Chorus of Agebusters

In my search for Agebusters, I’ve come across a delightful, active group of choral singers (average age 80) from New England. They are the stars of the documentary movie, “Young at Heart.” In all respects they are ordinary people except that they’ve taken up singing punk and rock professionally in old age. And the results are worth seeing and hearing.

They never forget who they are and some still prefer traditional music–opera, symphonies, familiar ballads. But they’ve taken punk and rock to heart to keep themselves active and involved and to make contact with the young. Sometimes they’re booked in a big theater and many of the listeners are young people. The chorus (both men and women) wear cool blue-jean outfits, others like slacks and t-shirts.

Their music resonates, no matter what your age. 3 cheers to the “Young at Heart” chorus.

Autograph Exchange with Tony Bennett

When I was writing my book “Growing Up Italian,” Tony Bennett was a personality I felt had to be in it. Contacting him got nowhere. He was guarded over, not by a watchdog, but by two sons famous for protecting papa from the press and other pesky people like me. I persisted and when word finally got to him, I received a phone call from one son, saying, “My father heard about your book and said he wants to be in it.” Hip, hip, hooray!

Tony was then about 57 (I was two years older) and getting up in years, so to speak. One of the great things about  him is that he keeps himself eternally youthful and enthusiastic with a second passion, painting– doing portraits of people, especially. When I appeared on the day of the interview, he had been at his easel in front of a window with brushes, paints and an open book nearby.  We sat down and I took out my questions and other papers, including a flier announcing his new engagement, and my business card. I handed him the card for future reference.

Suddenly, he asked, looking at the card, “Is this how you spell your name?” On his face was a look of  marvel. He went to his easel and picked up the open book. “Did you write this book?”

“Yes,” I said amazed. “That’s my book!”

“My God,” he said. “This book is my bible. I always have it open when I paint.” We both hooted and hollered with glee.

“Wait,” he said, “I want you to autograph it for me.” As he reached for a pen, I pulled out the flier I had picked up about his new concert.

“And I want you to autograph this for me!” I handed him the flier. We exchanged autographs, each in a state of excitement.

We then proceeded to  business and he gave me one of the best interviews in “Growing Up Italian.”

My Discoverer

One of the most colorful agebusters I’ve known was Frank Crowninshield, who helped found the magazine Vanity Fair with Conde Nast in 1913. He was Vanity Fair’s first editor. I did not know “Crownie” then , but in his last years when he was editorial advisor to the Nast publications at the age of 74.

He never retired–retirement was anathema to him. His thirst for talent was a passion and he was still developing writers. In his 70s, still a man of impeccable taste (on the verge of being foppish), he was a sight to behold, walking in the halls with a manuscript in hand, looking for someone  who had submitted her writing to him. As a secretary on Vogue, I was luck enough to have caught his editorial eye and at his suggestion, I became editor of the new staff magazine.

He died at 75, faithful to his career til the end.

Anchors not aweigh

News anchors, both men and women, have the strength of real anchors with the durability to sail fearlessly into old age on the networks. Witness Walter Cronkite, Tom Brokaw, and currently Tim Russert. Cronkite and Brokaw spent years as newsmen/anchors, respected and unassailable. Or course, there are exceptions. CBS fired Dan Rather on his judgment in handling a certain news story, and everyone wonders what will happen to Katie Couric now at CBS.

To look at the current scene, Sue Simmons , an anchor woman at NBC News, will be 65 this month, with no signs of retiring. She seems secure and looking as good as younger wannabe anchors. And her co-anchor Chuck Scarborough will be 65 in November.

These two anchors are marvelous examples of Agebusters, and I’m happy to select them as members of the Agebuster Club. What are your suggestions for membership in the club?

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Agebusters dress young

The new dress code is a nifty agebuster. The old strictures of wearing apparel are gone. Today girdles have vanished,, petticoats and slips also. I remember how all older women looked the same, heavy, with stiffened bodies contained in solid girdles that eliminated the waist.

