Part of that is a smart move: to embrace who you are.”Īt America’s Junior Miss headquarters, “pageant” is a sensitive word. “He doesn’t try to change what Miss USA is. “Donald Trump has a different product,” Bellew said. The Miss USA program, which is owned by Donald Trump, attracted 8 million viewers in April. Traditional competitions are flailing behind more sensational contests such as Miss USA, which teamed up with “Fear Factor” this year to show bikini-wearing contestants covered in gallons of live worms and fish oil. Last week, the 84-year-old show, which had 85 million viewers in 1985, announced it was moving to a cable channel, Country Music Television. Miss America, perhaps the nation’s most historically successful pageant, was dropped by ABC last year after its television audience fell below 10 million. Last week, as Bellew was watching the televised show, a volunteer turned to her and said: “If I didn’t know the girls, I wouldn’t watch that for two hours.” Every former Junior Miss and volunteer in the room agreed.Īmerica’s Junior Miss is not the only distressed pageant. Yet even the program’s most devoted fans admit the show’s format was stilted. The contestants, she said, delivered the best reality they could. “They tell us they want more backstabbing,” Bellew said, “but ugliness and viciousness is a problem for us.
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This year, Junior Miss relied heavily on local taxpayer support, with the city and county of Mobile providing a third of the program’s $1-million budget.Īfter experimenting with a behind-the-scenes “reality” TV concept last year, the program was told it needed more cutthroat competition. Yet the show’s popularity has dwindled since its heyday in 1965, when it began a 23-year run on national television and was sponsored by Coca-Cola and Kodak. “Can you imagine classical singers in swimsuits?” “The networks tell us they want swimsuits,” sighed Lynne Bellew, executive director of America’s Junior Miss, as she contemplated the faces of former pageant winners. In an era when flawed contestants scheme against each other on reality TV shows such as “The Bachelor,” “The Swan” and “Survivor,” America’s Junior Miss has decided to bow out in a dignified, orderly manner. Somewhere along the way, America lost its enchantment with the wholesome young woman. You might not have seen it - the live broadcast was local-only and the national feed went out a couple of days later, on PAXTV. Strewn below them in the hall are boxes containing a clutter of discarded pageant programs and Old Navy boot-cut jeans.Ī week ago, the 48-year-old pageant held its last national final.
Frozen in time, the fresh-faced young American women smile dreamily.
Little Miss Flagler County 2012 Contestants, Ages 8-11 Little Miss Flagler County 2012 Contestants, Ages 5-7 Meet the 2012 Miss Flagler County Contestants: The Overview Miss Flagler County 2013 Scholarship Pageant Contestants, Ages 16-23 Miss Junior Flagler County 2013 Contestants, Ages 12-15 Little Miss Flagler County 2013 Contestants, Ages 8-11 Little Miss Flagler County 2013 Contestants, Ages 5-7 The Complete Miss Flagler County Pageant Image and Portrait Galleries 2013 The Miss Flagler County Pageants are directed by Elizabeth McLaughlin and Zoee Forehand and sponsored by Flagler Beach's Z Wave Surf Shop. Tickets are $5 per adult, $3 for children under 10 at the Flagler Auditorium box office: 386/437-7547 or toll-free 1-866-FLAGLER (352-4537) or at the auditorium's website. and the Miss Flagler County Scholarship Pageant (ages 16-23) at 7 p.m. Pageants begin with Little Miss Flagler (ages 5-11) at 3 p.m., followed by Miss Junior Flagler County (ages 12-15) at 5 p.m.
The Miss Flagler County Pageants are scheduled for Sunday, June 24, 2012, at the Flagler Auditorium. Miss Junior Flagler County 2012 Contestants, Ages 12-15Ĭlick on each name to go to contestants' individual pages Name 2012 Miss Junior Flagler contestants and their biggest fans.