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

[–] easyrhino 10 years ago

March looks he's been embalmed, his face looks like he belongs on The Walking Dead.

Add in the huge waist and zero muscle mass, what 24 year old babe would want that bloated naked bag of guts on top of her?

[–] kstallings100 10 years ago

Frederic March was nearly 63 when he made this, so he would look a little older that 56. But, otherwise they ACTED older than they needed to and makeup and camera didn't go out of their way to make them look younger.

Kim Novak even looked older than she was. The year before she made "Bell, Book & Candle" and the makeup made her look flawless, they didn't do that in this movie.

[–] cbee43 9 years ago

Yeah things did seem to be that way back then. If you didn't make it in Hollywood before 25, you were considered all dried up. I just turned 56 and I look and feel much younger.