Joan Didion Is NOT My Icon For Aging Women!

That’s the famous writer, Joan Didion,
in the Céline ad.

She’s 80, and Céline has lately decided it’s cool to “celebrate” age. So they’ve chosen a “model” who they believe suits their “understated look.” (BTW, those are fashion buzzwords usually synonymous with over-the-top expensive.)

My cool 33-year-old daughter thinks Joan looks “totally chic,” as does FabOverFifty’s cool 25-year-old art director. As a matter of fact, so does my stylish FOFriend, Marla Ginsburg, who is the hottest fashion designer on HSN right now.

Call me vain (don’t become more disagreeable than that, please). I’m just not into that kind of “chic,” at 67, and I don’t want to look that kind of “chic” if I live to be 80. Although Joan’s writing is certainly inspirational, I don’t find her wispy thin hair, jowls and turkey neck especially inspirational, chic or cool, even if they are accessorized by trendy big black sunglasses, an oversized pendant, and a simple black (undoubtedly $4,000) sweater. I’m also not a fan of the anorexic look at Joan’s age. (One fashion writer called her “cigarette thin.”)

I know many women would think Joan is growing old “gracefully.” I’m not sure what that means. Does that make you unrefined, uncouth, unsophisticated, graceless, and unattractive if you color your hair, buy a wig, have your jowls eliminated, wear makeup, and shoot your wrinkled forehead with Botox?

Please don’t misunderstand me. If Joan Didion doesn’t mind showing off her crepey neck, good for her. Katherine Hepburn hated her neck but didn’t want plastic surgery, so she covered it with lovely scarves and high-necked sweaters, and I think she looked gorgeous, at 40 and at 80.

I think pretentiousness is the only thing the Céline campaign “celebrates,” something at which
the fashion industry excels.

On the other end of the “let’s celebrate age” spectrum, Dolce & Gabbana brings together two nonnas and throws four of its hip bags and a teddy bear into their laps (chic nonnas never leave home without two handbags each AND their teddy bears!). I’m not sure what message the creative geniuses at D&G are attempting to communicate (Be young again with D&G? D&G: Ageless?) but I also think its campaign is affected.

The last ad, from American Apparel (below), gets it right, as far as I’m concerned. Sixty-year-old with a great body modeling underwear.

I would not want to see a 60-year-old with a
jiggly stomach modeling panties. So why do I want to see an 80-year-old with jiggly jowls modeling eyeglasses and a pendant?

Then again, you don’t need to care what you look like when your eyeglasses cover your entire face.

Tell me, my FOFriends, which approach do you favor?

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0 Responses to “Joan Didion Is NOT My Icon For Aging Women!”

  1. Deborah Luper says:

    i am 61..i will never have a face lift…and i have never had Botox…nor will i ever…having said that …i am an educated “girl”..yep girl…and will ever be…but i do not smoke …and i am no longer “cigarette thin”…i am retired …and i am enjoying learning more about Joan D. and yes she is my mother’s age…however, i do agree the tone is an insult…to WOMEN…and honestly Joan never had a child …naturally…i have but one beauteous son…whom i love …and will ever be

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  2. Marie Petite says:

    You wear what you want at any age if you are comfortable…f the world.

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  3. PAM L. says:

    There are plenty of attractive women who are stylish and have a turkey neck and or jowls. Please don’t make those who cannot afford to go under the knife or simply have better places at this time of life for their money feel bad. It felt like a slap in my face each time you mentioned this as being undesirable and you mentioned it a bunch! Disappointed…..

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  4. PKW says:

    Love all 4 approaches to be honest. I see nothing wrong or better/worse than in any of the pictures. I live in Houston with every procedure and makeup and beauty aid available in the world at our access. Any one besides me think the lady with Teddy Bear looks the happiest? I think the point of the Dolce & Gabbana ad is that a bright and colorful handbag is for any woman at whatever age, and let’s keep that inner child alive. I am rambling, but my point is this.. celebrate aging, to each her own. Glad to see advertising aimed this way, all three advertisements draw me in.

