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I kind of forgot that Robert DeNiro is actually married. I thought Bob and Grace Hightower were simply ?longterm partners.? They've been together for a really long time, so why don't I have any memory of them actually getting ...
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I kind of forgot that Robert DeNiro is actually married. I thought Bob and Grace Hightower were simply ?longterm partners.? They?ve been together for a really long time, so why don?t I have any memory of them actually getting hitched? Was it hush-hush? Or is it common-law? Anyway, Grace and Bob have just welcomed their second child together ? via surrogate. Grace gave birth to their son Elliot in the 1990s, and now they are parents to newborn Helen Grace. This is Robert?s sixth child overall:
The Academy Award winning actor, 68, also has four other children: daughter Drena, 40, and son Raphael, 35, with former wife Diahnne Abbott, as well as 16-year-old twin sons Julian and Aaron, born via surrogate with ex-girlfriend Toukie Smith.
God, Robert?s twin sons are already 16? I remember seeing photos of the twins when they were toddlers!! Jesus, I?m old. As is Bob DeNiro. He?s 68 years old!!! And Grace is 56 years old!! I mean, loving parents are loving parents, at any age. But? really? SIXTY-EIGHT. I don?t even know. Congratulations to the happy couple and welcome to the world, baby Helen Grace.
December 26, 2011 at 9:39 am Ooooh, that?s right. I knew it was a gangtser actor. Probably wrong about that too. Damn, my brain is like jelly today:). Thanks min.
December 26, 2011 at 1:01 pm Diahnne Abbot is black, you can google her, I cannot copy the link for some reason. She was very pretty when she was young. As I recall, de Niro even Directed and acted in the film A tale of the Bronx about a boy who resembles him even in his preference for black ladies.
But oMGosh I just say NO. I think it is great that we live in a time when you can become a parent irregardless of age but I say NO. My job sometimes lets me see grandparents that are raising their grandchildren and it is not a good thing. I think children need parents that are going to have a better chance of watching them grow up. By the time the child is 10 Robert will be close to 80 years old. How is that fair to this child. Not to mention her mother will be in her very late 60?s.
I just think that there is something selfish about it. I so understand wanting more children, but one would think they would be at the stage of life when they want to spoil the grandkids and just enjoy having time together..not changing diapers.
I?m happy for anyone that is lucky and blessed to be a parent.. I still say that just because you can do something doesn?t meant that you should.
December 26, 2011 at 1:51 pm Turtledive-Irregardless is not a word. However, it has been so commonly (mis)used that it?s become a part of (some folks) vernacular.
December 26, 2011 at 2:07 pm Here?s my issue? the world evolves, technology changes and the way in which people express themselves changes also.. BUT too many people hang onto these archaic grammar rules.
The English language is a mutt language made up of Latin and Greek at its base and Germanic mixed in and many other languages adopted. Christ, even Shakespeare MADE UP words which were included in his plays that have now become a regular part of our English vernacular.
English as a language has survived because of its adoption of new words from other languages, new words via technology and acronyms, portmanteaus and NEOLOGISMS like irregardless.
December 26, 2011 at 2:57 pm @turtledove: There?s a difference between adopting words from other languages to fill a void, and using existing words incorrectly.
?Irregardless? is the misuse of the word ?regardless.? It?s actually a double-negative. Why should we dumb down our language because people are too lazy to speak it correctly? Should we not also gently correct people when they say things like, ?Ain?t none left?? Also, there are many ESL posters on this site who appreciate the corrections so they can improve their English. I?m sorry, but I hope you don?
?conversate? and expect to be taken seriously. They?re not accepted words in the English language, laziness or not. And, ?Irregardless? isn?t a neologism??jeggings? and ?sexting? are neologisms. ?Irregardless? is just people being so ignorant of word structure that they?ve mis-used a word so much that people finally gave up and said, ?Sure, I guess you can say that. *eyeroll*.?
