Miss USA 1988

Miss USA 1988 was the 37th Miss USA pageant, televised live from the El Paso Civic Center in El Paso, Texas on March 1, 1988. At the conclusion of the final competition, Courtney Gibbs of Texas was crowned Miss USA, becoming the fourth consecutive winner from Texas.
The pageant was hosted by Growing Pains star Alan Thicke, the first time in twenty years that Bob Barker did not host, and the pageant commentator was Tracy Scoggins. Barker, an animal rights activist, refused to be involved because one of the winner's prizes was a fur coat. There had been controversy surrounding the fur coats since the previous year, and Barker claimed he had asked pageant officials not to give away coats for years but that he had been ignored. Other animal rights activists threatened to picket the pageant in protest at its fur policy and disrupted a pre-pageant press conference. In an unrelated attack, Scoggins was attacked in an elevator following pageant rehearsals. The attacker was charged with attempted sexual assault.
This was the first time that the pageant was held in Texas and the only time it was ever held in El Paso. El Paso had hosted the Miss Teen USA 1987 pageant the previous year, and it was announced in November 1987 that the city would likely host Miss USA 1988.
Results
Special awards
Delegates
The Miss USA 1988 delegates were:
Alabama - Rhonda Mooney
Alaska - Raun Reaves
Arizona - Kris Keim
Arkansas - Melissa Staples
California - Diana Magaña
Colorado - Nicola Svaldi
Connecticut - Catherine Calasso
Delaware - Christina lee Angel
District of Columbia - Elva Anderson
Florida - Monica Farrell
Georgia - Donna Rampy
Hawaii - Paula Prevost
Idaho - Kay Kinsey
Illinois - Gina Zordani
Indiana - Loetta Earnest
Iowa - Julie Kemmerling
Kansas - Cynthia Decker
Kentucky - Suzanne Pitman
Louisiana - Rhonda Vinson
Maine - Suzanne Grenier
Maryland - Rowanne Brewer
Massachusetts - Ania Lovely
Michigan - Anthonia Dotson
Minnesota - Julie Nelson
Mississippi - Dana Richmond
Missouri - Alecia Workman
Montana - Kimberly Topp
Nebraska - Kellie O'Neil
Nevada - Lagracella Omran
New Hampshire - Diane Wright
New Jersey - Colleen Carlone
New Mexico - Stephanie Storrie
New York - Linnea Mancini
North Carolina - Tammy Tolar
North Dakota - Kate Sevde
Ohio - Gina West
Oklahoma - Tamara Walker
Oregon - Elaine Rohrer
Pennsylvania - Susan Gray
Rhode Island - Cindy Geronda
South Carolina - April Abel
South Dakota - Sandi Fix
Tennessee - Stephanie Jane Potts
Texas - Courtney Gibbs
Utah - Suzie Lundell
Vermont - Stacy Sisson
Virginia - Denise Smith
Washington - Sandra Kord
West Virginia - Cathy Fowler
Wisconsin - Mary Kay Anderson
Wyoming - Kristen Youmans
Contestant notes
Two contestants had previously competed in the Miss Teen USA pageant. They were Kris Keim (Arizona), who was Miss Arizona Teen USA 1983, and Melissa Staples (Arkansas), who was Miss Arkansas Teen USA 1984
Two contestants had previously competed in the Miss America 1986 pageant. They were Mary Kay Anderson (Wisconsin), formerly Miss Wisconsin 1985 and Monica Farrell (Florida), formerly Miss Florida 1985.
Prior to the pageant Suzanne Pitman (Kentucky) was arrested on a drunk-driving charge but allowed to compete in the pageant.
Miss Minnesota USA winner Sue Bolich resigned her title one week after she was arrested for shoplifting. The other pageant contestants were already in El Paso at the time of her resignation, and first runner-up Jolene Stavrakis was to be sent in Bolich's place. However, Stavrakis also had a previous shoplifting charge on her record, and she too withdrew from the pageant. Julie Nelson, second runner-up in the state pageant, assumed the title and represented Minnesota at Miss USA.
Judges
Jennifer Ashe
Mary Kay Ash
Michelle Butin
Gil Gerard
Albert Hague
Sharlene Wells Hawkes
Michael K. Herbert
Stanley Platos
References
External links
Official website
1988
1988 beauty pageants
1988 in Texas
1988
El Paso, Texas
March 1988 events in the United States