Back in the 1970s, when mega-fauna still roamed the earth, there was a scandalous and much-xeroxed article in one of the electronic hobbyist magazines about wiring up a 555-timer chip and a few high-power FETs to make a very slowly dimming light for "romantic" applications. This dedicated device was invoked with a button push, and would cycle down to dark over a 10 to 30 minute period.
Problem is, those of us who owed soldering irons to make one were the least likely ever to have a woman in our apartments at all, as back then, geeks had actual pocket protectors and some carried slide rules in belt cases pre-dating the "light saber" by over a decade.