Happy birthday to the original Gerber baby, Ann Turner Cook! On Friday, November 20, Cook turned 89-years-old.
According to Gerber, a contest was held in 1928 to find a face to represent a baby food advertising campaign. Artist Dorothy Hope Smith, who was Cook's neighbor, entered her "simple charcoal sketch of a tousle-haired, bright-eyed cherub of a baby with endearing pursed lips." Judges fell in love with the baby face in Smith's sketch and when they chose it as the winner, they insisted it remain a sketch.
That baby sketch of Cook soon became the face that launched the Gerber brand and is now recognized all over the world!
Cook was born in 1926. She is an American mystery novelist and retired English teacher in Tampa. Watch a previous interview with Cook on FOX News here. Learn more about the original Gerber baby here.