Crushes on Dead People

Logically, I know that when I watch an old movie, the actors are long gone.  If it is a black and white film, chances are pretty good that they are dead.  I've always known this, and yet, I still developed a huge crush on Ginger Rogers when I discovered the Fred Astaire movies in my early twenties.  She's so sassy and adorable and I just knew that I could make her happy.  After a little investigating, however, I discovered that not only was she not available, but that she was dead.  

Even when the actresses are still alive, I'm usually shocked by the elderly versions of these women I've just developed feelings for while watching Turner Classic Movies.  I caught my beloved Ginger on a rerun of The Mike Douglas Show or something and she was this loud, old broad with bright red lipstick smashed on her mouth.  I was like...nope, I don't want this version.

I believe my first dead person crush was on Miss Crabtree from the Little Rascals shorts.  I watched how Jackie Cooper slowly fell in love with her.  I don't blame him...if my new teacher was a cute, nice, young flapper, I would also fall pretty hard.  There were other women to follow - Hedy Lemarr, Audrey Hepburn, Ingrid Bergman, Eva Gabor, etc.  Only later did I discover that women also have dead guy crushes.  A friend recently told me that she carries a torch for Cool Hand Luke era Paul Newman, as well as late 1950s Gregory Peck.  Maybe I'm not so weird.

So, it was never going to happen with Ginger.  There were just too many obstacles to overcome.  But, I still watched all of those old movies anyway and let her tap dance all over my heart.