Althouse: "Not a lot of guys call. Men my age will text you and want to meet at a dive bar. So I was really surprised when he called..."

August 25, 2017

"Not a lot of guys call. Men my age will text you and want to meet at a dive bar. So I was really surprised when he called..."

"... and when I picked up he was really polite. He asked me how I was doing, how my day was. So it was just pleasant."

From a NYT "Weddings" article, "The Bride, the Groom and the Elephant in the Room," about a 27-year-old woman marrying a 72-year-old man.

59 comments:

MadisonMan said...: When you marry an older man, you get an early release. That's according to Lady Anstruther.; 8/25/17, 11:01 AM
John henry said...: I saw "dive bar" and thought a 3rd submarine post.

John Henry; 8/25/17, 11:04 AM
John henry said...: Turns out it meant a bar that was a dive.

John Henry; 8/25/17, 11:04 AM
buwaya said...: In Chinese culture this was very common. More usually such a wealthy, elderly man would take a concubine (or several, over time), already having a first wife.; 8/25/17, 11:05 AM
Yancey Ward said...: Did she at least admit that the money was the primary reason she was interested in him?; 8/25/17, 11:06 AM
traditionalguy said...: But how do his other grandchildren feel about their beloved Grandfather now?; 8/25/17, 11:07 AM
James K said...: Wedding sponsored by Viagra (tm)?

When you marry an older man, you get an early release.

Whereas with a younger man you get premature ejaculation.; 8/25/17, 11:07 AM
eric said...: He must be loaded.

And I'm fine with that. Men want a hot wife, but that's bad. Women want a rich husband, and that's ok.; 8/25/17, 11:09 AM
rhhardin said...: Half your age plus seven will work out in 32 years.; 8/25/17, 11:09 AM
Etienne said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 8/25/17, 11:10 AM
buwaya said...: Most of those Chinese gentlemen were driven by the need to have sons.

Many had spent their lives piling up wealth in foreign parts, and went home to complete their filial duty. They would buy their brides or concubines, or that's what it amounted to.

Very typical Hong Kong story.; 8/25/17, 11:11 AM
buwaya said...: Some of you better set up older fellows with no sons might want to consider such a move.
You can't take it with you after all.; 8/25/17, 11:16 AM
tcrosse said...: When Fred Astaire was 80 he married a 36-year-old woman. Use it or lose it.; 8/25/17, 11:16 AM
tcrosse said...: P.S. When Tony Randall was 75 he married a 25-year-old woman.; 8/25/17, 11:18 AM
Oso Negro said...: Heh. I am 60, my girlfriend is 19. It's fun to be a renegade, pushing the limits of polite society. It used to be that you could do it with inter-racial dating or homosexuality. Now that those are practically mandatory, what's left?; 8/25/17, 11:23 AM
The Bergall said...: Good for them. Wish them happiness...........; 8/25/17, 11:27 AM
traditionalguy said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 8/25/17, 11:29 AM
traditionalguy said...: Another Baby Boomer reliving his youth. And some woman had to be the winner of the Lottery drawing.

But can she play golf and dance?; 8/25/17, 11:30 AM
YoungHegelian said...: That he's much older & they married & will make a seemingly normal life together will no doubt result in much tut-tutting by the accomplished women who read the NYT.

If they had met at a BDSM convention & he was her bitch-boy who enjoyed getting fisted, why, they'd be the toast of all Manhattan.; 8/25/17, 11:35 AM
MadisonMan said...: Back before the Depression, mom's grandfather married a young woman after my great-grandmother died, and wife #2 lived to be 100 or so, outliving her spouse by a good 60+ years. She left behind unclaimed property with the State, and I once considered claiming it (it's about $1200), but the logistics behind that, when I have no marriage, birth or death certificates for any of the parties, was mind-boggling. So that money still rests with the State.

It's good for The State when there's a big age disparity between spouses.; 8/25/17, 11:36 AM
chuck said...: I had an uncle who went that route, although I believe the woman was a bit younger. They had three kids, but the marriage wasn't a success.; 8/25/17, 11:36 AM
buwaya said...: " They had three kids, but the marriage wasn't a success."

They had three kids therefore it was a success.

If by not being a success means someone being personally dissatisfied with their fate, well, that is their problem and they are best advised to redefine their criteria for happiness.; 8/25/17, 11:48 AM
richlb said...: The elephant in the room is his paycheck/bank account/retirement fund.; 8/25/17, 11:55 AM
William said...: This is so much more heartening and encouraging than that furry trend.; 8/25/17, 12:05 PM
bagoh20 said...: Maybe they're just in love.

