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Quest for the crown: Fifty-two young women compete for the 'Miss America 2016' title

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Author: 
Jacqui Wiens / TV Media
Chris Harrison hosts the “2016 Miss America Competition”

Chris Harrison hosts the “2016 Miss America Competition”

Elegant gowns, sultry singers and batons twirling through the air are only a few things to look forward to at this year's milestone 95th anniversary of the Miss America pageant. Originating from the 1920 Fall Frolic on Atlantic City's boardwalk, the pageant has undergone many changes from its humble beginnings to today's cultural phenomenon. Don't miss the glitz when the "2016 Miss America Competition" airs Sunday, Sept. 13, on ABC.

The Fall Frolic didn't look very much like "Miss America" does now, resembling a parade more than anything else. In an effort to draw more customers to the boardwalk after Labor Day, the Businessmen's League of Atlantic City arranged to have 350 young women pushed down the boardwalk in rolling wicker chairs in late September.

The inaugural event was such a success that the Fall Frolic returned in 1921 with five days of activities. Festivities included the Inter-City Beauty Contest, which was advertised as a "bather's revue." Leading up to the competition, newspapers across the country held mini-pageants to send representatives to Atlantic City.

While the term "Miss America" was coined by a local Atlantic City journalist prior to the 1921 pageant, the title wasn't officially applied to that year's winner. Sixteen-year-old Margaret Gorman of Washington, D.C., was crowned the "The Most Beautiful Bathing Girl in America," only coming to be known as Miss America the following year when she competed in defense of her title.

The "Miss America Competition" ran into trouble less than a decade after it was instated, facing financial problems and criticisms of loose morals, which led to the eventual suspension of the event between 1929 and 1933. After it was reinstated, the 1930s brought a lot of change to the pageant. Rules were added, including age restrictions (originally 18 to 26, now 17 to 24) and the requirement that contestants represent an entire state instead of a city or business.

In further steps to reinvent "Miss America," a talent portion was added to the pageant in 1938. The grand prize -- previously consisting of "furs and movie contracts" -- was changed a few years later in 1944. This made Bess Myerson, Miss America 1945, both the first Jewish winner and the first title holder to receive a scholarship from pageant organizers. The Miss America Organization has continued to promote higher education ever since, requiring that all competitors either graduate high school or achieve their GED prior to participating.

The current Miss America has always been expected to travel the country making appearances, but Kaye Lani Rae Rafko Wilson, Miss America 1988, was the first winner to use those appearances to advance a particular platform. Trained as a nurse, Rafko Wilson used the publicity to advocate for hospice care for the terminally ill. The following year, a rule was added requiring all "Miss America" contestants to select a social issues platform to advance during their reign.

Miss America 2015 Kira Kazantsev is crowned by 2014’s Nina Davuluri

Miss America 2015 Kira Kazantsev is crowned by 2014’s Nina Davuluri

These platforms can be very personal and tend to skew towards education, health, children and women's issues, such as "Healthy Children, Strong America" promoted by this year's Georgia representative, Betty Cantrell. Many also focus on empowerment, including Miss Arkansas Loren McDaniel's platform, "Confidently You," and Miss Indiana Morgan Jackson's "Project Impact: If Not You, Then Who?"

The "2016 Miss America Competition" will consist of 52 contestants representing each of the states, as well as the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. It wasn't until 1959 that every state was represented at the "Miss America Competition," and there are still 19 states and two participating territories -- Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands (which won't be participating this year) -- that have never seen their representative crowned Miss America.

Six titles each have been claimed by women representing California, New York, Ohio and Oklahoma -- although two of Ohio's wins came from Miss Columbus Mary Catherine Campbell, who was crowned in 1922 and 1923. After Campbell placed as the first runner-up in 1924 as well, the rules were changed so that each contestant was only permitted to be Miss America once.

The northern states are conspicuously absent from the list of Miss America titleholders, with Washington state, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming and the Dakotas forming a large block of winless states. A large number of winners come from the area surrounding the Great Lakes, with Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania and New York accounting for 22 of the 90 title holders.

Miss America also gives contestants the opportunity to showcase a talent. In what's become a somewhat predictable move, most state champions selected either a music or dance routine, with Miss Colorado Kelley Johnson and Miss Vermont Alayna Westcom standing out for their selections of "monologue" and "dramatic science experiment," respectively.

From a boardwalk parade to a beauty contest to a high-profile talent competition, the "Miss America Competition" celebrates the 95th anniversary of the original Fall Frolic this year from its historic home of Atlantic City. Don't miss the excitement when the "2016 Miss America Competition" airs Sunday, Sept. 13, on ABC.