Cheryl Ann Patton (born October 23, 1949) is an American beauty pageant titleholder who has held the
Miss USA 1967 title.
Biography
In 1966 Patton was a runner-up in the Miss Florida World pageant. The following year she won the
Miss Florida USA
The Miss Florida USA competition is the pageant that selects the representative for the state of Florida in the Miss USA pageant.
Up until the 2017 pageant, both Miss and Teen state pageants were held separately in different months. In recen ...
1967 title and represented Florida in the
Miss USA
Miss USA is an American beauty pageant that has been held annually since 1952 to select the entrant from United States in the Miss Universe pageant. The Miss Universe Organization operated both pageants, as well as Miss Teen USA, until 2020. ...
1967 pageant held in
Miami Beach
Miami Beach is a coastal resort city in Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States. It is part of the Miami metropolitan area of South Florida. The municipality is located on natural and human-made barrier islands between the Atlantic Ocean an ...
in her home state. She placed as second runner-up in the pageant, which was won by
Sylvia Hitchcock of
Alabama
Alabama ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South, Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gu ...
.
In July that year, Hitchcock became the fourth woman from the United States to win the
Miss Universe
Miss Universe is an annual international major beauty pageant that is run by a Thailand and Mexican-based Miss Universe Organization.Natalie Tadena (July 2, 2015"Donald Trump's Miss USA Pageant Lands on Reelz Cable Channel". ''The Wall Stree ...
title, and for the first time, one of her runners-up was to be chosen to complete her reign as Miss USA. The first runner-up Susan Ellen Bradley of
California
California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...
, refused to take over the Miss USA title and Patton became Miss USA 1967.
This is the only time that the first runner-up has not inherited the reign of the original titleholder. In February 1968 Patton filed a lawsuit alleging that the pageant directors refused to pay her a bonus of $5000 for assuming the title as stipulated in the contract. A judge ruled in her favour in June, stating that it made no difference that the sum had already been paid to Hitchcock.
Patton's reign as Miss USA was the first time that a Floridian has held the title.
Patton later married and had a son. In the 1980s she was still living in North Miami.
References
Notes
''Patton was originally second runner-up, but became Miss USA after the original titleholder, Sylvia Hitchcock, won Miss Universe and first runner-Up, Susan Bradley, refused the title. Due to pageant protocol Miss USA must resign her title in the event she wins Miss Universe.''
External links
Miss Florida USA official websiteMiss USA official website
People from North Miami Beach, Florida
Miss USA 1960s delegates
Miss USA winners
Living people
1940s births
20th-century American people
Year of birth missing (living people)
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