Beauty queen stripped of Miss USA crown over hidden husband, kids gets unexpected spotlight decades later

Justus Kelley, the first married woman and mother to win Miss USA, has honoured Mary Leona Gage, who was stripped of the crown in 1957 after officials discovered she was married with two children. Kelley wore a coat bearing Gage’s image as she travelled to represent the United States at Miss Universe, drawing attention to how pageant rules and social attitudes have changed.

Gage, who represented Maryland, had married at 14 and had her second child at 16; she had also given officials a false age. Disqualified about 24 hours after winning, she received hate mail and could not continue in the international contest, where she had reached the 15 semifinalists. Miss USA began allowing married women and mothers to compete in 2023; Kelley, a 31-year-old foster mother and founder of Foster Footprints, won the 75th edition in August.