Would anyone like to guess how old Anne Bancroft was when “The Graduate” was made? Thirty-six. Guess how old Dustin Hoffman was? Thirty.
The first time Sally Field played opposite Tom Hanks, she played his girlfriend (“Punchline”). Six years later, in “Forrest Gump,” she played his mother.
Life isn’t fair, but Hollywood really isn’t fair.
Of course, Mrs. Robinson was one of the sexiest fortysomething babes to ever be captured on film. Probably because she was only 36.
Want to read a good revisionist take on “The Graduate”? Check out Roger Ebert’s.
Why am I writing short paragraphs, like Lance?
One of those things.
On the organizational continuum of 1 to 10, I’d put myself at about a 5.7 — I make lists, but I don’t usually get through all of them. Today the list was:
Finish painting kitchen.
Clean kitchen from top to bottom.
Go grocery shopping.
Buy a lovely bouquet of flowers for the kitchen bay window, to celebrate the new look.
Make ice cream.
Fix a nice dinner.
What I accomplished on the list: Nothing. But it was still a good day.
I started with good intentions (painting), and took a break to check my e-mail. Good thing I did, and good thing the person I was having lunch with today sent a “see you there” e-mail that I received just in time to take a speed shower, scrub the Lavender Ice from my cuticles and sprint to Ann Arbor to have a two-hour business lunch that I would have otherwise totally forgotten. I would have remembered it, had my calendar not been buried under a pile of crap in the family room, due to the kitchen-painting project.
Ah, so what? Everything gets done eventually.
Tomorrow: Pictures. (I hope.)
Ann Arbor was lovely. No parking, but lovely. That is my town, I must say, the only place I’ve ever lived where I felt more or less at home. I pick up Kate at school this year among a herd of blondes wearing diamond rings of one carat or more. I picked up Kate at school in Ann Arbor among graying late-starters like me, lesbians and even the occasional blonde, who might be picking up her little towheaded clone but also a Chinese, Guatemalan or other differently colored child. Things about Ann Arbor drove me nuts, but mostly I loved it, five-month winter and all.
I don’t think I’d love it so much if Alan were commuting 90 minutes a day, though. Best to leave it a rosy memory I can visit inside of an hour.
Tomorrow’s ice cream flavor: Banana with chocolate chunks. Chunky Monkey, without the walnuts. I’ll let you know how it turns out.
Dorothy said on June 8, 2005 at 11:23 am
Beah Richards, who played Sidney’s Poitier’s mother in “Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner?” was only 7 years older than Sidney. When Ms. Richards died not too long ago, I remember reading that fact.
When I did Steel Magnolias on stage in Ohio two years ago, I played someone (Clairee) about 25 years older than I really was. I wondered how believable it was to the audience. I didn’t think I was, but hey, it’s theatre.
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Nance said on June 8, 2005 at 11:48 am
Well, a good actor can play any age — any gender, even — but I was more struck by the male-female thing. We’re regularly expected to believe Jack Nicholson or Warren Beatty or some other geezer can make sparks with a woman one-third his age, but I can’t think of the last time Vanessa Redgrave did a love scene with Keanu Reeves.
On second thought, i don’t think I’d like to see that.
The biggest shock for me in “About Schmidt” wasn’t Kathy Bates’ nude scene, but seeing Jack with a woman his own age. Of course she had to be bumped off in the first act. Still.
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mary said on June 8, 2005 at 1:57 pm
Keanu Reeves was hot for Diane Keaton in “Something’s Got to Give.” She had a nude scene, albeit very briefly, as well.
Your old Ann Arbor neighborhood sounds like mine here in LA. Lots of funky moms, no skinny blonds in SUVs, but lots of older moms, lesbians, racially mixed couples, non-English speaking moms. I think I would go crazy among the skinny SUV types.
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harry near indy said on June 8, 2005 at 2:09 pm
i guess nobody remembers the film moment to moment, iirc the title.
it starred lily tomlin and john travolta. they had an affair, or something like that. big age difference between them.
i read somewhere the movie was terrible. never did see it.
btw, don’t the young folks nowadays call an woman dating an older man tadpoling?
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harry near indy said on June 8, 2005 at 2:09 pm
pardon me — i meant “dating a younger man” in my last post.
my bad.
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Dorothy said on June 8, 2005 at 4:52 pm
Harry – I’ll check with my young folk, who is 20, and stopping by this weekend on his way to Daytona about “tadpoling.” He was aghast last year when I let on that I knew what “teabagging” was. (I think I read the phrase and the explanation in TIME.) But then we had a good laugh over it.
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cc said on June 8, 2005 at 5:15 pm
Gee, it’s been like 20 years since I’ve seen Punchline, but I thought the story line was that Sally Field’s role was that of a mom trying to change her (boring) life by breaking into comedy. I don’t recall that she was supposed to be an agemate of Tom Hanks.
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Ricardo said on June 8, 2005 at 5:20 pm
Angela Lansbury was only 35 when she played Elvis’ mother in “Blue Hawaii”. E was 25. Angela just always seemed older.
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blue girl said on June 8, 2005 at 5:20 pm
Nance, (I feel weird calling you that — not knowing you and all — I hate when people who don’t know me call me “Lor” –) Anyway — that was quite the ambitious “to do” list you made.
Mine would’ve been:
Finish painting
Ask my husband to run out and get flowers and a bottle of wine
Order a pizza
And then, how do you say it? “Glug” the wine and sit there and stare at my new kitchen!
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MarkH said on June 9, 2005 at 3:47 am
Moment by Moment…a truly horrible film, Harry. Caught it years ago late-night when I couldn’t sleep; the awful Travolta/Tomlin pairing didn’t help. Hard to believe that Travolta (he played a character named “Strip”) managed to do this after Sat. Night Fever and between Grease and Urban Cowboy. Capable actors can deal with the age problems. No so Steve McQueen. During production of Junior Bonner, he complained to director Sam Peckinpah about the casting of Ida Lupino in the film. Even though just 15 years older than him, she played McQueen’s mother and he couldn’t, or didn’t want to mask the fact that he’d always had the hots for her.
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