[WolfeMacleod]

Now this is funny, cause....

The brands owner, Quaker Oats, a subsidiary of PepsiCo PEP, denies that any such contract existed or that the iconic figurehead was meant to resemble any living person. The image symbolizes a sense of caring, warmth, hospitality and comfort, said a statement from Quaker Oats, and is neither based on, nor meant to depict any one person.

However... from Wiki...

In 1933, Quaker Oats hired Anna Robinson to play Aunt Jemima as part of their promotion at the Chicago World Fair in 1933.[1] She was sent to New York City by Lord and Thomas to have her picture taken. "Never to be forgotten was the day they loaded 350 pounds of Anna Robinson on the Twentieth Century Limited."[8] Other photos showing Robinson making pancakes for celebrities and used in advertising "ranked among the highest read of their time".[9]

Anna Short Harrington, born in 1897 in Marlboro County, South Carolina, began her career as Aunt Jemima in 1935. She had to support her five children, and she moved with her family to Syracuse, New York, where she cooked for a living. Quaker Oats discovered her when she was cooking at a fair.[10][11] An ad in Woman's Home Companion in November 1935 said, "Let ol Auntie sing in yo' kitchen."[12] It was her picture with a bandana used on Quaker Oats products.[10] Harrington continued to play the role for 14 years, and she made enough money to buy a large house and rent rooms. That house was demolished to make way for Interstate 81.[12] Harrington died in 1955. According to John Troy McQueen, author of The Story of Aunt Jemima, "she really was famous for cooking pancakes."[10]

The company first registered the Aunt Jemima trademark in 1937.[1]

Ethel Ernestine Harper was Aunt Jemima during the 1950s in person, in print and in media. She was the first Aunt Jemima to be depicted on TV and the final "living person" basis for the Aunt Jemima image until it was changed to a composite in the 1960's [1]. She worked as a traveling "Aunt Jemima" on behalf of the Quaker company, giving presentations at schools, churches and other organizations. Prior to assuming the role, Harper graduated from college at the age of 17 and became a teacher. [2]