Actors who have been perpetually middle aged their entire career

A file dated photo of Gene Hackman at 17 years old.

Gene Hackman, Martin Balsam, Robert Duvall, George Kennedy, Karl Malden. They all have something very obvious in common. I call it the middle aged man syndrome. Actors who have seemingly been perpetually middle aged for their entire career. How to explain this? I think it is best left unexplained. Most of these actors mentioned have had no trouble getting roles, and are in many cases, geniuses. So why fix a thing that aint broke. How did they remain trapped in this physical stage? Who knows? Who cares? On the one hand, it's kind of weird to be a balding teenager, on the other hand, you don't have those awkward moments at high school reunions where people remark on how much you have changed.

One thing is for sure. These actors do not spend a hell of a lot of time thinking about it. I think George Kennedy was a teenager drinking martinis at the airport bar. Gene Hackman played high school football with a corn cob pipe. He was born with a heavy gutteral drawl and a hot temper. Karl Malden was in the cradle craving a corn beef sandwich and staring at his father's raincoat, hanging from the door. Martin Balsam spent his formative years enjoying the world's finest cigars. And Robert Duval never bothered to wonder about such trivial things.