December 26, 2011 at 6:02 pm I don?t buy into the intellectual snobbery. I deal with this at work all the time ? dinosaurs, who fancy themselves elitists, correcting another person?s grammar.
Three ? Different arenas call for different levels of language. The internet, and this blog, are casual and light. This isn?t Harvard, so relax.
Perhaps someday ?irregardless? will be considered a word, but right now it isn?t. So don?t use it if you want to be taken seriously.
December 26, 2011 at 2:42 pm I agree, my son is 2 and my parents are 69 and 71, and I get sad when I think ahead, they won?t be able to see him in his adult years. I think it is selfish to be actual parents knowing that your child will have you for a limited time healthy.
But there comes a time when you need to think of the child?s future. Robert will be close to 80 by the time Helen turns 10. Who knows if he will be around by then? At least his wife is a decade younger and will be there for their child if Robert couldn?t be, but 56 is already a bit old to have children in my view.
December 26, 2011 at 9:55 am Agreeing with the other posters that note these two will be very old before the child goes off to college. She really will be all alone and her children won?t have maternal grandparents.
I sure do hope they can find a young nanny that will be this little girls 2nd surrogate mom to do parental things with when her parents are in the nursing home.
December 26, 2011 at 10:23 am I think they met in ?87, dated, broke up and did their own thing and came back together got married and had a kid.
December 26, 2011 at 10:44 am If I remember correctly, the twins were born by surrogate too. The ex wanted babies and he donated sperm. Here?
December 26, 2011 at 10:20 am No doctor would go along with this unless they froze their sperm and eggs a long time ago. You can actually do that.
Maybe they did this so they?d have someone young and energetic to look after them and change their diapers when they become unable to take care of themselves.
December 26, 2011 at 12:00 pm I am sure their intentions are good, but it is very selfish at that age to have children. They probably won?t be around for all the events in their child?s life. How sad for that child. All the nannies in the world won?t replace the parents. Also, who would want to deal with a baby at the age 56 or 68. IF they really wanted to bring a child into their life, why not adopt or take care of a foster child. So many children in the world that would love have a family.
December 26, 2011 at 12:30 pm I?m thinking being wealthy and able to afford the best of everything keeps him a relatively ?young? 68 years of age. Not like he?s scrubbing floors and living off of SSI. But I agree with what others have said re: adoption. Geez, they couldn?t find ONE out of the hundreds of thousands of kids that need a good, loving home? Ugh.
December 26, 2011 at 12:57 pm my mom and dad were old when they had me.. i?m 32 now my dad is 93 and my mom is 80 and they raised me just fine? so you never know? she thought she was going through menopause but it was me in there and i have no retardations.. or birth defects problems..
the doctors where shocked but i was an ooops and i never wanted for anything.. I never realized they were so old.. I did all the regular things with my dad ? he?s healthy strong no health problems I don?t feel like i missed out!
It gets on my nerves when people assume that because two people have children when they are older that they will inevitably not be able to care for the child, play with the child, or live long enough to see the child grow up and have children of their own. That?s just not true.
December 26, 2011 at 2:18 pm I felt i had to say something because I was this child to a tee my Dad retired from work when i was 5or 6 I remember being in elementary school it was nice he walked me to school picked me up from school.. My mom worked.. I have an older sister she?s 50 and another one who is 42 ..
I know! my mother got alot of flack when she learned she was pregnant with me.. people even advised her to abort because for sure the baby ( being me) would be retarded and she would die from the birth etc etc she was too old to deliver.. well she birthed me naturally too no drugs! she was also told that she was being irresponsible because she and my father would die and they would eventually saddle some family member or the system with a kid who would be retarded, they stuck with their choice and here i am 30+ years later and happy they are my parents. Having children is not only for the young our lifespans are increasing there is a shift going on in the world we will be seeing more and more?older? parents especially when some women wait till their late 30?s early 40?s to have babies. I am sure Robert and his wife thought about this long and hard.. and felt that they could be wonderful loving parents plus all that $$ doesn?t hurt either.
