History of Mrs. America:

Mrs. America owes much of its present day popularity to its rich history and tradition. The
pageant dates its origin to the year 1938, when the first Mrs. America competition was held at
Palisades Amusement Park in New Jersey. For the next thirty years, Mrs. America devoted
itself to a national search for the ideal homemaker, and became an American institution.  The
original contest was not considered a beauty pageant but a competition of homemaking skills,
including table setting, arrangements, laundry, bed making and cooking, as well as managing
the family budget, personality, hairstyle, make-up and formal dress. The pageant was
discontinued after 1968,
during a period when the theme of wife and homemaker was subject to changing social mores.  
But in 1977, after an absence of nearly a decade, the pageant was revived under a new and
more modern format. The man responsible for the renaissance of Mrs. America was David
Marmel, an independent television producer.

What does the Mrs. America Pageant represent? Now celebrating its 30th year in its modern
format, the Mrs. America Pageant is the only nationally televised pageant for married women.
It focuses the attention of the nation and the world on the versatility of the contemporary
American married woman.  Each of the 51 Mrs. America candidates earns the right to
participate in the national event by winning her statewide competition. These state pageants
are under the direction of Mrs. America State Directors, a network of respected and talented
community and business leaders reflecting one of the finest pageant systems in the world.

What does the Mrs. America title stand for? The winner of the Mrs. America crown receives
cash, prizes and endless opportunities. During her exciting and memorable reign, she will make
personal appearances throughout the country. For the entire year she acts as the ambassador
and spokesperson for America’s married women. She speaks to civic groups and business
organizations, appears in print and television commercials, and conducts countless interviews
with members of the press. She becomes, in effect, the public symbol of all wives and mothers.
Mrs. America