| Miss USA 2007 | |
|---|---|
|  | |
| Date | March 23, 2007 | 
| Presenters | |
| Venue | Dolby Theatre, Los Angeles, California | 
| Broadcaster | |
| Entrants | 51 | 
| Placements | 15 | 
| Winner | Rachel Smith  Tennessee | 
| Congeniality | Stephanie Trudeau  Montana | 
| Photogenic | Rebecca Moore  Alabama | 
Miss USA 2007 was the 56th Miss USA pageant, held at Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles, California on March 23, 2007, after two weeks of events and preliminary competition.[1] The winner of the pageant was Rachel Smith of Tennessee.[2]
The pageant was broadcast live on NBC from the Kodak Theatre in Los Angeles, California one month earlier than the 2006 pageant.[3] This was the second time that the pageant was held at this venue; it was previously held there in 2004, when Shandi Finnessey of Missouri was crowned Miss USA 2004.[4] The host hotel was the Wilshire Grand.[5]
Delegates arrived in Los Angeles on March 8, 2007, and were involved in two weeks of rehearsals and events prior to the final show.[6] The preliminary competition were held on March 19, 2007, where all 51 contestants competed in swimsuit and evening gown, with the personal interview competition being held in private the previous day.[7] This was the first time in recent years that the presentation show was held in the hotel ballroom, rather than at the location of the final competition.
During the final show on March 23, the fifteen delegates with the highest average score from the preliminary competition were announced. The top fifteen competed in the swimsuit competition, and the top ten competed in evening gown. The composite score was shown after each round of competition for the first time since 2002.
At the conclusion of the final night of competition, outgoing titleholder Tara Conner crowned Rachel Smith of Tennessee as the new Miss USA.[1] Smith was the third consecutive former Miss Teen USA delegate to win the title and the second woman from Tennessee. Coincidentally, both Smith and Conner had competed together at Miss Teen USA 2002.[8]
Selection of contestants
One delegate from each state was chosen in state pageants held from June to December 2006.[9] The first state pageant was Texas, held on June 25, 2006, and the final pageants were Kansas and Hawaii, held on December 17, 2006.
Two contestants were replaced by their first runners-up:
- Helen Salas was awarded the Miss Nevada USA 2007 title on December 21, 2006, when the original winner, Katie Rees, was dethroned after the publication of racy photographs.[10][11] Salas was originally the first runner-up to Ms. Rees in the Miss Nevada USA 2007 pageant which had taken place on October 8, 2006.[12]
- Erin Abrahamson was awarded the Miss New Jersey USA 2007 title on January 15, 2007, when the original winner, Ashley Harder, resigned due to pregnancy.[13] Pageant rules prohibit titleholders from competing while pregnant.[14] Abrahamson was originally the first runner-up to Harder in the New Jersey pageant.
For the first time in the history of the pageant, eleven former Miss Teen USA delegates competed in the pageant. Initially only nine held titles, but the number increased to eleven after two titleholders resigned and former Teen USA delegates succeeded them.
Delegates
The Miss USA 2007 delegates are:
 Alabama - Rebecca Moore Alabama - Rebecca Moore
 Alaska - Blair Chenoweth Alaska - Blair Chenoweth
 Arizona - Courtney Barnas[15] Arizona - Courtney Barnas[15]
.svg.png.webp) Arkansas - Kelly George[16] Arkansas - Kelly George[16]
 California - Meagan Tandy California - Meagan Tandy
 Colorado - Keena Bonella[17] Colorado - Keena Bonella[17]
 Connecticut - Melanie Mudry Connecticut - Melanie Mudry
 Delaware - Nicole Bosso[18] Delaware - Nicole Bosso[18]
 District of Columbia - Mercedes Lindsay District of Columbia - Mercedes Lindsay
 Florida - Jenna Edwards Florida - Jenna Edwards
 Georgia - Brittany Swann Georgia - Brittany Swann
 Hawaii - Chanel Wise Hawaii - Chanel Wise
 Idaho - Amanda Rammell[5] Idaho - Amanda Rammell[5]
 Illinois - Mia Heaston Illinois - Mia Heaston
 Indiana - Jami Stallings[19] Indiana - Jami Stallings[19]
 Iowa - Dani Reeves Iowa - Dani Reeves
 Kansas - Cara Gorges[20] Kansas - Cara Gorges[20]
 Kentucky - Michelle Banzer Kentucky - Michelle Banzer
.svg.png.webp) Louisiana - Elizabeth McNulty Louisiana - Elizabeth McNulty