Today women have slimmed down. and it’s not unusual to see 60 and 70 year-olds wearing jeans and colored sneakers. What freedom we have, how lucky we are to spend our years comfortably. We have a lot to learn from the young.

Only oldies can apply

I saw Pope Benedict’s arrival on TV on his first trip to the United States. Wearing a white robe and sash belt, he stepped out of the plane and came down the stairs with a firm step, healthy looking and spry. He took his cap off and a thick crop of white hair stirred in the wind. The next day he celebrated his 81st birthday.

65 is the retirement age, but a few of us take very important jobs in the 60s and 70s. The popes, for example. Their advanced age is a plus and provides them with the wisdom and assurance to lead milllions of believers. Take the last six popes. Benedict became pope at 78 .John Paul II was 58. John Paul I and John Paul VI were 66. Pius XII was 63, and Pope John XXIII was 77.

Advanced age is on the best resumes. Do you agree, or would you rather see a pope in his 40s at the Vatican?

The years rattle us

Why are we ashamed of growing older? It’s a shame that we foster and adds only sorrow. The years, both our own and those of friends, bring distress. We’re turned off by anone beyond 50 or 60 and pretend to be other than what we are.

I’ve been the prime deceiver, keeping my age a secret. Since my face isn’t a dead giveaway, people chop off a few years in their estimates. I’ve lived a lie, but in view of this blog, it’s time to open up. LET IT OUT, an inner self shouts. ALL RIGHT! I’ve found the guts to do it.  I’m in my 80s.  So there!

Do readers have the guts to admit theirs?

Cut the years in a swimsuit

I had a great moment last week visiting friends in Jensen Beach, Florida. For the occasion, I bought a new l-piece bathing suit off the rack, without trying on. It was black, simple, a few ruffles at the breast.

After breakfast we put on suits for a swim. I had always been on the heavy side (5′1″, 125 pounds) and swimwear never sat well. With misgiving, I tried on my purchase. Ha! Easy to slip in, yet firm and supportive. Staring in the mirror, I realized–to my amazement–that the reflection was me. Body thinner, shapely and if I held my back straight, the age appeared 60ish, no older. My friends widened their eyes.

But hold on! The change from frump to trump took a few years. Yet it was an easy thing to do. I cut my food intake in half. Wuthout measuring, no cutting of sweets. Luckily, with age, my appetite had diminished and this, coupled with smaller meals, got me to where I always wanted to be. With this regime, within a year, I lost 12 pounds and kept if off.

A nifty, agebaiting step. Have you tried it?

Any 90+ living at home?

My great grandmother Carmela was a small parenthesis of a woman, blinded, with minimum hearing and bright eyes that seemed lit from behind. At 92 she was still living with her daughter Rusina, who had cared for her since Carmela’s husband died in Italy before the family emigrated.

Holding my hand, my mother bent over this tiny woman, speaking loudly in her ear. “This is Linda, my daughter. She wants to kiss your hand.” Her head bobbing, she gave a toothless grin and put out her hand. It felt like a dead bird. I bowed over and put my lips to it. She looked in my direction, and then extended her hand to caress my face. She is unforgettable.

There are few households today willing to care for a nonagenarian. I’m not sure I would, or could, do it. Do you know of any? Are you pro or con the idea?

First Known Agebuster

At church this morning I was reminded that St. Ann, Jesus’ grandmother and mother of Mary, conceived Mary after years of childlessness. Ann was in late life when she became a mother, having refused to accept the conventional wisdom that young stock makes the best mothers. (As a late bride, I too hoped for a child. Married at 33, I finally became a mom at 39.) Frankly, there is a myth about the childbearing years, that the younger the mom, the better. Good births can happen anytime, late as well as early. Ann produced a wonderful child, Mary, future mother of Jesus, outside the “ideal” years. Older, wannabe moms, please take note. Do you agree?