Hessy Levinsons Taft, Jewish Baby on Cover of Nazi Magazine, Dies at 91

New York Times - WorldCenter-LeftEN 5 min read 100% complete by Michael S. RosenwaldJanuary 9, 2026 at 11:52 PM

AI Summary

long article 5 min

Hessy Levinsons Taft, a Jewish woman who unknowingly appeared on the cover of a Nazi magazine as the "ideal Aryan baby," died on January 1, 2026, in San Francisco at age 91. In 1934, when Taft was an infant living in Berlin, a photographer submitted her portrait to a contest seeking the perfect Aryan child without her parents' knowledge. Joseph Goebbels, the Nazi propaganda minister, selected her photo, and it appeared on the cover of *Sonne ins Haus* magazine. The photographer admitted he submitted the photo, knowing Taft was Jewish, as a joke. The story, initially terrifying, later became a source of pride for Taft and her family, highlighting the absurdity of Nazi racial ideology.

Key Entities & Roles

Key Player Opposition Context

Latvia 40% San Francisco 40% Berlin 50% United States Holocaust Memorial Museum 50% Sonne ins Haus 60% Adolf Hitler ×260% Joseph Goebbels 70% Hans Ballin ×370% Germany 70% Nazi ×490% Hessy Levinsons Taft ×6100%

Keywords

jewish baby 90% nazi magazine 90% aryan race 80% hessy levinsons taft 70% propaganda 70% pseudoscience 60% adolf hitler 60% joseph goebbels 50% holocaust 50% hans ballin 40%