Tara Conner Biography

Tara Elizabeth Conner was born on December 18, 1985 in Dallas, Texas and is an American beauty queen and model, who is Miss USA 2006 and has also competed in the Miss Teen USA and Miss Universe pageants. Apart from her role as Miss USA, Conner has been employed as a model and waitress. She was a featured model on the HDNet series Bikini Destinations in 2004, posing for the cameras in Lake Tahoe. She has held the titles Miss Kentucky Teen USA 2002, Miss Kentucky County Fair 2004, Miss Kentucky USA 2006 and Miss USA 2006.

In late 2006, Conner became the center of a public scandal when news reports claimed she had been drinking underage, tested positive for the use of cocaine, and kissed Miss Teen USA Katie Blair, among other things. She was allowed to retain her title and entered a drug rehabilitation program.

After she was born in Dallas, Texas, Conner's family moved to Russell Springs, Kentucky, when she was six-weeks-old. Conner graduated from Russell County High School, in 2004, and at the time of her Miss USA win was studying toward a degree in Business Administration from Somerset Community College.

Following her success in the Miss Teen USA pageant Conner was managed by agent Steve Rosenberg for six months and has modelled for companies such as Body Glove.

Conner appeared on the 2007 MTV reality show Pageant Place as the surprise fourth roommate to the 2007 Miss Universe Organization pageant winners Miss Universe Riyo Mori, Miss USA Rachel Smith, and Miss Teen USA Hilary Cruz as they live together in an apartment in New York City. The series premiered on October 10, 2007, and during this episode Donald Trump revealed that Katie Blair had been the one who had turned in Conner for alcohol and drug abuse because she felt that Conner was trying to steal Blair's boyfriend Josh.

For MTV's Spring Break 2009, Conner appeared with comedian Dan Levy in Pretty Smart, a competition challenging contestants to figure out whom among a group of attractive men and women also "offers more than just a pretty face" and has "a brain to match."[26]

Conner was a contestant on the third season of CMT's Gone Country, which premiered in January 2009.

Conner hosted the first season of MTV's The Girls of Hedsor Hall, which premiered in February 2009.