Florida Native Original Gerber Baby Turns 93 Years Young

MIAMI (CBSMiami/CNN) - The original Gerber baby and Tampa native Anne Turner Cook just turned 93 years young on Wednesday.

She now has a full head of white hair, but the same contagious smile we all have learned to love.

"Happy birthday to the OG -- that's Original Gerber -- baby, Ann Turner Cook!" the company captioned a picture of her next to a jar with the classic logo.

The charcoal sketch of Cook's angelic face as a four-month-old has adorned jars of baby food for decades. In 1928, Gerber held an advertising campaign looking for the company's new face. Cook's neighbor submitted a drawing of her face for the contest and three years later, it became Gerber's official trademark.

The company had invited artists to submit different versions of Gerber babies as part of the campaign.

The neighbor, Dorothy Hope Smith, offered to add more details to the sketch if it was accepted. But when the executives at Gerber saw it, they wanted it as-is.

Gerber has expanded its business beyond food to include skincare, clothing and other children's products, but the face of the original Gerber baby remains plastered on most items.

Before the name behind the angelic face was revealed in 1978, popular guesses of the baby's identity included Humphrey Bogart, Elizabeth Taylor, Sen. Bob Dole and Jane Seymour.

Cook taught English and wrote mystery novels after her retirement in 1989.

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