 Maine - Erin Good Maine - Erin Good
 Maryland - Michaé Holloman Maryland - Michaé Holloman
 Massachusetts - Despina Delios Massachusetts - Despina Delios
 Michigan - Kelly Best Michigan - Kelly Best
 Minnesota - Alla Ilushka Minnesota - Alla Ilushka
.svg.png.webp) Mississippi - Jalin Wood Mississippi - Jalin Wood
 Missouri - Amber Seyer Missouri - Amber Seyer
 Montana - Stephanie Trudeau Montana - Stephanie Trudeau
 Nebraska - Geneice Wilcher Nebraska - Geneice Wilcher
 Nevada - Helen Salas Nevada - Helen Salas
 New Hampshire - Laura Silva New Hampshire - Laura Silva
 New Jersey - Erin Abrahamson New Jersey - Erin Abrahamson
 New Mexico - Casey Messer New Mexico - Casey Messer
 New York - Gloria Almonte New York - Gloria Almonte
 North Carolina - Erin O'Kelley North Carolina - Erin O'Kelley
 North Dakota - Rachel Mathson[21] North Dakota - Rachel Mathson[21]
 Ohio - Anna Melomud[22] Ohio - Anna Melomud[22]
 Oklahoma - Caitlin Simmons Oklahoma - Caitlin Simmons
 Oregon - Sharitha McKenzie[6] Oregon - Sharitha McKenzie[6]
 Pennsylvania - Samantha Johnson Pennsylvania - Samantha Johnson
 Rhode Island - Danielle Lacourse[23] Rhode Island - Danielle Lacourse[23]
 South Carolina - Ashley Zais South Carolina - Ashley Zais
 South Dakota - Suzie Heffernan South Dakota - Suzie Heffernan
 Tennessee - Rachel Smith Tennessee - Rachel Smith
 Texas - Magen Ellis Texas - Magen Ellis
.png.webp) Utah - Heather Anderson Utah - Heather Anderson
 Vermont - Jessica Comolli Vermont - Jessica Comolli
 Virginia - Lauren Barnette Virginia - Lauren Barnette
 Washington - LeiLani Jones Washington - LeiLani Jones
 West Virginia - Kasey Montgomery West Virginia - Kasey Montgomery
 Wisconsin - Caitlin Morrall Wisconsin - Caitlin Morrall
 Wyoming - Robyn Johnson Wyoming - Robyn Johnson
See also
References
- 1 2 "Fallen Miss USA to hand over pageant crown". Reuters. 2007-03-23.
- ↑ Veiga, Alex (2007-03-23). "21-year-old journalism graduate from Tennessee crowned Miss USA". Associated Press.
- ↑ Castro, Tony (2007-03-23). "Miss USA Event's Kodak Moment: 51 entrants share hopes, hard work and beauty secrets". Los Angeles Daily News. p. N1.
- ↑ "Miss USA pageant scheduled in Hollywood". Xinhua News Agency. 2007-03-23.
- 1 2 Martinez, Michael (2007-03-24). "Idahoan plays up good girls". Deseret Morning News. p. A01.
- 1 2 "U. Oregon student gets ready for Miss USA pageant". UWIRE. 2007-03-07.
- ↑ Associated Press (2007-03-21). "Miss USA's tearful reign draws to an end". The Star-Ledger. p. 25.
- ↑ "Miss Teen USA 2002 crown goes to Wisconsin native". Associated Press. 2002-08-29.
- ↑ Veiga, Alex (2007-03-23). "Beauty queens vie for title at 56th annual Miss USA Pageant". Associated Press.
- ↑ Goldman, Adam (2006-12-21). "Miss Nevada USA Loses Shirt Then Title". Associated Press.
- ↑ Sedensky, Matt (2006-12-23). "Former Miss Nevada apologizes for racy photos, asks for 2nd chance". Associated Press.
- ↑ "Sexy pictures lose Miss Nevada her crown". Agence France-Press. 2006-12-22.
- ↑ Associated Press (2007-01-16). "Miss N.J. USA steps down over pregnancy - Troubled contest tabs Essex Fells runner-up". The Star-Ledger. p. 16.
- ↑ Gross, Dan (2006-01-15). "Preggers Beauty Resigns". Philadelphia Daily News. Archived from the original on 2007-05-14. Retrieved 2006-01-15.
- ↑ Falkenhagen, Andrea (2007-03-20). "Miss USA contestant of East Valley variety: Mesa woman, ASU student has shot at big time". The Tribune.
- ↑ "Airman competes for Miss USA crown". Department of Defense U.S. Air Force Releases. 2007-03-23.
- ↑ Husted, Bill (2007-02-22). "Miss Colorado USA taking high road to national pageant". Denver Post. p. B2.
- ↑ "Junior Nicole Bosso Chosen Miss Delaware USA". US Fed News. 2006-12-05.
- ↑ Davis, Rich (2007-03-02). "Evansville native counting down to Miss USA pageant". The Evansville Courier. p. D1.
- ↑ "Clearwater woman crowned Miss Kansas USA". Associated Press. 2006-12-18.
- ↑ Frank, Tracy (2007-02-23). "North Dakota Miss USA gearing up for pageant". Associated Press.
- ↑ Heaton, Michael (2007-03-20). "Beauty's a science geek Richmond Heights contestant wants future in medicine". The Plain Dealer. p. E1.
- ↑ "R.I. woman Miss USA runner-up". The Providence Journal. 2007-03-24. p. A-5.
External links
- Miss USA official website Archived 2006-09-18 at the Wayback Machine