Miss America 1945, the 19th Miss America pageant, was held at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, New Jersey on September 8, 1945. Two days prior to the actual selection and coronation, the night of the talent competition, the Army Air Force Veterans voted the eventual winner, Miss New York City (Bess Myerson) as their favorite beauty queen.
Overview Bess Myerson was the first Jewish-American and the first Miss New York (competing as Miss New York City, a competition organized by a local radio station) to win the Miss America Pageant as Miss America 1945. As the only Jewish contestant, Myerson was encouraged by the pageant directors to change her name to "Bess Meredith" or "Beth Merrick" but she refused. After winning the title (and as a Jewish Miss America), Myerson received few endorsements and later recalled that "I couldn't even stay in certain hotels [...] there would be signs that read no coloreds, no Jews, no dogs. I felt so rejected. Here I was chosen to represent American womanhood and then America treated me like this." Consequently, she curtailed her Miss America tour and instead embarked on a journey with the Anti-Defamation League. In this capacity, she spoke against discrimination in a talk entitled, "You Can't Be Beautiful and Hate."
Results Placements Placement Contestant Miss America 1945 – Bess Myerson 1st Runner-Up San Diego – Phyllis Mathis 2nd Runner-Up – Frances Dorn 3rd Runner-Up – Virginia Freeland 4th Runner-Up – Arlene Anderson Top 13 – Polly Ellis – Louise Wieland – Dorothy Louise Powell – Virginia Lee Van Sant – Dorothy Louise Johnson – Gloria Bair – Lee Harriet Henson – Polly Below
Awards Preliminary awards Award Contestant Lifestyle and Fitness – Louise Wieland – Bess Myerson – Lee Harriet Henson Talent – Frances Dorn (tie) – Polly Ellis – Arlene Anderson – Bess Myerson (tie)
Other awards Awards Contestant Miss Congeniality – Georgina E. Patterson
Contestants The Miss America 1945 contestants were:
Represented Name Hometown Age Talent Placement Awards Notes Arkansas Leslie Hampton Lake Village 18 Atlanta Pauline Walker Atlanta 18 Birmingham Frances Lanell Dorn Birmingham 18 2nd runner-up Preliminary Talent Award (tie) Boston Claire Thibadeau Cambridge 19 California Polly Ellis Tarzana 19 Top 13 Preliminary Talent Award Chicago Louise Wieland Chicago 19 Top 13 Preliminary Swimsuit Award Cincinnati Virginia Lee Pleasant Portsmouth 20 Connecticut Sylvia K. Shaw Hartford 20 Detroit Barbara Lee Smith Detroit 20 District of Columbia Dorothy Louise Powell District of Columbia 21 Top 13 Florida Virginia Freeland Miami 19 3rd runner-up Georgia Doris Joyce Coker Columbus 18 Illinois Beverly Ann Long Joliet 18 Indiana Betty Anna Lackyear Evansville 20 Iowa Jeanne Gordon Des Moines 19 Maine Virginia Trask Portland 18 Maryland Virginia Lee Van Sant Cumberland 20 Top 13 Massachusetts Ruth Claire Thomas Belmont 18 Miami Beach Rae Evelyn Crist Miami Beach 19 Michigan Theresa Mary Sullivan Detroit 19 Minnesota Arlene Anderson Minneapolis 19 4th runner-up Preliminary Talent Award Mississippi Harriet Jane Carr Marks 21 Missouri Betty Ruth Ream Hughesville 19 New Hampshire Margorie Lundfelt Spofford Lake 19 New Jersey Matilda Agin New Brunswick 20 New Orleans Helen Shively New Orleans 21 New York City Bess Myerson New York City 21 Piano & Flute, "Grieg's Piano Concerto In A Minor" & "Summertime" Winner Preliminary Talent Award (tie)Preliminary Swimsuit Award New YorkMiss New York History June Jenkins Elmont 18 North Carolina Dorothy Louise Johnson Winston-Salem 21 Top 13 Northern British Columbia Georgina E. Patterson British Columbia, Canada 19 Miss Congeniality Ohio Julia Ann Donahue Oxford 19 Pennsylvania Timmy Weston McKeesport 18 Philadelphia Gloria Bair Philadelphia 19 Top 13 Rhode Island Mary Stevens Cranston 24 San Diego Phyllis Mathis San Diego 19 1st runner-up South Carolina Margaret Neeley Columbia 19 Tennessee Lee Harriet Henson Chattanooga 18 Top 13 Preliminary Swimsuit Award Texas Polly Below Galveston 18 Top 13 Utah Dorothy F. Holohan Salt Lake City 21 Vermont Mary Staikos Burlington 21 Wisconsin Eileen Christy Menomonie 20
References
External links Miss America 1945 - Miss America Organization Bess Myerson: Miss America 1945, Bess Myerson Dies At The Age Of 90 - CBS News, January 5, 2015.