65 and Pregnant: Billy Joel vs. The "Irresponsible" German Woman

“Billy Joel’s in a new dad state of mind as he and girlfriend Alexis Roderick are expecting their first child.” —New York Daily News

“Baby grand: Billy Joel to be a dad again.” —Kansas City Star

“From Piano Man to Piano Dad (Again): Billy Joel and Girlfriend Are Expecting” —Wicked Local Provincetown

The other big baby news to hit just a few days earlier was that 65-year-old Annegret Raunigk is pregnant with quadruplets. Here are the headlines about her:

“65-Year-Old Expectant Mother of Quadruplets: ‘I’m Not Afraid'” —NBC News

“65-year-old woman’s IVF pregnancy branded irresponsible and inadvisable” —The Guardian

“65-year-old German woman pregnant with quadruplets—kids No. 14, 15, 16 and 17.” —NY Daily News

“How Old Is Too Old To to Be a Mom?” —Yahoo! Parenting

So yes, there are the obvious differences: Raunigk already has 13 children, from five different fathers, a point that is made in every single article about her. You know who else has lots of kids with 5 different partners? Stevie Wonder, who had his ninth child this past December. He’s also a grandfather. And he’ll be 65 next month.

And yes, she’s a woman who actually has to go through labor, while Billy Joel can leave that to his 33-year-old girlfriend. And OK, they’re only having one baby.

But still, the collective global “Ew!” over Raunigk seems a little harsh given the back-slaps imparted to Billy Joel. Food for thought. Remember Tony Randall, anyone? First time dad at 77.