# Actors trying to avoid age **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 30, 2011, 12:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-trying-to-avoid-age/590826 "2011-07-30T12:30:35Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![sparky\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/77aa72/32.png) [@sparky\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sparky_1)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2011, 12:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-trying-to-avoid-age/590826/1 "2011-07-30T12:30:35Z")
So Arnold Schwarzenegger is 64 today, and he looks just awful in his IMDb thumbnail pic. I can’t tell if it’s the skin or the hair, but the guy looks absolutely terrible. Here is the full size [pic](http://www.imdb.com/media/rm1884001280/nm0000216). Imagine if he hadn’t had plastic surgery and how much better he’d (probably) look. Take someone like Harrison [Ford](http://www.imdb.com/media/rm2178324224/nm0000148), who still looks damn good at 69. My guess is that it’s the correct hair color and lack of plastic surgery that makes him still look good. It’s weird how you can look at the parts and not notice anything wrong, but taken together, the whole looks really nonhuman; wrinkles on the face are meant to be accompanied with grayer hair and vice versa. So what other actors fit this bill? ---
**Author:** ![Candyman74](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ad7895/32.png) [@Candyman74](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Candyman74)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2011, 1:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-trying-to-avoid-age/590826/2 "2011-07-30T13:36:08Z")
> [@sparky\_1](#): > > I can’t tell if it’s the skin or the hair, but the guy looks absolutely terrible. Here is the full size [pic](http://www.imdb.com/media/rm1884001280/nm0000216). I don’t think he looks terrible. He looks good for his age to me. Probably better than most of us will look at his age. ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2011, 1:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-trying-to-avoid-age/590826/3 "2011-07-30T13:48:08Z")
> [@sparky\_1](#): > > My guess is that it’s the correct hair color and lack of plastic surgery that makes him still look good. I can’t imagine what you’d think of my dad, in his mid-80’s and still with dark black hair… No, he doesn’t color it, it’s still naturally dark. HIS dad didn’t start to go grey until his 90’s, and was still only half grey at his death at 98. Still has wrinkles and stuff, you won’t mistake him for 40, or even 50. Don’t know why Arnold looks as he does - surgery? Too much sun? Steroid use? High-stress political job? Annoying in-laws? All take a toll on appearance. So far as I know, Ford hasn’t had surgery, and he has definitely spent time in the sun. Maybe it’s just good genes? Ford does look better than Schwarzenegger to me, but I wouldn’t say either looks horrible. ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2011, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-trying-to-avoid-age/590826/4 "2011-07-30T14:55:29Z")
> [@Candyman74](#): > > I don’t think he looks terrible. He looks good for his age to me. Probably better than most of us will look at his age. I agree and I’m no Arnold fan(except the Terminator movies). Besides, have you seen how he looked in Terminator 3? He was huge, the same size as he was in T2 and he was really getting old by T3. ---
**Author:** ![Patty\_O\_Furniture](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/96bed5/32.png) [@Patty\_O\_Furniture](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Patty_O_Furniture)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2011, 3:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-trying-to-avoid-age/590826/5 "2011-07-30T15:45:03Z")
I think selection bias might be rearing its ugly head (heh!) here. After reading the OP, I was expecting Arnie to look much worse, and Harry to look much better than they did when I opened the links to their pictures. Instead, I think they both look about right for their ages. Harrison looks a bit older than 69, I think. ---
**Author:** ![Uosdwis\_R.Dewoh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Uosdwis\_R.Dewoh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Uosdwis_R.Dewoh)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2011, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-trying-to-avoid-age/590826/6 "2011-07-30T16:24:26Z")
> [@Patty\_O\_Furniture](#): > > Harrison looks a bit older than 69, I think. You might say it’s not the years, but the mileage. ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2011, 4:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-trying-to-avoid-age/590826/7 "2011-07-30T16:36:24Z")
Harrison Ford did look really good in Indiana Jones 4, especially considering the 20 years between sequels. [Indy 4](http://www.altfg.com/Stars/i/indiana-jones-and-the-kingdom-of-the-crystal-skull.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![postcards](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8e8cbc/32.png) [@postcards](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/postcards)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2011, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-trying-to-avoid-age/590826/8 "2011-07-30T17:12:30Z")
> [@Mahaloth](#): > > Harrison Ford did look really good in Indiana Jones 4, especially considering the 20 years between sequels. > > [Indy 4](http://www.altfg.com/Stars/i/indiana-jones-and-the-kingdom-of-the-crystal-skull.jpg) Karen Allen, on the other hand… ---
**Author:** ![PlainJain](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/5daacb/32.png) [@PlainJain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PlainJain)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2011, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-trying-to-avoid-age/590826/9 "2011-07-30T17:22:06Z")
> [@sparky\_1](#): > > I can’t tell if it’s the skin or the hair, but the guy looks absolutely terrible. Here is the full size [pic](http://www.imdb.com/media/rm1884001280/nm0000216). I gotta agree with the others, I don’t think he looks bad for his age. When my grandfather died at 79 his hair was still naturally jet black. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2011, 5:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-trying-to-avoid-age/590826/10 "2011-07-30T17:24:04Z")