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  5. Adrienne Ione says:

    Another perspective: one looks in the mirror, sees gray hair and thinks, “Yes. I win.” Aging could be thought of as a gift; a gift not all get.

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  6. Diane says:

    When I see these three images my reactions are mixed.
    The natural beauty Joan Didion has to offer this campaign is completely obscured by what looks like someone “dressing her up” with glasses that sit on her face awkwardly, not to mention obscuring it. I believe with different glasses and better attention to the details of hair placement and jewelry the neck may not have been what made the impression.

    I agree with you about D&G. I would have done something different with that. Pretty bags though.

    It is refreshing to see someone modeling under garments, in the third photo, other than 20 something Barbie dolls. I think she deserved more attention to her hair and how it lay over her shoulders.

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  7. Susan says:

    As I age I have grown in my appreciation of how each woman ages differently. My mom and friends in her 80’s age group are beautifully wrinkled and spotted. We are more than the sum of our looks. I love the confidence and wisdom that comes with age.

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  8. Suzanne Grham says:

    We need to set a higher standard! My 90-year-old retired school-teacher mother looks at least 10 years younger than Celine. We need to promote my Mom’s standards: maintain a healthy diet, exercise, avoid obesity, study, worship, find ways to help others beyond yourself.

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  9. Barbara says:

    Thank you for your comments. I’m really not sure how I feel about any of the three ads. I’ve gotten so accustomed to seeing 15 year olds modeling everything or photoshopped images that seeing “old” seem strange. I do have to say that if one doesnt want to be a slave to creams, needles etc., then that is their choice. I think we need to accept choice. As we define beauty in the western world, no one over 30 would ever qualify as beautiful and there seems something very wrong about that.

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  10. Alice Harrison says:

    The only one I liked on this is Kathryn Hepburn. She was beautiful and classy. The first two ads speak for themselves why they look so bad but the American Apparel one is not as good as she could look. Her body looks good, I am more jiggly at 63 but I can use Photoshop as good as the next person to take care of that. They could have made her hair and face look a little better. She is obviously relaxing so they don’t need to do to much. As far as looking at people only for how they look; if I read a magazine where they are talking about men I want to see something that looks good also. If I want to explore someone’s brain there are many places to do that. I am a little vain myself but there is no reason why you can’t at least try to do the best with what you have. I don’t have plans to have anything fixed but I sure do like to buy good moisturizers.

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  11. suzip says:

    The model may look good in her underwear but her long, stringy hair ages her. Wonder what that 60-year-old will look like at 80? Probably a lot like Joan Didion.

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  12. bystander915 says:

    Here I am again. I don’t think Geri is critical of Didion in a cruel way. We all age. Some more gracefully than others. For me, the trick is to look my best and as healthy as I can feel. I let my hair grow gray, and am always fighting the weight excess but I don’t want to look like I am anorexic. It’s not all that inspirational. I look at Iris Apfel. She wears these oversized glasses, decorated like a Xmas tree, and short white hair! Fabulous? Now she inspires me! So I see Geri’s point.

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  13. bystander915 says:

    You are soooo right! I have smiled reading your post today. It’s sheer genius: witty, clever, and right on target, especially your assessment of the fashion industry buzzwords!! Bravo Geri! Love you.

    Cecile.

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    • Geri Brin says:

      Hi Cecile,

      Iris isn’t understated enough for Celine. 🙂

      oxo G.