Sorry, I get giddy and a bit delirious on FRIDAAAAAAAAYYYYYYY!; 8/25/17, 12:14 PM
Ralph L said...: For years, the crazy bitch my father married after Mom died would wedge into every visit that Dad was 18 years older. She enjoyed throwing other conversational bricks, too. Munchausen's and Narcissism. She was all about the money, of course. Lemon tart.; 8/25/17, 12:25 PM
JohnAnnArbor said...: About ten years ago, one Southern state was still paying a Civil War service pension to a widow of a Confederate soldier. He was around 80 and she 20 when they married, I assume as an arrangement to take care of him more than anything else.; 8/25/17, 12:32 PM
Rusty said...: 27 and 72 together is a numeric palindrome. So is their ages added together.
I smell a conspiracy; 8/25/17, 12:40 PM
robother said...: Rusty: "27 and 72 together is a numeric palindrome."

They should celebrate their wedding anniversary every 11 years.; 8/25/17, 12:43 PM
buwaya said...: "Shh, don't tell buwaya... he still thinks it's all about animal husbandry and breeding basics. Poor guy."

Heh. It actually is, in the end.
Its just a matter of understanding the wiles of nature.
You get to the why, beyond the what and how.
A lot of people cannot get to the why, even when they are driven there.; 8/25/17, 12:43 PM
Fabi said...: He must have a great personality.; 8/25/17, 12:52 PM
JAORE said...: I am far from immune to the aesthetic pleasures of a young woman. Fortunately I also find my wife, of comparable age, to be beautiful.

Should she die (heaven forbid) I might seek the companionship of a younger woman. Like 5 to 10 years younger (or a similar age range older).

72 and 27? I'd view that like I do a 80 year old trying to crawl around the streets and stay between the lines in a Ferrari. Envy, you bet, by some. Ridicule? Much more likely.; 8/25/17, 12:58 PM
bagoh20 said...: He blew it when he married her. Now she can hold out, spend it all, be a bitch, kill you, whatever. These days you just hang that marriage out there as a possibility that you never pull the trigger on. She does the same with what she brings to the table, so you date someone else to loosen her up. She has a lot harder time finding another old rich guy than you do finding another young gold digger, so you will win that war and keep your money, your peace, your life, and your options. You might even get tired of winning and die smiling.; 8/25/17, 1:11 PM
Sally said...: I bet that on the first date he rang the doorbell instead of honking the horn.; 8/25/17, 1:20 PM
buwaya said...: "He blew it when he married her."

?

Now he can have heirs, which (unless one has a true religious calling) is the whole point of life, ultimately.; 8/25/17, 1:45 PM
David said...: At 74 and happily married to a woman 5 years younger, I commend him. Even just looking at her and talking to her will give him much pleasure. There is something to be said for just being kind to each other.; 8/25/17, 1:49 PM
Char Char Binks, Esq. said...: I thought the elephant was that he's a Jew and she's a Zhou.; 8/25/17, 2:00 PM
Wince said...: By coincidence, I came across this show last night on TLC: 90-day Fiance.

Talk about a Dumpster Fire.

You watch an episode of that show and sex robots suddenly start to make incredible sense.

Here's Danielle on her "relationship" with Mohammed.; 8/25/17, 2:05 PM
walter said...: Art History major dabbling in finance hooks up with a chief of surgery. Gonna need room for another elephant.
Is she Jewish?; 8/25/17, 2:06 PM
Earnest Prole said...: I ain't saying she's a gold digger but she ain't messing with no broke niggas.; 8/25/17, 2:26 PM
the gold digger said...: I tell young women to marry a rich, sick, old orphan.; 8/25/17, 2:33 PM
Earnest Prole said...: Talk about a Dumpster Fire.

This clip is even better!; 8/25/17, 2:35 PM
Krumhorn said...: I wouldn't have traded in Jamie Colby. She an attorney and a fox. This post is click bait for Laslo. I'm thinking that the sketchy guy who works in the porn shop would have something to say about those guys who come in seeking porn where the Asian women whimper like school girls.

....not that I would know anything about it

- Krumhorn; 8/25/17, 2:39 PM
My name goes here. said...: He looks 58, she looks 40. I don't see the problem.; 8/25/17, 2:41 PM
Richard Dolan said...: You be you, as the under-30 crowd likes to say.

