About this episode

The episode explores the life of Bess Myerson, her rise as the first Jewish Miss America, and the scandal that threatened her legacy.

Bess Myerson rose to fame as the first - and still only - Jewish Miss America, antisemitism on the pageant circuit. She parlayed this visibility into a successful television career, then made the leap into New York City politics in the 1970s. But in the 1980s, her carefully built reputation began to unravel in a sensational scandal involving her married boyfriend, his divorce judge, and allegations of bribery. The saga was splashed across headlines as the “Bess Mess” – and threatened to eclipse her trailblazing legacy. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info .

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