Um, did you really read the other responses? Because most of us identified this as controlling, and I don't think anyone said to placate him at all, except the original poster, who said that her mother wanted her to do so.
And yes, this does happen with males. My father, who is controlling, bullied my brother as much as me. He was maybe expected even more to keep a certain "macho" appearance, which is similar in vein. It's not a gendered issue.