MovieChat Forums > Middle of the Night (1959) Discussion > Wow! 56 seems to have been viewed as bei...

Wow! 56 seems to have been viewed as being at death's door in 1959!

posted 14 years ago by genplant29
27 replies | jump to latest

Wow: Did 56, and upper fifties, look, and was it considered, THAT ancient half a century ago??? I'm currently 50, and I certainly don't look or feel or come across anywhere CLOSE to being a "senior citizen," as Fredric March (and his cronies) looks and seems to feel, and to consider himself, in this movie! He and his friends seem to consider death to be imminent, before much more time passes. Was life expectancy really THAT short back then, and did people actually look so old by age 56? YIKES: Now I'm seriously worried! LOL

[–] missrhea 14 years ago

I'm 53; my husband is 56 going on 57 and doesn't look anywhere near as old as the folks in this film. In fact, people tend to guess us to be 10 years younger than we are. On the other hand, looking at pictures of my grandparents when they were my age (in the late 1960s)and they really do look OLD and they died early. I think life used to be harder than it is now. We have more conveniences, more leisure time, more vacation.

[–] IloveMuggy 14 years ago

In another Dilbert Mann-directed and Paddy Chayefsky-written movie, Marty, the characters of the mother and aunt are also 56 and look & act 20 years older. Things were way different back then. Thankfully, they've changed. :)

[–] genplant29 14 years ago

Yeah: I think that, in addition to 1959 having been very different times from 2010, that the movie having been filmed in black and white, and the fact that people dressed and groomed themselves decidedly "seriously" back then, compared to today's very casual and relaxed looks, contributed significantly to the impression of them being considerably older.

Something interesting that I've very many times noticed, after watching a good old movie, from the Silent through 1940s (that stretch of years, in particular) era, on TCM, or from my DVD collection, when I've checked, here on IMBd, on this actor or actress, and seen when they died, is how very many of them died off during the 1930s, '40s, or '50s, often when in their forties or fifties, if not when even younger. Today, people generally live to be 70+. How times, and life, changed from the beginning to the end of the 20th century!

[–] TheDuchessofM 11 years ago

Jerry said he'd began working when he was 14, so at 56, he'd been working for 42 years! Combine the stress of building a business with the heavy drinking and smoking men did back then and 56 is knocking on death's door.

[–] MissyH316 11 years ago

Different times; don't worry whatsoever. :-) I'm 54 but pass for 40 (which sounds "old" to me! Yikes!) and I will not be defined by age, and don't you be, either! :-) Enjoy your youthful appearance as long as you can; be proud of it!

We "older" people also have something I don't think much younger people have as much of these days, no thanks to our dumbed-down education system and disintegration of our Judeo-Christian ethics, and that is general book-knowledge, manners, and common sense. I'm just speaking in general terms here; no offense to anyone and there are always exceptions - a LOT, in fact.

Overall, I think that not only was life expectancy a bit less in 1959, but that people did seem to age more. However, this latter to me isn't necessarily a bad thing when you think - or at least *I* think - that back in earlier days (say pre-1990), men looked like men and women looked like women - adults. For example: look at Johnny Depp from a couple of years ago when he was 46 - then look at a picture of Lon Chaney, Sr. at 46 back in 1930, the year he died.

Or I could express it this way: Johnny Depp, to me, is "cute" - but guys like Cary Grant, Clark Gable, Gary Cooper, and Fredric March were "handsome".

Today, I think many men look like older boys and women look like older girls. Anyone else notice this? Is it the soy in our diets? Damfino! lol

"Think slow, act fast." --Buster Keaton

[–] Ironman54 11 years ago

I've noticed this for years. Another example, did Kim Novak look like a 26 yr old in this movie ? Not that she looked 'old', just that people looked more mature for their age back then. Certain male actors always looked as if they had been born 'old' - or maybe 'wiser' ? Its something not tangible, it somehow comes across though. Clark Gable never looked '30' to me - the same for the lot of them. I'm always surprised when one of their characters they're playing in a movie says 'I'm 36', whatever and then I come here to check how old the actor him/herself is in real life and I'm always shocked to see that they truly are in that ballpark age range. I'm no spring chicken myself, in fact I'm older than Marchs character in this movie !
Raided by 'the Greatest Generation' and they were !
Guys like my Dad went to war at 17 yrs old and returned mature men at 19/20 yrs old. Most 30 year old men these days do not seem to me to be as mature. A certain look they had about them that I can't put my finger on so I should stop trying as I made a mess out of this :-)
I'm guessing that some of you will at least understand what I'm trying to describe here, albeit badly.

