Nancy Fleming

Nancy Anne Fleming (born May 20, 1942) is an American beauty pageant titleholder who was crowned Miss America 1961 on September 10, 1960.^[1]

A native of Montague, Michigan, Fleming competed in the Miss America pageant as Miss Michigan.^[2] She competed in Miss Michigan as Miss White Lake.^[3]

She later worked in the entertainment industry, as a program host and interviewer for ABC-TV, Cable Health Network (now Lifetime) and PBS. She appeared in an episode of The Love Boat in 1984, along with Jean Bartel, Miss America, 1943; Marian McKnight, Miss America, 1957; and Vanessa Williams, Miss America, 1984.

She was married to radio and television personality Jim Lange (The Dating Game) from 1978 until his death in 2014.^[3]

She has two adult children from a previous marriage who share her passion for lifetime education. Her daughter, Ingrid, has a master's degree in psychology (Marriage and Family Counseling) and a law degree from University of California Hastings College of the Law in San Francisco and is an attorney practicing Family Law. Her son, Steig, received a Ph.D. in Physical Anthropology from the University of Texas, Austin, and is currently working in Madagascar, Africa for the Institute for the Conservation of Tropical Environments. Her daughter-in-law, Avri Beard, is a Ph.D. candidate in Sociology of Latin America at the University of California, Berkeley. In addition to her children, Fleming has three stepchildren, Nick, Romney, and Gavin Lange and two step-grandsons, Brendan and Travis.

More recently, Fleming worked as a gardener (she has a certificate in gardening from the University of California) and television interviewer. Now retired, Fleming remains active with community and political volunteer activities. Certified as a University of California Master Gardener in 1992, Fleming works on projects involving habitat restoration, school and community gardens and the promotion of non-toxic gardening alternatives. Ms. Fleming interests include hiking, reading, garden design, continuing education programs and travel. In preparation for a vacation in Italy, Fleming began studying Italian language, history and culture.

Fleming graduated from Michigan State University in 1965. She is listed as one of the University's "Accomplished Women Graduates." ^[4] During her freshman year at MSU, she lived in West Landon Hall on the North Campus, a dormitory for women. Her time at the school was sometimes troubled. Later, she said, "I felt like a freak at MSU. I had just been on television three days before and I entered with a lot of fanfare. There was a lot of weirdness and rudeness. I was pointed out and stared at. It was really creepy."^[5]

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