Photo SpecialSexier with Age!

PATRICK DEMPSEY

One reviewer of Dempsey's 1987 teen comedy Can't Buy Me Love called the actor (left, that year) "as appealing as mulched lawn." "I haven't recovered from that," says Dempsey, 39. It must help to know he's TV's latest hot doctor, thanks to his ABC hit Grey's Anatomy. And he's getting rave reviews from one special fan: "One day my 3-year-old daughter (with wife Jill) said, 'You're very handsome, Poppy.' That was the best compliment ever."