This Time, An Adoring He Looks on as She Accepts Nomination

Philadelphia: This time, Bill Clinton was the adoring spouse, smiling and clapping when the cameras cut away from the candidate in the spotlight.

It was him in the VIP seating, watching as his wife took center stage to claim the presidential nomination at the Democratic convention Thursday night.

It was one small step in the role reversal Americans will need to get used to if Hillary Clinton wins the White House in November.

Already, satires and spoofs are circulating, taking note of Bill's fashion choices, accessories and hair style. How about that fetching pantsuit! And that nice head of hair! Whose shoes is he wearing?

After all, that's what political wives have come to expect.

For the record: He wore a dark suit; she a white one.

Much of the world is watching this shift in the US cultural-gender zeitgeist with a bit of a yawn. Dozens of female leaders have served across Europe, Africa, Asia, South America and Australia, after all.

But it's new territory in the US, and the novelty is still, well, a novelty.

Bill Clinton, utterly comfortable in his own skin, seems to be just fine with trading places with his wife, the former first lady. He's shown no hint of awkwardness about his new supporting role.

He grinned broadly as his wife gave him a shout-out at the top of her speech, telling him they'd been through "good times that filled us with joy, and hard times that tested us."

"And I've even gotten a few words in along the way," she cracked.

Historian Carl Sferrazza Anthony, of the National First Ladies' Library, said that because the Bill-Hillary team is so well known to the nation, it may make the gender shift less startling than otherwise, if she wins.

"He'll stand in his tuxedo on the north steps, greeting a state leader beside Hillary in an evening gown. And we'll know that one is now president and one is now first gentleman," said Anthony. "But it'll still be Bill and Hillary. And I think that will probably make the transition a little bit easier."

There's something to be said for familiarity, yes. But it could have a downside, too, given the unsavory chapters in the Clintons' marital history, including his numerous affairs.

Still to be determined: what title Bill would hold on a return trip to 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.

First gentleman, perhaps?

Or first dude?

The latter is what Gary Sebelius favored when his wife, Kathleen, was elected Kansas governor in 2012.

Chelsea Clinton, interviewed Thursday on NBC's "Today" show, said her dad "likes to hearken back to his kind of Irish roots, so I think he'd love to be called First Laddie."

"I'm definitely voting for First Gentleman," she quickly added.

Bill Clinton's title may still be up for debate, but his wife already has been giving thought to the division of labor should she win.

She said in a debate last year, "I am probably still going to pick the flowers and the china for state dinners and stuff like that. But I will certainly turn to him, as prior presidents have, for special missions, for advice."