Finals EMCEE
Mario Lopez
Mario has appeared in many movies and tv shows but he is best-known for his role as A.C. Slater on Saved By The Bell. Mario was also on the third season of Dancing with the Stars, celebrity guest host for the syndicated entertainment news magazine show Extra, and host of America’s Best Dance Crew for MTV.
Mario has also hosted prime time television pageants: Miss Teen USA in 1998, 2003 and August 2007; Miss America in January 2007, 2009 and 2010; and Miss Universe in May 2007, giving him the distinction of being the only individual to have served in hosting capacity for both of the major pageant system organizations.
Preliminary EMCEE’s
Jason Fechner
Jason Fechner anchors WQAD’s Newschannel 8. Before becoming a reporter and anchor he covered Capital Hill for several television and radio affiliates around the country. He got his start in broadcasting while at Valparaiso University, co-hosting a popular radio show, “The Rootdown”. He went on to earn his masters from Northwestern and the Medill School of Journalism, where he studied legal ethics and journalism.
Brian McFayden
Brian McFayden got his start in radio on WXRK 92.39 KROCK in New York. He has hosted a slew of network television shows including “Cupid” on CBS with Simon Cowell and the CW’s “Beauty and the Geek.” At MTV, Brian starred in many roles including VJ, Host of TRL and MTV News Anchor. He has appeared on numerous television shows and has most recently hosted and produced for Al Gore’s Current TV, NBC and the KTLA Morning Show in Los Angeles. He has also hosted the Miss Teen USA Pageant on CBS.
Celebrity Judges
Berlinda Tyler Jamison
Berlinda Tyler-Jamison is the President of Trinity Health Foundation, a multimillion dollar subsidiary of Trinity Regional Health System and is also a Corporate Vice-President of Trinity Regional Health System. She was instrumental in the development of both the Quad City Rape Crisis Program and the Domestic Violence Advocacy Program. She is a certified Miss America Pageant Judge; and has judged over 20 scholarship pageants during the past 10 years. She has won a number of awards in recognition of her professional and charitable accomplishments and has been profiled in the book, “When I Grow Up, I Want to be a Firefighter”. She is very sought after as a guest speaker at national and state conferences. Her personal and professional philosophy – “Don’t wait for your ship to come in. Swim out to it”.
Chelsi Smith
In 1995 Chelsi Smith won the titles of Miss Texas USA, Miss USA, and Miss Universe, becoming the first bi-racial woman to hold the Texas and USA titles. Since then she has had a successful career in entertainment and modeling. She has made guest appearances on a number of shows including the Jon Stewart Show, the People’s Choice Awards, the Soul Train Awards, and Celebrity Wheel of Fortune. With Music World Music/Sony backing her as a Dance/ Pop recording artist, she co-wrote and recorded her first single, Dom Da Da with top producer Damon Elliott. Dom Da Da appeared in the hit motion picture The Sweetest Thing, starring Cameron Diaz. She made her acting debut in Playa’s Ball and continues to explore numerous opportunities to showcase her singing, dancing and acting. She has been featured in countless magazines such as People, Muscle and Fitness, Ebony, For the Bride and Jet.
Dale Ruplinger
1982 IFBB World Champion “Mr. Universe” Bruges, Belgium, First Bodybuilder ever to obtain a perfect score.
1982 National Bodybuilding Champion “Mr. America” New York City, NY
1982 Mr. U.S.A. Caesars Palace, The only bodybuilder in the history of the sport to win all 3 titles in the same year.
Personally Trained by Arnold Schwarzenegger and others. Owner/Operator: Pro Trainer/Dale Ruplinger assisting individuals in reaching their health and fitness goals.
Gia Allemand
Gia Allemand won the hearts of numerous fans when she appeared on the popular reality show, The Bachelor and more recently on its spinoff The Bachelor Pad. Before that Gia was a high end fashion model who has appeared in several magazines including Maxim. Her pageant experience includes having been crowned Miss Italia Philadelphia, Miss Bikini USA and Miss Hawaiian Tropic. Next, Gia is planning to test her acting chops. She has landed several upcoming role opportunities and looks forward to this new chapter in her blossoming career.
