Miss USA 1989 was the 38th Miss USA pageant, televised live from the Mobile Civic Center Theatre in Mobile, Alabama on February 28, 1989. At the conclusion of the final competition, Gretchen Polhemus of Texas was crowned by outgoing titleholder Courtney Gibbs. She was the fifth consecutive Miss Texas USA to win the pageant.
This was the first Miss USA pageant hosted by Dick Clark (The Miss Universe Pageant was hosted by John Forsythe that year), with color commentary by Angie Dickinson. This pageant was held in Alabama for the first and so far only time.
Results
Placements Final results Contestant Miss USA 1989 Texas – Gretchen Polhemus 1st Runner-Up Oklahoma – Jill Scheffert 2nd Runner-Up New Jersey – Debra Lee Husti 3rd Runner-Up Louisiana – Elizabeth Primm 4th Runner-Up Georgia – Michelle Nemeth Top 10 California – Christina Faust Colorado – Debbie James Pennsylvania – Denise Epps Arizona – LeeAnne Locken Illinois – Kelly Holub Special awards Award Contestant Miss Congeniality Virginia – Kimberly Nicewonder Miss Photogenic Louisiana – Elizabeth Primm Best State Costume Illinois – Kelly Holub Final competition
State Preliminary Average Interview Swimsuit Evening Gown Semifinal Average Texas9.084 (1) 9.425 (1)9.535 (1)9.601 (1)9.520 (1) Oklahoma8.662 (3)8.880 (2)8.762 (5)9.214 (2)8.952 (2) New Jersey8.510 (7)8.626 (5)8.712 (6)9.165 (3)8.834 (3) Georgia8.407 (9)8.821 (3)8.473 (7)9.032 (4)8.775 (4) Louisiana8.829 (2)8.600 (6)8.820 (4)8.710 (7)8.710 (5) California8.659 (4)8.313 (8)8.977 (2)8.774 (6)8.688 (6) Colorado8.388 (10)8.638 (4)8.432 (9)8.786 (5)8.618 (7) Pennsylvania8.580 (5)8.534 (7)8.467 (8)8.613 (10)8.538 (8) Arizona8.529 (6)7.792 (10)8.833 (3)8.703 (8)8.442 (9) Illinois8.501 (8)7.988 (9)8.432 (9)8.681 (9) 8.367 (10)
Winner First runner-up Second runner-up Third runner-up Fourth runner-up Top 10 semifinalist (#) Rank in each round of competition
Preliminary Swimsuit statescorestatescorestatescorescorestatestatescorestatescore Oklahoma8.887 Maine8.205 New York7.912 Connecticut7.773 Washington7.587 Rhode Island6.840 Texas8.872 Maryland8.204 Arkansas7.885 Michigan7.723 District of Columbia7.573 Louisiana8.715 Iowa8.185 Alabama7.883 Missouri7.716 Tennessee7.516 Pennsylvania8.704 Kentucky8.184 South Dakota7.881 Idaho7.694 North Dakota7.504 Arizona8.696 Colorado8.115 Massachusetts7.877 West Virginia7.681 Hawaii7.486 Illinois8.491 Wyoming8.040 Montana7.874 South Carolina7.675 Delaware7.340 California8.428 Nebraska8.023 Wisconsin7.844 Minnesota7.674 Nevada7.177 Virginia8.384 Mississippi7.967 Florida7.821 Ohio7.647 New Mexico7.152 North Carolina8.324 New Jersey7.924 Alaska7.803 Vermont7.612 Utah7.050 Georgia8.223 New Hampshire7.915 Kansas7.781 Oregon7.592 Indiana6.961
Judges The following celebrities were invited to judge the competition: Jude Deveraux – Author Bonnie Kay – Modeling manager Dick Rutan – Pilot of the Voyager aircraft Jeana Yeager – Pilot of the Voyager aircraft Stella Stevens – Actress Roscoe Tanner – Tennis player Linda Shelton – Aerobics instructor Lillian Glass – Author Richard Anderson – Actor Cecilia Bolocco – Miss Universe 1987 from Chile Jennifer Chandler – Olympic diver
Delegates The Miss USA 1989 delegates were:
Alabama - Sheri Mooney Alaska - Tina Marie Garaci Arizona - LeeAnne Locken Arkansas - Paige Yandell California - Christina Faust Colorado - Debbie James Connecticut - Lisa Vendetti Delaware - Terri Spruill District of Columbia - Somaly Sieng Florida - Jennifer Parker Georgia - Michele Nemeth Hawaii - Julie Larson Idaho - Kelli Bean Illinois - Kelly Holub Indiana - Gwen Rachelle Volpe Iowa - Marcy Requist Kansas - Nancy Burris Kentucky - Veronica Hensley Louisiana - Elizabeth Primm Maine - Kirsten Blakemore Maryland - Jackie Carroll Massachusetts - Kim Wallace Michigan - Karyn Finucan Minnesota - Julie Knutson Mississippi - Laura Leigh Durrett Missouri - Rhonda Hoglan Montana - Tammy Reiter Nebraska - Rene Harter Nevada - Janu Tornell New Hampshire - Fayleen Chwalek New Jersey - Deborah Lee Husti New Mexico - Traci Brubaker New York - Jennifer Fisher North Carolina - Jacqueline Padgett North Dakota - Carla Christofferson Ohio - Lisa Thompson Oklahoma - Jill Rene Scheffert Oregon - Jenifer Blaska Pennsylvania - Denise Epps Rhode Island - Debra Damiano South Carolina - Angela Shuler South Dakota - Nanette Endres Tennessee - Kimberly Payne Texas - Gretchen Polhemus Utah - Zanetta van Zyverden Vermont - Stacey Palmer Virginia - Kimberly Nicewonder Washington - Chiann Fan Gibson West Virginia - Kathy Eicher Wisconsin - Sherri Leigh Baxter Wyoming - Chandra Anderson
References
External links Official website