Look who's turning 65 this month
Find out which celebrities are turning 65 this month!
November 8 - Richard Curtis, director, screenwriter, producer
Surely you saw the films Four Weddings and a Funeral, Bridget Jones’s Diary, Love Actually, or perhaps War Horse? All were written by famed Brit Richard Curtis. Apart from penning the script that catapulted Hugh Grant into fame, Curtis has garnered a bevy of enviable awards.
Specializing in romantic comedy, Curtis has won the BAFTA Academy fellowship award, only the top award given to a British filmmaker. But he’s also passed along his good fortune, co-founding both Comic Relief, Red Nose Day and Make Poverty History. His efforts earned him a BAFTA Humanitarian Award. Curtis was ranked twelfth in The Telegraph’s “100 most powerful people in British culture” for 2008.
Other works you might recognize are the Blackadder and The Vicar of Dibley series. The pair were ranked second and third, respectively, in the 2004 Britain’s Best Sitcom online poll.
November 13 - Charlie Baker, governor of Massachusetts
Winning on a platform of social liberalism and fiscal conservatism, Republican Baker consistently polls as one of the nation’s most popular governors. That he went into politics is no surprise. His great-grandfather, grandfather, and father all had prominent positions in government.
Baker was a natural at basketball growing up, and he played on the JV team at Harvard, which he attended “because of the brand.” He wasn’t much of a student and wrote of his time there: "With a few exceptions... those four years are ones I would rather forget.” He went on to get an MBA and was quickly hired as codirector of a libertarian think tank, where he was noticed by Governor Weld, who appointed him Undersecretary of Health and Human Services.
Armed with a clever “Baker’s Dozen” campaign slogan for 13 areas of reform and a gay Republican running mate, Baker proved unable to triumph in a 2010 bid for governor. Running again in 2014, this time with the endorsement of The Boston Globe, Baker nosed by his opponent to a win.
November 18 - Warren Moon, quarterback
Too small, too slow, and too weak: that’s what Moon thought of himself when most four-year colleges ignored him after he set records at a two-year school. But University of Washington Seattle signed him up when they saw his rifle passing arm, and as a junior he led the school to a Pac-8 title and upset win at the Rose Bowl where Moon was named MVP.
But Moon’s road to NFL glory was a long one. He was one of seven kids, and when their dad died of liver disease when the boy was seven, he learned to cook, sew, and iron to help out. In high school, Moon decided he could only play one sport in order to work the rest of the year to contribute to his family.
Moon felt he would be chosen late in the NFL draft, so six weeks out he took the sure bet and signed with the Edmonton Eskimos in the Canadian League. The Eskimos were thrilled as he led them to five consecutive Grey Cup victories and Moon became the first pro quarterback to pass for 5,000 yards in the 1982 season.
After six years in the CFL Moon went to the highest bidder in the NFL, which turned out to be the Houston Oilers. After an adjustment year, Moon hit his stride and gave the team its first winning season since 1980. Ahead of 1989, Moon negotiated a five-year contract extension that was the richest of its time: $10 million.
Moon’s career on the field lasted until he turned 44. He was named to 9 Pro Bowls and was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2006, but his first Super Bowl ring came as an announcer for the Seattle Seahawks in 2014.
November 20 - Bo Derek, actress
Known best for her lead role in the risqué comedy 10, Bo Derek has the questionable distinction of having won two Golden Raspberry Awards for worst actress, and she was nominated for a third. In 2000, she narrowly missed earning Worst Actress of the Century, beaten out of the “honor” by Madonna.
Derek also has an interesting marital history. “I was 16 when I quit high school. I didn't really mean to quit. I spent about a month going to the beach surfing and sunbathing while I was supposed to be in school: when I got caught, my mom was furious,” she said in an interview on David Letterman. “I started to go back to school, and I was really enjoying it, and then I went to go do this film with John in Greece …”
“John” was John Derek, 30 years older and married to Linda Evans at the time. Since Bo was only 16, the couple ensconced to Germany to avoid charges in California until shortly after she turned 18. In the meantime, John put her in Fantasies, the first of many panned movies he directed that tried to capitalize on her looks. If you still want to see Derek, check out these films: Orca, Tarzan, the Ape Man, Bolero, and Ghosts Can’t Do It.
Derek supports Disabled Veterans and animal rights.
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Blog posting provided by Society of Certified Senior Advisors