> [@postcards](#): > > Karen Allen, on the other hand… …looks as good as ever. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2011, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-trying-to-avoid-age/590826/11 "2011-07-30T17:31:29Z")
Worst example of not growing old gracefully: [Mickey Rourke](http://www.oddfilms.com/blog/media/mickey-rourke.jpg) What did he do to his face? Bad plastic surgery? Botox? ---
**Author:** ![Justin\_Bailey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/justin_bailey/32/8792_2.png) [@Justin\_Bailey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Justin_Bailey)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2011, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-trying-to-avoid-age/590826/12 "2011-07-30T17:39:15Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > Worst example of not growing old gracefully: [Mickey Rourke](http://www.oddfilms.com/blog/media/mickey-rourke.jpg) > > What did he do to his face? Bad plastic surgery? Botox? He became a boxer for a few years in the 90s. ---
**Author:** ![AuntiePam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@AuntiePam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AuntiePam)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2011, 5:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-trying-to-avoid-age/590826/13 "2011-07-30T17:54:48Z")
Mickey Rourke’s had plastic surgery. I don’t know if it was to repair damage from boxing. He was featured on one of those “worst plastic surgery” shows awhile back. Distressing. The man was quite handsome pre-surgery. Burt Reynolds and Kenny Rogers aren’t aging gracefully either. ---
**Author:** ![Justin\_Bailey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/justin_bailey/32/8792_2.png) [@Justin\_Bailey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Justin_Bailey)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2011, 5:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-trying-to-avoid-age/590826/14 "2011-07-30T17:58:03Z")
> [@AuntiePam](#): > > Burt Reynolds and Kenny Rogers aren’t aging gracefully either. Aging? Both are in their 70s and Reynolds is only four years away from 80. They have _ **aged** _ and they look like the old men they are. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2011, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-trying-to-avoid-age/590826/15 "2011-07-30T18:06:14Z")
> [@Justin\_Bailey](#): > > He became a boxer for a few years in the 90s. Boxing doesn’t explain his artificial looking appearance. ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2011, 6:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-trying-to-avoid-age/590826/16 "2011-07-30T18:17:34Z")
> [@AuntiePam](#): > > Mickey Rourke’s had plastic surgery. I don’t know if it was to repair damage from boxing. He was featured on one of those “worst plastic surgery” shows awhile back. Distressing. Rourke has gone past ‘ugly’ and reached ‘interesting’. Sort of like Ron Perlman. ---
**Author:** ![Justin\_Bailey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/justin_bailey/32/8792_2.png) [@Justin\_Bailey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Justin_Bailey)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2011, 7:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-trying-to-avoid-age/590826/17 "2011-07-30T19:00:55Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > Boxing doesn’t explain his artificial looking appearance. Of course it’s artificial. He got his face pounded into hamburger while he was boxing and it had to be surgically repaired. > **[Mickey Rourke: I've hacked off so many people in Hollywood, who the hell...](https://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-1150506/Mickey-Rourke-Ive-hacked-people-Hollywood-hell-Oscar.html)** > > He crashed from riches to rags. Now, on the cusp of Oscar glory, Mickey Rourke reveals the true scale of his fall. ---
**Author:** ![AuntiePam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@AuntiePam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AuntiePam)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2011, 8:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-trying-to-avoid-age/590826/18 "2011-07-30T20:08:22Z")
> [@Justin\_Bailey](#): > > Aging? Both are in their 70s and Reynolds is only four years away from 80. They have _ **aged** _ and they look like the old men they are. Have you seen recent photos? They’ve both had too much plastic surgery, Rogers especially. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2011, 8:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-trying-to-avoid-age/590826/19 "2011-07-30T20:12:38Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > Worst example of not growing old gracefully: [Mickey Rourke](http://www.oddfilms.com/blog/media/mickey-rourke.jpg) > > What did he do to his face? Bad plastic surgery? Botox? > [@Justin\_Bailey](#): > > He became a boxer for a few years in the 90s. > [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > Boxing doesn’t explain his artificial looking appearance. It looks like his face froze in mid-punch. ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2011, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-trying-to-avoid-age/590826/20 "2011-07-30T20:45:07Z")
I don’t know what Harrison Ford’s had done, but he’s had work done that’s altered his face. Photos from the early days of his relationship with Calista Flockhart showed a really jarring difference, like he’d had his face tightened too much or something. Now his face has settled into looking natural for his age (lose the earring, though, please!) but he doesn’t look like the same guy he used to be. Same thing happened to Robert Redford. I’ve seen facelifts that were so good, you’d never know they were done. Remember when Beatrice Arthur had one done during the Maude days? I guess you never know ahead of time if it’s going to turn out like a better version of yourself, or a version that’s not quite you. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-trying-to-avoid-age/590826.md?page=2)