She just seemed to know she was getting the tiara Didn’t she? That oh-my-god expression and teary-eyed reaction was all put on. That slow motion walk to stand up near the quarterback was as deliberate as a bitch slap in prison. She had some nerve. You should have been the Queen. You’re the one who decorated the gym and made cookies for the pep club. You were the student council president and the girl that was nice to everyone. And you had to stand there and watch her walk the walk and take the prize. Excruciating. Sound familiar? If it does, you’re not alone.
–ANONYMOUS
If you were a runner up things had to get ugly. After all you put yourself out there and you were publicly rejected. Brutal. Either you went on with your life and became an anchor woman or a courtroom diva ….or you simply put yourself in a position where you never had to compete again.
Running for Prom Queen begins way before high school . Tea parties and secrets, best friends and pink Barbie parties were the breeding ground for crowns and handsome princes.. We learn then that life isn’t always easy or fair. Our mothers taught us to invite everyone to our birthday party. But some mothers didn’t…and sometimes we were left out.
We quickly learn the art of pleasing to stay afloat in that world of parties and movies and sleep-overs. Sometimes we would give up our training bras to be invited. There were always some girls that were always invited. They didn’t have to do anything. They just accepted that they would be invited…and they were. These are the girls that are in Prom Queen Training. A ritual we were clueless about. But an invisible training camp that produced those icons of American high school life as carefully as the SAS.
The tiara takes a toll.
April 13, 2008. Tags: Cheerleaders, cliques, high school, popular, Prom Queens. American culture, American icons, Prom Queens, high school, popular. .
Did you sit at the cool kids table in high school surrounded by the popular kids?…or did you sit alone wondering when the prom queen or hunky jock was finally going to recognize you? You have to admit you knew exactly who you were in high school. You knew your place. It’s prom season once again and for many that’s equivalent to sticking a knitting needle in your eye socket and going to bed with a migraine.
We all know that maneuvering within the social confines of a high school society is a little like penetrating a secret cult. Chances are that prom queen never did see beyond the metal mouth and the slight brush of acne. The question I pose is this….do you ever leave high school? Are you doomed for a life of quite desperation and acceptance… or a life of “what-the-hell-is-wrong-with-these-people….I was in the popular clique?”
I’ve been asking this question for years and have gotten the most incredible answers. Some people are true professional successes who never feel good enough and others are still waiting for life to hand them the prizes they feel entitled to. I’m a television journalist who has been posing this question with my writing partner following a summer of watching teen movies as a background for a screenplay. We had to ask the question What the hell happens to all the mean bitchy prom queens in the movies? And why is everyone so obsessed with high school? We made up a questionnaire, passed it around, and were blown away by the answers. High School is pretty much a common experience. But can you leave it behind and get on with your life? I thought I did. I loved high school until my Air Force dad brought us from England to the Bible Belt. So I can see both sides. We want to know your deepest secrets about high school. We want to know those stories of glory and heartache. Anonymous, of course. E -mail us directly at promqueenforever@aol.com or give us an answer here. (Be sure and give your first name only and the year you graduated) I will be taking a look at the common groups that our survey designated. You know, the cheerleaders, the jocks, the bad boys, the bandies….and of course, the prom queens. So brush off those tiaras and football trophies , clarinets and leather jackets. This is your time.
March 19, 2008. Tags: American icon, Band, Cheerleaders, cliques, high school, mean girls, nerds, pupular. American culture, American icons, Cheerleaders, Geeks, Prom Queens, high school, popular. .
