Miss USA 1991
| Miss USA 1991 | |
|---|---|
| Date | February 22, 1991 |
| Presenters | Bob Goen |
| Venue | Century II Convention Center, Wichita, Kansas |
| Broadcaster | CBS |
| Winner | Kelli McCarty Kansas |
| Congeniality | Charlotte Ray |
| Photogenic | Pat Arnold |
Miss USA 1991, the 40th Miss USA pageant, was televised live from the Century II Convention Center in Wichita, Kansas on 22 February, 1991. At the conclusion of the final competition, Kelli McCarty of Kansas was crowned by outgoing titleholder Carole Gist of Michigan.
The pageant was hosted by Dick Clark, with color commentary by Barbara Eden and Deborah Shelton, Miss USA 1970.
This was the second of four years that the pageant was held in Wichita, and Kelli McCarty became only the third Miss USA titleholder to win in her home state.
Results
Placements
- Miss USA 1991: Kelli McCarty (Kansas)
- The runners-up were:
- 1st runner-up: Charlotte Ray (New Jersey)
- 2nd runner-up: Diane Schock (California)
- The other top six finalists were (in order of placement): Lisa Morgan (Illinois), Pat Arnold (North Carolina) and Julie Khoury (Oklahoma).
- The remaining semi-finalists were (in order of placement): Maureen Murray (New York), Candice Carley (Alabama), Kym Digman (Hawaii), Maricarroll Verlinde (Arizona), Olga Calderon (Oregon)
Special awards
- Miss Congeniality: Charlotte Ray (New Jersey)
- Miss Photogenic: Pat Arnold (North Carolina)
Historical significance
- New Jersey made the top three for the third consecutive year, a record and a rare occurence for any state in the history of the Miss USA pageant. This is the highest placement by a delegate from New Jersey in the competition's history.
- Kansas placed for the first time since 1973. This was Kansas' first and so far only win.
- Illinois placed for the eighth consecutive year, ending a dominant streak that has yet to be repeated.
- New York placed for the first time since 1983, Alabama for the first time since 1981 and Hawaii for the first time since 1985. For these states this ended their longest period without placement in the history of the event.
- North Carolina placed for the first time since 1986 and Oregon for the first time since 1984.
Scores
Preliminary competition
The following are the contestants' scores in the preliminary competition.
|
|
Final competition
|
|
Contestant notes
- Kimberly Totdahl (Wisconsin) had previously held the Miss Wisconsin 1989 title and competed at Miss America 1990. Joann Kayleen Jorgensen (Montana) and Valorie Abate (Connecticut) later competed together at Miss America 1993, as Miss Montana 1992 and Miss Colorado 1992 respectfully.
- Contestants who had previously competed in the Miss Teen USA pageant were:
- Maureen Murray (New York) - Miss New Hampshire Teen USA 1983
- Julie Khoury (Oklahoma) - Miss Oklahoma Teen USA 1985
- Olga Calderon (Oregon) - Miss Oregon Teen USA 1985
- Jillayne Fossum (South Dakota) - Miss South Dakota Teen USA 1988