Miss America 1937, the 11th Miss America pageant, was held at the Steel Pier in Atlantic City, New Jersey on Saturday, September 11, 1937.[1] Shortly after being presented as Miss America, the newly crowned 17-year-old winner, Bette Cooper, left Atlantic City and returned home. Once there, she missed scheduled appointments on her first day as Miss America, as well as a theater appearance and a trip to Hollywood.[2] Her father cited illness as the reason.[3] Though not placing in the top five, representatives from different areas of New York captured three of the semi-finalist positions.

Miss America 1937
DateSeptember 11, 1937
PresentersKing Neptune
VenueSteel Pier, Atlantic City, New Jersey
Entrants49
Placements16
WinnerBette Cooper
Bertrand Island
← 1936
1938 →

Results

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Placements

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Placement Contestant
Miss America 1937
1st Runner-Up
  •   Texas – Alice Emerick
2nd Runner-Up
3rd Runner-Up
4th Runner-Up
  •   Miami – Irmigard Dietel
Top 16

Awards

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Best Evening Gown

Preliminary awards

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Awards Contestant Title
Talent Phyllis Randall   California
Claire Jean Nevulis   Massachusetts
Grace Travis   New York City

Contestants

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Name Title Hometown Age Talent Placement Awards Notes
Lorraine Mayfield   Atlanta Atlanta
Olga Strickland   Augusta
May Vivian Miller   Baltimore Baltimore
Bette Cooper   Bertrand Island Hackettstown 17 Vocal, "When the Poppies Bloom Again" Winner Best Evening Gown Award
Josephine Beall   Birmingham
Helen Fleiss   Bronx The Bronx Top 16
Evelyn Townley   Buckeye Lake Top 16
Phyllis Randall   California Hollywood 20 Vocal/Dance 3rd Runner-up Preliminary Talent Award Sister of Miss North Carolina 1941, Joey Augusta Paxton
Betty Hunneycutt   Charlotte Charlotte Top 16
Sally Lillian Frank   Cincinnati Cincinnati
Frances Greene   Connecticut Milford
Nickey Harriet   Delaware Harrington
Mary P. Hollran   Delray Beach Delray Beach
Helen Greene   District of Columbia 24 Blues Vocal & Piano
Beryl Kober   Eastern Pennsylvania Chalfont
Margaret Myers   Eastern Shores Rock Hall
Dorothy Armstrong   Empire State Whitesboro
Frances Powell   Jacksonville
Lucia Benton   Kansas Norton Top 16
Audrey Catherine Flaig   Kentucky Bellevue
Gertrude Rissie Miller   Louisiana Winnsboro Top 16
Cornelia Campbell   Maine South Portland
Claire Nevulis   Massachusetts South Boston Vocal/Tap Dance Top 16 Preliminary Talent Award
Irmigard Dietel   Miami Vocal 4th Runner-up
Cecelia Rodge   Minnesota Minneapolis
Virginia Riley   Mississippi West Point
Mary Sue Klein   Moberly Moberly
Ingram Starkey   Montgomery Montgomery
Ruth Lenore Jones   Nebraska Nebraska City
Grace Travis   New York City New York City Vocal Top 16 Preliminary Talent Award
Ruth Covington   North Carolina Tap Dance, "Gonna Go" 2nd Runner-up
Jean Fadden   Ohio Cleveland Top 16
Kathryn Crase   Philadelphia Philadelphia
Malen Pietrantoni   Puerto Rico
Dorothy May Eden   Rhode Island East Providence 18 Dr. Dorothy May Eden Trayner Erinakes died at 97 on March 20, 2017 in San Luis Obispo, California.
Helen Frances Murphy   Riverside Riverside
Oliver Henderson   San Antonio
Carolyn Cumbie   Savannah Beach
Wayring Smathers   South Carolina Columbia
Margaret Julia Jardon   South Jersey Burlington
Wauneta Bates   St. Louis St. Louis Top 16
Kathryn H. Kendrick   Sunnybrook Sunnybrook
Alice Emerick   Texas Fort Worth Tap Dance 1st Runner-up
Irene Alice Vanderburgh   Troy Watervliet
Frances Lee Sultan   Virginia Kecoughtan Top 16
Juliana Bernhardt   Washington Seattle
Evelyn Raye   Westchester County New Rochelle Top 16
Mary Ann McLaughlin   Wyoming Riverton

References

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  1. ^ United Press (1937-09-12). "17-Year-Old Jersey Blond is Miss America for 1937". Syracuse Herald. p. Two A.
  2. ^ Hetrick, Christian (July 18, 2015). "The curse of Miss New Jersey". The Press of Atlantic City. Pleasantville, NJ: BH Media. Retrieved July 31, 2015.
  3. ^ Associated Press (1937-09-13). "Bette Cooper, Tired and Ill, Leaves Atlantic City with First Boyfriend". Lewiston Daily Sun. p. 13.

Secondary sources

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  • Saulino Osborne, Angela (1995). "Miss Americas and their Courts". Miss America The Dream Lives On. Taylor Publishing Company. ISBN 978-0-87833-110-9.
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