Aging John Cleese and Tom Jones

I saw a couple of entertainment stories today that touch on aging and raise me out of my wheelchair to shake my cane and cackle, "We all do it!" But when you're famous and more susceptible to having your personal business broadcast around the world, there might be some more slightly troubling aspects to it.

One story had to do with John Cleese having a younger girlfriend, in her 40s but claiming to be in her 20s, discussing their sex life and her thoughts on it. Some of her thoughts centered on his age, probably uncomfortable for him to hear about. They have broken up, maybe over stuff like this.

The other story I didn't look at, but saw the headline, was on Tom Jones letting his hair go gray, no longer coloring it. So he's getting old. Both John and Tom at in their late 60s, not exactly ancient, but maybe they feel like it, looking at the news.

As far as John Cleese goes, he's never had a sexy guy image over the years. So he really has nothing to fret about especially, at least you wouldn't think so. He's been a comedy genius, that's it, and he really ought to be far enough out of the public eye that no one should care if he's older. But if you're famous, and in the public eye at all (he's been in recent movies), and you're trying to date much younger women, some of this is likely to happen.

As for Tom Jones, he definitely did have a sexiest guy in the world image over the years. No one's ever thrown underwear at me, except my wife, saying, "Carry these upstairs!" Or mad in our room, "Can't you pick up your shorts?!" But Tom Jones had the undies and plenty of them, maybe with hotel keys sewn to the elastic, I don't know. So the fact that he's getting old -- up in Adam Chandler territory -- might be a big deal to him and the media. But he has no alternative, so why worry about it?

Tom Jones letting his hair go gray might be a great coping strategy. Don't deny it, you're old. Who isn't? It happens to all of us. Let the old image go, and make your image exactly what you are.