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Miss Subways

"Miss Subways" was a title accorded to individual New York City women between 1941 and 1976. The woman who was Miss Subways at any one time appeared on posters placed on New York City Subway trains, along with a brief description of her. In 1957, it was estimated that 5.9 million people viewed Miss Subways daily, using 14,000 placards within trains.[1] The program was run by the New York Subways Advertising Company.[2] Around 200 women held the title during the program's run.

An advertisement for Miss Subways at the New York Transit Museum.

Selection

 
Mona Freeman Miss Subways of May 1941 on TV with Cliff Robertson 20 years later

The method of selecting Miss Subways varied over time, typically taking the form of a beauty contest with the general rule that to be eligible, a woman had to be a New York City resident and herself use the subway. "John Robert Powers, the head of the modeling agency, selected the winners" until 1961 or 1962 and later "for some years, winners were chosen by the contest organizers."[3]

Before 1952, there were monthly selections of Miss Subways. From 1952 to 1957, candidates were picked every two months.[1] Although "Mr. Powers once picked seven winners to reign side by side in the subway."[1] By 1957, they were all hand-picked based on how much they exuded a "girl next door" quality:

All Miss Subways have one thing in common. They look – or are supposed to look – like the girl next door. About 400 wholesome young things enter each of the three yearly contests. The winners are picked by John Robert Powers model agency millionaire. Mr. Powers says he wants "no glamour gal types or hand-painted masterpieces." Professional models, actresses and entertainers are taboo. Anyone else over 17 may enter. The Miss Subways have been secretaries, service women, nurses, sales girls, and receptionists.[1]

John Robert Powers was no longer involved in selection by 1963 when the contest changed to "public vote ... by post card". The first winner of the public vote was Ann Napolitano who was an executive secretary at the advertising agency Doyle, Dane & Bernbach. The New York Subways Advertising Company "redirected the contest to reflect the girl who works – what New York City is all about."[3] Winners were given bracelets with gold-plated (later, silver-plated) subway tokens."[4] Spaulding commented in 1971 that "Prettiness per se is passe. It's personality and interest pursuits that count" and described how "each contest attracts between 300 and 400 entries, submitted by family, friends and colleagues. About 30 are selected for a personal interview 'to judge personality and make certain that the submitted picture is a good likeness.' Most of the winners have been stenographers, clerks, receptionists and some have been teachers and stewardesses."[3]

Subsequent to the postcard system, winners were usually chosen by telephone-based voting, from among a group of nominees whose photos were all placed on the subways. Title holders were photographed by photographers such as James J. Kriegsmann who "specialized in pictures of stage and screen stars, but he also photographed ordinary people, including the women who appeared in the Miss Subways promotion for more than 30 years."[5]

In 2004, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, in conjunction with the New York Post, brought back the program, now named "Ms. Subways", for one year only. A voting contest was held to determine the winner, Caroline Sanchez-Bernat, an actress.[6] Posters of "Ms. Subways" appeared with subway safety tips instead of biographical notes.

Significance

Miss Subways began as a way for the John Robert Powers Agency "to promote his models and for the New York Subways Advertising Company 'to increase eye traffic' for the adjoining ... advertisements."[4] "The contest provided the main plot device of Leonard Bernstein's 1944 musical On The Town, in which a smitten sailor on leave searched for 'Miss Turnstiles.'"[4]

By 1945, the four-year anniversary of the contest was commemorated nationally in Life Magazine.[7] "Unlike Miss America, these queens represented the full spectrum of their constituency, mainly Irish, Italian, Latina and Jewish. The first black winner reigned on the trains in 1947 (36 years before a black Miss America), the first Asian in 1949."[2] Thelma Potter, who was studying at Brooklyn College at the time, was the first black Miss Subways. Potter stated, "It was progressive. ... It stirred things up a bit.'"[4]

The New York Subway Advertising Company was owned by Walter O'Malley, who moved the Brooklyn Dodgers to Los Angeles in 1958.[8] Bernard Spaulding, the sales director for the New York Subways Advertising Company, said in 1971 that it "was a World War II pinup phenomenon and then lost social significance."[9] Miss Subways was of "mythic significance to many", with Mayor Ed Koch saying in 1979:

Even now, I can sit in the subway, and look up at the ads, and close my eyes, and there's Miss Subways", he said. "She wasn't the most beautiful girl in the world but she was ours. She was our own Miss America."[10]

In 1983, when there were public calls for the contest to continue, a Metropolitan Transportation Authority representative stated that it would be "irrelevant and socially unacceptable", and thus not viable, to restart Miss Subways.[4] Tn 2004, journalist Melanie Bush commented:

[The] posters were also covertly feminist, sometimes shockingly so, even to [Bush], a child of the 70s. From the first ('Mona Freeman, wants to be a top notch freelance illustrator') to the last ('Heidi Hafner ... Her goal: a flight instructor's rating'), they focused on women's ambitions, and in the 1940s or the 70s or [2000s], that's a rare rose to find clamped in the teeth of mass advertising. Yet there it was, and there it more or less firmly remained, probably because the contest was structured during World War II, when more than three million women were offered paying work for the first time, and were thus riding the subways, not to mention operating them, in much greater numbers than before.

