The Ms. Senior America Pageant will be held at Harrah’s Resort Atlantic City the week of Oct. 19-25 (www.senioramerica.org). This pageant is for women who have reached the “Age of Elegance,” 60 years of age. In this pageant, women are judged on their philosophy of life, talent, demeanor in an evening gown and interview with the judges. All of the contestants will participate in a parade on the Atlantic City Boardwalk on Sunday, Oct. 19. It will be reminiscent of the days when the Miss America Pageant, long gone from Atlantic City, had a parade on the Boardwalk. The opening event, a “Welcome to Atlantic City” variety show that is put on by former contestants, will be held on Tuesday, Oct. 21, at 1pm. All of the competition programs will be held at 1pm — Wednesday and Thursday for the preliminaries and Friday for the finals and selection of Ms. Senior America 2008.

 

One of the contestants will make a 1,400-mile trip to Atlantic City in the most unusual fashion. Patricia Eliason Starr, Ms. Nebraska Senior America, will make the jaunt on her bicycle. Starr will leave her native city of Wahoo, Neb., on Sept. 19. She will travel through Kansas, Missouri, Illinois, Kentucky, West Virginia, Virginia and Delaware and into New Jersey, arriving at Harrah’s Resort Atlantic City on Oct. 9. It is most interesting to note that Patricia Eliason’s first appearance in a pageant was in 1957 as a contestant seeking the title of Miss Nebraska in the Miss America Pageant. Unfortunately, she didn’t win that title. However, 51 years later, Patricia Eliason Starr, now 71, reached her goal of being in an Atlantic City pageant, the Ms. Senior America Pageant.

It will take 21 days for Starr to make the trip from Wahoo to Atlantic City. The only time she will not be pedaling her bike on the road, outside of eating and sleeping, is when she takes the ferry from Lewes, Del. to Cape May. Along the way, she will be engaging in interviews and appearances on television talk shows, radio programs and for newspapers. Starr will give a daily report of her progress during her journey at approximately 4:10pm, Monday through Friday, on Pinky’s Corner’s radio show, on WOND 1400am. She intends to arrive at Harrah’s Resort Atlantic City between 2 and 3pm on Oct. 9.

Patricia Eliason Starr’s journey will serve as a vehicle to promote music education in the nation’s public school system. Her immediate goal is to establish a music scholarship in Wahoo Public High School, from which she graduated. Starr is determined to prove that age alone should not be a hindrance when one has a passion and a mission. Cross-country bicycle travel has proven to be an effective way to bring attention to the importance of several issues, including music in young people’s lives. “Exposure to music helps children excel in other disciplines, like math and English, as well as develop a love of for the arts,” says Starr. It helps that she has the inner and physical strength to withstand the rigors of such an undertaking. She has earned the moniker, “The Bicycling Queen.”

Notes of Interest

Good news. This columnist has learned that Pinnacle Entertainment is reconsidering the demolition of the Boardwalk stores between Indiana Avenue and MLK Blvd. near its planned project.

Zack Troupas, who owns much of the property in the 3000 block of the A.C. Boardwalk, will be opening a pub on the corner of Chelsea Avenue at the Boardwalk. It is the type of facility that will entice more people to come down to that section of the Boardwalk. The block is one of the best examples of the success of the Casino Reinvestment Development Authority’s (CRDA) Boardwalk revitalization program. It has provided a total new look to that section of the boards. The CRDA will also change the appearance of the restroom facilities at Chelsea and New York avenues on the Boardwalk.

Greg Kuhlen, who has been the director of entertainment at Trump Plaza, tendered his resignation last week. Kuhlen will be moving to the Seminole Tribe’s Hard Rock Casino Hotel in Hollywood, Fla. He will work as the number-two man in the entertainment division there. The department is headed up by Bernie Dillon, who commutes every weekend to his home in Galloway Township. Jim Allen, president and C.E.O. of Seminole Gaming in Florida, who has a home in Linwood that he frequently visits, continues to bring top Atlantic City executives to his facilities.

One leaves, and another moves up: Bill Schmal. Schmal, who started his casino career years ago heading up the audio/visual department at Trump Castle, has been moved up to the post of Director of Entertainment for the three local Trump properties. Trump Entertainment’s vice president of entertainment, Steve Gietka, will continue to oversee all bookings and the big names that perform in the company’s three local casinos.

This is the last weekend for free Boardwalk entertainment at Kennedy Plaza. The last show in the Chicken Bone Beach jazz concert series is on Thursday, Aug. 28, and the band Kristen & the Noise performs on Friday — both shows take place from 7-9pm. On Sunday, the Doug Murdoch Meistersingers perform from 6:30-8:30pm with a movie to follow. Enjoy!

 

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Pinky’s Corner airs Monday through Friday from 4 to 6pm on News Talk WOND-AM 1400. His TV show, WMGM Presents Pinky, airs Saturday at 7:30pm on TV40.