Vanessa Williams became the first Black Miss America on September 17, 1983, at just 20 years old. Months later, after the Miss America Organization learned that Penthouse planned to publish nude photos taken before her reign, she was given 72 hours to resign or risk losing her crown. She resigned in July 1984, just weeks before her reign was set to end. Years later, in 2015, Vanessa returned as head judge for the Miss America 2016 pageant, where former CEO Sam Haskell publicly apologized to her
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Vanessa Williams became the first Black Miss America on September 17, 1983, at just 20 years old. Months later, after the Miss America Organization learned that Penthouse planned to publish nude photos taken before her reign, she was given 72 hours to resign or risk losing her crown. She resigned in July 1984, just weeks before her reign was set to end. Years later, in 2015, Vanessa returned as head judge for the Miss America 2016 pageant, where former CEO Sam Haskell publicly apologized to her
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