Last night a friend of mine rented a DVD called "My Mom's New Boyfriend." The lead role was played by Meg Ryan. I took one look at Ms. Ryan and was astounded by her "new look." She is barely recognizable as the Meg Ryan I have come to know and like as an actress. Her penchant for "cute" roles was obviously because that's who she was: cute. Now she's obviously had some "work" done on her face and to me she looks more like Elizabeth Montgomery from the 60's/70's TV series Bewitched (although my friend says she thinks Ms. Ryan's mouth looks like Michelle Pfeiffer's due to the lip job).
I ask you: what does Hollywood have against letting actors and actresses (mostly actresses) grow old naturally and gracefully? We're supposed to grow old. We were never meant to stay youthful looking. That is for the youth. We had our youth. It's okay to move on and become old and older and elderly.
In fact, I will go as far as to say that it's not just Hollywood, but our society in general that puts pressure on folks to jump on the "I want, no I NEED to stay young-looking, feel young, and act young in order to enjoy life and feel good about myself" bandwagon. I say HOGWASH!
There's nothing wrong with not feeling like you're 18 or 21 or even 30 anymore if you are not. It is okay to feel your body growing old. It is natural to slow down a bit. Wrinkles and gray hair are not leprosy. They are part of the natural aging process. Why feel bad or get down on yourself about it? Age happens if you are alive for a few decades past 30. What's the big deal?
Acting your age is a good thing. Young people are supposed to be more energetic and impetuous. Folks who have been around a few decades hopefully have a bit of life experience under their belt and can be a great source of wisdom and history for younger people. We even tend to look at the elderly as if they are a burden to our society and lifestyle. That's a shame. We are wasting a very precious resource when we cast off our older generation as if they no longer have any use or cannot contribute anything to society anymore. But I digress... that's another subject for another blog.
It's the person who is brave enough (and that's ridiculous to even type!) to allow him/herself to grow old naturally who has my thumbs up. Because there is a level of maturity that says, "I don't care what other people think or say, this is who I am and I am not about to try to change the way I look, feel or act in order to fit into someone else's idea of who I should be or how I should look or act at my age."
It is not just actors and actresses. Look at Joan Rivers and Barry Manilow. Their skin is so tight from the face lifts they've had that they look unreal. Joan Rivers looks like an alien and Barry Manilow looks like he had a smile plastered on his face, like a clown mask. Do they really think this is attractive or appealing?
I have noticed a trend in some commercials, however, which has given me cause for hope. Some companies are advertising products using actors and actresses who appear to be aging naturally and gracefully. They have gray hair and wrinkles, for crying out loud! They don't appear to have had any "work" done. It's so refreshing. Now if only Hollywood would get a clue and let the well-established, well-recognized actors and actresses grow old naturally (if not gracefully) in front of the cameras... perhaps the youth of our country and the world would not feel compelled or pressured to follow the lead of those who have felt it necessary to mutilate themselves in order to keep their jobs; to remain a vital part of the industry known as Hollywood.
I read a brief article in some magazine at a doctor's office that had a poll. In that poll, they asked aspiring young actresses (not actors, mind you) if they would ever consider having cosmetic surgery. The answer was an unanimous albeit very disturbing YES. The responses were generally something like, "Oh, of course. I am sure at some point I will need that." How sad that at such a young age, they have already been indoctrinated into this damaging and deceptive mindset.
Let me ask you something: when you buy a product, do you want the real thing, or do you want something that only looks like the real thing? Because by forcing actresses and actors to have themselves mutilated in order to keep their jobs, Hollywood is selling us FAKE PRODUCTS.
I know, that's not exactly headline news. Hollywood has always sold fake products. But when people allow themselves to be manipulated into doing something so obviously desperate, there is something very wrong. It is unconscienable. Nobody should have to mutilate themselves like that to please someone else, or to fit into someone else's idea of how they should look. That's all cosmetic surgery is: mutilation and deception for the sake of appearance.
There are many women who are in places of prominence and power who could (and should) be taking a stand on this issue. Why are women allowing themselves to be so manipulated by the status quo of Hollywood and the media? It's cosmetic surgery, it's thin bodies, it's lifestyle. It's all a bunch of lies.
Hollywood: WAKE UP AND SMELL THE COFFEE!!! It's time to get real. It's time to stop giving actresses the boot when they start to show signs of aging. IT'S NATURAL AND IT'S REAL AND IT'S RIGHT TO GROW OLD. Pretty and handsome are not defined by or limited to any particular age. Get a clue.
What about you? Are you sick and tired of this facade of youth that our society and Hollywood and the media are throwing in our faces, as if it were the most important thing in our lives? I'd love to hear from you. This is your opportunity to speak up and be heard.
That's all for now...
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