December 26, 2011 at 2:37 pm Bless you, me too! But my parents were a bit younger, 43 for her, 54 for him. I was very lucky to have him until I was 35 and he passed away because of an accident, my mom followed him 2 years later. Growing up, I knew they were older than my friends? parents, but I would not have changed them for the world. And I learned a lot from them. They really had lots of stories and facts to share all the time!
December 26, 2011 at 9:36 pm These stories of OLD parents are certainly heart-warming. Love to you and your aged folks. But I see one glaring difference between this story (and others like it) and deNiro?s ? you were a surprise baby. Your parents believed that their baby-making days were behind them, but then the impossible happened. Mr and Mrs deNiro, on the other hand, used a surrogate to provide them with a baby at this late stage in their lives. So I think that calling attention to their ages is justified.
December 26, 2011 at 1:07 pm They loved each other and wanted another child of their own to love. Why are so many finding fault in that?
So they?re old, who cares??? It?s not like they?re decrepit ancients who?re hobbling around and can barely take care of themselves. And even when they?re in their 80s when that kid is only 10 or 12 years old there?s no reason to assume they?ll be that way then either.
So they might not be able to run around and play catch with their kid. Neither can my wheelchair bound co-worker. Should he not have had kids?
I?m sure they thought long and hard about this before doing it and weighed all the pros and cons and even if they didn?t, who are you to judge? A loving couple just had a baby. Why not just be happy for them?
December 26, 2011 at 1:20 pm i completely agree i am a child of older parents my father was 61 when i was born and my mom was in her 50?s and all worked out they are still alive i was loved! they said i helped keep them young! my dad is an slick texter he?s faster than me and my mom is addicted to Facebook ha ha !!
December 26, 2011 at 6:10 pm I agree too. My grandma has a friend who cares for SIX grandkids, because her daughter won?t. The youngest is just a newborn. She?s not as old as De Niro, in her late fifties I?d say but still. It?s choices. He seems to be a great father, and now that he has the baby he?ll take care of her.
people tend to think, once your kids are grown, when you?re older- its time to do things and see the world?they?ve done all of them and had the means to do so.
December 26, 2011 at 2:58 pm I?m sorry but I think they?re too old to be having babies. Robert is going to be 86 if he lives long enough to see this baby graduate, which is not a given considering the average live expectancy for an American male is only about 75.
Another issue is that older men?s sperm raises the risk of genetic abnormalities. Let?s hope Helen Grace gets lucky and dodges that bullet.
December 26, 2011 at 3:44 pm Well, from the parent side of this, it is a little freaky being the oldest parent at the school play, etc. And retirement is NOT an option right now, no matter how tired I am of working a fairly demanding job. Three college tuitions to get through yet. Starting a little earlier might have made my life easier now. That being said, I can?t imagine life without them and they bring me so much joy.
December 26, 2011 at 3:53 pm At this point, Bobby DiNiro and his gal are more closer to being grandparents than actual parents. I assume the eggs were donated as she is too old to have any at this point.
December 26, 2011 at 8:44 pm I really feel sorry for their baby. I had my daughter at 35. I am now 58 and I don?t have a quarter of the energy that I had 20 years ago. If I had a baby now, she would miss out on so many wonderful experiences because I just don?t have the stamina that I use to have. Bobby can?t possibly feel youthful @ 68. And why adopt if you are just going to have nanies raise your kids? The people who posted stories about their wonderful elder parents are the exception. Most people in their 70?s and 80?s lack energy, have some form of memory lost, have to make visits the doctor often, have hearing and eyesight problems, cognitive decline, need an increse of rest, don?t have much paitence, arthritis, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and diabetes, shaky balance, can?t walk far the list goes on with a sh1t load of things that break down the body as we age. Mother nature knows what she is doing. There is a good reason women go through menopause at the age they do. There is also a reason why men become impotent as thy get older. We are not suppose to have babies after a certain age. It is not meant to be. We are suppose to be grandparents!