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  14. Mary Evenson says:

    If I have to pick a favorite from these 3, I would pick the Dolce & Gabbana one, because here are two women who appear comfortable with themselves but out shopping for their grandchildren. I liked Kate Hepburn’s look, but I don’t have her genes. I loathe the photo of Joan Didion [I don’t know of her], but I dislike the photo because I dislike the all black and big sunglasses. I think we need to remember that all of us cannot afford to buy wigs, get botox, get surgery, buy statement outfits, or even lose weight. Either we embrace old age or we don’t, either we embrace natural people or we don’t. I remember being a teen and going to Old Orchard Beach, Maine – the beaches had oodles of Quebec oldsters in small bathing suits, bikinis, and speedos, with their bellies hanging over the waistbands. At the time I wondered why they wore what they wore – today I wish I was more comfortable in my own body and I am glad I saw people who seemed comfortable just the way they were, fat or thin, old or young.
    No Joan Didion is not my icon for aging, that would be my mother-in-law, still bowling and playing golf at age 90, my parents who square danced into their 80’s, the people I see in the library, grocery store, dept store, that smile when you happen to glance at each other or roll our eyes at some awful new style, product or food, the people who can still smile at this point in their lives – whose stories I don’t know.

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  15. Eleanor Miller says:

    I love the way Joan Didion looks in the Céline ad, but probably for different reasons than most. She reminds me of my mother, who passed away five years ago at the age of 86. She was a spunky, graceful, funny fabover50. She aged gracefully on little income and without all the “work” done. At age 53, I would be proud to age like her. She was authentic and true to herself and her convictions. A greater and more beautiful lady never lived.

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  16. Janice says:

    There were several photos from the session with Jackie O’Shaughnesy. She has skin rolls at the midline in one of them and of course knee wrinkles, elbow wrinkles and who knows if that is all her own hair? I don’t care but MANY other things give away age-not just faces. Of course lighting and photoshop are also in play. So do we buy into the delusion or accept the reality? There is a huge age difference between Jackie and Joan as well-18 years. Do you not want to see Jackie in 18 years unless she gets work done?
    Iris Apfel has a wonderful ATTITUDE. THAT is why she is still attractive. http://fashionista.com/2012/01/iris-apfel-on-aging-gracefully-and-people-thinking-shes-cool
    At 64 I have no fashion icon. No mentor for how to move forward into uncharted waters. I am finding my own way. I have had no ‘work’ done. No surgery, fillers, implants or botox. I am 5’3″ 115lbs, use sunscreen, don’t smoke, alcohol in moderation and try to stay fit and healthy. Much more than I see most ‘over 40’ men doing. Oh and I have Hashimotos so my hair is also thinning and I am allowing it to go gray.
    If you think Katherine Hepburn looked good because she covered up her
    turkey neck with a turtleneck and thin hair looks bad maybe I need to start shopping for a berqa? 🙂

    Just when I was beginning to accept I’ll never look like a young
    supermodel, now I’m faced with the pressure to look like an old
    supermodel. Well now. Your post was not at all inspiring, to say the least, and I need to go hunt down a glass of wine. Cheers!

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  17. CandidaRoyalle says:

    I’m having a hard time getting past the tone of your comments, Geri. Why so critical? So unkind! Live and let live. Some women may not feel comfortable going under the knife; others may not have the means. Should they read your comments they might crawl away in shame over their poor circumstances! Your comments are no better than the most scathing agist remarks meant to make women feel horrible about their aging looks. I wouldn’t call you “vain”; I would call you unnecessarily cruel in your remarks: “wispy thin hair, jowls and turkey neck”? Yikes! As a woman who’s running a web site that’s supposed to help other women celebrate their “third chapter” in life, as it’s often called, I would think you’d be a bit more inclusive and supportive of women’s choices, whether they’re yours or not. As someone who’s done a lot of public speaking at colleges & universities, I always assure young women that aging is not as horrific as our culture tries to lead us to believe; that it’s been a way of disempowering women as we enter upon a time in our lives that’s actually quite powerful, a time when we often do our best work and enjoy our lives more than ever now that we can take time just for ourselves. Whether or not we choose to get a face lift has little to do with it. Your vitriolic remarks are no better than the kinds of comments that have been hurled at women through out the ages, meant to keep us worried about whether we’re still attractive enough to be significant, desired, wanted. I believe it was Anne Kreamer (“Going Gray: How to Embrace Your Authentic Self with Grace and Style”) who, for research, joined an on-line dating site twice: once with her gray hair, and once with her hair colored. She was surprised to find that she received more interest and positive comments from men as her gray-haired self. The men admired her for being authentic and confident enough to “be herself”. Not that this is all for men, but again…if you’re going to host a web site that’s supposed to help women of a certain age feel good about themselves, whether or not they want to surgically enhance themselves, I would think you might start by being supportive of women’s choices rather than use it as your personal sounding board. “why do I want to see an 80-year-old with jiggly jowls modeling eyeglasses and a pendant?” Ouch.
    Maybe Joan Didion has reached that splendid time when she doesn’t care what people think of her “giggly jowls” and turkey neck. She knows she’s a whole lot more than all that.