The posters were at their most radical during the war years, and equally reflect women's later return to the home. Miss Subways' journey tracks a clear underground parallel to the prescribed roles of her sisters' above: While the civilian women of World War II may have been crucial to the work force, the purpose of housewives, as Betty Friedan puts it, 'is to buy more things for the house.'

From the exhilarating peak of December 1942's Marguerite McAuliffe, 'whose aim is to be a doctor as good as her dad,' and November 1943's Cecile Woodley, whose 'main interests are her job and the Navy ... enthusiastically O.K.'s skiing, Mozart and Katharine Hepburn,' we slide submissively toward Irene Scheidt, June 1950, whose 'fondest hope is a trip to Bermuda.' Then up we go again to Eleanor Nash, November 1960, 'young, beautiful, and expert with a rifle.' ... What I waited for each new month was: What did she do? What were her goals? The Miss Subways I wanted to be was the airplane pilot. Or how about 'travel writer'? 'Scientist'? 'Surgeon'? ... Maybe next month she'd plan to be an astronaut. Or president!

What was actually going on here, I saw, was women, real New York women, talking to each other about their intentions and transmitting these messages through the medium of some men's advertising campaign.[2]

Ellen Hart Sturm, owner of the New York diner Ellen's Stardust Diner, was Miss Subways in 1959; her diner features photos of many past Miss Subways on the walls.

Revival of "Miss Subways"

In 2017, the "Miss Subways Pageant" was resurrected, produced by The City Reliquary where the event was held. The judges, including Roger Clark, reporter for NY1, awarded the title, sash, and crown to Lisa Levy, who participated on a platform of being "a postmenopausal queen." Miss Congeniality, an addition to the original pageant, was taken by Suzie Sims-Fletcher. The following year, 2018, saw the addition of The Riders Alliance as an organizer of the event, which moved to Littlefield where it returned in 2019.[11]

