ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. — The executive chairman of the Miss America pageant has apologized to Vanessa Williams for the way the pageant’s predecessors handled a nude photo flap involving her in 1984.
Sam Haskell apologized to Vanessa Williams during Sunday night’s nationally televised Miss America pageant for the way his predecessors handled the controversy involving nude photos of Ms. Williams that were published in Penthouse several months after she became the first black Miss America.
Ms. Williams resigned the title in 1984.
Mr. Haskell, who was not involved with the pageant at the time, said, “I want to apologize for anything that was said or done” during the photo scandal.
Ms. Williams, who went on to become a famous stage and TV actress, says she “did the best I could” during the scandal.
The photos — taken when she was a teen and depicting her engaging in sex acts with another woman — were an embarrassment to Ms. Williams and her family, as well as the pageant, which seeks to elevate women based on their talent, education and leadership skills.
She relinquished her crown to the first runner-up, Suzette Charles.
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