Staying Fit
Dec. 8: Bill Bryson, 70
Aled Llywelyn/Alamy Stock Photo
The beloved travel and nonfiction writer Bill Bryson once wrote, “To my mind, the greatest reward and luxury of travel is to be able to experience everyday things as if for the first time, to be in a position in which almost nothing is so familiar it is taken for granted.” If you’ve read any of his award-winning books, you know that Bryson takes a similarly inquisitive approach to any topic, whether he’s writing about a foreign country (2000’s In a Sunburned Country) or human anatomy (2019’s The Body: A Guide for Occupants). In October 2020, Bryson announced his retirement, stating that he wanted to spend the rest of his days “indulging [himself], rather than going out and trying to cover new territory.”
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Dec. 9: Beau Bridges, 80
Ursula Coyote/Netflix
The son of Lloyd Bridges, this child of Hollywood has been acting since the late 1940s, starring with his little brother, Jeff, in perhaps his most notable role to date, in 1989’s The Fabulous Baker Boys. In recent years, he’s pivoted to television, with Emmy-nominated turns on Desperate Housewives, The Closer, Brothers & Sisters and Masters of Sex, plus small but juicy roles in films like One Night in Miami… and The Descendants. Last year, he costarred in the Comedy Central series Robbie, about a small-town basketball coach (comedian Rory Scovel) living in the shadow of his father (Bridges). You can binge it for free on YouTube.