List of "Miss Subways" title-holders

Term started Term ended Name Notes
1 April 1941 30 April 1941
1 May 1941 31 May 1941 Mona Freeman[12] "the second Miss Subways" [7]
1 June 1941 30 June 1941
1 July 1941 31 July 1941
1 August 1941 31 August 1941
1 September 1941 30 September 1941
1 October 1941 31 October 1941 Helen Borgia (two title holders for October 1941, second unknown)[7]
1 November 1941 30 November 1941 Muriel Schott (aka Suzanne Saunders)[7]
1 December 1941 31 December 1941 Ruth Ericsson[12]
1942 Rita Ryan (Mrs. Brunel)[13]
1 February 1942 28 February 1942
1 March 1942 31 March 1942 Elaine Kusins[7]
1 April 1942 30 April 1942
1 May 1942 31 May 1942
1 June 1942 30 June 1942 Dorothea Mate (Mrs. Michael)[14]
1 July 1942 31 July 1942
1 August 1942 31 August 1942 Rosemary Gregory[7]
1 September 1942 30 September 1942 Evelyn Clark
1 October 1942 31 October 1942
1 November 1942 30 November 1942 Cecile Woodley "main interests are her job and the Navy ... enthusiastically O.K.'s skiing, Mozart and Katharine Hepburn,"[2]
1 December 1942 31 December 1942 Marguerite McAuliffe "whose aim is to be a doctor as good as her dad,"[2]
1 January 1943 31 January 1943
1 February 1943 28 February 1943 Connie Sameth
1 March 1943 31 March 1943 Vita Monterosso
1 April 1943 30 April 1943
1 May 1943 30 May 1943
1 June 1943 30 June 1943 Evelyn Friedman[7]
1 July 1943 31 July 1943
1 August 1943 30 August 1943 Tera Kathryn Davis[7]
1 September 1943 30 September 1943
1 October 1943 31 October 1943
1 November 1943 30 November 1943
1 December 1943 31 December 1943
1944 Helen Mazley Kenny[1]
1 February 1944 28 February 1944 Joan Cashman
1 March 1944 31 March 1944 Eileen Henry[7]
1 April 1944 30 April 1944 Joan Vohs[1]
1 May 1944 31 May 1944 Dawna Clawson; Doris Clawson; Dorothy Clawson
1 June 1944 30 June 1944 Winifred McAleer[15]
1 July 1944 30 July 1944 Peggy Healy[7]
1 August 1944 31 August 1944 Mary Radchuck[7]
1 September 1944 30 September 1944
1 October 1944 31 October 1944
1 November 1944 30 November 1944
1 December 1944 31 December 1944
1 January 1945 31 January 1945
1 February 1945 28 February 1945
1 March 1945 31 March 1945
1 April 1945 30 April 1945 Rita Cuddy[7] (Aug. 6, 1923 – Oct. 18, 2003)
1 May 1945 31 May 1945
1 June 1945 30 June 1945
1 July 1945 31 July 1945
1 August 1945 31 August 1945
1 September 1945 30 September 1945
1 October 1945 31 October 1945
1 November 1945 30 November 1945
1 December 1945 31 December 1945
1 January 1946 31 January 1946
1 February 1946 28 February 1946
1 March 1946 31 March 1946
1 April 1946 30 April 1946
1 May 1946 31 May 1946
1 June 1946 30 June 1946
1 July 1946 31 July 1946 Enid Berkowitz[15]
1 August 1946 31 August 1946
1 September 1946 30 September 1946
1 October 1946 31 October 1946
1 November 1946 30 November 1946 Kay Landing
1 December 1946 31 December 1946
1 January 1947 31 January 1947
1 February 1947 28 February 1947
1 March 1947 31 March 1947
1 April 1947 30 April 1947
1 May 1947 31 May 1947
1 June 1947 30 June 1947
1 July 1947 31 July 1947
1 August 1947 31 August 1947
1 September 1947 30 September 1947
1 October 1947 31 October 1947 Merry Condon
1 November 1947 30 November 1947
1 December 1947 31 December 1947 Gene Farley
1 January 1948 31 January 1948
1 February 1948 28 February 1948
1 March 1948 31 March 1948
1 April 1948 30 April 1948 Thelma Porter
1 May 1948 31 May 1948
1 June 1948 30 June 1948
1 July 1948 31 July 1948
1 August 1948 31 August 1948
1 September 1948 30 September 1948
1 October 1948 31 October 1948
1 November 1948 30 November 1948
1 December 1948 31 December 1948
1949 Elaine Levine[16]
1 February 1949 28 February 1949
1 March 1949 31 March 1949 Dorothy Nolan
1 April 1949 30 April 1949
1 May 1949 31 May 1949
1 June 1949 30 June 1949
1 July 1949 31 July 1949
1 August 1949 31 August 1949
1 September 1949 30 September 1949
1 October 1949 31 October 1949
1 November 1949 30 November 1949 Helen Lee
