Age Cannot Wither Her

What does Andie MacDowell's dewy skin have in common with Cleopatra's unwithered agelessness? In this episode we tackle the everyday challenges of getting old and explore how people in Shakespeare's day were thinking about – and fighting – the signs of aging. If you couldn't just Google it, how did you know when a woman was "past her prime"— especially if she was plastering her face with makeup? And what about all of those older men in Shakespeare's works who lose their hair, their memories, and their grips on solid retirement plans? We'll take a look at his sonnets and plays, along with a popular health guide and an anti-cosmetics treatise, as we uncover a few fabulous age-defying tricks and discuss some enduring double standards.