Then & Now: Anderson Cooper's Ageless 60 Minutes Transformation, In Photos

It's hard to remember a time when Anderson Cooper's face wasn't on TV. Within a decade after he graduated from college, Cooper had already made a stunning transformation from Channel One fact checker to anchoring ABC's "World News Now." By 2006, Cooper was a prominent face on CNN as well as the host of CBS's "60 Minutes." Twenty years later, however, Cooper decided to exit "60 Minutes," and divide his time between his two kids and his CNN gig.

The veteran journalist was 39 years old when he did his first episode in December 2006, and 58 when his stint on the storied news program ended in May 2026. Despite this significant chunk of time, Cooper seems to have found the Fountain of Youth. "I need his skin care routine. Bro has not aged a day," remarked one poster on X, after seeing pics comparing present-day Cooper to his 20 years-younger self. "Aged a whole 60 minutes," joked another.

While Cooper hasn't divulged his skin care routine, it's highly unlikely that he adopted the bird poop-based facial treatment he unwittingly tried on CNN in 2013. Instead, his seemingly ageless appearance is more likely connected to his distinctive hair. The TV anchor started graying around 20, and his hair hasn't changed much during his "60 Minutes" career. "My advice? Give in to gray. Make the most of it while you're still young," Cooper wrote in Details Magazine in 2003 (via CNN). These are wise words, as photos of Cooper over the decades illustrate.

Anderson Cooper showed off his beaming smiling at the Elton John 6th Annual AIDS Foundation Benefit. While this photo looks like it might have been taken yesterday, it's actually from September 2007. One small clue is that Cooper's hair has some noticeably darker strands throughout, rather than being completely white. "I may not like the way my gra . . . I mean, salt-and-pepper hair looks, but I can't honestly say it's done me any harm," Cooper admitted in Details Magazine in 2003 (via CNN). "In the TV news business, gray equals gravitas."

One lesser-known fact about Anderson Cooper is that he had a famous mom – Gloria Vanderbilt. In 2010 Cooper and Vanderbilt stepped out together, and it seems like the TV anchor's youthfulness could have come from his mom, since she definitely doesn't look 86 here. Both Cooper and Vanderbilt's smooth skin really subtracts the decades. He's also noted that his signature hair shade likely stems from both sides of his family tree. 

Cooper also seems to have been influenced by Vanderbilt's fashion knowledge. The combo of his tie and silver locks really make his blue eyes sparkle. 

In January 2014, Anderson Cooper attended the 3rd annual Sean Penn & Friends Help Haiti Home Gala. Between his dark-framed glasses and white strands, Cooper bore a close resemblance to "Mad Men" actor John Slattery. Like Cooper, Slattery also went gray at a much younger-than-average age. In 2012, Slattery was Cooper's TV guest, and the two discussed their similarities, including their decision to avoid hair dye. While Slattery's tried it and disliked the results, Cooper's wary of the process itself. Although Cooper has sometimes joked about twinning with other celebs, no one comes close to Slattery. 

Anderson Cooper and Kelly Ripa's families have an adorable bond, and the two friends co-hosted the 2016 CNN Heroes Gala. Cooper's stuck with the same signature dark-rimmed eyewear since 2010, which is another big reason he seems ageless. 

Even though we assert that Cooper's gleaming strands also play a pivotal role in his ageless visage,  Cooper isn't always convinced. "I still, in my mind, think I have brown hair and then I'm like, 'Who is that old guy?'" Cooper confessed on "Live!" earlier that same year (via People). 

With their matching tuxes, Andy Cohen and Anderson Cooper made a debonaire pair at New York Fashion Week in 2018. Cohen's just a year younger, but his transformation to gray hair has happened much more gradually during his longtime TV career. The pair have been friends for decades, and Cohen's sometimes razzed Cooper about his brilliant white strands. Cohen's not the only one fixated on Cooper's hair color.  A year later, Cooper debunked the internet rumor that his hair was always white. Jokes aside, Cooper rocks this color, especially when he's wearing formalwear. 

At the 2021 CNN Heroes event,. Cooper's locks were in his go-to style: shorter around the sides and back, longer and side-swept on top. While he has experimented with facial hair occasionally, Cooper's never been particularly jazzed about the results. The clean-shaven look also accentuates his youthfulness.  

Any time Cooper's expressed doubt about his hair color, Kelly Ripa's proclaimed her fandom. As she noted on "Let's Talk Off Camera," she's not the only one who calls Cooper "Silver Fox." "I look at you like, a cross between Edward R. Murrow and a GQ model," Ripa gushed.