1 December 1949 31 December 1949
194? Patricia Burke (Miss Subways)[17]
1950 Margie Marra[18]
28 F 1 February 1950 February 1950 Saralee Singer[14]
1 March 1950 31 March 1950 Angela Vorsteg Norris
1 April 1950 30 April 1950
1 May 1950 31 May 1950
1 June 1950 30 June 1950 Irene Scheidt "fondest hope is a trip to Bermuda"[2]
1 July 1950 31 July 1950
1 August 1950 31 August 1950
1 September 1950 30 September 1950
1 October 1950 31 October 1950
1 November 1950 31 November 1950
1 December 1950 31 December 1950
1 January 1951 31 January 1951 Yolanda Revson[12] "the first Latin descent Miss Subways" [7]
1 February 1951 28 February 1951
1 March 1951 31 March 1951
1 April 1951 30 April 1951
1 May 1951 31 May 1951
1 June 1951 30 June 1951
1 July 1951 31 July 1951
1 August 1951 31 August 1951
1 September 1951 30 September 1951 Jean Hagen
1 October 1951 31 October 1951 Jean Hagen
1 November 1951 30 November 1951
1 December 1951 31 December 1951
1 January 1952 28 February 1952
1 March 1952 30 April 1952 Peggy Byrne[15]
1 May 1952 30 June 1952
1 July 1952 31 August 1952
1 September 1952 31 October 1952
1 November 1952 31 December 1952
1 January 1953 28 February 1953
1 March 1953 30 April 1952 Yolanda Revson[15]
1 May 1953 30 June 1953 Mary Gardiner[15]
1 July 1953 31 August 1953
1 September 1953 31 October 1953
1 November 1953 31 December 1953
1 January 1954 28 February 1954
1 March 1954 30 April 1954
1 May 1954 30 June 1954 Juliette Rose Lee
1 July 1954 31 August 1954
1 September 1954 31 October 1954
1 November 1954 31 December 1954
1955 1955 Phyllis Johnson[15]
1 March 1955 30 April 1955
1 May 1955 30 June 1955
1 July 1955 31 August 1955
1 September 1955 31 October 1955
1 November 1955 31 December 1955 Marie Leonard[1]
1 January 1956 28 February 1956
1 March 1956 30 April 1956
1 May 1956 30 June 1956
1 July 1956 31 August 1956
1 September 1956 31 October 1956
1 November 1956 31 December 1956 Doris Mermel
Before 1957 Terry Flannigan[1]
Before 1957 Jean Grogan[1]
Before 1957 Nancy Seris[1]
1 January 1957 28 February 1957
1 March 1957 30 April 1957
1 May 1957 30 June 1957
1 July 1957 31 August 1957
1 September 1957 31 October 1957
1 November 1957 31 December 1957
1958 Kathryn Keeler; Mary Keeler[6]
1 March 1958 30 April 1958 Eleanor Galanis
1 January 1959 28 February 1959
1 March 1959 30 April 1959 Ellen Hart[15]
1 May 1959 30 June 1959
1 July 1959 31 August 1959
1 September 1959 31 October 1959
1 November 1959 31 December 1959
1 January 1960 28 February 1960
1 March 1960 30 April 1960
1 May 1960 30 June 1960
1 July 1960 31 August 1960
1 September 1960 31 October 1960
1 November 1960 31 December 1960 Eleanor Nash "young, beautiful, and expert with a rifle"[2]
1 January 1961 28 February 1961 Dolores Mitchell
Before 1962 Kathy Dempsey[19]
1 March 1961 30 April 1961
1 May 1961 30 June 1961
1 July 1961 31 August 1961
1 September 1961 31 October 1961
1 November 1961 31 December 1961
1 January 1962 28 February 1962 Evelyn Tasch[19]
1962 1962 Sally Pishney[15]
1 March 1962 31 April 1962
1 September 1963 30 September 1963 Carole Nealon[15]
1 January 1964 31 March 1964 Sanora Selsey
1965 Judith Marshall[3]
1966 Carol Price[3]
1 December 1967 31 January 1968 Neddy Garde[14]
1 February 1968 31 August 1968 Maureen Walsh[14]
1 January 1971 30 June 1971 Patricia Shilling[3]
1 January 1971 30 June 1971 Linda Heilbronn[3]
1 May 1974 31 July 1974 Sonia Dominguez[14]
31 October 1974 May 1975 Marcia Kilpatrick
1 April 1975 31 October 1975 Ayana Lawson[14]
Before 1976 Josephine Lazzaro[4]
Before 1976 Donna Demarta[4]
Before 1976 Barbara Peer[4] "winner ... was mugged on the subway"[4]
1976 (last) Heide Hafner[4]
2004 (honorary) Caroline Sanchez-Bernat[6]
2017 Lisa Levy[11] Suzie Sims-Fletcher, Miss Congeniality[11]
2018 Parker MacLure[11] Charlie Battersby, Miss Congeniality[11]
2019 Dylan Greenberg[11] Traci Cappiello, Miss Congeniality[11]

