Miss USA 2008
| Miss USA 2008 | |
|---|---|
| Date | April 11, 2008 |
| Presenters | Marie Osmond, Donny Osmond[1] |
| Entertainment | Finger Eleven |
| Venue | Planet Hollywood Performing Arts Center, Las Vegas, Nevada |
| Broadcaster | NBC |
| Winner | Crystle Stewart Texas |
| Congeniality | Monica Day |
| Photogenic | Courtney Carroll |
Miss USA 2008, the 57th Miss USA beauty pageant, was held in Las Vegas, Nevada on April 11, 2008.[2] At the conclusion of the final night of competition, Crystle Stewart, Miss Texas USA, was crowned the winner by outgoing titleholder, Rachel Smith of Tennessee. Crystle will represent the United States at the Miss Universe 2008 pageant which will be held in Viet Nam. This is the first time in Miss USA history that two consecutive women of African-American decent have been crowned.
The pageant was held at the Theatre for the Performing Arts, a 7,000 seat theater located in the Planet Hollywood Resort and Casino. The theater was also the location of Miss Universe 1991, 1996 and the Miss America 2006-2008 pageants. This is the first time that the Miss USA pageant was held in Nevada.
For the first time, the competition was broadcast in High Definition.
Brother/sister duo Donny and Marie Osmond hosted the live telecast for the first time, and Finger Eleven performed their single Paralyzer.[1][3]. Rihanna's song Umbrella was used during the evening gown competition.
During the final show on April 11, the fifteen delegates with the highest average score from the preliminary competition were announced. The top fifteen competed in the swimsuit competition. The top ten delegate scores from swimsuit competed in evening gown. The top five delegate scores from the evening gown competition (not averaged composite scores from both competitions) competed in the final question round to determine the winner. The judges' composite score was shown after each round of competition for only the second time since 2002.
Selection of contestants
One delegate from each state and the District of Columbia were chosed in state pageants held from June 2007 to January 2008.
Results
Placements
- Miss USA 2008: Crystle Stewart (Texas)
- First runner-up: Leah Laviano (Mississippi)
- Second runner-up: Tiffany Andrade (New Jersey)
- Third runner-up: Lindsey Jo Harrington (Oklahoma)
- Fourth runner-up: LauRen Merola (Pennsylvania)
- Top 10 Finalists (In order of placement): Candice Crawford (Missouri), Brittany Mason (Indiana), Jessica Rafalowski (Florida), Hailey Brown (Tennessee), Jackie Bruno (Massachusetts)
- Top 15 Semifinalists (In order of placement): Jamie Hill (South Carolina), Raquel Beezley (California), Julia Bachison (Utah), Amy Diaz (Rhode Island), Kaylee Unverzagt (Minnesota)
Special Awards
- Miss Congeniality: Monica Day (Ohio)
- Miss Photogenic: Courtney Carroll (Alaska)
Final Competition Scores
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Delegates
The Miss USA 2008 delegates are:
1 Age as at April 2008
Contestant gallery
-
Keisha Walding
Miss Alabama USA 2008 -
Vincenza Carrieri-Russo
Miss Delaware USA 2008 -
Shanon Lersch
Miss Illinois USA 2008 -
Michelle Berthelot
Miss Louisiana USA 2008 -
Casandra Tressler
Miss Maryland USA 2008 -
Elisabeth Crawford
Miss Michigan USA 2008 -
Kaylee Unverzagt
Miss Minnesota USA 2008 -
Candice Crawford
Miss Missouri USA 2008 -
Veronica Grabowski
Miss Nevada USA 2008 -
Charlie Buhler
Miss South Dakota USA 2008 -
Crystle Stewart (2008 winner)
Miss Texas USA 2008
Crossovers
- Five delegates have previously competed at Miss Teen USA.
- Kaetlin Parent (Maine) - previously Miss Maine Teen USA 2005, non finalist at Miss Teen USA 2005.
- Jacqueline Bruno (Massachusetts) - previously Miss Massachusetts Teen USA 2003, 3rd runner up at Miss Teen USA 2003.
- Raelene Aguilar (New Mexico) - previously Miss New Mexico Teen USA 2000, non finalist at Miss Teen USA 2000.
- Amy Diaz (Rhode Island) - previously Miss Rhode Island Teen USA 2001, non finalist at Miss Teen USA 2001.
- Tori Hall (Virginia) - previously Miss Virginia Teen USA 2005, Top 10 finalist at Miss Teen USA 2005.
- Three delegates have previously competed at Miss America.
- Amanda Kozak (Georgia) - previously Miss Georgia 2006, placed 2nd runner up at Miss America 2007.
- Tracey Brown (Idaho) - previously Miss Idaho 2005, won the Quality of Life award at Miss America 2006.
- Julia Bachison (Utah) - previously Miss Utah 2005, won the Preliminary Swimsuit award at Miss America 2006.
Contestant notes
- Due to accounting errors, Christina Silva was crowned Miss California USA. When the mistake was discovered a week after the pageant, the real winner Raquel Beezley assumed the title.[7]
- Michelle Gillespie, Miss Kansas USA, is the great-great niece of Miss America 1921, Margaret Gorman of Washington, DC.[15]
- Three contestants previously competed in the Miss Texas USA and/or Miss Texas Teen USA pageants before winning titles in other states:
- Candice Crawford (Missouri) placed third runner-up at Miss Texas Teen USA 2003 and 2005. She is the sister of Gossip Girl actor Chace Crawford.[16]
- Elisabeth Crawford (Michigan) was a non-finalist at Miss Texas USA 2004 to 2006
- Veronica Grabowski (Nevada) competed at the Miss Texas Teen USA 2003 and Miss Texas USA 2007 pageants, finishing as a semifinalist in both years.