[–] TopFlight 11 years ago

March was 62 when this film was made, according to IMDB. Also, in those days almost everyone smoked and drank a lot. Men often started smoking as young teenagers, so he could have nearly 50 years of smoking behind him already at 62. No one avoided the sun, either, in those days, so the damaging effects of the sun definitely showed up on anyone more than 39 years old. Lots of Hollywood actors didn't make it to 55, due to bad habits mostly. For example, Tyrone Power and Errol Flynn.

[–] genplant29 11 years ago

I just did a web search and discovered that in 1959 average life expectancy for a man was 66.8 years, and for a woman was 73.2 years. That helps put this discussion into good perspective, as time really was ticking down to nothing for both March and his character back then.

[–] pt100 11 years ago

Exactly. That's why Social Security is in trouble, because it was designed for a society in which men tended to die shortly after retirement age. Nowadays they often live into their 70s and 80s. And with more women in the workforce, it's even worse, because women have a longer life expectancy than men.

[–] ZolotoyRetriever 11 years ago

It looks like the Social Security Administration people are now all saying (under their breath, of course) "Damn all these healthy old people! They weren't supposed to live this long!!"

[–] MichaelMartinDeSapio 10 years ago

And yet, if I'm not mistaken, Jerry's sister describes a friend who died at 58 as having died a "relatively young man". Too, Jerry's love affair with Betty is described by his family as a "middle aged fling".

[–] rixrex 10 years ago

And that's why immigration is important too. With American families having fewer kids per family, the slack has to be picked up.

This is because social security is the world's biggest Ponzi or Pyramid scheme.

-----
The Eyes of the City are Mine! Mother Pressman / Anguish (1987)

[–] artistathome 10 years ago

And Frederic March hairdo didn't do him any favors!

[–] marbleann 10 years ago

I remember looking at those Andy Hardy movies with Mickey Rooney did anybody get a look at his parents I thought they were his grandparents. I just think generally they wanted parents to look older then they were. Fredic March one of my favorite actors and he never looked young even when he was young. He could do things with his face no actor could.

[–] EllisFowler 10 years ago

Fredic March one of my favorite actors and he never looked young even when he was young. He could do things with his face no actor could.

Except look young. :)

[–] EllisFowler 10 years ago

For example, Tyrone Power and Errol Flynn

You can't compare the two. Power, who led a rather sedate life, inherited a weak heart from his father. I'm surprised the Marines didn't reject him when he enlisted.

[–] janfizz 10 years ago

I just watched it tonite and he looked 76 to me.....

[–] nycruise-1 10 years ago

I know.

I'm 56 and because of weird genes I have hardly any grey hair. I go to the gym religiously and watch my diet like a hawk.

I look at those guys and think "OLD"...

But I know eventually my body will lose all pretense of youth.

"Don't call me 'honey', mac."
"Don't call me 'mac'... HONEY!"

[–] Ironman54 10 years ago

He was refereed to by other characters as 'middle aged'.
As to 'looks', smoking and drinking has already been mentioned here a few time but 'diet' needs to be included. Dairy products and not just milk or eggs were consumed regularly without a second thought. People even drank cream back then not to mention high concentrations of saturated fats in the popular foods/recipes. The 'creamier' the better. There was a book written back in the early 80s called 'Heart Attack'. In it, studies were referred to concerning young pilots in WWII and the Korean 'conflict', and how many of them while flying would inexplicably drop off the radar. Apparently this happened often enough that a red flag went up and thorough autopsies were dome on the pilots who bodies were found - 19, 20, 21 yr. old pilots with clogged arteries. A study was then made of the diets/food served these guys during war time. The recipes were loaded with butter and cream. I don't know..one day eggs are bad for ya, the next they're ok. For whats its worth I guess ...

[–] FeloniousMunk 10 years ago

What REALLY hurt like hell was the line: "In ten years he'll be 66 and be an old man with white hair..." OUCH! My wife and I were really stung by that one! Almost fell out of our wheelchairs!

HONK if you love Jesus...
TXT if you want to meet Him...

[–] Walt-Most 10 years ago

I'm 55, though people often take me for a man of 54.

*****
It is over.

[–] FeloniousMunk 10 years ago

But ask yourself this: Will they still need you...or feed you...at 64?

HONK if you love Jesus...
TXT if you want to meet Him...

[–] boxerrebellion 10 years ago

VERY GOOD!

[–] FeloniousMunk 10 years ago

Thank you. It's what I do...

HONK if you love Jesus...
TXT if you want to meet Him...