In popular culture

  • In the 1944 musical On the Town, one of the main characters falls in love with "Miss Turnstiles" after seeing her picture on the subway. Lyricist Betty Comden later claimed that the musical influenced the contest's selection process to include more diverse contestants, due to the casting of the half-Japanese Sono Osato as Miss Turnstiles in the original production.[12][20]
  • Lawrence Ferlinghetti's poetry collection A Coney Island of the Mind contains a poem entitled "Meet Miss Subways."
  • Donald Sosin's 1972 song cycle "Third Rail" includes the entire text of a Miss Subways poster, but with the name of the girl and her school changed at her request.
  • Cher's 1974 album, Dark Lady, featured the comedic song, "Miss Subway of 1952", written by Mary F. Cain, about a once-beautiful woman who has not aged gracefully.
  • In the 1996 The Nanny episode "Tattoo" (Season 4 episode 9), Fran claims to have won the Miss Subways title.
  • In 1996, Marga Gomez debuted a show called 'A Line Around the Block' in which a character says: "You're Miss America. No, better than that. Miss Subways."[21]
  • The 2018 historical fiction novel The Subway Girls (St. Martin's Press) by Susie Orman Schnall is a dual-timeline story of a 1949 Miss Subways contestant and a modern-day female advertising executive.
  • In the 2018 novel Miss Subways (ISBN 978-0-37421-040-3, Macmillan Publishers), writer and actor David Duchovny re-imagines Miss Subways as Emer, a New York City teacher whose world intersects with mythical figures in her quest for love.

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Robertson, Nan (February 18, 1957). "Miss Subways Reigns: Persephone to 5 Million". The New York Times. Retrieved April 23, 2013.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g Bush, Melanie (October 24, 2004). "Miss Subways, Subversive and Sublime". The New York Times. Retrieved October 7, 2011.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g Nemy, Enid (December 8, 1971). "Miss Subways of '41, Meet Miss Subways of '71" (PDF). The New York Times. Retrieved April 23, 2013.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Geist, William E. (October 15, 1983). "Subway queens of old to gather for reunion". The New York Times. Retrieved April 22, 2013.
  5. ^ "James J. Kriegsmann; Theatrical Photographer, 85". The New York Times. May 1, 1994. Retrieved April 22, 2013.
  6. ^ a b c Ramirez, Anthony (October 26, 2004). "After a 28-Year Hiatus, Miss (er, Ms.) Subways Is Back". The New York Times. Retrieved October 7, 2011.
  7. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m "... New York City's Miss Subways is 4 Years Old". Life Magazine. April 23, 1945. Retrieved April 21, 2013.
  8. ^ Schwarz, Alan (12 November 2014). . Our Game. Archived from the original on 25 November 2015. Retrieved 24 November 2015.
  9. ^ Johnston, Laurie (August 22, 1983). "New York By Day: Calling all Miss Subways". The New York Times. Retrieved April 23, 2013.
  10. ^ Collins, Glen (December 19, 1979). "Metropolitan Diary" (PDF). The New York Times. Retrieved April 22, 2013.
  11. ^ a b c d e f g Lokting, Britta (October 8, 2019). "Miss Subways Is Back. This Year, a New Wave Rocker Takes the Crown". The New York Times. Retrieved October 8, 2019.
  12. ^ a b c d Bayen, Ann (March 29, 1976). "Token Women". New York Magazine. p. 46. Retrieved October 7, 2011..
  13. ^ "Miss Subways Wins Custody of Her Child" (PDF). Long Island Star-Journal. August 7, 1946. Retrieved April 21, 2013.
  14. ^ a b c d e f "Saw You on the E Train". The New York Times. December 29, 2007. Retrieved April 21, 2013.
  15. ^ a b c d e f g h i "Miss Subways through the years: The iconic NYC beauty queens then and now". New York Daily News. April 19, 2013. Retrieved April 21, 2013.
  16. ^ Neuman, William (March 24, 2007). "A Museum-Quality Car for a Subway Yet Unbuilt". The New York Times. Retrieved April 22, 2013.
  17. ^ "Meet Miss Subways". The New York Times. October 23, 2004. Retrieved April 22, 2013.
  18. ^ "Next Stop, Nostalgia; Watch the Closing Doors". The New York Times. March 14, 1989. Retrieved April 22, 2013.
  19. ^ a b Robertson, Nan (January 18, 1962). "Champagne Hour Flat on Subway" (PDF). The New York Times. Retrieved April 22, 2013.
  20. ^ Klein, Alvin (June 6, 1993), "'On the Town' in Revival at Goodspeed Opera", The New York Times, retrieved October 7, 2011
  21. ^ Van Gelder, Lawrence (April 3, 1996). "Theater Review; Daddy's Miss Subways". The New York Times. Retrieved April 22, 2013.

