Looking for Miss America

Looking for Miss America PDF Author: Margot Mifflin
Publisher: Catapult
ISBN: 1640092242
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 226

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Book Description
From an author praised for writing “delicious social history” (Dwight Garner, The New York Times) comes a lively account of memorable Miss America contestants, protests, and scandals—and how the pageant, nearing its one hundredth anniversary, serves as an unintended indicator of feminist progress Looking for Miss America is a fast–paced narrative history of a curious and contradictory institution. From its start in 1921 as an Atlantic City tourist draw to its current incarnation as a scholarship competition, the pageant has indexed women’s status during periods of social change—the post–suffrage 1920s, the Eisenhower 1950s, the #MeToo era. This ever–changing institution has been shaped by war, evangelism, the rise of television and reality TV, and, significantly, by contestants who confounded expectations. Spotlighting individuals, from Yolande Betbeze, whose refusal to pose in swimsuits led an angry sponsor to launch the rival Miss USA contest, to the first black winner, Vanessa Williams, who received death threats and was protected by sharpshooters in her hometown parade, Margot Mifflin shows how women made hard bargains even as they used the pageant for economic advancement. The pageant’s history includes, crucially, those it excluded; the notorious Rule Seven, which required contestants to be “of the white race,” was retired in the 1950s, but no women of color were crowned until the 1980s. In rigorously researched, vibrant chapters that unpack each decade of the pageant, Looking for Miss America examines the heady blend of capitalism, patriotism, class anxiety, and cultural mythology that has fueled this American ritual.

Looking for Miss America

Looking for Miss America PDF Author: Margot Mifflin
Publisher: Catapult
ISBN: 1640092242
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 226

Get Book Here

Book Description
From an author praised for writing “delicious social history” (Dwight Garner, The New York Times) comes a lively account of memorable Miss America contestants, protests, and scandals—and how the pageant, nearing its one hundredth anniversary, serves as an unintended indicator of feminist progress Looking for Miss America is a fast–paced narrative history of a curious and contradictory institution. From its start in 1921 as an Atlantic City tourist draw to its current incarnation as a scholarship competition, the pageant has indexed women’s status during periods of social change—the post–suffrage 1920s, the Eisenhower 1950s, the #MeToo era. This ever–changing institution has been shaped by war, evangelism, the rise of television and reality TV, and, significantly, by contestants who confounded expectations. Spotlighting individuals, from Yolande Betbeze, whose refusal to pose in swimsuits led an angry sponsor to launch the rival Miss USA contest, to the first black winner, Vanessa Williams, who received death threats and was protected by sharpshooters in her hometown parade, Margot Mifflin shows how women made hard bargains even as they used the pageant for economic advancement. The pageant’s history includes, crucially, those it excluded; the notorious Rule Seven, which required contestants to be “of the white race,” was retired in the 1950s, but no women of color were crowned until the 1980s. In rigorously researched, vibrant chapters that unpack each decade of the pageant, Looking for Miss America examines the heady blend of capitalism, patriotism, class anxiety, and cultural mythology that has fueled this American ritual.

America

America PDF Author: E. R. Frank
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 1439132232
Category : Young Adult Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 304

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Book Description
"Where would you like to be five years from now?" Dr. B. asks. "Nowhere," America answers. By age fifteen, America has already been nowhere. Been nobody. Separated from his foster mother, Mrs. Harper. A runaway living for weeks in a mall, then for months in Central Park. A patient at Applegate, the residential treatment facility north of New York City. And now at Ridgeway, a hospital. America is a boy, he thinks to himself, who gets lost easy and is not worth the trouble of finding. But Dr. B. takes the trouble. With abiding care, he nudges America's story from him. An against-the-odds story about America's shattered past with his mother and brothers. About Browning, a man in Mrs. Harper's house who saves America, then betrays him. About a bighearted, hardheaded girl named Liza, and Ty and Fish and Wick and Marshall and Ernie and Tom and Dr. B. himself who care more than America does about whether he lives or dies.

There She Was

There She Was PDF Author: Amy Argetsinger
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 1982123400
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 392

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Book Description
A Washington Post style editor’s fascinating and irresistible look back on the Miss America pageant as it approaches its 100th anniversary. The sash. The tears. The glittering crown. And of course, that soaring song. For all its pomp and kitsch, the Miss America pageant is indelibly written into the American story of the past century. From its giddy origins as a summer’s-end tourist draw in Prohibition-era Atlantic City, it blossomed into a televised extravaganza that drew tens of millions of viewers in its heyday and was once considered the highest honor that a young woman could achieve. For two years, Washington Post reporter and editor Amy Argetsinger visited pageants and interviewed former winners and contestants to unveil the hidden world of this iconic institution. There She Was spotlights how the pageant survived decades of social and cultural change, collided with a women’s liberation movement that sought to abolish it, and redefined itself alongside evolving ideas about feminism. For its superstars—Phyllis George, Vanessa Williams, Gretchen Carlson—and for those who never became household names, Miss America was a platform for women to exercise their ambitions and learn brutal lessons about the culture of fame. Spirited and revelatory, There She Was charts the evolution of the American woman, from the Miss America catapulted into advocacy after she was exposed as a survivor of domestic violence to the one who used her crown to launch a congressional campaign; from a 1930s winner who ran away on the night of her crowning to a present-day rock guitarist carving out her place in this world. Argetsinger dissects the scandals and financial turmoil that have repeatedly threatened to kill the pageant—and highlights the unexpected sisterhood of Miss Americas fighting to keep it alive.

