Meet The Original Gerber Baby Model As She Turns 90

Many people know little about the cute baby behind the famous Gerber baby food products. Its just not the talented work of an artist, but a real life baby whose picture was entered into a contest organised by the company in 1931.Ann Taylor Cook, who recently celebrated her 90th birthday, was only four months old in 1927 when her image was sketched in charcoal by a family friend.

Mrs Cook grew up to became a mother of four and taught literature and writing in Tampa, Florida, for 26 years before retiring in 1989.
In a report by DailyMail, in 1931, Gerber trademarked the picture, and in the early 1950s the company paid her a lump sum that was enough for her to make a down payment on a modest house and to buy a first car.

FILE - In this Feb. 4, 2004, file photo, Ann Taylor Cook, poses at her Tampa, Fla., home with a copy of her photo that is used on all Gerber baby food products. Gerber says Cook turned 90 on Sunday, Nov. 20, 2016. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara, File) — FILE – In this Feb. 4, 2004, file photo, Ann Taylor Cook, poses at her Tampa, Fla., home with a copy of her photo that is used on all Gerber baby food products. Gerber says Cook turned 90 on Sunday, Nov. 20, 2016. (AP Photo/Chris O’Meara, File)

The CEO of the company, Marilyn Knox, said that there is ‘little doubt’ that Mrs Cook’s face played an instrumental role in the company’s success.

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“You don’t even have to have the word Gerber on it. That face is honored as we’re doing the best for our child,” she stated.

Gerber kept Mrs Cook’s identity a secret until 1978, allowing myths to circulate that the sketch depicted Humphrey Bogart as a baby, or Elizabeth Taylor