Further reading

  • "The Miss Subways Reunion", WFUV (audio)
  • "Saw You On The E Train", Fiona Gardner and Amy Zimmer, The New York Times, December 29, 2007 (photo essay)

miss, subways, title, accorded, individual, york, city, women, between, 1941, 1976, woman, time, appeared, posters, placed, york, city, subway, trains, along, with, brief, description, 1957, estimated, that, million, people, viewed, daily, using, placards, wit. Miss Subways was a title accorded to individual New York City women between 1941 and 1976 The woman who was Miss Subways at any one time appeared on posters placed on New York City Subway trains along with a brief description of her In 1957 it was estimated that 5 9 million people viewed Miss Subways daily using 14 000 placards within trains 1 The program was run by the New York Subways Advertising Company 2 Around 200 women held the title during the program s run An advertisement for Miss Subways at the New York Transit Museum Contents 1 Selection 2 Significance 3 Revival of Miss Subways 4 List of Miss Subways title holders 5 In popular culture 6 References 7 Further readingSelection Edit Mona Freeman Miss Subways of May 1941 on TV with Cliff Robertson 20 years later The method of selecting Miss Subways varied over time typically taking the form of a beauty contest with the general rule that to be eligible a woman had to be a New York City resident and herself use the subway John Robert Powers the head of the modeling agency selected the winners until 1961 or 1962 and later for some years winners were chosen by the contest organizers 3 Before 1952 there were monthly selections of Miss Subways From 1952 to 1957 candidates were picked every two months 1 Although Mr Powers once picked seven winners to reign side by side in the subway 1 By 1957 they were all hand picked based on how much they exuded a girl next door quality All Miss Subways have one thing in common They look or are supposed to look like the girl next door About 400 wholesome young things enter each of the three yearly contests The winners are picked by John Robert Powers model agency millionaire Mr Powers says he wants no glamour gal types or hand painted masterpieces Professional models actresses and entertainers are taboo Anyone else over 17 may enter The Miss Subways have been secretaries service women nurses sales girls and receptionists 1 John Robert Powers was no longer involved in selection by 1963 when the contest changed to public vote by post card The first winner of the public vote was Ann Napolitano who was an executive secretary at the advertising agency Doyle Dane amp Bernbach The New York Subways Advertising Company redirected the contest to reflect the girl who works what New York City is all about 3 Winners were given bracelets with gold plated later silver plated subway tokens 4 Spaulding commented in 1971 that Prettiness per se is passe It s personality and interest pursuits that count and described how each contest attracts between 300 and 400 entries submitted by family friends and colleagues About 30 are selected for a personal interview to judge personality and make certain that the submitted picture is a good likeness Most of the winners have been stenographers clerks receptionists and some have been teachers and stewardesses 3 Subsequent to the postcard system winners were usually chosen by telephone based voting from among a group of nominees whose photos were all placed on the subways Title holders were photographed by photographers such as James J Kriegsmann who specialized in pictures of stage and screen stars but he also photographed ordinary people including the women who appeared in the Miss Subways promotion for more than 30 years 5 In 2004 the Metropolitan Transportation Authority in conjunction with the New York Post brought back the program now named Ms Subways for one year only A voting contest was held to determine the winner Caroline Sanchez Bernat an actress 6 Posters of Ms Subways appeared with subway safety tips instead of biographical notes Significance EditMiss Subways began as a way for the John Robert Powers Agency to promote his models and for the New York Subways Advertising Company to increase eye traffic for the adjoining advertisements 4 The contest provided the main plot device of Leonard Bernstein s 1944 musical On The Town in which a smitten sailor on leave searched for Miss Turnstiles 4 By 1945 the four year anniversary of the contest was commemorated nationally in Life Magazine 7 Unlike Miss America these queens represented the full spectrum of their constituency mainly Irish Italian Latina and Jewish The first black winner reigned on the trains in 1947 36 years before a black Miss America the first Asian in 1949 2 Thelma Potter who was studying at Brooklyn College at the time was the first black Miss Subways Potter stated It was progressive It stirred things up a bit 4 The New York Subway Advertising Company was owned by Walter O Malley who moved the Brooklyn Dodgers to Los Angeles in 1958 8 Bernard Spaulding the sales director for the New York Subways Advertising Company said in 1971 that it was a World War II pinup phenomenon and then lost social significance 9 Miss Subways was of mythic significance to many with Mayor Ed Koch saying in 1979 Even now I can sit in the subway and look up at the ads and close my eyes and there s Miss Subways he said She wasn t the most beautiful girl in the world but she was ours She was our own Miss America 10 In 1983 when there were public calls for the contest to continue a Metropolitan Transportation Authority representative stated that it would be irrelevant and socially unacceptable and thus not viable to restart Miss Subways 4 Tn 2004 journalist Melanie Bush commented The posters were also covertly feminist sometimes shockingly so even to Bush a child of the 70s From the first Mona Freeman wants to be a top notch freelance illustrator to the last Heidi Hafner Her goal a flight instructor s rating they focused on women s ambitions and in the 1940s or the 70s or 2000s that s a rare rose to find clamped in the teeth of mass advertising Yet there it was and there it more or less firmly remained probably because the contest was structured during World War II when more than three million women were offered paying work for the first time and were thus riding the subways not to mention operating them in much greater numbers than before The posters were at their most radical during the war years and equally reflect women s later return to the home Miss Subways journey tracks a clear underground parallel to the prescribed roles of her sisters above While the civilian women of World War II may have been crucial to the work force the purpose