What is the name of the original Little Miss Sunbeam?
I recently met the original lil miss sunbeam girl. Her name is Rose Hirsch and she was the lil girl that was originally spotted for her almost pure blonde hair. She said 59 years ago she was outside playing and was spotted with her whiteish blonde hair glistening in the sun and was asked to be photographed or sketched. Since then alterations have been made to the girl on the package, but she is the original Sunbeam girl.
No one knows the name of the little girl who inspired this well-loved white bread brand. In 1942, Quality Bakers of America (QBA) hired Ellen Segner, a New York artist, to create a bread trademark that housewives would find irresistible. As the story goes, Segner spotted a girl in a park in New York City, sketched her likeness, and used the sketch as the basis for Little Miss Sunbeam. Sunbeam is a trademark owned by QBA, a bakery cooperative. In 1944, Flowers became the sixth bakery in the United States to sell white bread under the Sunbeam brand. For more information on Little Miss Sunbeam, visit the QBA site at www.qba.com and www.sunbeambread.com.
