(TruthSeekerDaily) You don't know that you know Ann Turner Cook, but most of us do, and have since we were babies most likely. She is the original Gerber baby, that notorious face synonymous with all things infant.
When that iconic charcoal picture of Cook was first sketched out for a contest to represent Gerber, she was just a few months old. Now this beautiful baby who has graced baby food jars for decades, has just turned 87.
Cook says she is proud to have been associated with the company whose products is committed to being a leader in childhood nutrition. At the time of the drawing she had no idea how important her drawn portrait would be, and neither did Gerber.
“I can't think of anything nicer than to be a symbol for babies,” Cook told CBS News. “And that's what I think I became.”
She believes that millions have identified with the sketch for many years because “it reminds them of their own babies. Everybody says, my baby or my grandchild looks like the Gerber baby. And it doesn’t matter the ethnicity. And I say, ‘Yes, I’m sure they do!’”
The drawing of her was plucked from obscurity in a contest of many other entries, and was later featured on every single Gerber that ever saw a grocery store shelf. Cook effectively became a symbol for the happy, healthy baby after it won the contest.
After Gerber trademarked the iconic picture in 1931, Cook was given a lump sum for it in the 1950's. She says it was enough to buy a car and make a down payment on a modest house.
Cook is now a retired English teacher and mystery writer who has written four books set in her favorite small Florida towns. She is also writing her memoirs, which will focus on her childhood, and describes living in Texas during the Dust Bowl.
The original face of Gerber we have all come to know and love has changed over the years, but one thing remains the same, the sweet soul at the center of that baby. Here is Ann Turner Cook now:
h/t: [ Bay News ]
-
1
- Tweet
-
