Getting Better with Age
When a 29-year-old Mel Gibson was crowned PEOPLE's first-ever Sexiest Man Alive in 1985, an easygoing 15-year-old jock from Longview, Texas, probably would've just winked at the idea that he would be inheriting the title two decades later. And yet, on the 20th anniversary of PEOPLE's annual ode to the men we can't resist, Matthew McConaughey becomes the latest inductee into a much-envied group of guys. He's also just the second Texan to get the nod (Patrick Swayze was the first, in 1991) and the only one to flaunt blond curls (dark-haired Sexiest Men outnumber blonds more than 2 to 1). Other SMA stats from the past 20 years:

Number of Movie vs. TV Stars: 14 to 3 (plus one journalist/political son, JFK Jr.)

Sexiest Man with the Most Kids: Mel Gibson (seven)

Only Two-Timer: Brad Pitt (1995 and 2000)

Most Popular Astrological Sign: Virgo and Capricorn (tie, with three each)

Only Sexiest Man to Sport an Earring: 1998's Harrison Ford

Oldest (and Baldest) Sexiest Man Alive: Sean Connery, 59, in 1989

Youngest: John F. Kennedy Jr., 27, in 1988

Tallest: Sean Connery, Pierce Brosnan and Ben Affleck tie at 6'2"

Only Silver Fox: Richard Gere in 1999. He also made the cover with then-wife Cindy Crawford as "Sexiest Couple Alive" in 1993

Number of Single vs. Attached Sexiest Men: 7 to 13

Number of Sexiest Men from Across the Pond: 3 (Sean Connery, 1989, Pierce Brosnan, 2001, and Jude Law, 2004)

Most Fertile Ground for Sexiest Men: A tie for New York and California, with three each

Here's to all the SMAs we've loved before, and to the future Mels, Harrisons and Brads to follow. For much more on this year's inductees, including Matthew, turn to page 80. Enjoy!

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