Miss America 2018 was the 91st
Miss America
Miss America is an annual competition that is open to women from the United States between the ages of 17 and 25. Originating in 1921 as a "bathing beauty revue", the contest is now judged on competitors' talent performances and interviews. As ...
pageant, though the Miss America Organization celebrated its 97th anniversary in 2017. This discrepancy is due to no national pageants being held from 1928-1932 or in 1934 because of financial problems associated with the
Great Depression
The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...
.
The 2018 pageant was held in
Boardwalk Hall
Jim Whelan Boardwalk Hall, formerly known as the Historic Atlantic City Convention Hall, is a multi-purpose arena in Atlantic City in Atlantic County, New Jersey. It was Atlantic City's primary convention center until the opening of the Atlanti ...
in
Atlantic City, New Jersey
Atlantic City, often known by its initials A.C., is a coastal resort city in Atlantic County, New Jersey, United States. The city is known for its casinos, boardwalk, and beaches. In 2020, the city had a population of 38,497. on Sunday, September 10, 2017.
This was the first Miss America pageant to be held in Atlantic City since the Miss America Organization headquarters relocated to Boardwalk Hall.
The event was broadcast by the
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company (ABC) is an American commercial broadcast television network. It is the flagship property of the ABC Entertainment Group division of The Walt Disney Company. The network is headquartered in Burbank, Cali ...
(ABC).
On July 24, 2017, it was announced that
Chris Harrison
Christopher Bryan Harrison (born July 26, 1971) is an American television and game show host, best known for his role as the host of the ABC reality television dating show '' The Bachelor'' from 2002 to 2021. He also hosted its spin-offs ''The ...
and
Sage Steele
Sage Marie Steele (born November 28, 1972) is an American television anchor who is the co-host of the 12pm (ET) SportsCenter on ESPN. She also hosts SportsCenter on the Road from various sporting events such as the Super Bowl and The Masters. ...
would be returning to co-host the Miss America pageant for the second year in a row.
Cara Mund
Cara D. Mund ( ) is an American beauty pageant titleholder from Bismarck, North Dakota. In June 2017, she was crowned Miss North Dakota 2017. On September 10, 2017, she was crowned Miss America 2018 in Atlantic City and became the first contest ...
of
North Dakota
North Dakota () is a U.S. state in the Upper Midwest, named after the Native Americans in the United States, indigenous Dakota people, Dakota Sioux. North Dakota is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba to the north a ...
became Miss America 2018 at the end of the event.
Overview
Judges
Preliminary judges
From September 6–8, 2017, judges for the preliminary competition selected the winners of the preliminary talent and lifestyle and fitness competitions as well as the top 15 finalists for the final night of competition on September 10, 2017. The panel included entertainment lawyer, Carolyn Conrad; Global Government Affairs and Policy leader for Baker Hughes, Karen Knuston;
CNN
CNN (Cable News Network) is a multinational cable news channel headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable news channel, and presently owned by ...
White House reporter, Kate Bennett; casting director, Patrick Rush; actor,
Rusty Joiner
Jason Russell "Rusty" Joiner (born December 11, 1972) is an American male fashion model, fitness model and actor.
Early life and education
Born in Montgomery, Alabama, and raised in Atlanta, Georgia, Joiner attended Georgia Southern Universi ...
;
Miss America 1978
Miss America 1978, the 51st Miss America pageant, was held at the Boardwalk Hall
Jim Whelan Boardwalk Hall, formerly known as the Historic Atlantic City Convention Hall, is a multi-purpose arena in Atlantic City in Atlantic County, New Jers ...
,
Susan Perkins Botsford; and dancer and actress,
Vivian Nixon
Vivian Nichole Nixon (born May 31, 1984) is an American actress and dancer. She played Dr. Hannah Brody in the medical drama series ''Grey's Anatomy'' and voices Millie in the adult animated web series ''Helluva Boss''.
Early life
Born in Miam ...
.
Final night judges
The panel of judges on the final night of competition on September 10, 2017 included country singer,
Thomas Rhett
Thomas may refer to:
People
* List of people with given name Thomas
* Thomas (name)
* Thomas (surname)
* Saint Thomas (disambiguation)
* Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274) Italian Dominican friar, philosopher, and Doctor of the Church
* Thomas the Ap ...
; actress, author, and model,
Molly Sims
Molly Sims (born May 25, 1973) is an American fashion model and actress. She has been featured in campaigns by a number of major brands, including Jimmy Choo, Escada, Giorgio Armani, Michael Kors, and Chanel. She was a frequent model in the ''Sp ...
; Grammy-nominated singer and actress,
Jordin Sparks
Jordin Sparks-Thomas (born December 22, 1989) is an American singer and actress. She rose to fame in 2007 after winning the sixth season of ''American Idol'' at age 17, becoming the youngest winner in the series' history. Her self-titled debu ...
; People Magazine's Editor in Chief, Jess Cagle; journalist, actress, and CEO of
AfterBuzz TV
AfterBuzz TV is an online broadcast network that specializes in after-show podcasts for several television series including ''Game of Thrones'', '' Big Brother'', ''The Flash'', ''Real Housewives'', and ''Grey's Anatomy''.
Created by Maria Menou ...
,
Maria Menounos
Maria Menounos (, gr, Μαρία Μενούνος ; born June 8, 1978) is an American journalist, television presenter and actress. She has hosted ''Extra'' and ''E! News''; she was a TV correspondent for ''Today'', ''Access Hollywood'', and co- ...
;
Miss America 2014
Miss America 2014, the 87th Miss America pageant was held at the Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, New Jersey Sunday, September 15, 2013. Miss America 2013, Mallory Hagan crowned the winner, Miss New York, Nina Davuluri, who served as Miss Am ...
,
Nina Davuluri
Nina Davuluri (born April 20, 1989) is an American public speaker, advocate, and beauty queen who hosts the reality show ''Made in America'' on Zee TV America from Manhattan.
As Miss America 2014, she became the first Indian American contest ...
; and Olympic gold medalist,
Tara Lipinski
Tara Kristen Lipinski (born June 10, 1982) is an American former competitive figure skater, actress, sports commentator and documentary film producer. A former competitor in women's singles, she is the 1998 Olympic champion, the 1997 World ...
.
Results
Placements
§
America's Choice
''America's Choice'' is the fifth album by the American blues rock band Hot Tuna, recorded in 1974, and released in 1975 as Grunt BFL1-0820. The album was also released in Quadraphonic as Grunt BFD1-0820. The first of the "Rampage" trilogy album ...
Awards
Preliminary awards
Quality of Life awards
Children's Miracle Network (CMN) National Miracle Maker awards
STEM Scholarship awards
Women in Business Scholarship awards
Other awards
Contestants
References
{{Miss America
2018
File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the United ...
2017 beauty pageants
2017 in New Jersey
2017 in the United States
September 2017 events in the United States
Events in Atlantic City, New Jersey