As a striking young girl teeters on high heels through the narrow Florentine streets, several older Italian men perched outside their storefronts light their hungry eyes on her, planning their attack of seduction. The girl is bright-eyed, energetic, unassuming, and naïve-aka, American. To be in her close company would be like taking a swig from the fountain of youth for any older male. After spending just a week in Florence, I knew I wouldn't be spending vanity time trying to impress the guys here. Italian or not, they all warrant the label "creepy." But after spending a few months here, I have noticed a trend: younger girls with canoodling with older guys. Although the age difference can be extreme, and therefore condemned by society, aged men on the prowl aren’t deterred by the inevitable side effect of being labeled as a sexual predator.
There is a common perception that when a younger woman is seen with an older male, she is being taken advantage of. But women who involve themselves with considerably older men are well-aware of their actions. And assuming they have a working pair of legs, they can walk away from any withering catcall that beckons for attention. Young hot rods have a clever agenda in getting their tanks filled free of charge. It is well known that girls don’t have to pay cover fees to get into clubs, nor spend money on drinks. But the alcohol-induced happiness that a free drink from a young guy brings is fleeting. It’s the summer houses, swanky hotel rooms, and elegant dinners with older men that stick (at least in one’s memory). Older men flaunt their power, assets, and money, and because of this, younger guys will always feel the shortcomings of struggling to achieve the goal their predecessors have already attained. Most women don't want to idly stand by their working-class heroes with the promises of the future. They want it now, and with an older man, younger girls will always be treated like, or at least feel like royal princesses. They have the comfort of escaping to a breezy Malibu beach house, lounging by the pool, and dining on fresh lobster, all on someone else’s tab. Barbie, eat your heart out.
Reminded of America’s Puritan beginnings (other than on our favorite food day), some Americans still hold harsh criticisms towards overt sexualization. Moral Americans are quick to judge relationships between couples with a defining age gap. Even with the popular coined phrases like “MILF” (mom I’d like to fuck), and “DILF” (you get it), the public still seems to be adamantly against relations between older and younger men and women. Sixteen-year-old pop star Miley Cyrus, the shiny face of Disney's popular "Hannah Montana," is questioned for being linked to twenty-year old underwear model Justin Gaston. For the mathematically challenged, that’s only a four-year age difference. But because Gaston is a sexual icon, it is an uncomfortable situation. And when the age gap is ten years or more, the road bending over the river and through the woods to grandma’s house becomes significantly more unwieldy.
When the controversial film, The Graduate, first appeared in theaters in 1967, people were shocked. For the time, a movie containing adultery, nudity, and sex, was extremely bold. The film exposes an affair between a college graduate and his parents’ friend, Mrs. Robinson. Being an older, provocative, and intimidating married woman, Robinson successfully seduces a young graduate. Her prowess in her state of affair has mandated "cougar" stardom, the cherry on top of the contentious sundae. As exhibited in the movie, there are precautions and secrecy involved in propelling a relationship between a man and woman of very different ages. Rule number one, when booking a hotel for a secret rendezvous, using a fake name, such as Mr. Gladstone will guarantee anonymity. The stealthy planning of clandestine meetings provoke feelings of a special bond between an older male and younger female. Even if the girl isn’t looking for love, it’s hard to resist a senior James Bond. But these sentiments are sometimes one-sided.
Older men who make the lifestyle choice to surround themselves with “pretty young things,” are nowhere close to monogamy. In lieu of a mid-life crisis, or for the indefinite pursuit of younger women, many men try to score as many dates a week as will fit in their electronic BlackBerry schedules. This outlook coincides with the Hugh Hefner approach. The "Playboy" magazine mogul who is now 83, has been married and divorced two times. Since then, Hefner has been known to juggle no less than three girlfriends at a time. Kept busy with all those bunnies running around, settling down isn’t his strong suit. According to an online entertainment source, Hefner thinks, "...that relationships with young people keep you young. I get older but they stay the same.” In the same way collagen will only temporarily conceal wrinkles, hanging around younger people will only make one feel youthful.
Still, many men hold the desire to be viewed as a stud until death, when the reality of the situation, and the fragile male ego may break at this, is that everyone, at some point in time, will age and become less desirable. The only outlet available to maturing men is to immerse themselves within an entourage of young women, and plenty of them. But for how long? The relationship, however exciting in its mysticism, is a fantasy. And when Disneyworld’s dazzling Magic Kingdom closes its gates at midnight, the enchantment fades.
