Miss Minnesota USA needs to buy underwear.
Just one of the things we learned when we had lunch recently with Dottie Cannon, who was getting ready to compete in the Miss USA beauty pageant April 21 in Baltimore.
Cannon is a 22-year-old Eagan resident and University of St. Thomas graduate. She loves her job at Target Corp. as a communication specialist. Dottie is short for Dorothea. Here's what else we learned.
How Miss Minnesota got her good looks: Cannon is pretty much drop-dead gorgeous, 6 feet tall — she likes to say 5-foot, 12-inches — willowy, with a flawlessly creamy complexion. She describes herself as half German descent, half African-American.
"My mom calls me a little German chocolate. I'm like 'Mom, that's stupid,' " Cannon said.
Dad is 6-feet, 6-inches tall and "really handsome." Mom's only 5-foot-4. "She's cute." Her younger brother is "more attractive than I am."
Cannon did modeling while she was in middle school, high school and college and had opportunities to work in New York and overseas. But she'd rather go back to school to get a Ph.D. some day.
"Even when I was a model, I was never like, 'I'm so beautiful.' I always look at the other girls and feel like, 'Wow, she has gorgeous hair.' "
How Miss Minnesota got into beauty pageants: In 2001, a friend suggested she compete in a local pageant. She won. In her second pageant, she was a second runner-up for the Miss Minnesota USA title. Last November, she won the state title.
"My goal is the Miss USA crown. That thing is worth a quarter million dollars. It has real Mikimoto pearls that are huge. They're the size of your head. Real diamonds."
Plus, of course, "the opportunities that come from it."
"Miss USA, that's where I'd like to be."
What people ask Miss Minnesota USA: "Someone asked me how much I weighed yesterday," she said. "She was, like, 'What's your body fat index?' "
Cannon says her weight ranges between 145 and 155.
What Miss Minnesota USA eats: Five meals a day, including lots of protein. "I work out like three or four times a week, and I eat like a pig," she said.
Her favorite food is pizza. She finished her Margherita pizza at Fhima's.
Her favorite pageant food is protein bars. "I'm addicted to protein bars."
But no fish, please. "I don't like any type of fish."
What Miss Minnesota USA is packing: The Miss USA competition involves swimsuit, evening gown and interview elements, and contestants have to go to Baltimore about three weeks ahead of time for rehearsals, media tours and other appearances.
That means two or three outfits for each day, maybe 20 pairs of shoes, a case for makeup and hair care, protein bars, a journal and a Bible.
"I'm going to ship a garment rack. Two girls in a hotel room, all their stuff isn't going to fit in a hotel closet," Cannon said. "I'm rooming with Miss South Dakota. She's so cute. She's really nice. We requested each other, which is a really good idea."
She doesn't know if she'll have an opportunity to do laundry. That's why she needs to buy some more underwear.
"It's like managing a huge project."
Miss Minnesota USA's least favorite part of being a beauty queen: "The stigma that comes with it."
In other words, when people think "we're all world peace, and we're all just fluffy and don't have a brain. And that's unfortunate, because I think some of the smartest and most intelligent women I've met have been through the pageant system. They're goal-oriented and driven. They have priorities."
Where Miss Minnesota USA keeps her crown and sash: "It's at home somewhere," she said. "I only take it with me to events and stuff."
At her brother's birthday party, everyone in the family wanted a picture with the crown. "All the family members would wear it."
Trade secrets: "Butt glue. It makes sure your swimsuit stays in place. I'd take anything to make sure your swimsuit doesn't ride up," she said. "I think it's called like stick-on something, but everyone calls it butt glue."
"Vaseline on your teeth. It actually does help. So your lip doesn't get stuck. It's hard to smile that long, because your cheeks start to hurt, and after a while you start to feel fake."
Cannon works with a fitness trainer, a gown designer and an interview coach. It gets expensive.
But, "you never have another opportunity to compete for Miss USA. I'm not going to take this lightly," she said. "It's a job."
The hardest part of being competitively lovely is "mentally staying in the game."
"It's a huge thing. It's all about attitude. After staying there three weeks, it's exhausting."
Are beauty pageant contestants catty?: "It's a competitive environment, but I don't think it's as severe as people think it is," Cannon said. "The girls all get along great. We all like each other."
Does Miss Minnesota USA get asked out a lot?: "No," Cannon said. "I've had three dates since November."
"I went out with a guy once. He said, 'You're Miss Minnesota? Cool.' We went on one date. He never called back.
"I'm thinking he got killed on the way home from the restaurant."
Incredible. What's with this guy? What's his name?
"I don't remember," Miss Minnesota USA said. She checked her cell phone. "Good. I took it out. I think it was Greg."
Richard Chin can be reached at rchin@pioneerpress.com or 651-228-5560. The 55th Annual Miss USA competition is scheduled to be broadcast live at 8 p.m. April 21 on NBC stations, including KARE-TV, Channel 11.
BY RICHARD CHIN
Pioneer Press
TKPN
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