The Woman Behind the Famous V-J Day Kiss Photo Wasn't Who Many Thought

August 14, 1945.

World War II was over, and New York City's famed Times Square was filled with sailors and citizens rejoicing at Japan's surrender in what would become one of the first celebrations associated with V-J Day.

Among them was photographer Alfred Eisenstaedt, pointing his lens at the crowd, capturing sweet embraces amid the hordes of people drinking, smiling, and kissing. Also present were Greta Zimmer Friedman and George Mendonsa, who, unbeknownst to them at the time, would go down in history as the man and woman in "The Kissing Sailor."

You know the photo where the sailor, dressed in uniform, pulls the woman in for a kiss, an image published in LIFE Magazine that has remained intrinsically linked to the day for decades? There's a high probability you've glanced at this photo at least once, but do you know the story behind it? 

Who were Greta Zimmer Friedman and George Mendonsa, and what were their personal accounts of the moment that became cemented in history with a single image? 

THE SAILOR

U.S sailors returned from the war in fleets, arriving in Times Square, ready to celebrate the announcement of Japan's surrender to the Allies in August 1945, and the end of a war that had been waging for over six years. To commemorate the occasion, the sailors ran through the streets, dancing, drinking, and embracing loved ones.

21-year-old George Mendonsa, just back from the Pacific, had admittedly enjoyed more than a few drinks that day. Swept up in all the excitement, he dashed through the streets and spotted a woman in a white dress. On impulse, he pulled her in and kissed her, just as Eisenstaedt lifted his camera and captured the iconic image.

“I had quite a few drinks that day, and I considered her one of the troops,” Mendonsa later relayed. Years later, he attempted to sue TIME Inc. for publishing the photo as a violation of his "right of publicity," but ultimately dropped the lawsuit.

Mendonsa passed away in 2019 at the age of 95.

THE WOMAN

Sailors weren't the only ones congregating around Times Square that day. Locals were also in on the celebration, running out of shops and offices to join the fun. One of those locals was 21-year-old Greta Zimmer Friedman, who, though mistaken for a nurse, was a dental assistant who worked nearby.

Nearly two decades had passed before Friedman saw the photo and instantly recognized herself.

"It's exactly my figure, what I wore, and especially my hairdo. I sent them some photographs. Time went by, and in 1980, LIFE Magazine contacted me. I brought the picture, Mr. Eisenstaedt signed it, and he apologized," she told The Library of Congress in 2005 as part of their Veterans History Project.

As for the kiss, Friedman emphasized that the sailor was a stranger, that it wasn’t romantic, and it certainly wasn’t something she requested.

"I felt that he was very strong. He was just holding me tight. I'm not sure about the kiss... It was simply someone celebrating. It wasn’t a romantic event; it was just the feeling of 'thank God the war is over.'"

Friedman died in 2016 at the age of 92.

THE PHOTOGRAPHER

We now know the account of the woman and the sailor, but what about the man behind the camera? Eisenstaedt, scanning the square for his next best shot, saw a sailor "running along the street grabbing any and every girl in sight," he explained to Friends of the National WWII Memorial.

"Suddenly, in a flash, I saw something white being grabbed. I turned around and clicked at the moment the sailor kissed the nurse. If she had been dressed in a dark dress, I would never have taken the picture. If the sailor hadn’t worn a white uniform, it wouldn’t have been the same… People tell me that when I am in heaven, they will remember this picture."

The Kissing Sailor was not the only photo taken of Friedman and Mendonsa that day. U.S. Navy photographer Victor Jorgensen snapped a closer shot that displayed the exact site of the kiss, while Eisenstaedt’s captured the extent of the crowds. 

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