You’re Never Too Old To Become Younger

Mae West? George Christy? Barbara Rowes? Apocryphal?

Dear Quote Investigator: A prominent movie star delivered a paradoxical line about aging:

You are never too old to become younger.

Would you please help to find a citation?

Quote Investigator: In 1969 Hollywood columnist George Christy interviewed the famous actress Mae West in the pages of “The Los Angeles Times”. She spoke about her youthful philosophy. The ellipsis appeared in the original text. Boldface added to excerpts by QI:^[1]1969 December 21, Los Angeles Times, Section: West Magazine, ‘Too Much of a Good Thing Can be Wonderful’ by George Christy, Start Page 25, Quote Page 28, Column 2, Los Angeles, California. … Continue reading

I’ve taken good care of myself all my life . . . you’re never too old to become younger. That’s my philosophy. You can do it by eating and living properly. And if you need a lift, why not?

Below are additional selected citations in chronological order.

In 1970 “Cosmopolitan” reprinted the interview; however, the text was slightly altered with the addition of the word “but”:^[2] 1970 May, Cosmopolitan, Volume 168, Issue 5, Mae West Raps by George Christy, Start Page 130, Quote Page 133, Hearst Corporation, New York. (ProQuest)

I’ve taken good care of myself all my life . . . but you’re never too old to become younger. That’s my philosophy.

In 1979 “The Book of Quotes” compiled by Barbara Rowes printed the following entry without a citation:^[3] 1979, The Book of Quotes, Compiled by Barbara Rowes, Chapter 11: Chic, Quote Page 115, A Sunrise Book: E. P. Dutton, New York. (Verified with hardcopy)

You’re never too old to become younger.
—Mae West

Also in 1979 the quotation achieved further circulation when it appeared in an advertisement published in “The New York Times Book Review”. The quiz-like ad presented thirteen quotations together with thirteen names, and the reader was supposed to properly link each quotation and name. These three pairs were included:^[4]1979 July 22, The New York Times, Section: The New York Times Book Review, Who Said What? (Advertisement for Barbara Rowes’s “The Book of Quotes), Quote Page 31, Column 3, New York. … Continue reading

“You’re never too old to become younger.”
MAE WEST

“He who does not enjoy his own company is usually right.”
COCO CHANEL

“The wastepaper basket is a writer’s best friend.”
ISAAC BASHEVIS SINGER

In 1987 the quotation with an ascription to West appeared in “Pearls of Wisdom: A Harvest of Quotations from All Ages” compiled by Jerome Agel and Walter D. Glanze.^[5]1987 Copyright, Pearls of Wisdom: A Harvest of Quotations from All Ages, Compiled by Jerome Agel and Walter D. Glanze, Quote Page 40, Perennial Library: Harper & Row, New York. (Verified with … Continue reading

In 1990 the quotation credited to West appeared in “Friendly Advice” compiled by Jon Winokur.^[6] 1990, Friendly Advice, Compiled and edited by Jon Winokur, Section: Ageing, Quote Page 31, Dutton, New York. (Verified with scans)

In conclusion, Mae West deserves credit for this remark which she employed during a 1969 interview with George Christy.

The QI website also has pieces about two thematically related sayings. An article about “It is never too late to be what you might have been” is available here. This remark has often been incorrectly ascribed to George Eliot.

An article about “You are never too old to set another goal or to dream a new dream” is available here. This remark has often been incorrectly ascribed to C. S. Lewis.

Image Notes: Public domain illustration of young and old people from geralt at Pixabay. Image has been resized.

(Great thanks to Stuart Brown whose inquiry led QI to formulate this question and perform this exploration.)