Since the show’s 1954 inception, half the fun of watching the Miss America pageant each year was watching crown-hopefuls show what they consider to be an exceptional talent (or lack thereof). Yet, under pressure from ABC, the talent segment, thought to be the most unpredictable portion of the show, has been stricken from the telecast, eliminating an element that has degenerated into a ratings killer.

This year's pageant will show some contestants showing off their talents, but from videotape footage of preliminary round performances. Yet, one of the five finalists, who is no longer in the running will be chosen to perform live.

Introduced in 1935 and required of contestants beginning in 1938, the talent segment was aimed at promoting Miss America as a scholarship program and not just a beauty pageant. Contestants who couldn't sing, dance or play an instrument had to find something to offer -- and they did.

'When it was purely amateur, it was a lot of fun,' said former pageant television producer Angela Osborne.

'You kind of rooted for them. Anyone can put on a swimsuit and go in front of an audience and jiggle and look pretty, but to go up there and play a Tchaikovsky concerto, it builds character,' she said.

While it adds dimension to the contestants, the talent portion has not been without its eccentricities. One aspiring Miss America took her trained pigeons up on stage. But when a stage light blew, according to pageant legend, the startled birds flew off stage, raining droppings on the audience.

In 1943, Miss Cincinnati Joan Hyldoft planned to ice skate and brought a portable ice rink to Atlantic City. However, the prop was accidentally left out in the sun and Hyldoft had to execute jumps and axels on a bare floor. She won the talent competition.

Over the years, the beauties’ unique routines – from risqué to incendiary – have sparked pageant officials to modify pageant rules also.

After Miss Montana 1949 Carol Fraser rode a palomino horse onto the competition stage animals were forbidden from the contest. Fraser brought the animal on stage where horse and rider stumbled and nearly fell into the orchestra pit.

Then there was Miss America 1959 Mary Ann Mobley, who performed a mock striptease. She took the stage in a gown, singing the start of an aria before stripping down to a pair of shorts and a slip to belt out 'There'll Be Some Changes Made.' Stripping was soon banned, as well.

One Miss Nebraska accidentally threw her flaming baton in the judges' pit, so potentially dangerous props were excluded, too.

'For the most part, the real bad ones are gone by the time they get to Atlantic City,' said radio newsman Tom Williams, who has covered 31 Miss America pageants. 'The Miss America pageant doesn't show its early rounds like 'American Idol' does. They're eliminated in the locals and the state (pageants).'

Yet, some contestants’ talents carry them all the way to the coveted title.

Miss America 1969 Judith Ford bounced her way to the title in 1969, executing 30-foot high flips on a trampoline to take the crown. Miss America 1960 Lynda Mead won after performing a dramatic recitation about schizophrenia.

By far, one of the most memorable performance, though, came from Miss America 1994. A deaf ballerina from Alabama, Heather Whitestone performed a lyrical ballet to 'Via Dolorosa,' taking her cues from the vibrations the music set up in the floor of the stage. Whitestone’s performance won the hearts of audiences, former America winners and pageant judges.

The Miss America Pageant airs September 18 on ABC.