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So when the AARP publication Modern Maturity released its study on sex among the elderly last month, the press treated it as a man-shags-dog story. The sound bite -- more than half of Americans over 45 are satisfied with their sex life, thanks -- was chewy and counterintuitive, and provided a warm chuckle for the helmet-haired anchors at the end of the local news. But it glossed over the study's sharper truth: that a "partner gap" among men and women over 75 keeps many of them celibate. That, however, is a bummer -- and the spin the magazine wanted to put on the news was evident in its choice of cover girl Susan Sarandon to illustrate the accompanying feature, "Who's Sexy Now."

"When we talked about picking the sexiest we looked at people who were comfortable with being who they are, not necessarily the Goldie Hawns of the world, who are trying to look 22," says editor in chief Hugh Delahanty. Sarandon, 52, certainly has the natural look -- but she also evokes fond feelings for nearly anyone who grew up in the '60s, whether they first noticed her in "Joe" or doing the Time Warp in "The Rocky Horror Picture Show." And that, according to Delahanty (a mere 50 himself), was at least part of the idea. The AARP (formerly the American Association of Retired Persons -- the group now prefers the acronym alone since so many of its members are working) boasts more than 32 million members over the age of 50 and doesn't need glasses to see the approaching tsunami of baby boomers; it's waxing its surfboard as we speak. "You know how when baby boomers turned 40, all of the sudden 40 wasn't so old anymore?" says Delahanty. "I think with 50 you're going to see the same thing." Indeed, Sarandon (who did not pose for the cover but approved the use of her image) ordered extra copies for her friends, and a number of older stars called to ask why they didn't make the list.

It wasn't always thus. In the past, celebrities have contacted the magazine (the largest-circulation publication in America, with 20.7 million readers) and asked not to be included in the magazine's regular "Big Five-Oh" list of folks turning 50. One of this year's inductees, Don Imus (who looks like he could be Keith Richards' funeral director), frequently complained on the air about his inclusion.

But just as John Lennon's death was made front-page news by a generation of journalists who grew up on the Beatles, doing anything other than waiting for Ed McMahon to come knocking at the door of your double-wide, carrying a scythe, is becoming headline stuff for editors and writers approaching AARP candidacy.

Next page | An audience that wants frank talk about sex