Heather Coutts Clark
Heather Coutts Clark has been involved in the pageant industry for over 15 years. She has been a delegate, titleholder, pageant consultant, show emcee and pageant director. Heather was Miss Maine USA 1999. She was also selected by a celebrity panel of judges and chefs as the “Top Chef” and winner of the “2006 Mrs. America Cooking Competition”. Heather continued her passion for pageantry and community service by joining the United States Pageant Family in 2008 as the Executive Director of the Miss Teen & Miss Maine and Massachusetts United States Pageants. She believes that pageantry, if guided properly, is the key to a brighter future through volunteerism. She enjoys gourmet cooking, shopping for the latest high fashion style trends and spoiling her 3 year old miniature poodle, Princess Sadie Belle.
Holly Bell
Holly Bell is the owner of MAXX Models & Talent, a modeling agency that provides professional training for models age 6 and up. Holly has been in the fashion industry for over 30 years, having been a buyer and visual merchandiser for a large retailer, owning her own boutique and she currently produces several large fashion shows. Holly also teaches business related classes at Black Hawk College in Moline, IL, and outreach classes for The University of Iowa. She is a regular fashion consultant on The Paula Sands Show and is a sought after guest speaker in leadership conferences. Holly is a certified Miss America judge and she judges several pageants every year. Her favorite part of her career is mentoring young people.
Fay Byrd
Fay Byrd studied acting at the famous Lee Strasberg Institute in New York City. While pursuing her studies she became a successful fashion model. Fay is a very sought after producer and coordinator for fashion industry ad campaigns and photo shoots. She has worked extensively with Guess, as a model, and on advertising campaigns. Fay conceived, helped design and bring to fruition the World Guess Campaign, featuring Rock Star Bryan Adams. She has also created a clothing line for men with which she partnered with comedian Kevin Farley, brother of the late Chris Farley. Combining her love for acting with executive and personal experience in the world of fashion and celebrity, Fay now brings all of these passions together as an Executive Producer, helping to develop and finance films.
Jason London
Jason London made his acting debut in Robert Mulligan’s The Man in the Moon (1991). In 1993, Jason appeared in three films, most notably in the cult favorite, Dazed and Confused, in which London played quarterback Randy “Pink” Floyd. Other notable roles include his funny, but touching, turn as a small town youth who is too naïve to notice that he has fallen in love with a drag queen (John Leguizamo) in Too Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! Julie Newmar (1995).
Jason went on to star in such films as Broken Vessels (1998), Poor White Trash (2000), $pent (2000), and Out Cold (2001). He also played Luke in Patrick Lussier’s Dracula II: Ascension (2003) and Dracula III: Legacy (2005). He has recently starred in Sutures from director Tammi Sutton, and co-starred in the film Killer Movie, with Kaley Cuoco and Paul Wesley. Next up, London will be seen in the features, Monster Wolf and Fight or Flight.
Jessica Black
Jessica Black is Miss United States 2010. She has more than ten years of pageantry experience. She has worked as a judge, an emcee, a production assistant and a competitor for hundreds of pageants all across the United States and Europe. She was a runner up in the Miss GA America system & Miss GA USA pageant system, winning multiple swimsuit, evening gown and talent preliminary awards. Jessica has 8 years of Runway and Print Modeling Experience. She has modeled for Liz Claiborne, Jovani, Tony Bowls, Sherri Hill, Jonathan Kayne and many other renowned dress designers. Jessica has performed at Walt Disney world in Orlando Florida, the 1996 Olympics and many large bowl games. Jessica volunteers for organizations such as the Children’s Miracle Network, Hands on Atlanta, the Big Brother Big Sisters Program and Toys for Tots.
Jessie Adams
Jessie Adams has been involved in the fitness industry for over 10 years. She is an NPC and NGA bodybuilding judge for shows across the country. She is a gym owner, personal trainer, sports and strength conditioning coach for pro athletes and fitness competitors. She specializes in coaching as well as talent scouting for the modeling and entertainment industry. Jessie was most recently seen on NBC’s American Gladiators and continues her passion for television and the entertainment industry. Jessie is currently opening a new gym called Elite Fitness Center specializing in women’s fitness.
