Remember when the Miss America Pageant was a major event on the national television candle? The folks at TLC want it to be that kind of show again.

If you were born anywhere around the late 80s, you probably don't. But, throughout the 50s into the 80s, the annual televised event was more than just entertainment. It was news. And the winner, whether it was Lee Meriweather, Phyllis George or Vanessa Williams, had a shot at becoming a major celebrity.

But now? Name the current Miss America. Quickly. Don't look it up. Name last year's winner. Name any of the last five. Case closed. While it was once a proud contest/variety show, Miss America show is now overshadowed by other "rags to riches" battles like American Idol, America's Got Talent, etc. To get Miss America back on the pop culture map, the show's producers are mixing up the judges with a surreal mix of faces from through the media.

Jerry Springer and Mel B will host the 2008 Miss Universe Pageant live from Vietnam. Both Springer and the former "Scary Spice" are excited about the pageant. Mel B, former contestant on Dancing with the Stars, exclaims, "I'm thrilled to be a co-host of the Miss Universe Pageant. I believe the diversity and dedication that the pageant brings inspires and empowers young women across the globe." Springer, host of the hit summer show America's Got Talent, is also happy to take on the hosting duties. He says, ""This is obviously a great honor and getting to work alongside Mel B makes it even better."

The competition will feature contestants from eighty countries. Each pageant hopeful will be judged on three categories: swimsuit (the eye-candy category), evening gown (the shameless endorsement category) , and interview (the "We swear, we didn't just want to see them in swimsuits." category). Last year's winner Riyo Mori of Japan will be on hand to crown this year's Miss Universe.

The Miss Universe Pageant will air on July 13th at 9:00 p.m. ET on NBC (and simulcast on Telemundo).

As I was surfing the web this morning, I came upon a casting call for The CW's Crowned: The Mother of All Pageants. Even if this reality competition is not the best reality TV show on the block, it seems that The CW thinks it did good enough to potentially grant Crowned a second season. Then again, maybe the pageant show will get a second chance only because The CW is running out of new episodes for its scripted shows.

In the latest twist on reality competitions, The CW presents Crowned: The Mother of All Pageants, in which mothers and daughters compete as pairs for a top prize of $100,000. The show premieres Wednesday, December 12, 9/8c. Let me preface by saying that I have enjoyed such twisted programming as Joe Millionaire and The Swan, so was hopeful that I could find something to appreciate here. While it has potential, and I do have favorite contestants already, this first episode has some serious problems.

I can only hope that more editing will be done before the final cut makes it to air as there was a likely unintentional but glaringly racial imbalance in the introduction of the teams. Not to mention painfully obvious attempts to fake tension and drama where there really isn't any. Things might grow more intense as egos clash, but for now things are fairly bland. Even the first challenge was boring. They really needed to step it up to try and encourage viewers to stick around for the entire eight week run, and I don't think they did. More and minor spoilers after the jump.

Miss America is no longer homeless. The long-running pageant has found a new home on TLC, of all places, for the next three years. It's the first big programming move for TLC's new president and general manager, Angela Shapiro-Mathes. The pageant was at CMT for the last few years after ABC dropped it, but its ratings have been dismal.

TLC is giving the pageant its own treatment. The cable network is the king of the unscripted show, so it's creating a reality series about all 52 contestants as they prepare for the pageant.

If Miss America is going to survive on television (and I'm not saying it should), this TLC plan may be the only way it can happen. Ratings over the past few years have shown that Americans just aren't interested in beauty pageants. But, humanizing these women (and understanding why they do this?!?) could be enough to generate interest to see who wins the pageant.

Well, sort of. They're not getting rid of the actual live pageant, which will air again on CMT in 2007. This time however, the contestants will also take place in a seven part reality series which will lead up to the pageant. The way it sounds, the reality series will utilize many of the same methods of elimination as the actual pageant as the girls live together and take place in swimsuit competitions, judge interviews, and various talent contests. Home viewers will also be able to vote for the remaining finalists.

I'm not a fan of reality TV, nor do I care all that much about the Miss America pageant, but this idea just might work. The pageant has been losing its audience for several years, and turning it into the kind of calculated human drama that is the stuff of so many reality shows may actually garner the audience it needs. Or, it could be a total failure. I'm sure it will be one of those things.

I think I know who is going to be named Oklahoman of the year next December. Miss Oklahoma, known to her friends as Jennifer Berry, was crowned Miss America Saturday night in Las Vegas. Berry is a 22-year-old student at the University of Oklahoma. Her talent was ballet and her cause was preventing drunk driving. Berry is a career pageant contestant. She competed in the Miss Oklahoma contest four times before finally winning last year.

First runner-up was Miss Georgia and second runner-up was Miss Alabama. Also in the top five were Miss District of Columbia and Miss Virginia.