The 10 Biggest Beauty Pageant Contestant Fails

Last Sunday, the nation watched as Miss California, 21 year-old Alyssa Campanella, was crowned as the 60th Miss USA at the Planet Hollywood Resort and Casino in Las Vegas. But she's not your average beauty queen; the Jersey native turned L.A. resident is a history buff and a self-professed Star Wars fangirl. Yet, what ultimately sets her apart is that, as of today, she has not been linked to any career-threatening scandal.

Unlike many of Campanella's predecessors, no nude photos, sex tapes and/or illegal substance abuse allegations from her past have surfaced, and, evidently, she aced the question portion of the pageant. Phew! No excessive uses of "such as" or "major" riddled her speech. We're not doubting her ability to keep a squeaky clean image, but, let's be real: It's only been a week. For the sake of her keeping her crown, let's hope that Campanella doesn't add herself to our list of the 10 Biggest Beauty Pageant Contestant Fails.

When DeMaison was asked at the Miss USA Pageant in 1995 if she believed her career prospects would be affected if affirmative action was dismantled, she clearly panicked. With wide eyes, she asked for the question to be repeated, before composing herself and saying, "I believe that...affirmative action is...is important in...in your career, and they work together. Um, I believe that if you stand strong on what you believe, you should...you should use that in all aspects of your life, including your career. I know I do." Somehow, DeMaison managed to make affirmative action sound like a fast-acting laundry detergent.

Raj was one of the favorites to win Miss Universe last year, but her lack of an answer for Billy Baldwin's key question ("What was the one big mistake that you did in your life? And what did you do to make it right?") may have cost her the crown.

Raj responded, "In my 22 years of existence, there is nothing major major problem I've done because I'm confident in myself and my family. Thank you for being here..." You're major major welcome?

When Perez Hilton asked Miss USA contestant Prejean whether the states should allow same-sex marriage or not, she gave a very controversial answer and still finished as first runner-up. Prejean revealed that she was raised in a family that believes that marriage is between a man and a woman.

Carrie, don't you know who judges these competitions? Don't you know who made your outfits? Apparently, there's nothing wrong with a heterosexual couple making love in front of a video camera; Prejean has done eight times.

Based on the controversy surrounding Fakih, to become Miss USA and keep your crown you apparently have to be perfect since birth. But where's the fun in that?

During a radio contest, contestants who were fully clothed mimicked strippers' dances moves; Fakih emerged victorious, and pictures on the radio show's site surfaced after her crowning. The moral here: If you're a beautiful girl who has a talent for answering on-the-spot questions under pressure, do not leave your house.

At the 2009 Miss Panama pageant, Cozzarelli was asked to explain the Confucius quote, "Learning without thought is labor lost." She started off strong with "Good evening, Panama," but it went downhill with the next sentence: "Confucius was one of whom invented confusion, and that’s why, eh. One of the most ancient, he was one of the Chinese. Japanese who were one of the most ancient. Thank you." Confucius says, "No, dumbass."

At the 2007 Miss Teen USA pageant, Upton gave the now-infamous answer to why a fifth of Americans can't locate the USA on a map: "I personally believe that U.S. Americans are unable to do so because some...people out there in our nation don't have maps. And I believe that our...a...education like such as in South Africa and Iraq everywhere, like, such as..." It's not her fault she had to memorize so much that the cue cards must have mixed up.

Three days after Silva was crowned Miss California, she was told about an accounting error and how she was actually the runner-up. Silva eventually dropped the lawsuit of half-a-million dollars, which basically accused the pageant officials of being racist. Unfortunately for Silva, the pageant's relatively diverse history of queens proved otherwise.

Williams is an O.G. when it comes beauty pageant scandals. She was crowned as the first African-American Miss America; after only a year with the title, Penthouse released nude photos of Williams, which led to her resignation. You'd think this would've been a lesson to future Miss America winner, not the example.

Arguably the most famous scandal in recent history, Tara Conner was given the name "Mess USA" for her alcohol abuse, history of drug use, and for having been photographed kissing Miss Teen USA Katie Blair. After she completed her rehab program that was mandatory to keep her crown, Conner appeared in the MTV reality show Pageant Place. Apparently, there really is no such thing as bad publicity.

Mexico's entry for Miss Universe, and former preschool teacher, Zuniga was pulled over in her friend's truck by police and subsequently arrested along with the seven men seated alongside her. Apparently, the men were suspected gang members, and their truck was filled with guns and ammunition.

Allegedly, her drug-lord boyfriend also had something to do with her winning the crown. We're sensing a telenovela in the works about a scorned beauty queen looking for redemption. And, yes, we'll totally watch.