Jessie Sulidis
Jessie Sulidis is a model/TV Host/actress/reality television personality. She has become most recognized through her roles on the popular reality shows The Bachelor, The Bachelorette, and The Bachelor Pad. However, she has also been cast in blockbuster movies such as Robocop, It Takes Two and The Santa Clause. Jessie has also co-hosted and been a correspondent for popular celebrity entertainment shows including ET Canada, ET, E-Talk, and 20/20. Last year she made her Toronto International Film Festival debut opposite Vivica A. Fox in Shark City and in Disney’s Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam featuring the Jonas Brothers and Demi Lovato. In the pageant world Jessie won the title of Miss Molson Indy Canada. She is also a trained makeup artist and is the representative at her family’s cosmetic business, “The Cosmetic Company”.
Kay Schneider
Kay Schneider started in the modeling and talent business 30 years ago, working throughout the Midwest and Chicago markets. Fifteen years ago Kay opened SK Model Management through which she provides talent for television, print, and promotional work in local, regional and national markets. In the last three years SK expanded to establish relationships with some of the top agencies in the world in order to forward talent to larger market areas. SK Model Management also opened Shear Elements Salon, with master stylists who provide services for production companies and photographers as well as for the public. Kay has been a judge within the Miss America pageant organization and has judged Quad City American Idol and many other model/talent competitions over the years.
Mac Duggal
Mac Duggal opened his first design house just over 25 years ago in Chicago, Illinois. Corporate headquarters are now located in Burr Ridge, Illinois and over 30,000 people worldwide are associated in the production of the MacDuggal collections. International in scope from the beginning, MacDuggal has a customer base spanning the globe – Europe, the United Kingdom, Dubai, Russia, Japan, Canada, United States, and several countries in South America. Today MacDuggal designs are seen globally and are breaking all records. The collection is being showcased in better specialty and bridal stores all over the world. Mac Duggal won the DIVA 1998 Fashion Award for Designer of The Year in the Prom/Pageant category. During the past season alone Mac was chosen to be on the cover of Teen Prom, Pageantry Magazine and was a featured designer in an interview for Seventeen Magazine.
Maria Valentino
Maria Valentino has competed, won, coached, judged and Emceed for pageants at both state and national levels. In 2010 she launched www.TiaraTrade.com, which has become the “Go-To” Pageantry website. Currently, Maria is in the process of publishing her first book, “Perfect Love”. She is also designing her own line of high-end swimwear called MariaEliza. Philanthropy plays a very large part in Maria’s life. She is a main spokesperson for The Stolen Lives Organization, tackling the global issue of human trafficking while helping to restore the lives of its traumatized victims. Maria has also recently been approached to star as a judge in a major up and coming reality TV series.
Rachel Juillerat
Rachel Juillerat was crowned Mrs. United States 2010 on the evening of July 22nd in Las Vegas, Nevada. She is a former Mrs. Alabama United States 2008, and a two time national fitness winner in both 2008 and 2010. Currently, Rachel is a physical education teacher, coach and trainer. As Mrs. United States, she is an advocate and volunteer for many organizations including the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, Racing For a Cure, The American Heart Association and Humane Society, to name a few. Rachel has been married to her husband, Jarod, for six years and is thankful for being blessed with such a loving and supportive partner. She believes in being an ambassador of H.O.P.E. (Helping Other People Excel).
Sofia Karstens
Sofia Karstens is an actor/singer /producer who has appeared in numerous movies including Bad Blood and Greener Mountains as well as television shows like Medium, JAG, and the Bold and the Beautiful. She is a graduate of the NYU Tisch School of the Arts. Her father was a classical musician and her mother a prima ballerina.
Ben Easter – Photographer
Having been labeled a Teen Idol, and penned by Cosmopolitan magazine as one of America’s “Most Wanted Men”, in 1998, Ben spent the last ten years in front of the camera as an actor. He has appeared in films such as Pearl Harbor and Husk and television programs such as Boston Public, Masterpiece Theater and MTV’s Undressed.