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    • Ciaobella70 says:

      I’m with you, Candida, 100%! I, too, an doing my best to educate young women that age isn’t so awful–IF one begins to take care of oneself physically and emotionally at an early age. At almost 72 I’m still running 26.2 mile marathons. Additionally, I work with women in their 50s, 60s, 70s, 80s+ to help repair past damage and change not-so-great habits through exercise, cooking and cosmetics classes. Many are able to reverse chronic diseases (i.e., diabetes) through exercise and weight loss. And, yes, will all know too well that appearance does indeed count in today’s US society but I strongly believe that with a healthy lifestyle any woman of any age can improve her outward appearance.

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  18. Kathi Elster says:

    I also agree with Jeannie. Geri please listen. I think it’s time that we learn to love what woman look like at all ages. There is no shame in aging. It is our responsibility to show what real aging looks like. Aging is unavoidable. I know some woman think aging is ugly, I think that has more to do with fear and a very dated way of looking at women. We can and need to change that dated way of thinking. We taught out daughter how to be confident and have careers, I think we also need to teach then how to age with pride.

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    • GeriFOF says:

      Hi Kathi,

      Absolutely agree, but that wasn’t the point of my blog. There is indeed no shame in aging. I simply don’t choose to age that way, but each woman is absolutely entitled to age the way she chooses. We don’t have to love the way someone looks in an ad, whether she’s 20 or 80.
      I have no fear of aging. I just hate it. I don’t think one has to be “proud” of her jowls and sagging neck. Proud of our accomplishments, our families, our generosity, our creativity, but no, not of our hanging necks and bald spots.

      Geri

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  19. mbpriore says:

    I’m not saying that Joan Didion should be considered the poster girl for aging well. Yes, she is much too thin and after a lifetime of cigarette smoking the effects of this horribly addictive habit is all too obvious on her weathered face. However, after reading her memoir “The Year of Magical Thinking” the book that tells the story of her beloved husband John Gregory Dunne’s sudden death from heart disease followed by her daughter’s death after a long agonizing illness, I know all too well from personal experience that Joan’s face is one of grief. Maybe we should celebrate that she survived these devastating life events and not judge her physical appearance so harshly.

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    • Janice says:

      MANY women start to get quite thin as they grow older. Very generally at around age 75. The death of a child would be devastating and put age on anyone’s face. Thank you for sharing a little of her story.

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  20. NoirinB says:

    My problem with the first two ads is that the women in them don’t really seem to be aware of, or are interacting realistically with what they are supposed to be selling. Joan Didion’s photo looks like someone jumped in front of her with a bright flash and took her picture without her consent. The glasses are way too big for her face to the point of looking like oversized clown glasses. As far as the nonnas, at least they look happier, although the photo really does look like someone plopped those products in their arms and would take them away just as soon as the photo session was over. The American Apparel one is at least more honest in the fact that the model is obviously posing to sell their goods, but I do have an issue about how her “look” still supports that idea that women need to conform to a certain standard. What I’d love would be a photo ad featuring older women of various “looks” wearing and using goods that they would realistically use or wear and looking happy about it, instead of these ads that just hang some expensive good on them like they were display racks.

