offensive, but it’s not illegal. If people want to do that, I think they should be allowed to. If you’re going to get rid of everything that sexualizes or objectifies women, throw in Playboy, Maxim, Esquire, most of television and movies, much of the fashion industry, etc. These are not good things, but you can’t just forcibly get rid of them.
On the other hand, I have no problem with encouraging women (and men) not to watch pageant. Lower ratings may mean less popularity and cancellation.
Faye,
I don’t mind them when they are old enough to decide. What concerns me is the mothers who enter their daughters in pageants when they are very young. I just don’t know how healthy that is. I’m not involved, so I don’t know. I see the makeup and the adult costumes, and I wonder what effect it has on the child. I worry that they might think that the more grown up and “sexy/pretty” they appear, the more they will be liked. Not only by judges, but by people in general.
ITA. I was referring to adult pageants. Kiddie pageants are awful and should be outlawed, IMO. The kids are too young to understand what they’re doing or consent in any meaningful way.
Alabama looks more like a typical pagaent winner, Miss Connecticut is more girl next door. I love Nene judging this, was former Miss USA Kenya unavailable? :-0 Poor Miss Utah, sorry but that was pretty bad.
Oh Utah…it seemed like she had a generic answer preprogrammed into her (“whatever question you get, talk about education and jobs”) and so that’s what she started to spit out in the beginning, before realizing that it had nothing to do with the question she was asked. They’re so rehearsed that they aren’t able to just answer a softball question like that…
Does the winner have to f— donald trump? Is that part of the contract?
No that how they become the winners, Lol
Ew – no one would be a winner in that situation!
She lost her train of thought. They rehearse various topics on their Q and A’s but to be fair, it is not an easy question. What does it (income gap based on gender) says about society? I’m stumped too when a colleague put me on the spot with the same question and I’m in a more relaxed situation. She is expected to be poised and to make a universally acceptable, tv friendly “world-peace” type answer even if she doesn’t know shit about that.
I agree–this wasn’t the easiest question to answer. If she said something with a feminist slant (like, women have NEVER received equal pay for equal work, and now that we are the primary breadwinners for so many families, it’s time to address the inequality!!!), she would have alienated the Trump machine (because they’re misogynist bastards, let’s not kid ourselves). And what else is there really to say about it? They put her in an awkward position by asking that question. That being said, it’s hilarious that she can’t seem to string two sentences together. The comments on this thread made me LOL.
gawd…..i find women like this to be SOOOOOO unattractive/ugly, nothing is more of a turn off/beauty blunder than a miswired brain.
and no, i’m sure the trump won’t piss on her because this is exactly how he thinks every woman should be….5.10′, 105 pds, tan as a halloween pumpkin and dripping in diamonds of dumb, dumb, dumb…
why do they always wear GIANT earrings with the gowns????
My husband thought Utah was being set up to win. He said they were making such a big deal about her. Then she answered that question.
Education? Aren’t most college graduates women?
Chris Pine is on the phone with his people right now trying to get all of their numbers.
The sheer volume of spray tan, makeup and hairspray could get that place declared an environmental disaster zone.
no kidding. they should put up those yellow and black caution signs. HIGHLY FLAMMABLE AREA.
She’s not even pretty this way. Hard to tell who’s under that ten inch layer of makeup, fake tan and fake smile. She’s no different to me than for example Courtney Stodden. Stupid enough to dress up like a sex doll, smear her face in hopes of being a star one day. Sad, just really sad.
How long do they get to answer? Because that’s a pretty complex question! There are a whole bunch of factors driving pay inequality.
I don’t see how anyone could give a comprehensive answer in a 30 second sound-bite.
“It says that despite the fact that women are increasingly supporting families and contributing to the national GDP, they are still not as valued in the workplace as men and continue to be paid less than their worth. We require national legislation mandating equal pay for equal work.” <– My answer in 30 seconds or less. I'll take that crown now, thank you very much.
They all look the same to me. Barbie with brown hair, Barbie with blonde hair, Barbie with black hair, Barbie with orange skin, Barbie with brown skin…….
I think the question was stupid! What does this say about society? Nothing that it hasn’t said before and before. They should of asked her a better question. We went from inequality to society. Even I was thinking what? Right when she read it. Lame!
I think the question was stupid! What does this say about society? Nothing that it hasn’t said before and before. We went from inequality to society. Even I was thinking what? Right when she read it. Lame!
Am I the only one who thinks Utah’s belly button is, like.. freakishly *high* on her midsection? o.O
You know — all the girls look like The Donald’s wife Melania.
Also what a completely unflattering gown on Miss USA. Unflattering in he skirt area.
And they were all so skinny! My husband said you could count the ribs on some of them. I know they’re supposed to be skinny but dang!
Miss nevada’s dress was amazing.
But if I can’t look to beauty queens for guidance on wage equality, where do I turn??
yes ask a woman in a Miss America Pageant question about patriarchy.
I kinda get what she was trying to say. (I think). Women aren’t being targeted/encouraged for STEM fields, and those jobs make more money. But that’s not what NeNe was asking.
Funny story about Miss Illinois (2nd runner-up). She appeared at career day at my son’s 6th grade class a couple of years ago (her sister is my son’s classmate). Her career for the last few years has been as a beauty contestant, so she showed up at school wearing a tiara and sash, and told the girls all about being beauty queens. There were the rest of us parents ready to talk about our careers, and she strolled in. I’m not sure what you do with this career, but apparently, it is one. And, yes, I was irritated that the school allowed her to do that. She was arrested a few months later for shoplifting.
If Utah would have said something about women in the workplace really contributing to the downfall of society, she might have won.
I think people are being really hard on this woman. Yes, she made a stupid comment, but does that mean she should be a national laughingstock? I wonder how all her critics would do standing under those hot lights with millions of people watching. Talk about pressure. How would you feel to be her and hear and read all these nasty comments?
I’m not a fan of beauty pageants,they’re kind of boring But I thought the women’s movement was all about letting women make choices for themselves. If a woman wants to walk around in a sash and crown in broad daylight, shouldn’t that be her choice? I don’t feel degraded or threatened by these silly things.
And not all contestants are bimbos. The new Miss New Jersey (Miss America pageant) is a student at Princeton, and they don’t exactly admit dummies there.
I felt really bad for her. She stumbled over her answer and you could see the panic in her eyes. It was uncomfortable and it made me uncomfortable. My mom started talking about how the media was gonna rake her over the coals today.
And I agree some of those ladies are educated and they each tend to pick a cause for charity work.
I just cringed for her. Couldn’t even make it through the clip.
And yes, all three women look exactly the same.
The saddest thing is that the person who gave that incoherent, rambling, idiotic answer, placed 4th out of 50 (or is it 51? Does D.C. get to enter?). Either that says something about the remaining 46 women, or it says something about the pageant itself. Probably both.
Alabama looks pretty. But the contestants look too “manufactured”. Combined with the hideous tan and very thin bodies, they look dried up and in Utah’s case, her breasts look fake.
They are all so orange. e.e
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