Managing Editor
It can be fun, and sometimes jarring, to find out which family members with whom we share physical, and even personality, similarities. You might feel blessed to see that you have your mother’s lovely eyes, amused to have it pointed out that you’ve inherited your grandfather’s smirk — or chagrined to discover you have your Uncle Tommy’s chin.
Rachael Rifkin, a personal historian and Cal Heights resident, has no reservations about investigating those family resemblances, especially her own.
This week, on her website lifestoriestoday.com, she posted a pictorial essay in which she not only discusses the likenesses between herself and her relatives, both living and deceased, she also replicated photos of her kin folk, casting herself in their stead and even dressing the part. She worked with a team of professionals to bring the re-creations to life and then positioned the new images next to the original ones on her website, along with information about each family member and her own take on the physical features they share.
Since Rachael is a friend of mine, my first response to the photos is one of amusement; it’s humorous to see Rachael— and her barely concealed sly smile— in these various costumes, hairstyles and poses. However, that initial humor is soon replaced by an earnestness that is revealed through the hard work she and the others invested into this undertaking. It’s quickly evident that they took this undertaking quite seriously, and the results are revelatory, moving and inspiring.
Below is a sampling of her impressive project— written in her words— the rest of which can be viewed at lifestoriestoday.com/blog/from-one-many .
In November 2014, filmmaker/photographer Angela Park, graphic designer Tara Nitz, costume designer/makeup artist Kathryn Wilson and hairdresser Tammy Rupe came together to help me re-create some photos of my parents, grandparents, great-grandparents and cousins. The pictures highlight family resemblance, showing that many different family members’ features can be found in one person’s face. It also illustrates how many people it takes to create one person.
The idea is to get people thinking about the similarities and stories in their own families. As a personal historian (i.e., I help people write their life stories and turn them into books), I’ve had many people tell me that they regret not knowing more of their family stories. I hope this project encourages people to take an active interest in their family history. Because the more we know about our family history, the more we know about ourselves.
It all started about a year ago with a picture my aunt found of my maternal great-grandmother Fannie. Based on how old she looks and the style of clothing, the picture is probably from sometime between 1915 and 1920. In it, she’s young and beautiful, with a slight smirk on her face. In a time when most people looked stoic in pictures, she’s serving up the sass.
I was curious if I could imitate her expression, so I grabbed the picture and stood in front of the mirror. I was surprised to find not only matching smirks, but a strong resemblance overall. People always told me I looked like both my mom and dad, but it never occurred to me that I might look like anyone else.
From then on, I was on a search for family members with similar features. In the end, I came up with eight relatives (including Fannie).
Great-grandmother Fannie
Fannie immigrated to New York from Poland. She was married to a grocer who died at the age of 48, had three kids and was a big worrier.
Similarities: Eyes, cheekbones, hair, and chins. I am also a champion worrier.
Cousin Ibolia
Hermina was my great-grandmother Charlotte’s sister. She stayed in Hungary when the rest of her family immigrated to the U.S. because she felt she couldn’t leave her clothing-design business. According to a family tree, Hermina died of cancer in 1934, and her daughter, Ibolia, died at Auschwitz in 1944. I think the picture is from sometime in the 1930s. I posed as Ibolia, who looks about 10 in this picture.
Similarities: I’d seen this picture plenty of times but had no idea we looked that alike until I dressed up as her. We share smiles, cheekbones, noses and hair. I wish I knew what else we had in common.
Great-great Grandfather Shmerayhu/Sidney
In a letter, my grandfather Sidney asked his Aunt Mildred what his grandfather was like. Mildred said that he used to sell lottery tickets for Irish Sweepstakes and once ran a concession stand at a bathhouse with my great-great grandmother. He was also a religious man who went to the synagogue every day. He died in Poland at the age of 53. “He didn’t live to see one child married.” The picture was probably taken sometime between 1900 and 1910.
Similarities: The resemblance is kind of eerie. Our face shapes, eyebrows, ears and foreheads all look pretty alike. I was surprised by this one. Of all the pictures, I thought I would look the least like my great-great grandfather. I’m not sure what else we have in common. Mildred’s description didn’t give me a lot to go on.
Grandfather Sidney
(Pictured at the beginning of the article)
My grandfather was an internist, psychiatrist, writer and voracious reader. He wrote an unpublished (though it wasn’t for lack of trying) memoir about his time in the Korean War and kept a journal. He was a quiet man with a good sense of humor who almost exclusively took care of my grandmother after she developed multiple sclerosis. This picture was taken in 1952, on my grandfather’s way home from Korea.
Similarities: I thought the family resemblance would be more obvious. We kind of have similar chins, ears and cheeks. Otherwise, we have our writing styles, love of travel, and senses of humor in common.
Those interested can trace the similar traits in their own families with the printable found at lifestoriestoday.com/blog/tracing-traits-printable).