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    • GeriFOF says:

      Hi NoirinB,

      Enjoyed reading your observations.

      Geri

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  21. Kim Smith says:

    We all have our own ways of how we choose to age and this is the way it should be.

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  22. TexasLady says:

    Each woman has the right to age as she wishes. Not “cutting” and “tucking” and all the other stuff shows a realism that is fact. We don’t get younger. I am very disgruntled about the fact that fashion often shows all young women, all thin women, and mostly all beautiful women. I don’t see those types on the street, and it seems as if young, thin and pretty are all that is important. It is unrealistic, and it is hurting people to feel put down by the fashion industry–who wants to try to emulate an industry standard that can’t fit the average person? I do not think the swimwear model looks that great because the picture shows her thighs sagging. Other than that, she looks good. At 63, I do not want to be 20 again (horrible to be young and dumb), and I have had no nips and tucks yet. However, the part of the ad that makes me angry is that Celine is wearing sunglasses in the house! Is this how she lives? If you’re going to claim you’re intelligent and have value outside of your looks, then why cover up your wrinkles around your eyes as if you’re ashamed, really, of how you look? If we’re going to be unabashedly candid, let’s be that and not appear affectedly candid-less. Either we are free to be me or we are not. I still think woman are not living a “free to be me” life. We still have the idea, promoted by fashion and magazines, that pretty and thin and young are the most attractive. Maybe they are to a shallow man (and who wants one of those anyway?), but they are not valuable other than a few minutes with the eyes. If I had to choose to be around someone who was pretty and thin and young or someone who was not attractive, fat and old but who had striven with life and won, I would not choose the first person. The second person would be far more interesting and entertaining. And if I was given options of many of the same, I would nearly always choose the second person because I could gain wisdom that the young could seldom offer. Realism is realism. Celine is not being portrayed realistically, and unfortunately, they covered up her eyes which would likely show the wisdom of a hundred thousand encounters.

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  23. Sherrie Mathieson says:

    Geri,
    I specialize with my work as a style consultant and author–in this issue: Looking your best as you age.I try to be an example and so far at age 68–have not succumbed to invasive surgery,etc.I firmly believe that personal style is 98% of looking “youthful” and “modern”.So this ad –although I agree it is “pretentious” (but isn’t most fashion/perfume/cosmetic advertising pretentious?)..actually underlines that even at 80 you needn’t look like the typical older woman.I walk the walk of my philosophy–and achieve it for my clients. Joan is known to be a smoker—and if that’s the only reason she’s thin –that’s of course not a good thing.Thin women also tend to have more wrinkles than their heavier counterparts. But they retain a certain “girlishness” that allows for high style more readily. ..and shopping high-low–JCrew to Celine. Add minimal–natural make-up and an uncontrived hair style-and you have the “illusion” of youth and a modern attitude.

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  24. Anne-Marie Kovacs says:

    I’m in disagreement. Respectfully! 😉

    Though we may object, we are still conditioned to seeing perfect bodies, perfect faces, perfect hair, perfect skin as the “aspirational” marketing tool to sell us fashions or other products. So, understandably, we are a bit in shock when we see the image of a wrinkly, not necessarily attractive “old woman” with uncolored hair trying to sell us high-end fashion.

    But this is something that we will soon get used to, given the whole movement that calls for celebrating diversity in beauty: size, color, age, transgender… Just as the recently “leaked” unretouched photos of Beyoncé and Cindy Crawford demonstrate that marketing-by-Photoshop is a scam, so is using 16 year olds to market fashions that only midlifers can really afford.

