Atlantic City, N.J. — ABC-TV has  dropped  Miss America, leaving the famous beauty pageant without a network television sponsor for the first time in 50 years.

ABC, which had carried the annual telecast since 1997 with a series of one-year contracts, notified Miss America Organization officials that they will not pick up the option this year, Acting President and CEO Arthur McMaster said Wednesday.

“This is a good day for the Miss America Organization,” he said. “We are now free to pursue other parties who have expressed interest in our organization, and we are excited at the limitless opportunities that are now available for us to grow our brand.”

Since Lee Meriwether was crowned on Sept. 11, 1954 in the first televised pageant, Miss America has grown into a non-profit corporation that makes available more than $40-million (U.S.) annually in scholarship aid and oversees 52 state pageants.

 

Mr. McMaster, who had pressed the network to move Miss America to a weeknight and televise some part of its three nights of preliminary competition, said the pageant was happy to part ways with ABC.

“There's already been companies that have contacted us and expressed an interest,” he said. “This thing's been around for 84 years and it'll be around for another 84. I'm not going to say I'm not worried, but I think there's much more out there.”

“There's no doubt, TV is the catalyst that keeps this company going. But it's not a one-night-a-year organization. It's a 52 weeks a year organization. We want to grow beyond that one night,” said Mr. McMaster.