Henrietta Leaver
Encyclopedia
Henrietta Leaver Miss Pittsburgh, was crowned Miss America
on September 7, 1935 at Atlantic City, New Jersey
. She was 19 years old.
near Pittsburgh
, was announced, from among the field of 55 entrants, as Miss America 1935.
The unassuming beauty queen representing Pittsburgh had dropped out of high school at age 16 to assist her single-parent family financially during the depression, working at the Five and Ten in McKeesport. She had, however, lost that job many months prior to entering her local contest and had no expectations of becoming a movie star or finding a rich husband due to her scheduled appearance at the Atlantic City pageant. She simply wanted a steady job. Shortly after being crowned it was announced that Leaver had been offered two screen tests.
Two months after her victory, Leaver found herself in a battle with Pittsburgh sculptor Frank Vittor
- a sculptor famous for his bronze statues of Calvin Coolidge, Woodrow Wilson, Theodore Roosevelt and Abraham Lincoln - when she discovered that the life-size clay statue she had posed for in a bathing suit depicted her fully nude. Though reference to the art being exhibited is lacking, other than appearing in the newspaper sometime in November that same year, Leaver and her manager met with Vittor and rejected any form of contract and refused her approval that the statue be publicly shown.
Feeling the work should be draped, she lost her opinion battle when a group of seven artists declared that the statue was not suggestive or vulgar. Not satisfied, Leaver then requested that people her own age view and comment upon the statue and 60 students, many from art classes, upheld the verdict of the artists; that there should be no veil or draping covering the nude work of art. There is mention that the clay statue was planned to be bronzed, however there is no evidence that this ever occurred.
Continuing in her modest ways, Leaver turned down a role offered her by Broadway
producer Earl Carroll
of Murder at the Vanities
fame, as she would have been scantily clad while performing on stage.
During her time on the West Coast Leaver won another crown, “Miss Model America of 1936,” a contest for models representing department stores around the country. Along with another trophy, she received a screen contract and was cast to appear in the musical motion picture “Star Struck.” She had only one other movie audition and did not again appear on the big screen.
In the late 1930s Leaver had been contacted by Columbia Pictures
requesting the release of photographic images of her taken during her short stint in Hollywood, when she had been at 20th Century Fox
, during her year serving as Miss America. Although she could never prove it, Leaver, who had been paid $250 for the photos, was convinced that the striking image atop Columbia’s logo was modeled after her photographs and her nude statue. There have been other reports of women having posed or being used for the Columbia Pictures torch-bearing lady.
Years later, discussion of Leaver’s controversial nude statue would return to prominence when Vanessa Williams
lost her Miss America title, by comparing Leaver not being invited back to crown her successor as she had “posed for a nude statue” – despite wearing a bathing suit while posing, with her grandmother present and with no knowledge that the artwork would display her naked.
Leaver later, in 1948, married John Thomason of Columbus, OH. There is mention she had lost two husbands by death, and that in 1983 she had been married to her fourth husband, Ed Mider, for 11 years.
Leaver died of cancer in 1993, survived by two daughters, a sister, and five grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
Miss America
The Miss America pageant is a long-standing competition which awards scholarships to young women from the 50 states plus the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands...
on September 7, 1935 at Atlantic City, New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
. She was 19 years old.
Public Life
Following a one-year hiatus in the national competition, and only the second pageant since 1927, Henrietta Leaver from McKeesport, PennsylvaniaMcKeesport, Pennsylvania
McKeesport is a city in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, in the United States; it is located at the confluence of the Monongahela and Youghiogheny rivers and is part of the Pittsburgh Metro Area. The population was 19,731 at the 2010 census...
near Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh is the second-largest city in the US Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Allegheny County. Regionally, it anchors the largest urban area of Appalachia and the Ohio River Valley, and nationally, it is the 22nd-largest urban area in the United States...
, was announced, from among the field of 55 entrants, as Miss America 1935.
The unassuming beauty queen representing Pittsburgh had dropped out of high school at age 16 to assist her single-parent family financially during the depression, working at the Five and Ten in McKeesport. She had, however, lost that job many months prior to entering her local contest and had no expectations of becoming a movie star or finding a rich husband due to her scheduled appearance at the Atlantic City pageant. She simply wanted a steady job. Shortly after being crowned it was announced that Leaver had been offered two screen tests.
