Outside of his stage work, he has achieved fame as an actor, writer, and director in the film industry. With a career that now spans nearly 40 years, Sam Shepard has gained the critical regard, media attention, and iconic status enjoyed by only a rare few in American theatre. Throughout his career Shepard has amassed numerous grants, prizes, fellowships, and awards, including the Cannes Palme d'Or and the Pulitzer Prize.
The U.S. government has acknowledged that the official retirement age will to increase from 66 years. But doubts about the solvency of Social Security and the need for funding beyond the government entitlement is making the official age obsolete.
However, while the age workers expect to retire is growing, few retirees have been able to delay retirement past age 65. Just 17 percent of the retirees in the Gallup survey left the workforce after age 65. Currently, the average retirement age is 61, up from 57 in 1991. The most popular ages to retire are between 60 and 64 (36 percent). And 31 percent of seniors entered retirement before age 60.