Jo-Carroll Dennison is the oldest surviving Miss America winner. Furthermore, she died at the age of 97.
According to her friend Evan Mills, who won the title during WWII. Moreover, defied convention by refusing to wear a swimsuit on stage after the contest. Died at her home in California last month.
According to Mills, Jo-Carroll Dennison could have been the former Miss Texas he is the one, who edited her book. Then, she learned of her death directly from her family. “serve as a model for young women and men in a world where many are tempted to bend to social expectations rather than trusting and following their own moral compass.”
“We appreciate her for her year of service and will miss her sincerely,” on Instagram, the Miss America Organization wrote, additionally said that it was “saddened to hear” of Dennison’s death.
Jo-Carroll Dennison was born in Florence, Arizona. He was born in 1923. Joined her parents’ traveling medicine show as a child. There she sang, danced, and rode trick horses. She went on to study to be a secretary before getting scouted for the Miss Tyler pageant in Tyler, Texas.
Dennison said in her book, “Finding My Little Red Hat,” that she had “sworn never to appear in public again” after her days on the medicine show. She agreed to compete in Miss Tyler in exchange for a free swimsuit. That was from a high-end department store.
She went on to win Miss East Texas and Miss Texas after winning the pageant. In 1942, when she was 18 before competed in and won the Miss America pageant.
Jo-Carroll Dennison won the swimsuit competition, but she refused to wear swimming costumes during her year as Miss America. In 2018, She praised the Miss America Organization for eliminating the swimsuit component of the competition. She focused on the totality of each contestant, earlier this year when she spoke at the contest’s 100th-anniversary banquet.
Dennison, who has crowned Miss America just after the United States entered World War II. Furthermore, she visited defense facilities, hospitals. In addition, other service camps to boost army morale.
Dennison has linked a deal with 20th Century Fox. There he will appear in films such as The Jolson Story and Winged Victory, which is a battle drama. She met many of the era’s celebrities due to her proximity to Hollywood. Furthermore, she had connections with Charlie Chaplin’s son Sydney and comedian Phil Silvers. In 1945, she married and five years later they got separated.
Dennison later appeared in the Dick Tracy series. She later worked on TV shows behind the scenes. The couple split in the 1970s. Though, she had two children with CBS producer and director Russell Stoneham.
Dennison supported the #MeToo movement in her memoirs. Stating that, when she was 12 years old, she was sexually raped.