|
|
|
|
| Birth Name(s) : Tara Conner |
Date of Birth: N/A |
| Status:
Single
|
Partner:
|
| Profession:
N/A |
| << Add Tara Conner To Your Favorites |
|
Full Tara Conner Biography
Tara Elizabeth Conner (born on 18 December 1985 in Dallas, Texas) is a beauty queen who is Miss USA 2006 and has also competed in the Miss Teen USA and Miss Universe pageants. Apart from her role as Miss USA, Conner has been employed as a model and waitress. She was a featured model on the HDNet series Bikini Destinations in 2004, posing for the cameras in Lake Tahoe. She has held the titles Miss Kentucky Teen USA 2002, Miss Kentucky County Fair 2004, Miss Kentucky USA 2006 and Miss USA 2006.
After she was born in Dallas, Texas, Conner's family moved to Russell Springs, Kentucky when she was six weeks old. Conner graduated from Russell County High School in 2004 and at the time of her Miss USA win was studying toward a degree in Business Administration from Somerset Community College.
Prior to the announcement of the winner, Conner and her eventual first runner-up Tamiko Nash shared a long embrace, whilst Conner whispered to Nash. An E! special later revealed that Conner, believing Nash had won, was wishing her luck for her reign as Miss USA and her participation at Miss Universe. The traditional statement read before the announcement of the new titleholder, which declares that "if, for any reason the new titleholder cannot fulfill her reign, the first runner-up will take over", later become pertinent following the scandal surrounding Conner in December.
Conner made the initial cut of twenty delegates and went on to compete in the swimsuit competition, and as a member of the top ten, competed in evening gown, wearing a dress designed by Kayne Gillaspie, a contestant on reality television show Project Runway Season 3. After making the top five and competing in a final interview round, Conner was announced as the fourth runner-up to new Miss Universe Zuleyka Rivera of Puerto Rico. Conner is only the fifth Miss USA to finish fourth runner-up at Miss Universe.
On April 29, Conner returned to pageant host city Baltimore to make appearances connected with the Volvo Ocean Race, sailing on board the yacht Black Pearl. and then returned to New York, appearing with Miss Universe 2005 Natalie Glebova at the Invest in Our World Benefit on May 3.
In the first week of May she briefly returned to Kentucky for the Kentucky Derby and was a celebrity guest at the Mint Jubilee Gala, attending the event with fellow national beauty queen Jennifer Berry, Miss America 2006 (of Oklahoma) and former Miss Kentucky USA titleholders Lizzie Arnold and Kristen Johnson, as well as other notable beauty queens. After returning to New York, Conner participated in charity events and was participated in a photo shoot with official photographer Fadil Berisha.
On 18 May 2006, Conner rang the opening bell at the American Stock Exchange. She returned to Kentucky for her official homecoming in early June 2006. where she met with servicemen, with whom she posed for the July 2006 cover of Kentucky Monthly magazine, and volunteered with local charities.
In September 2006, Conner travelled to Boston, Massachusetts to promote the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation Race for the Cure, as her predecessor Chelsea Cooley had done the year previously. She then travelled to Colorado to support the Cheryl Shackelford Foundation and to Pennsylvania to attend an event hosted by the USO of Philadelphia and Southern New Jersey. In October 2006, Conner spent time volunteering with more charities, including Gilda's Club, Best Buddies, and Project Sunshine, before embarking on a USO tour to Italy and Turkey in November 2006, where she met her brother, who is living in Italy.
On December 14, 2006, controversy erupted when TMZ.com published an article stating that Conner might be dethroned for her behavior in several New York City bars. The following day the website reported that Conner would be stripped of her crown, and that first runner-up Tamiko Nash, who completed her reign as Miss California USA October, would inherit the Miss USA title. This was neither confirmed nor denied by the Miss Universe Organization.
The 16 December 2006 edition of the New York Daily News reported Conner had tested positive for cocaine, had kissed Miss Teen USA Katie Blair in public, and had sneaked men into their Trump Place apartment. One New York City nightlife veteran said "She really is a small-town girl. She just went wild when she came to the city. Tara just couldn't handle herself. They were sneaking those nightclub guys in and out of the apartment." According to Fox News, citing local New York newspapers, Conner "moved out of her apartment in one of Trump's luxury buildings on Manhattan's Upper West Side" sometime during the week of 11 December 2006.
After coming out of rehab less than two months later in February 2007, Conner admitted in an interview with Matt Lauer that she had abused cocaine and anti-depressants. Conner says that she had faced her "demons" and hinted her problems may have stemmed from some unspecified abuse during her childhood with someone she recently confronted. She would not comment on whether this abuse was sexual. "I will not deny that I have witnessed some abuse, but out of respect for my family ... it's something I would like to speak with my family about first," Conner told NBC television's "Today" show. "Later on, maybe I'll feel more comfortable about speaking on these topics, but right now not so much." She also participated in an interview on Larry King Live. |
|
|
| Add Tara Conner Biography (SuperUSERS) + |
| Add Tara Conner Review/Comment
|
HQ Tara Conner Pictures (1) | Random Tara Conner Picture
|
| << Back to the Tara Conner Homepage |
|
