Miss Kentucky Wins Crown

Miss Kentucky Heather Renee French was crowned Miss America 2000 on Saturday night, becoming the first woman from that state ever to wear the crown.

French, 24, of Maysville, Ky., covered her face with her hands when co-host Marie Osmond announced her. Then she hugged the first runner-up and outgoing Miss America Nicole Johnson before lowering her head to receive the crown.

The first runnerup was Miss Illinois Jade Smalls. The second runnerup was Miss Pennsylvania Susan Spafford. Miss Maryland Keri Schrader and Miss Texas Yanci Yarbrough rounded out the top five.

AP
Miss America's traditional morning-after romp on the beach.

She plans to spend her year as Miss America campaigning for outreach for homeless military veterans. Her father is a veteran and she volunteers at a Veterans Administration hospital.

Among the rewards awaiting the winner: a newly-designed rhinestone-and-ruby "millennium" Miss America crown, a $40,000 college scholarship, an all-expense paid Seventh Avenue shopping spree and a yearlong speaking tour.

The pageant, with new hosts Donny and Marie Osmond, promised plenty of new twists, not all of them popular.

For the first time since Miss America took to the airwaves in 1954, viewers were to see only five of the contestants perform talent routines, instead of 10.

Frustrated by declining TV ratings, pageant officials opted to cut the number of baton twirlers, tap dancers and pianists who try their luck on the Convention Hall stage in hopes of speeding up the show and holding onto viewers.

Also cut were the traditional musical production numbers featuring contestants. In their place were "up close and personal" profiles of some of the women, a video retrospective of Miss America - the icon - through the 20th century and a pre-recorded performance by vocal group 98 Degrees.

The swimsuit competition's still in. This year, the women picked their own suits (only thongs were banned) and decided whether to wear shoes or go barefoot.

Conspicuously absent from the show plan was any mention of this week's flap over the pageant's decision to drop a nearly 50-year-old ban on divorce and abortion. The Miss America Organization, which runs the annual beauty pageant, voted in June to strike the ban to comply with anti-discrimination laws.

But pageant officials put the changes on hold after outraged state pageant directors who like Miss Ameica the way she is went to court to block them.

In any event, the changes weren't in effect for this year's contest.