Interesting dynamic in this comment thread, with most of the cynicism focused on the woman-as-golddigger rather than the man as horny-old-goat.; 8/25/17, 2:46 PM
rhhardin said...: Old dogs, children and watermelon wine.; 8/25/17, 2:58 PM
walter said...: "most of the cynicism focused on the woman-as-golddigger rather than the man as horny-old-goat. "
It's that damn..Patriarchy!; 8/25/17, 3:23 PM
Bay Area Guy said...: Either the old feller is rich or the young lass is ugly - or both!; 8/25/17, 3:32 PM
The Godfather said...: 72 isn't that old these days, if you're in good health and take care of yourself (I'm 74). The problem is that sometime in the next decade you're all of a sudden going to be old. I guess that could be a good argument for "eat, drink, and make Mary".

On the other hand, 27 is awfully young for a mature man to have a real relationship with. When I became single in my late '40's I decided fairly quickly that I couldn't have a relationship with a woman who was TOO much younger than I -- my rule of thumb was that if she didn't remember the Kennedy Assassination, she was too young for me. If I was really tempted I might have settled for someone who remembered the first Moon landing, but as it turned out I married a woman 8 months younger than I am, and we've been happy for more than a quarter century.; 8/25/17, 4:30 PM
mikeski said...: They're definitely far enough apart to pull the Bill Wyman maneuver!

Original Rolling Stones member Bill Wyman, at 52 years old, married Mandy Smith, 18.

While they were married, Wyman's son Stephen, 31, from his previous marriage, married Mandy's mother, 49.

So Bill's son became Bill's (step)father, and your father's father is your grandfather, so he really did become his own grandpa. (Cue the song.); 8/25/17, 4:40 PM
Geoff Matthews said...: He looks like he's had a lot of work done on his face. She looks asian, so I can't tell if she's had work or not.; 8/25/17, 5:18 PM
walter said...: Those Wiley Wymans! Pornhub plot comes to life.; 8/25/17, 5:53 PM
FullMoon said...: rhhardin said...

Old dogs, children and watermelon wine.

I like beer, it makes me a jolly good fellow.; 8/25/17, 6:02 PM
walter said...: Watermelon wine makes you a Jolly Rancher; 8/25/17, 7:02 PM
HoodlumDoodlum said...: Goes to show you never can tell.; 8/25/17, 7:50 PM
HoodlumDoodlum said...: It took her to some spectacular places: They saw a series of Broadway shows including “Jersey Boys”; went to top-tier restaurants in the city; and, toward the end of 2014, to Puerto Rico for a five-day vacation.

“That was when I realized I could spend a lot of time with Marc,” Ms. Zhou said. “It was just the two of us for an extended period of time, and we didn’t get on each other’s nerves.” By then, Ms. Zhou considered their relationship exclusive. Dr. Wallack did not. But that was changing.

“One of the mornings I woke up in San Juan, she had made tea in the hotel room,” Dr. Wallack said. “And that made me feel so wonderful. I thought it was so elegant. After that trip I fell in love with her.”

He wasn't exclusive but she was? He didn't really fall for her until the middle of their 5-day vacation?
Daaaaaamn, Dr. I mean the trips to England, Italy, and Paris plus the 2.6 carat diamond solitiare ring helped things, but this guy's slick.
(Little crass to have that info in there, isn't it? I don't read the NYTimes wedding features so maybe that's standard, but it seems like a bit much.)

For those of you asking about her religion: Ms. Zhou grew up Presbyterian, but should the couple have children, they will be raised Jewish, she said

Big Pun: Don't Wanna Be a Player No More; 8/25/17, 8:00 PM
Earnest Prole said...: Interesting dynamic in this comment thread, with most of the cynicism focused on the woman-as-golddigger rather than the man as horny-old-goat

Man as horny-old-goat = dog bites man. Woman-as-golddigger = man bites dog -- thankfully.; 8/25/17, 8:44 PM
walter said...: Dude seems to be able to provide a very Art History friendly lifestyle she could get used to.; 8/25/17, 10:39 PM
Oso Negro said...: Blogger FullMoon said...
rhhardin said...

Old dogs, children and watermelon wine.

I like beer, it makes me a jolly good fellow.

8/25/17, 6:02 PM

What a joy the commenters of this blog are! At least two of you, besides me, know good old Tom T. Hall.; 8/26/17, 4:26 AM