Sally Field: I Hate Her. I Really, Really Do

Sally Field is in a hopeless spot: some women hate her because she refuses to grow old like them; other women hate her because she gets to have face lifts, look terrific, and they don't.

Me? I Just Hate Her
Maybe I just hate the idea of her. Perhaps because I am experiencing my own age/style "issues" someone as surefooted as Gidget just makes me cranky. Yes, she looked great. Yes, she's taking care of herself. Yeah, yeah, yeah. First it's Helen Mirrin looking fabulous at the Oscars, now Field. Has neither of them any shame?

Would this Emmy audience have been so charitable to Helen Hayes? I doubt it. Oh, they'd have shown respect for an old woman who's so over, but that's about it.

It's not about just acting anymore. It's about not looking older and having to literally rebuild the body until it's respectable enough to show on in public and on television. It's about denying who everyone will eventually become. Most everyone. That affects the stories and characters these Peter Pans and Panettes try to display. Why not? Most of TV's writing is fantasy anyway.

Maybe there is enough Botulinum and wrinkle fillers in the world to keep regular old folks young enough not to upset the young adults who seem to be in charge of most everything, and maybe a large percentage of Boomers will get free face lifts when Gavin Newsom becomes Emperor; but is that what we really want? Do we really want the Katherine Helmond-Style (what movie?) grandma carrying the roasted turkey ala Norman Rockwell's famous canvas? Think about it. It takes the old folks so much time to pull their oldness together into something that resembles young, they've decided to have Albertsons deliver a sucky turkey and yucky cranberry sauce. All that natural beauty takes time!

It Takes Guts To Look Old
Maybe kids want Grandma and Grandpa to look their ages--and take seriously their roles. If asked, these same confused kids might wonder why grandparents who look so young act so old. I am quite certain of this: all the time we spend in getting young again can be spent on helping our young people grow.

But Then Again...
I may just be insanely jealous of Sally's renaissance. As I said, I hate her... (meow, meow, hisss!).

Thanks for the read.