of housewives as Betty Friedan puts it is to buy more things for the house From the exhilarating peak of December 1942 s Marguerite McAuliffe whose aim is to be a doctor as good as her dad and November 1943 s Cecile Woodley whose main interests are her job and the Navy enthusiastically O K s skiing Mozart and Katharine Hepburn we slide submissively toward Irene Scheidt June 1950 whose fondest hope is a trip to Bermuda Then up we go again to Eleanor Nash November 1960 young beautiful and expert with a rifle What I waited for each new month was What did she do What were her goals The Miss Subways I wanted to be was the airplane pilot Or how about travel writer Scientist Surgeon Maybe next month she d plan to be an astronaut Or president What was actually going on here I saw was women real New York women talking to each other about their intentions and transmitting these messages through the medium of some men s advertising campaign 2 Ellen Hart Sturm owner of the New York diner Ellen s Stardust Diner was Miss Subways in 1959 her diner features photos of many past Miss Subways on the walls Revival of Miss Subways EditIn 2017 the Miss Subways Pageant was resurrected produced by The City Reliquary where the event was held The judges including Roger Clark reporter for NY1 awarded the title sash and crown to Lisa Levy who participated on a platform of being a postmenopausal queen Miss Congeniality an addition to the original pageant was taken by Suzie Sims Fletcher The following year 2018 saw the addition of The Riders Alliance as an organizer of the event which moved to Littlefield where it returned in 2019 11 List of Miss Subways title holders EditTerm started Term ended Name Notes1 April 1941 30 April 19411 May 1941 31 May 1941 Mona Freeman 12 the second Miss Subways 7 1 June 1941 30 June 19411 July 1941 31 July 19411 August 1941 31 August 19411 September 1941 30 September 19411 October 1941 31 October 1941 Helen Borgia two title holders for October 1941 second unknown 7 1 November 1941 30 November 1941 Muriel Schott aka Suzanne Saunders 7 1 December 1941 31 December 1941 Ruth Ericsson 12 1942 Rita Ryan Mrs Brunel 13 1 February 1942 28 February 19421 March 1942 31 March 1942 Elaine Kusins 7 1 April 1942 30 April 19421 May 1942 31 May 19421 June 1942 30 June 1942 Dorothea Mate Mrs Michael 14 1 July 1942 31 July 19421 August 1942 31 August 1942 Rosemary Gregory 7 1 September 1942 30 September 1942 Evelyn Clark1 October 1942 31 October 19421 November 1942 30 November 1942 Cecile Woodley main interests are her job and the Navy enthusiastically O K s skiing Mozart and Katharine Hepburn 2 1 December 1942 31 December 1942 Marguerite McAuliffe whose aim is to be a doctor as good as her dad 2 1 January 1943 31 January 19431 February 1943 28 February 1943 Connie Sameth1 March 1943 31 March 1943 Vita Monterosso1 April 1943 30 April 19431 May 1943 30 May 19431 June 1943 30 June 1943 Evelyn Friedman 7 1 July 1943 31 July 19431 August 1943 30 August 1943 Tera Kathryn Davis 7 1 September 1943 30 September 19431 October 1943 31 October 19431 November 1943 30 November 19431 December 1943 31 December 19431944 Helen Mazley Kenny 1 1 February 1944 28 February 1944 Joan Cashman1 March 1944 31 March 1944 Eileen Henry 7 1 April 1944 30 April 1944 Joan Vohs 1 1 May 1944 31 May 1944 Dawna Clawson Doris Clawson Dorothy Clawson1 June 1944 30 June 1944 Winifred McAleer 15 1 July 1944 30 July 1944 Peggy Healy 7 1 August 1944 31 August 1944 Mary Radchuck 7 1 September 1944 30 September 19441 October 1944 31 October 19441 November 1944 30 November 19441 December 1944 31 December 19441 January 1945 31 January 19451 February 1945 28 February 19451 March 1945 31 March 19451 April 1945 30 April 1945 Rita Cuddy 7 Aug 6 1923 Oct 18 2003 1 May 1945 31 May 19451 June 1945 30 June 19451 July 1945 31 July 19451 August 1945 31 August 19451 September 1945 30 September 19451 October 1945 31 October 19451 November 1945 30 November 19451 December 1945 31 December 19451 January 1946 31 January 19461 February 1946 28 February 19461 March 1946 31 March 19461 April 1946 30 April 19461 May 1946 31 May 19461 June 1946 30 June 19461 July 1946 31 July 1946 Enid Berkowitz 15 1 August 1946 31 August 19461 September 1946 30 September 19461 October 1946 31 October 19461 November 1946 30 November 1946 Kay Landing1 December 1946 31 December 19461 January 1947 31 January 19471 February 1947 28 February 19471 March 1947 31 March 19471 April 1947 30 April 19471 May 1947 31 May 19471 June 1947 30 June 19471 July 1947 31 July 19471 August 1947 31 August 19471 September 1947 30 September 19471 October 1947 31 October 1947 Merry Condon1 November 1947 30 November 19471 December 1947 31 December 1947 Gene Farley1 January 1948 31 January 19481 February 1948 28 February 19481 March 1948 31 March 19481 April 1948 30 April 1948 Thelma Porter1 May 1948 31 May 19481 June 1948 30 June 19481 July 1948 31 July 19481 August 1948 31 August 19481 September 1948 30 September 19481 October 1948 31 October 19481 November 1948 30 November 19481 December 1948 31 December 19481949 Elaine Levine 16 1 February 1949 28 February 19491 March 1949 31 March 1949 Dorothy Nolan1 April 1949 30 April 19491 May 1949 31 May 19491 June 1949 30 June 19491 July 1949 31 July 19491 August 1949 31 August 19491 September 1949 30 September 19491 October 1949 31 October 19491 November 1949 30 November 1949 Helen Lee1 December 1949 31 December 1949194 Patricia Burke Miss Subways 17 1950 Margie Marra 18 28 F 1 February 1950 February 1950 Saralee Singer 14 1 March 1950 31 March 1950 Angela Vorsteg Norris1 April 1950 30 April 19501 May 1950 31 May 19501 June 1950 30 June 1950 Irene Scheidt fondest hope is a trip to Bermuda 2 1 July 1950 31 July 19501 August 1950 31 August 19501 September 1950 30 September 19501 October 1950 31 October 19501 November 1950 31 November 19501 December 1950 31 December 19501 January 1951 31 January 1951 Yolanda Revson 12 the first Latin descent Miss Subways 7 1 February 1951 28 February 19511 March 1951 31 March 19511 April 1951 30 April 19511 May 1951 31 May 19511 June 1951 30 June 19511 July 1951 31 July 19511 August 1951 31 August 19511 September 1951 30 September 1951 Jean Hagen1 October 1951 31 October 1951 Jean Hagen1 November 1951 30 November 19511 December 1951 31 December 19511 January 1952 28 February 19521 March 1952 30 April 1952 Peggy Byrne 15 1 May 1952 30 June 19521 July 1952 31 August 19521 September 1952 31 October 19521 November 1952 31 December 19521 January 1953 28 February 19531 March 1953 30 April 1952 Yolanda Revson 15 1 May 1953 30 June 1953 Mary Gardiner 15 1 July 1953 31 August 19531 September 1953 31 October 19531 November 1953 31 December 19531 January 1954 28 February 