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Our History

THE MISS TEEN ALL AMERICAN PAGEANT

In the late 1970's, three very special pageant producers joined their talents to create the Miss Teen All American Pageant. The late Sid Sussman, Marie Sweeney, and Frank Sweeney made the decision to create a new event that would emphasize poise, personality and God-given beauty. There would be no performing talent requirement so that almost every young woman could participate, if she so chose.

The Miss Teen All American Pageant would be unique because contestants in many cases would represent population centers rather than state boundaries. The pageant would be truly enjoyable for the teens, affordable for the parents and well-organized. The Florida sun would always be a major part of the event.

The first Miss Teen All American Pageant was held at the Konover Hotel on Miami Beach in the fall of 1978. The very first winner, Miss Teen All American of 1979 was Tonja Walker, of Maryland. She has become a very successful television and motion picture actress and now heads her own film production firm.

After more than three decades, the pageant has met every promise and more than tripled in size which is a tribute to the quality of the entrants. The venue has always been South Florida. In the fall of 1983 the Pageant moved to the Sheraton Bal Harbor, and in the Summer of 1991 The Miss Teen All American Pageant took up residence at the Hilton Miami Airport.

After a brief hiatus, 2008 brought about a time of transition and a move to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Frank Sweeney, pageant chairman, announced that Fred Wright of MTAA LLC would become the president and CEO of Miss Teen All American. Sweeney remains as chairman of the board. Fred has a rich pageant history spanning nearly two decades with both the Miss USA and Mrs. America pageant systems in state level operations.

The success of Oscar-winner Halle Berry and many other Teen All American winners and contestants only added to the luster of the pageant over the years, which has grown to become the premier pageant for young women in North America. In commenting on the new beginning, Mr. Wright said “We will continue the tradition of pure pageantry and the hallmark of excellence that has been the Teen All American tradition since 1978.””