Two months after her victory, Leaver found herself in a battle with Pittsburgh sculptor Frank Vittor
Frank Vittor
Frank Vittor was an American sculptor, known for his "preference for the heroic and colossal" - Early life :...
- a sculptor famous for his bronze statues of Calvin Coolidge, Woodrow Wilson, Theodore Roosevelt and Abraham Lincoln - when she discovered that the life-size clay statue she had posed for in a bathing suit depicted her fully nude. Though reference to the art being exhibited is lacking, other than appearing in the newspaper sometime in November that same year, Leaver and her manager met with Vittor and rejected any form of contract and refused her approval that the statue be publicly shown.
Feeling the work should be draped, she lost her opinion battle when a group of seven artists declared that the statue was not suggestive or vulgar. Not satisfied, Leaver then requested that people her own age view and comment upon the statue and 60 students, many from art classes, upheld the verdict of the artists; that there should be no veil or draping covering the nude work of art. There is mention that the clay statue was planned to be bronzed, however there is no evidence that this ever occurred.
Continuing in her modest ways, Leaver turned down a role offered her by Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
producer Earl Carroll
Earl Carroll
Earl Carroll was an American theatrical producer, director, songwriter and composer born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.-Career:...
of Murder at the Vanities
Murder at the Vanities
Murder at the Vanities is a musical film based on the 1933 Broadway musical with music by Victor Young, made in the pre-Code era, and released by Paramount Pictures. It was directed by Mitchell Leisen, stars Carl Brisson, Jack Oakie, Kitty Carlisle, Gertrude Michael, Toby Wing, and Jessie Ralph...
fame, as she would have been scantily clad while performing on stage.
During her time on the West Coast Leaver won another crown, “Miss Model America of 1936,” a contest for models representing department stores around the country. Along with another trophy, she received a screen contract and was cast to appear in the musical motion picture “Star Struck.” She had only one other movie audition and did not again appear on the big screen.
In the late 1930s Leaver had been contacted by Columbia Pictures
Columbia Pictures
Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. is an American film production and distribution company. Columbia Pictures now forms part of the Columbia TriStar Motion Picture Group, owned by Sony Pictures Entertainment, a subsidiary of the Japanese conglomerate Sony. It is one of the leading film companies...
requesting the release of photographic images of her taken during her short stint in Hollywood, when she had been at 20th Century Fox
20th Century Fox
Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation — also known as 20th Century Fox, or simply 20th or Fox — is one of the six major American film studios...
, during her year serving as Miss America. Although she could never prove it, Leaver, who had been paid $250 for the photos, was convinced that the striking image atop Columbia’s logo was modeled after her photographs and her nude statue. There have been other reports of women having posed or being used for the Columbia Pictures torch-bearing lady.
Years later, discussion of Leaver’s controversial nude statue would return to prominence when Vanessa Williams
Vanessa L. Williams
Vanessa Lynn Williams is an American pop-R&B recording artist, producer, dancer, model, actress and showgirl. In 1983, she became the first woman of African-American descent to be crowned Miss America, but a scandal generated by her having posed for nude photographs published in Penthouse magazine...
lost her Miss America title, by comparing Leaver not being invited back to crown her successor as she had “posed for a nude statue” – despite wearing a bathing suit while posing, with her grandmother present and with no knowledge that the artwork would display her naked.
Personal life
Well into her reign as Miss America, in July 1936, it was disclosed that Leaver had eloped with her longtime boyfriend, Johnny Mustacchio. The marriage, according to her mother, had taken place two months earlier, on May 28. There exists, however, another report based on a personal interview with Leaver that she had actually secretly married on January 1, 1936, not quite four months into her reign. Her marriage to Mustacchio lasted until 1944 when she filed for divorce.Leaver later, in 1948, married John Thomason of Columbus, OH. There is mention she had lost two husbands by death, and that in 1983 she had been married to her fourth husband, Ed Mider, for 11 years.
Leaver died of cancer in 1993, survived by two daughters, a sister, and five grandchildren and great-grandchildren.