19541 March 1954 30 April 19541 May 1954 30 June 1954 Juliette Rose Lee1 July 1954 31 August 19541 September 1954 31 October 19541 November 1954 31 December 19541955 1955 Phyllis Johnson 15 1 March 1955 30 April 19551 May 1955 30 June 19551 July 1955 31 August 19551 September 1955 31 October 19551 November 1955 31 December 1955 Marie Leonard 1 1 January 1956 28 February 19561 March 1956 30 April 19561 May 1956 30 June 19561 July 1956 31 August 19561 September 1956 31 October 19561 November 1956 31 December 1956 Doris MermelBefore 1957 Terry Flannigan 1 Before 1957 Jean Grogan 1 Before 1957 Nancy Seris 1 1 January 1957 28 February 19571 March 1957 30 April 19571 May 1957 30 June 19571 July 1957 31 August 19571 September 1957 31 October 19571 November 1957 31 December 19571958 Kathryn Keeler Mary Keeler 6 1 March 1958 30 April 1958 Eleanor Galanis1 January 1959 28 February 19591 March 1959 30 April 1959 Ellen Hart 15 1 May 1959 30 June 19591 July 1959 31 August 19591 September 1959 31 October 19591 November 1959 31 December 19591 January 1960 28 February 19601 March 1960 30 April 19601 May 1960 30 June 19601 July 1960 31 August 19601 September 1960 31 October 19601 November 1960 31 December 1960 Eleanor Nash young beautiful and expert with a rifle 2 1 January 1961 28 February 1961 Dolores MitchellBefore 1962 Kathy Dempsey 19 1 March 1961 30 April 19611 May 1961 30 June 19611 July 1961 31 August 19611 September 1961 31 October 19611 November 1961 31 December 19611 January 1962 28 February 1962 Evelyn Tasch 19 1962 1962 Sally Pishney 15 1 March 1962 31 April 19621 September 1963 30 September 1963 Carole Nealon 15 1 January 1964 31 March 1964 Sanora Selsey1965 Judith Marshall 3 1966 Carol Price 3 1 December 1967 31 January 1968 Neddy Garde 14 1 February 1968 31 August 1968 Maureen Walsh 14 1 January 1971 30 June 1971 Patricia Shilling 3 1 January 1971 30 June 1971 Linda Heilbronn 3 1 May 1974 31 July 1974 Sonia Dominguez 14 31 October 1974 May 1975 Marcia Kilpatrick1 April 1975 31 October 1975 Ayana Lawson 14 Before 1976 Josephine Lazzaro 4 Before 1976 Donna Demarta 4 Before 1976 Barbara Peer 4 winner was mugged on the subway 4 1976 last Heide Hafner 4 2004 honorary Caroline Sanchez Bernat 6 2017 Lisa Levy 11 Suzie Sims Fletcher Miss Congeniality 11 2018 Parker MacLure 11 Charlie Battersby Miss Congeniality 11 2019 Dylan Greenberg 11 Traci Cappiello Miss Congeniality 11 In popular culture EditIn the 1944 musical On the Town one of the main characters falls in love with Miss Turnstiles after seeing her picture on the subway Lyricist Betty Comden later claimed that the musical influenced the contest s selection process to include more diverse contestants due to the casting of the half Japanese Sono Osato as Miss Turnstiles in the original production 12 20 Lawrence Ferlinghetti s poetry collection A Coney Island of the Mind contains a poem entitled Meet Miss Subways Donald Sosin s 1972 song cycle Third Rail includes the entire text of a Miss Subways poster but with the name of the girl and her school changed at her request Cher s 1974 album Dark Lady featured the comedic song Miss Subway of 1952 written by Mary F Cain about a once beautiful woman who has not aged gracefully In the 1996 The Nanny episode Tattoo Season 4 episode 9 Fran claims to have won the Miss Subways title In 1996 Marga Gomez debuted a show called A Line Around the Block in which a character says You re Miss America No better than that Miss Subways 21 The 2018 historical fiction novel The Subway Girls St Martin s Press by Susie Orman Schnall is a dual timeline story of a 1949 Miss Subways contestant and a modern day female advertising executive In the 2018 novel Miss Subways ISBN 978 0 37421 040 3 Macmillan Publishers writer and actor David Duchovny re imagines Miss Subways as Emer a New York City teacher whose world intersects with mythical figures in her quest for love References Edit a b c d e f g h i j Robertson Nan February 18 1957 Miss Subways Reigns Persephone to 5 Million The New York Times Retrieved April 23 2013 a b c d e f g Bush Melanie October 24 2004 Miss Subways Subversive and Sublime The New York Times Retrieved October 7 2011 a b c d e f g Nemy Enid December 8 1971 Miss Subways of 41 Meet Miss Subways of 71 PDF The New York Times Retrieved April 23 2013 a b c d e f g h i j Geist William E October 15 1983 Subway queens of old to gather for reunion The New York Times Retrieved April 22 2013 James J Kriegsmann Theatrical Photographer 85 The New York Times May 1 1994 Retrieved April 22 2013 a b c Ramirez Anthony October 26 2004 After a 28 Year Hiatus Miss er Ms Subways Is Back The New York Times Retrieved October 7 2011 a b c d e f g h i j k l m New York City s Miss Subways is 4 Years Old Life Magazine April 23 1945 Retrieved April 21 2013 Schwarz Alan 12 November 2014 Baseball s 100 Most Important People Part 3 Our Game Archived from the original on 25 November 2015 Retrieved 24 November 2015 Johnston Laurie August 22 1983 New York By Day Calling all Miss Subways The New York Times Retrieved April 23 2013 Collins Glen December 19 1979 Metropolitan Diary PDF The New York Times Retrieved April 22 2013 a b c d e f g Lokting Britta October 8 2019 Miss Subways Is Back This Year a New Wave Rocker Takes the Crown The New York Times Retrieved October 8 2019 a b c d Bayen Ann March 29 1976 Token Women New York Magazine p 46 Retrieved October 7 2011 Miss Subways Wins Custody of Her Child PDF Long Island Star Journal August 7 1946 Retrieved April 21 2013 a b c d e f Saw You on the E Train The New York Times December 29 2007 Retrieved April 21 2013 a b c d e f g h i Miss Subways through the years The iconic NYC beauty queens then and now New York Daily News April 19 2013 Retrieved April 21 2013 Neuman William March 24 2007 A Museum Quality Car for a Subway Yet Unbuilt The New York Times Retrieved April 22 2013 Meet Miss Subways The New York Times October 23 2004 Retrieved April 22 2013 Next Stop Nostalgia Watch the Closing Doors The New York Times March 14 1989 Retrieved April 22 2013 a b Robertson Nan January 18 1962 Champagne Hour Flat on Subway PDF The New York Times Retrieved April 22 2013 Klein Alvin June 6 1993 On the Town in Revival at Goodspeed Opera The New York Times retrieved October 7 2011 Van Gelder Lawrence April 3 1996 Theater Review Daddy s Miss Subways The New York Times Retrieved April 22 2013 Further reading Edit The Miss Subways Reunion WFUV audio Saw You On The E Train Fiona Gardner and Amy Zimmer The New York Times December 29 2007 photo essay Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Miss Subways amp oldid 1080931970, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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