It’s not just the kids expressing themselves in bits and blurbs on the spur of the moment. Legendary billionaire investor Warren Buffett wants you to know he's "in the house." The same man who once admitted to not knowing how to check his own voicemail, is now—at the age of 82—on Twitter. From Betty White to William Shatner, see other seniors who tweet.
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“Warren is in the house.” And with that, legendary billionaire investor Warren Buffett, the same man who once admitted to not knowing how to check his own voicemail, announced his Twitter presence. Buffett joined the social-media website in order to participate in an interview with Fortune for a panel called “Warren Buffett on Women and Work…and Other Wisdom,” which is supposed to incorporate social media.
The man behind the News Corp. media empire is always vocal about his political opinions. But when he joined Twitter earlier this year and amassed more than 280,000 followers in just a few months, that voice got even louder. In a series of high-profile posts criticizing Mitt Romney, he’s tweeted, “When is Romney going to look like a challenger? Seems to play everything safe, make no news except burn of Hispanics.” In another post he urged the candidate to fire some of his campaign team. And when the irate tweets made news, Murdoch appeared to backpedal a bit: “Romney people upset at me! Of course I want him to win, save us from socialism, etc but should listen to good advice and get stuck in!”
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She may be in her nineties, but Betty White’s career has surged into high gear ever since legions of fans on Facebook helped snag her a hosting gig on Saturday Night Live. So it’s no surprise that White has more than 430,000 followers on Twitter even though she’s only posted 25 tweets. She may not be the most prolific, but White knows how to crack wise—she once tweeted: “Hey @RyanSeacrest—my new show airs tomorrow and I hear we’re in the same time slot. I’ve always dreamed of sharing a night with you...”
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The Iowa Republican has embraced tweeting in a way that few politicians have. Unencumbered by the staid decorum of the Senate, the 78 year old goes with the flow in the Twitterverse. On Feb. 4, he posted this: “Evrybody asking how Romney” relates “to avg person Me thnks” no problem” but if so I hv answer “just lv starch out of shirt” About a month later, he tweeted “3” with no further explanation.
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Don Rickles has made a career of saying outrageous things, and Twitter has become another avenue for the veteran comedian to showcase his special brand of stinging humor. Right after his 86th birthday, Rickles wasn’t above making fun of his age, telling his followers, “This month of May I’m doing nothing because I’m exhausted from blowing out the candles on my birthday cake.” He’s not afraid to be raunchy, either. Last July, he tweeted, “David Letterman’s dream is to watch me drop my pants and fire a rocket!”
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Jack Welch made a name for himself as the chairman and CEO of General Electric, a post he held for two decades. But he’s not normally known as a film critic. Nevertheless, the septuagenarian recently tweeted that he loved Sacha Baron Cohen’s Borat but disliked the actor’s latest movie, The Dictator.
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At the age of 66, the Donald is one of the younger notables to make this list. His Twitter page is both prolific and feisty, and he doesn’t shy away from controversies that keep him in the news. On July 3, he tweeted, “Tomorrow we celebrate Independence Day, America’s 236th birthday. Here is America’s actual birth certificate” with a link to the Declaration of Independence. Touché. And he doesn’t hold back when he’s displeased by public figures. He called out Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts for his vote to uphold health care reform, calling it “bullshit!” in another post.
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Once derisively nicknamed “Hanoi Jane”, the 74-year-old screen legend has stirred up plenty of controversy in her life. But today, she uses her Twitter feed largely to promote her blog posts and to update her fans on her travels. Fonda recently took to Twitter to thank those who still use her workout DVDs.
Joel Ryan / AP Photo
Few have the gift of gab like Joan Rivers. When the heat wave heat hit in early July, Rivers took to Twitter to make a fart joke: “In this brutal summer heat, a hot breeze is better than none at all, which is why I’ve been feeding cabbage to my Pekingese all morning.” Her acerbic wit finds many targets, including A-list Hollywood actors. On July 5, Rivers treated her 1.1 million followers to this little gem: “I love performing on Cape Cod!!! It's the most popular tourist destination for gay men, if you don’t count John Travolta’s hotel room.”
The brunette bombshell has long been known for her looks. Maybe that’s why she uses her Twitter feed to help her followers see another side of her. Welch has lamented the demise of CSI:Miami through her feed and promoted her line of wigs.
Even Captain Kirk is on Twitter these days. William Shatner has more than a million followers. The octogenarian interacts quite a bit with his fans, thanking them for their support. Not one to miss an important day, Shatner tweeted on May 4: “I have heard it is Star Wars day today. May the 4th be with you! MBB”