    I’m thinking that perhaps that your issue with this campaign is that, while Joan Didion may be aspirational on an intellectual level, she doesn’t quite make the cut as a fashion icon. She’s been a little miscast here. But to me, it’s a beautiful beginning to expanding the imagery in a market that has confined itself to using anorexic adolescents.

    And aspirational? Gimme Iris Apfel any day. She’s what I want to be when I grow up!

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    • Geri Brin says:

      Hi Anne-Marie,

      Want to clarify one point in your comments: I wasn’t writing about her as a fashion icon but as an icon for aging, She is neither to me. Nor are
      “anorectic adolescents.” The fashion industry doesn’t know what to do with itself.

      Geri

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      • Anne-Marie Kovacs says:

        Got it.

        And, hopefully, the “diversity” we are seeing the fashion industry experiment with now will lead to a more democratic illustration of fashion and beauty for consumers.

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  25. Kim JOhnston says:

    As the owner of an anti aging cosmetic company I am saddened by your point of view. I live in Las Vegas and see women of similar age to Joan Dideon who have been nipped and tucked to within an inch of their life. This woman is elegant, sure of herself ( hence the natural beauty and no fake wig, eyelashes and bright red lipstick) and in my opinion just beautiful. I love the ad. It shows women can be stunning and classy and elegant at ANY age.

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    • GeriFOF says:

      Hi Kim,

      I too dislike nipped and tucked to within an inch of their life. But the right wig, eyelashes and red lipstick can be stunning on the right woman.

      Geri

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      • Kim JOhnston says:

        If it is meant to be an “understated look” why would she be wearing a wig and red lipstick. Just my opinion, but I believe she absolutely covers the understated look – just like she had done her entire life.

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        • Geri Brin says:

          Kim,

          I agree she covers the understated look. I wasn’t referring to her in relation to the wig, red lipstick and eyelashes, just to women in general.

          Geri

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  26. Bessheit says:

    None of the above. But if I had to pick it would be American Apparel. MORE MAGAZINE features a lot of good looking normal women 60+ who have real lives, real jobs, and have taken care of themselves. It’s not a cute campaign just part of who they are.

    The two first ads are “objectifying” older women in my opinion, not flattering them or presenting them in a realistic way.

    Joan Didion is not my icon for anything. I personally dislike everything about her– her writing, her looks and her disagreeable personality. Her refusal to wear makeup (or is she wearing makeup?) or have her hair done is just as contrived as anything else. Can’t speak about the rest of her since she’s clothed neck down in black and her face is covered with huge black sunglasses. She did bother to wear lipstick but certainly not to smile. She seems to have contempt for any effort to enhance her appearance yet appears in an ad as sombre as if she were going to a funeral or the guest of honor at a funeral.

    Katherine Hepburn was blessed with great genes, great hair and great talent.
    Jeanne Moreau hasn’t done anything to fix herself up and it shows, but who cares?

    I adore Iris Apfel-she’s in the Kate Spade and Alex Bittar ads this year and looks fabulous and she’s 91!! But she has verve and pep and is a fashion icon with her brilliant white hair and bold black glasses and great style.

    Fortunately I don’t need to maintain the status of having been a great beauty. So as long as I look presentable, can get out of bed and do my work and feel young at heart I’m happy. In fact, sometimes I feel so young at heart that I think I need parents or someone to be accountable to.

    My ten cents!

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    • Geri Brin says:

      Hi Bessheit,

      Yes, objectifying” is a fine word. Geri

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  27. Catherine Urbanski says:

    Hmmm. I’m having difficulty processing this. On one hand, I do agree with you on certain issues. Trust me, if I won the Powerball lottery tonight, tomorrow I would be at the best plastic surgeon on earth having some lady parts removed and replaced with perkier ones. I would have a TOTAL face lift, AND a neck lift. I’d have my ass lifted, my thigh’s firmed and my tummy tucked. Yes. I would! However, I cannot afford that. Nor can I even afford Botox or other fillers. Therefore, I MUST make do with my balding hair, my turkey neck, my ripples, my wrinkles and my flab. Yeah. I’m a hot old mess! However, I do try in vain (pun intended) to age gracefully (you can read more on my blog: Atypical60). It’s not easy. The first time I saw my turkey neck–well, my reaction was so severe I could have used Depends!
    But seriously, we, as women, shouldn’t knock Didion. That is the way SHE choses to age. We can be our worst enemies at times. Maybe she’s just naturally thin–who knows? Her wispy hair? Well, honey, my hair is thinning like crazy (I’ve written about how I handle it), due to unemployment, I have no medical insurance so I cannot visit any more doctors about this issue. Joan’s look may not be for all of us but as a fellow woman, I celebrate her. I also celebrate the model in the AA ad, My tummy isn’t as firm, but I’m workin’ on it! My ad of choice: Dolce & Gabbana. I just cannot resist a great sense of humor!

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    • Geri Brin says:

      Hi Catherine, Great comment. But I am not knocking Didion at all. Just stating that I don’t find her hair, neck, jowls, etc. cool or inspirational. In fact, she has those things. Geri

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  28. Lauren Jones says:

    I agree with your assessment on this…like Kate, I am not overly fond of the aging process either. And am not quite sure how “young” I want to look yet and with what means I will achieve that. However, if couture fashion wishes to celebrate growing old gracefully – and that is synonymous with “wispy thin hair, jowls and turkey neck” or ” two nonnas “, then, please by all means celebrate that. It’ll put a lot less pressure on me and attention on my less-than-perfect areas by the younger generation!

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    • Geri Brin says:

      Hi Lauren,

      Glad you agree!

      I am not interested in looking young, but I don’t want to resemble a corpse before I am actually a corpse, when {I hope} I will no longer care. Geri

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      • Geri Brin says:

        When my mom was 86, I’d pester her about coloring her gray, straw-like hair, but she refused. She was happy with the way she looked, which is what counted.

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  29. Fiona Ann Walker Villate says:

    I agree with you 100%. You can call me vain too. I look in the mirror and am starting to see the neck sag and the lines and I hate it. I know that I am more than just my face and my body but that doesn’t mean I have to love the fact that I could look like Joan eventually. I will fight it every step of the way. If I could afford the costs I would definately enhance my looks by getting fillers, botox and eventually plastic surgery. Thank you for this article. It truly hit home for me.

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    • Geri Brin says:

      Love your comment, Fiona, not just because you agree with me, but because you say that even though you’re more than your face and body, “that doesn’t mean I have to love the fact that I could look like Joan eventually.” That is precisely my point! Thank you for reading and commenting. Geri

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      • Fiona Ann Walker Villate says:

        You’re welcome. We’re FABOVER50 for a reason!! Love your site BTW

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        • Geri Brin says:

          A BIG THANK YOU, FIONA!

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      • mbpriore says:

        So what you’re saying (and I think it’s clear of what you’re saying) is that unless someone agrees with your point of view, the rest of us are dead wrong. I’m fab and I’m over fifty, I am also a compassionate person, that shows on my face more than all the botox injections a girl could possibly endure. Fight the good fight against aging ladies because when you really do start heading “south” all that nastiness and negativity will show up on you puss like a bad sunburn.

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        • Geri Brin says:

          Hello Mbpriore,
          This isn’t about right or wrong at all. I am simply sharing my viewpoint.
          Geri

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  30. Jeannie says:

    I disagree with you here, I am afraid. We are making women’s worth all about their looks. Joan Didion is intelligent and beautiful. Both things go together. i don’t want to separate one from the other. She is more than her body. More than her wispy thin hair.

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    • Geri Brin says:

      Hi Jeannie,
      Thank you for you comment. I love to read others’ views and appreciate that you took the time to read the article and write such a thoughtful response.
      Geri

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    • Barbara says:

      I agree!

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