| Miss USA 2009 | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Miss USA 2009 Kristen Dalton | |
| Date | April 19, 2009 |
| Presenters | |
| Entertainment | |
| Venue | Planet Hollywood Theatre for the Performing Arts, Las Vegas, Nevada |
| Broadcaster | |
| Entrants | 51 |
| Placements | 15 |
| Winner | Kristen Dalton North Carolina |
| Congeniality | Cynthia Pate (Wyoming) |
| Photogenic | Jessi Pierson (West Virginia) |
Miss USA 2009 was the 58th Miss USA pageant, held at the Planet Hollywood Theatre for the Performing Arts in Las Vegas, Nevada on April 19, 2009. At the conclusion of the final night of competition, Kristen Dalton of North Carolina was crowned by outgoing titleholder Crystle Stewart of Texas.
The event was hosted by Billy Bush of Access Hollywood and actress Nadine Velazquez; Bush returned to host the pageant which he last emceed in 2005. He had previously co-hosted Miss USA 2003 with Daisy Fuentes and Miss USA 2004–2005 with Nancy O'Dell. Entertainment was provided by Kevin Rudolf who performed "Let It Rock" during the swimsuit competition and The Veronicas performed "Untouched" during the evening gown competition.[1]
The competition was broadcast in High Definition for only the second time in history.
Delegates representing the fifty states plus the District of Columbia competed in the pageant, and arrived in Las Vegas on April 2.[2] Miss USA Kristen Dalton represented the US at the Miss Universe 2009 pageant, where she reached the Top 10.
Pageants were held from June 2008 to January 2009 to select the representative for each state. During the final show on April 19, the fifteen delegates with the highest average scores from the preliminary competition were announced. The top fifteen competed in the swimsuit competition. The top ten delegates from swimsuit competed in evening gown. The top five delegates from the evening gown competition (not averaged composite scores from both competitions) competed in the final question round to determine the winner. The judges' composite score was shown after each round of competition for only the third time since 2002.
- ^ "'ACCESS HOLLYWOOD' CO-HOST BILLY BUSH AND 'MY NAME IS EARL' STAR NADINE VELAZQUEZ TO HOST THE 2009 MISS USA PAGEANT LIVE FROM LAS VEGAS ON APRIL 19TH" (Press release). Miss Universe Organization. 2009-03-27.
- ^ Associated Press (2009-03-09). "Miss USA pageant plans more than 2 weeks in Vegas". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved 2009-03-09. [dead link]