On Aug. 14, 1945, as a crowd of 2 million people gathered in and around Times Square in New York City to celebrate VJ Day, photographer Alfred Eisenstaedt took an iconic photo of a sailor kissing a woman dressed in white.
The photographer did not get their names and many people later claimed to be the subjects of the photo. For historian and high school teacher Lawrence Verria, who always loved the picture, it was important to give credit to the two who deserved it.
"This photo captures the end of World War II like no other," Verria said Saturday at a seminar at Zions Bank in downtown Salt Lake City.
Verria — co-author with George Galdorisi of "The Kissing Sailor: The Mystery Behind the Photo that Ended World War II," which was published in 2012 by the Naval Institute Press — described the search for the identity of the two subjects.
According to the authors, the kissers were George Mendonsa and Greta Zimmer Friedman, a dental assistant.
The talk was part of a program, "1945: The Year that Changed the World," marking the 70th anniversary of Victory over Japan Day. The event was sponsored by Fort Douglas Military Museum.
In 1980, Edith Shain identified herself as the woman — a nurse — in the photo, Verria said. And over the years, a number of World War II sailors said they were the man in the photo — understandable, Verria said, because everyone was kissing that day in Times Square.
"None of these people are the kissing sailor," Verria said. "These are all good people, but they're not who they believe themselves to be."
Verria said he was led to Mendonsa by a student in his history class at North Kingstown High School in Rhode Island, who said he recognized the sailor in the picture. Mendonsa, a fisherman in Newport, told the teacher he was indeed the sailor pictured.
The investigation included comparisons of photos of the kiss — four by Eisenstaedt and one by photographer Victor Jorgensen — with photos from 1945 of Mendonsa and Zimmer and others who believed they were pictured, Verria said.
With the help of face-recognition technology and examinations by a forensic anthropologist and photo analyst — along with other evidence, like hairstyles — Verria said he believes there is an "ironclad" case that Mendonsa is in the photo.
He also believes similar evidence proves Zimmer was in the photo. The woman could not have been Shain because she was 4 feet 9 inches tall, way too short to be the one in the picture, Verria said.
"These two people ought to be celebrated," Verria said of Mendonsa and Zimmer, adding that they showed what the end of a long, costly war felt like.
Shain died in 2010. Mendonsa and his wife, Rita Petry Mendonsa, who was his girlfriend in 1945 and identified herself as one of the people in the background of one of the photos, live in New Hampshire, and Zimmer lives in Virginia, Verria said. All three are in their 90s.
Saturday's event also included photo and memorabilia displays of VJ Day and World War II.
pmanson@sltrib.com
Twitter: @Pamela MansonSLC
Scott Sommerdorf | The Salt Lake Tribune Historian Ron Fox cuts open the August 15, 1945 edition of The Salt Lake Tribune from it's protective envelope so it can be photographed during Fort Douglas Military Museum's V.J. Day program -- 1945: The Year That Changed The World, Saturday, August 15, 2015.
Scott Sommerdorf | The Salt Lake Tribune A grouping of German WWII artifacts including a copy of "Mein Kampf" signed by Adolf Hitler were on display at Fort Douglas Military Museum's V.J. Day program -- 1945: The Year That Changed The World, Saturday, August 15, 2015.
Scott Sommerdorf | The Salt Lake Tribune Salt Lake Tribune editions of August 14, 1945, left, and August 15, 1945, right, were among artifacts on display at Fort Douglas Military Museum's V.J. Day program -- 1945: The Year That Changed The World, Saturday, August 15, 2015.
Scott Sommerdorf | The Salt Lake Tribune U.S. Naval Cadet Cody Overacker looks over a collection of WWII artifacts during the Fort Douglas Military Museum's V.J. Day program -- 1945: The Year That Changed The World, Saturday, August 15, 2015.
