In 1970, Shelton competed in the Miss Virginia USA pageant to spite her then boyfriend.^[1] She won the title and represented Virginia in the Miss USA 1970 pageant held in Miami, Florida in May 1970.

At the pageant, Shelton won the Miss Pixable award (photogenic) and was subsequently crowned Miss USA 1970.^[2] She was crowned by former title holder Wendy Dascomb, also of Virginia; this was the first time that a state had won the Miss USA title back to back.^[3]

Shelton then went on to the Miss Universe contest in Miami, Florida in July where she placed first runner-up to Marisol Malaret of Puerto Rico.^[4] She described competing at Miss Universe as "perhaps her greatest experience".^[5]

During her reign, Shelton traveled across the United States and internationally, including visits to Japan, Spain, Portugal, Brazil and Puerto Rico.^[5][6]

For winning Miss USA, she received $5,000 in cash, a $5,000 mink coat and made another $5,000 from personal appearances.^[6]

Shelton was born in Washington, D.C., and grew up in Norfolk, Virginia. She graduated from Norview High School and attended Old Dominion University. She was a junior studying art at the time she won the Miss USA title.^[5]

Prior to winning her first pageant title, Shelton was enrolled in a pre-medical curriculum. After college, she moved to New York City where she studied acting, modeled, and appeared on television commercials.^[7]

In March 1974, Shelton appeared on the cover of Playboy Magazine. She starred in the feature film Blood Tide alongside legendary stage and screen actors José Ferrer and James Earl Jones. Filmed on location in the Greek islands, the 1982 film featured Shelton singing a song during the end credits co-written with Shuki Levy, her second husband. She later starred in the 1984 film Body Double, although her dialogue was dubbed by actress Helen Shaver because the director, Brian de Palma did not like how she sounded when he was editing the film. Shelton made frequent guest appearances on television series such as Fantasy Island, The A-Team, T. J. Hooker, The Fall Guy, Cheers, The Love Boat, Riptide, and Get a Life. In 2008, she was cast to play a rich housewife in the American television series Nip/Tuck.

Shelton is widely known for her television role as Mandy Winger, one of J. R. Ewing's mistresses on Dallas. After the character left the show, an outpouring of fan mail convinced the producers to bring the character back.^[8] Shelton appeared in the series from 1984 to 1987. She also had a role on The Yellow Rose, a "critically acclaimed flop".^[7]

In 1991 and 1992, Shelton returned to the Miss USA stage, offering commentary during the pageant.^[9]

During 2012, Shelton made a guest appearance on the newly revived Dallas – she portrayed her old character Mandy Winger for J.R. Ewing's memorial service.

Shelton married Vici Castro, a Cuban exile in 1971, less than a month after passing-on the Miss USA title.^[6] The couple had a son, Christopher, but the marriage ended within five years.^[10] In 1977 she married Shuki Levy, a Jewish Israeli music producer, and they later had a daughter, Tamara.^[10] Shelton collaborated on his music.^[7] One of their songs, "Magdelena", appeared on a Julio Iglesias album. She has since divorced her second husband.

• Official website
• Deborah Shelton at IMDb
• Deborah Shelton at AllMovie
• Miss USA official website Archived 2006-09-18 at the Wayback Machine
• The Playboy Index--List of Centerfolds and Cover Models