But, it wasn’t until he stepped behind the camera that Ben found his second passion. After he shot the stills for The Experiment, starring Adrian Brody and Forrest Whitaker he has become in demand in Hollywood as “Photographer to the Stars”.
Music Entertainment
Beau Davidson
Beau will perform during the preliminaries competition and finals. He will be singing his song that won the Theme Song Contest winning entries. His song “With You” will be performed at both events. Beau attended Northwestern University’s prestigious School of Music in Chicago, where he graduated magna cum laude with a degree in vocal performance/opera and political science. Although operatically trained, Beau simply could not relinquish his Memphis roots, writing original music that captured his own Memphis experience. Beau moved to Los Angeles where he guest starred on Days of Our Lives and Gilmore Girls. He was featured on Oprah in May 2009 and was featured in Country Weekly magazine (August 2008). Beau won CMT’s Music City Madness original song contest with his song “Mr. Wrong”. Beau was named one of Cosmopolitan Magazine’s 50 Hottest Bachelors of 2009. As a result, he has appeared and performed on The Today Show, Fox & Friends, Fox’s The Strategy Room, Entertainment Tonight, and The Daily Buzz. Theme Song Contest Winner
Gregory “Klem” Hayes
Moline native Gregory “Klem” Hayes was one of the two winners in the Theme Song Contest, with his entry of “American Spirit”. He actively began his professional music career in 1985 when he relocated to Chicago and cofounded the band Dick Holliday and the Bamboo Gang. Since then this veteran bass player and songwriter has divided his time between the road and studio; his music performed on radio and television, and in theatre, music videos and motion pictures. Mr. Hayes has seen the world as a sideman for dozens of celebrated artists and appeared in front of the camera on Late Night with Conan O’Brien, The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, Soundstage and on the network television series CUPID.
Theme Song Contest Winner
Justin Hall
A lifetime Quad-Cities resident, Justin Hall has performed at numerous shows and events across the community since he was first acquainted with a microphone. One of Justin’s most frequent performances was a nine-year stretch with the Miss Iowa Pageant beginning in the mid 90s. Still a musician by hobby, Justin is nearing his tenth anniversary as an advertising producer and audio engineer. He is happy to be invited to support HAVlife by performing one of the winning entries for the American Spirit Pageants theme song, written by Gregory Hayes.
Wes Hayden
With two albums under his belt buckle, Wes has just finished his third titled “Full Circle,” which has been called his “best work yet.” Since the release of “Full Circle,” Wes has been featured on the ABC hit series “The Bachelorette,” won an award on the “Fox Reality Awards 2009” as America’s Favorite Bad Boy, and most recently, fans saw him vie for love on the ABC spin-off series “The Bachelor Pad.” After being in just about every major magazine, and appearing on Extra, Access Hollywood, and The Soup, Wes’ popularity has grown tremendously, reaching a new crop of fans and followers. Wes will perform during the preliminary competition.
Cosmic
Cosmic is a Quad Cities cover band that performs an entertaining variety of popular tunes, with an emphasis on dance music. The band covers some of the greatest hits from the late 60’s to today, and includes rock, pop, R & B, Motown, and disco. Click the “Cosmic Songlist” link at left to see Cosmic’s current songlist. The band’s mission is simple: to maximize your good time wherever they play. If you love to dance, few local bands can offer a repertoire that’s as dance-friendly.
Funktastic 5
The Funktastic Five was formed in the winter of 2003. Its members consist of some of the top musicians in the Quad Cities. William “Whistle” Jones provides dynamic, diverse, and velvety vocal treatments to the multiple styles performed in the Funktastic Five. Nate Nicholson is one of the area’s top guitarists. His versatility and musical ability adds depth and style to any tune. He is also a monster soloist! Kindred Priest’s mastery of the electric bass allows him to create a solid foundation to a palette of different musical styles. Craig Bentley has a strong musical background. He is an accomplished jazz guitarist who can adapt to any situation.
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