80th Birthday Gifts for Men: Ideas for Presents to Make Him Feel Special

He's turning 80 years old and you have to get him a birthday gift - oh, boy! Whether he's your dad or your grandfather, your good friend or a business colleague - or just an octogenarian guy that you want to congratulate for reaching such a landmark - you'll be racking your brain trying to come up with ideas for something he doesn't already have. Here are some gift ideas that should delight an 80-year-old man and make him feel special.

Gifts with "remember when" nostalgia centering around the time of the Great Depression will bring back the era when society was just beginning to change at a rapid rate. Growing up during the economic depression and World War II, young girls and boys had little idea that television, computers, and technology would change the world so thoroughly.

That generation pulled together and, with their children, lay the foundations of what we now know as the modern middle class.

In Something Funny Happened on My Way to My 80th Birthday, the author recalls old stories of being a child during the Great Depression, living through World War II and other anecdotes of the past hrough personal vignettes and poems. The book makes a delightful gift for a man turning eighty.

On his 80th birthday, help your gentleman recall the better parts of those times with fondness and sentiment, and maybe even a new perspective.

From books and documents containing cultural and societal memories to nostalgic candy, gift baskets and time capsules can present him with a collection of memorabilia that he will truly enjoy.

For a man born around the time of the Great Depression, you may find you'll hit the right "note" if you go for nostalgic music that takes him back in time to his youth.

Try some Jazz Age music from the 1920s and 1930s - specifically, Dean Martin, the Mills Brothers, Judy Garland, Perry Como, Louis Armstrong, and Eddie Cantor.

If your 80-year-old birthday man already has a full complement of Jazz Age music, then try albums by Bing Crosby, Peggy Lee, Nat King Cole, and the Andrews Sisters from the 1940s, when he was a teenager.

Even a CD of familiar hymns or other religious music can be a perfectly appropriate birthday gift that will give him pleasure...and that he's not likely to have already.

The absolute best 80th birthday gifts are personalized. Are there family photographs the man who is turning eighty hasn't seen yet - or hasn't seen in many years?

Do you have new photos of family and friends he'd like to see? If not, take some.

Then have copies made. Enlarge them. Frame them.

Assemble a photo album of visual memories that he can pore over for hours.

A leather-bound scrapbook containing old letters, photos and nostalgic documents is even better. Include your own thoughts, or gather quotes from friends. You can create a personalized book he will delight in.

Whether he's your husband, brother, uncle, grandfather, father, or other relative, find out if he's ever enjoyed old Westerns by Zane Grey or Louis L'Amour.

If he has, he may have discarded his copies over the years.

These authors wrote literary "cowboy" westerns before, during, and after the Golden Age. What was once considered pulp is now considered quality Americana.

A lot of old vintage paperbacks or a rare hardback volume - maybe even a first edition - would charm him.

If the 80-year-old's eyesight allows, he'd probably love to look back over the books he enjoyed before...or missed reading over the years.

In the past I'd made the mistake of gifting my grandfather with a VCR and videocassettes. He never could learn to work that machine. I learned that elderly people wanted different kinds of gifts.

So when my grandfather turned 80, I noticed that although he had an extensive wardrobe, his clothes had gotten kind of worn, and he was reluctant to replace them.

So I got him new underwear. I picked up some extra socks, a new pair of slippers, a couple of sets of pajamas, and a new velour bathrobe that he loved to lounge around in...and that he considered the height of luxury.

And luxury aside, for his 80th birthday, your dad or husband or grandfather may very well appreciate items of clothing that are specially made for people who have limited mobility.

Lastly, even if your gentleman octogenarian is not very religious, there's a good chance he doesn't hold with "all that religious apathy nonsense".

In other words - he'd love a gift that signifies his faith. If he's Catholic, for example, give him a beautiful cross.

A symbol of his faith will be meaningful and make him truly glad to receive your gift, whether or not he's very religious.

When my grandmother turned 80, we did something that shocked her - we gave her a surprise birthday party.

The whole family was there, including many people she hadn't seen in years. She's gone now, but I have such wonderful pictures of her with a glowing smile at her 80th birthday party.

We didn't organize a surprise party for my grandfather, who is now in his 90s. But we did have a party.

He is like many of his generation, a very social man. He's appreciative of any fuss made of him--as perhaps I will be if I ever reach his age. The younger generations seem to be more self-conscious about surprise parties than seniors.

Something as simple as ribbons, mylar balloons, personalized mint tins, Dean Martin music, old photo albums and a cake with friends and family gathered around can create a party atmosphere.

Make a fuss of your 80-year-old friend, husband, father, or grandfather. Throw him a milestone birthday party and show him how important he is.

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