Blog by Sean Gehon, Monday, July 09, 2007
Aging gracefully has quickly become a lost art in our society. It’s extremely rare to find someone who’s excited to grow old or accept the lines appearing on their face. Grey hair was once a sign of wisdom, maturity and respect, now it’s simply a sign of how many years you’ve been on the planet. Wrinkle creams, botox, and plastic surgery have quickly become the norm in society for people who are trying to fight their age as much as possible. Luckily for most of us, we live in the regular world where growing old is simply a fact of life and something we’re going to have to accept. But for those living in Hollywood, growing old is getting old… fast.
Often as I find myself perusing the internet, the strangest things catch my eye. Whether I find rumours of Nicole Richie pregnant, or the latest exploits of Lindsay Lohan after rehab, or the ever popular Kevin Federline and Britney Spears reunion gossip, something is always able to turn my head. Today I have to admit, I found myself curious about something Slayer guitarist Kerry King said about heavy metal legends Metallica. King stated in an interview that he felt Metallica were too old to be successful anymore. Now I may not be a fan of either Slayer or Metallica, but Kerry King’s statement did get me thinking. Is there a point where some of the biggest stars in the world simply get too old to continue to entertain us, or is age just a number and it’s all a question of talent?
A-list celebrities like Hilary Duff, Beyonce Knowles and Scarlett Johansson are among today’s hottest talents. People love them in movies, topping the music charts, and strutting that cat walk in figure hugging gowns. Beyonce is twenty-six years old and was a part of the highest selling female group of all time, Destiny’s Child. She has since gone on to achieve success on her own both musically and on the silver screen. Hilary Duff is only nineteen years old. During Hilary’s nineteen years on this planet she has sold more than thirteen million albums world wide and found success both on TV and on the silver screen. At twenty two years old Scarlett Johansson has appeared in many critically acclaimed films and is getting ready to try her hand at releasing an album. But, is it possible that we’ll still care about Hilary, Scarlett and Beyonce, in twenty years?
Hollywood is an extremely superficial industry. I know that goes without saying, but a lot of fame and ‘talent’ is based on how good you look doing it. Some of yesterday’s most attractive women have found themselves going under the knife in order to further their appeal to the masses. At the end of the day, you can do anything to make yourself appear younger, but does it matter? Are we looking beyond what’s important and focusing so hard on looks that once you’ve reached a certain age, it’s all over?
Success isn’t decided simply by how you look unless you’re a model. There are countless examples of people who aren’t young who have achieved success. Cher achieved her greatest commercial success of her career in 1998 at the age of fifty two. Believe reached the top of the charts in twenty three countries around the world and sold more than twenty million copies making Cher one of the most successful solo female artists of all time. Helen Mirren won her first Academy Award at the age of sixty one at this years Oscars for her portrayal of Queen Elizabeth II in The Queen. Jack Nicholson is a multi-million dollar making box office star with three Oscars under his belt. If these three stars aren’t enough, I’m sure I can find more examples.
I’ve quickly discovered that age is just a number. It doesn’t matter how good looking you are or how ‘under thirty’ you may be, it’s all about talent at the end of the day. Whether you sing, dance, act, or vogue with the best of them… you just need people to watch you. Entertainment is an interesting industry to say the least, but what I do know for sure… is that growing old can be a beautiful thing. Let your grey hair shine, laugh until you have laugh lines, and most of all… don’t let anyone tell you you’re too old.
Sean (The sassiest ladies on TV - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tY5xOMnnYJY )