- Amy Diaz (Rhode Island) and Danielle Roundtree (New York) competed at Miss Florida USA 2007. Diaz placed third runner-up and Roundtree was a non-finalist.[17]
- Abbey Curran (Iowa) will be the first contestant with a disability. Curran was born with cerebral palsy.
Judges
- Heather Mills - activist; contestant on ABC's season four of Dancing with the Stars
- Rob Schneider - actor; comedian; screenwriter; director
- Kristian Alfonso - actress on NBC's Days of Our Lives; entrepreneur
- Joey Fatone - former member of 'NSync; actor; contestant on ABC's season four of Dancing with the Stars; host of NBC's The Singing Bee
- Christian Siriano - winner of season four of Project Runway
- Amanda Beard - Olympic Gold Medal swimmer; model
- Kelly Carlson - actress on FX's Nip/Tuck
- Ken Paves - celebrity hairstylist
- Shawne Merriman - outside linebacker for the NFL's San Diego Chargers
- George Wayne - Vanity Fair magazine celebrity journalist
- Robert Earl - founder and CEO of Planet Hollywood International, Inc.
Preliminary Judges
- David Dzanis - Sports Marketing Executive, Vice President of Pepsi-Cola Client Services at Genesco Sports Enterprises (GSE), responsibilities include marketing strategy and activation related to Pepsi's sponsorship for sports properties.
- Lisa Howfield - General Manager for KVBC TV 3, the NBC affiliate in Las Vegas, NV
- Alicia Jacobs - A former Miss NV USA, entertainment reporter for KVBC TV 3, the NBC affiliate in Las Vegas, NV
- Sandy Mecca - former professional tennis player,competed on the Virginia Slims Professional Tennis tour
- Charles J. Nabit, J.D. - businessman, specializing in long term care, psychiatric and chemical dependency services, home health care, retail and institutional pharmacy operations and specialty rehabilitation and therapy
- Bob Webber - Creative Director for Nina Footwear Corp., responsible for the creative direction of the brand's advertising campaigns, as well as overseeing the creation of collections licensed under the Nina brand.
- Mark J.Wylie - Vice President, Talent Relations for the non-profit organization, Best Buddies. Mark also recently starred on season three of NBC's "The Biggest Loser" where he was a finalist.
See also
References
- ^ a b "America's beloved Brother & Sister duo, Donny and Marie Osmond, to host the 2008 Miss USA Pageant". Miss USA Press. 2008-03-14.
- ^ "Miss USA coming to Las Vegas". News 3 Las Vegas. 2007-12-13.
- ^ "Heather Mills, Rob Schneider, Joey Fatone, Kristian Alfonso, Amanda Beard, Christian Siriano, Shawne Merriman, Ken Paves, Kelly Carlson, and George Wayne to Judge 2008 Miss USA Pageant On NBC April 11th/Finger Eleven Will Perform Their Hit Song "Paralyzer" During the Live Telecast from Las Vegas" (Press release). Miss Universe Organization. 2008-03-31.
- ^ "UAF student wins Miss Alaska USA crown". Associated Press. 2007-12-17.
- ^ Gersema, Emily (2007-12-10). "Gilbert woman to vie for Miss USA crown". The Arizona Republic. Retrieved 2008-03-07.
- ^ Fry, Kenneth (2008-02-23). "Alma Woman Prepares For Miss USA Pageant". Press Argus-Courier.
- ^ a b "New Miss California winner named after accounting error". Associated Press. 2007-12-04.
- ^ "Owner of Pinque wins Miss Colorado USA crown". The Daily Sentinel. 2007-10-30.
- ^ "Daughter of officer sets sights on Miss USA". The Norwalk Advocate. 2008-01-24. Retrieved 2008-03-07.
- ^ Zewe, Adam (2007-12-10). "Vincenza Carrieri-Russo crowned Miss Delaware USA". The Community News. Retrieved 2008-03-07.
- ^ Bryce, Peter (2008-03-18). "Next Stop Miss USA: DC's Pageant Representative on Fashion, Fitness, Guilty Pleasures, and Embarrassing Moments". Washingtonian. Retrieved 2008-03-20.
- ^ Milliard, Trevon (2008-03-20). "UM student wins Miss Montana". Montana Kaimin. Retrieved 2008-03-20.
- ^ Johnson, Andrea. "Miss N.D. focuses on healthy lifestyles". Minot Daily News. Retrieved 2008-03-20.
- ^ Hogue, Theresa (2008-03-14). "Miss Oregon gets ready for pageant". Albany Democrat-Herald. Retrieved 2008-03-20.
- ^ Bhargava, Jennifer (2007-12-25). "Mission Hills woman captures Miss Kansas title". Kansas City Star. Retrieved 2008-03-07. (Google cache)
- ^ Raubolt, Jordan (2007-11-16). "Crowning achievement: MU student sets sights on career". Columbia Daily Tribune.
- ^ "Jenna Edwards of North Miami is next Miss Florida USA". Associated Press. 2006-07-15.