The Ms. Senior America New Jersey Pageant recently contacted Ocean City and requested to be a part of its March 22nd Mr. Mature America Pageant, the only event of its kind in the United States that will celebrate the talents and achievements of Men 60 and older. They will be represented in the program by Vanessa Shaw, Ms. New Jersey Senior America and first runner up for the national title. A talented vocalist, Ms. Shaw will perform at the new Pageant and crown the first Mr. Mature America. Shown in photo are (l-r) Ray Esterlund Asst. Executive Director of MMA, Ms. Shaw, Carol Dugan of the Ms. Senior America New Jersey Pageant and Joanne Santori, the Pageant's Executive Director. At center is Mark Soifer, founder and Ex. Director of MMA.
(By Mark Soifer, Ocean City public relations director)
Yes, Ms. Senior America likes Mr. Mature America.
Sound like a message on Facebook? Maybe something that should be tweeted? Or Whatevered? Well it’s a fact.
We received a phone call recently from Joanne Santori. She’s the executive director of the Ms. New Jersey Senior America Pageant, whose slogan is “An Age of Elegance.” She wants her pageant to be involved with our upcoming Mr. Mature America Pageant, whose slogan is “Old Guys Rule.”
She is so persuasive we could not resist the offer. She actually brought the talented vocalist and very attractive Vanessa Shaw, Ms. New Jersey Senior America 2013 and the first runner up in the national pageant, to our cluttered Public Relations Office on the second floor of City Hall. We decluttered it as best we could for this special visit.
After two minutes of intense negotiations, we caved in to their request that Ms. Shaw perform at our Pageant on March 22. Ms. Shaw is extremely qualified to do so as she has performed on Broadway opposite such luminaries as Eartha Kitt, Robert Goulet, Debbie Allen and many others in such shows as Camelot, Porgy and Bess, The King and I, etc. etc. etc.
There is much more to her biography which will be featured in the Mr. Mature America Program Book, available the evening of the Pageant. Want to advertise in this first landmark book which we predict will become a valuable collector’s item in the future, the very, very distant future? Call (609) 525-9300 and ask for the Advertising Manager. Advisory: If you place an advertisement be prepared for a huge influx of customers on the days following the Pageant.
In addition to her singing performance, Ms. Shaw will crown the Pageant winner before he strides or limps down the runway. Soprano Nancy Fox will sing a rousing, song written especially for the occasion which ends with the advice to “Cheer Loud! Cheer Loud and Lustily/ His Hearing Ain’t What It Used to Be!” The complete lyrics to this original anthem will be printed in the collector’s item, extremely informative program book destined to be very, very valuable some day.
For information on the nation’s first pageant for men 60 years and older, call (609) 525-9300. Admission is $10 with all proceeds after expenses benefitting the Ocean City Ecumenical Council Community Food Cupboard and the Philippine Relief Fund.
