Tara Conner Crowns a Tennessean Successor

Tara Conner eventually did have to give up her crown, but at least when the moment finally came she got to do it with style and grace. 

Rachel Smith of Clarksville, Tennessee, was named Miss USA 2007 Friday night, taking on the title after a year that has been notoriously eventful for Donald Trump's Miss Universe Organization.  

"It has been the most unforgettable year of my life and I'm back and better than ever," Conner told the crowd gathered at Hollywood's Kodak Theatre. The 56th annual Miss USA ceremony opened with a montage of interviews and news clips running through her recent travails.  

For the Texas-born and Kentucky-raised Conner, 2006-07 featured not only the insta-recognition and glory that comes from winning a high-profile event in front of a national television audience, but also the pitfalls that can accompany a sudden ascent into the limelight.  

The 21-year-old beauty queen was called out in December after stories arose of her incessant, underage partying, nights out on the town that also reportedly included Miss Teen USA Katie Blair (she kept her crown, too) and many bottles of booze.  

After Trump deigned to give her a chance to redeem herself, Conner checked into a Pennsylvania rehab facility and, eventually, came to terms with the alcoholism and penchant for addiction she has struggled with since her teens. 

"[It was] the worst time for that to happen, but in the same sense, it was the best time for all of this to happen," Conner, 78-days sober, told Kentucky's Herald-Ledger last month. "It made me truly appreciate the little things in life, made me truly appreciate my job and the role in this society. It humbled me a lot. It taught me how to be honest. It taught me to be the genuine Tara. I didn't know who she was." 

So, with that, we wish Conner the best of luck and Miss USA 2007 a comparatively uneventful year in the spotlight.  

Fifty-one young lovelies (all 50 states, plus Washington D.C.) turned out to strut their stuff Friday in front of hosts Nancy O'Dell and Tim Vincent from Access Hollywood and six celebrity judges.  

Tapped for duty this year were E! News anchor Giuliana DePandi, MTV veejay Vanessa Minnillo, Jerry Springer, fashion designer Kimora Lee Simmons, Blow Out star Jonathan Antin and Los Angeles Lakers owner Jerry Buss. (E! Online is also owned by E! Networks.) 

Fifteen women survived the first cut before having to don swimwear and evening gowns for, well, the swimwear and evening gown portions of the competition. 

Then there was a top 10. And then there were five—Meagan Yvonne Tandy of California, Cara Renee Gorges of Kansas, Helen Salas of Nevada, Rachel Smith of Tennessee and Danielle Lacourse of Rhode Island. 

Meanwhile, Miss Alabama, Rebecca Moore, was deemed Miss Photogenic and Miss Montana, Stephanie Ann Trudeau, followed in Sandra Bullock's footsteps and was named Miss Congeniality. 

But in the end, the diamond-and-pearl-encrusted crown, worth approximately $200,000, was handed over to Smith, a 21-year-old journalism graduate of Belmont University, who is now eligible to compete in the Miss Universe Pageant and will almost immediately embark on a year-long series of travel, charity events and public-speaking appearances, mainly as an advocate for breast and ovarian cancer awareness, education, research and legislation. 

Smith will also be handed the keys to a complimentary apartment in the swank Trump Towers, as well as a two-year scholarship from the New York Film Academy, a $17,500 official Miss USA tiara, a custom wardrobe designed by Tadashi and a lengthy list of other fantasy items. A brand-new designer shoe collection, anyone?