Miss America's God

Miss America's God PDF Author: Mandy McMichael
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781481311977
Category : Beauty contests
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description
Religion makes Miss America a cultural icon that withstands the test of time.

“There She Is, Miss America”

“There She Is, Miss America” PDF Author: E. Watson
Publisher: Springer
ISBN: 1403981825
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 206

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Book Description
While some see the Miss American Pageant as hokey vestige of another era, many remain enthralled by the annual Atlantic City event. And whether you love it or hate it, no one can deny the impact the contest has had on American popular culture-indeed, many reality television shows seem to have taken cues from the pageant. Founded in 1921, the Miss America Pageant has provided a fascinating glimpse into how American standards of femininity have been defined, projected, maintained, and challenged. At various times, it has been praised as a positive role model for young American women, protested as degrading to women by feminists, and shamed by scandals, such as the one caused by the Penthouse photos of Vanessa Williams in 1984. In this first interdisciplinary anthology to examine this uniquely American event, scholars defend, critique, and reflect on the pageant, grappling with themes like beauty, race, the body, identity, kitsch, and consumerism. "There She Is, Miss America" provides a fascinating examination of an enduring American icon.

From Mammy to Miss America and Beyond

From Mammy to Miss America and Beyond PDF Author: K. Sue Jewell
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1134951892
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 252

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Book Description
How do the mass media contribute to the social and economic advantages of the privileged and the subjection of African American women? Does America really care about providing equal opportunities for African American women? Passionately written and supported with detailed evidence this book shows the deeply rooted abiding cancer of oppresion in American society. It reveals the formal and informal ways in which African American women have been exluded from equal participation before and after the time of slavery. It will shock many who complacently believe that America is already a land on equality and it will give new heart to the many others who experience racism and sexism as daily facts of life.

Miss Unlikely

Miss Unlikely PDF Author: Betty Cantrell Maxwell
Publisher: BroadStreet Publishing Group LLC
ISBN: 142455781X
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 200

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Book Description
From a double-wide trailer on a farm in Georgia to the 2016 Miss America pageant, Betty Cantrell was not a likely contender for the crown. She won by being herself—mistakes and all. Miss Unlikely takes you through Betty’s unconventional childhood, the surprising pageant journey, an incredible year as Miss America, a fairytale wedding, and everything in between. She offers wisdom on school, boys, self-esteem, choices, disappointments, insecurities, mentors, cyberbullies, and more. Behind-the-scenes moments and previously untold stories show how her faith and family ultimately carried her through difficult times. Betty’s personal and sincere account will remind you the only way to get where you want to go is through God’s unique plan. Find confidence in being you, and turn your dreams into reality.

Your Next Level Life

Your Next Level Life PDF Author: Karen Arrington
Publisher: Mango Media Inc.
ISBN: 1642500313
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 99

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Book Description
How Big Do You Want to Live? Channel your black girl magic: If you’re feeling stuck or trapped by other people’s expectations of what you can achieve, it’s time to stop playing small and start redefining what success can mean for you. It’s time to get that upgrade. Karen Arrington―founder of the Miss Black USA Pageant, creator of the Next Level Women’s Summit, and mentor to thousands of confident, successful young black women―is your guide to getting your next level life. Leave a legacy of black excellence: With the seven simple rules, you’ll learn how to bring your career, income, and lifestyle to that next level. Don’t settle for a life of invisibility and mediocrity. Set ambitious goals, reach for bigger opportunities, and know that you are brave enough to get what you deserve. The rules of success in Your Next Level Life will show you how to: • Create all the money you need • Position yourself like a star • Connect with other powerful women Give a gift of confidence: For anyone looking for inspirational gifts for women in their lives, Your Next Level Life is unlike other self-help books for women. It’s a guide to opportunity that recognizes and celebrates the true magic of ambitious black women. Your Next Level Life is where Gay Hendricks’s The Big Leap meets Shonda Rhimes’s Year of Yes. If you liked personal development books like Believe Bigger and Don’t Settle for Safe, you’ll love Your Next Level Life: 7 Rules of Power, Confidence, and Opportunity for Black Women in America.

Miss America Through the Looking Glass

Miss America Through the Looking Glass PDF Author: Nancie S. Martin
Publisher: Julian Messner
ISBN: 9780671601607
Category : Health & Fitness
Languages : en
Pages : 132

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Book Description
Discusses the history of the Miss America Pageant, how it is judged, what contestants go through, and how their lives are affected.

The Night She Won Miss America

The Night She Won Miss America PDF Author: Michael Callahan
Publisher: Harper Paperbacks
ISBN: 9781328915832
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description
"Inspired by a true story, The Night She Won Miss America is part love story, part true-crime saga, written with spirit and panache." --Vanity Fair Betty Jane Welch reluctantly enters the Miss Delaware contest only to make her mother happy, but to her surprise, she's the judges' top choice. Just like that, she's catapulted into the big time: the Miss America Pageant in Atlantic City. Luckily, her pageant-approved escort for the week is the dashing but mercurial Griffin McAllister, and she falls for him hard. But when the spirited Betty unexpectedly wins the crown and sash, she finds she may lose what she wants most: Griff's love. To stay together, she impulsively agrees to run away with him. And then the chase is on: from the shadowy streets of Manhattan to a cliffside mansion in Newport, as the cops, a cunning socialite, and a scrappy young reporter secretly in love with the beauty queen threaten to unravel everything--and expose Griff's darkest secret. "Expect glamour, grit, and some truly unpredictable twists and turns." --Town & Country "A cinematic tale in the tradition of a Douglas Sirk movie, and the perfect book to pack away in your beach bag." --Adweek