Photo: Peterson/Getty
I had hoped he would stay alive if only to spite the doomsayers. For nearly a year the press has been writing premature obits for Paul Newman. His cancer treatments tipped them off. Asked about his health, Newman's reply was always a terse, “I’m doing nicely.” Now he isn’t. Now, at 83, he’s gone. I’m not going to say acting has lost one of its last legit icons. That’s obvious. "He set the bar too high for the rest us," said George Clooney, "not just actors but all of us." The funny thing is Newman was always slightly embarrassed by his fame, by all the awards he received for his philanthropy, and especially by the body beautiful and blazing blue eyes that made him a star. That’s why he took all the bullshit vanity out of his acting. A peak Newman performance—and I can think of dozens of them—radiated smarts, sexual cool, wry wit and a keen eye for the con just around the corner. Think of him as Fast Eddie Felson in Robert Rossen’s The Hustler, avidly going cue stick to cue stick with Jackie Gleason’s Minnesota Fats around the combat zone of a pool table. Twenty-five years later, Newman would win his only Oscar for playing the older, wiser Eddie in Martin Scorsese’s The Color of Money, telling new kid Tom Cruise, “You’ve got to be a student of human moves. See, all the greats that I know of, to a man, are students of human moves.”
Newman was an honors student in human moves. The family and friends he left behind can tell you that. Start with his actress wife Joanne Woodward, who hated that he raced cars. And yet Newman conned her into putting up with it for 40 years. Newman was nothing if not persuasive. Ask his five surviving children, his neighbors in Westport, Connecticut, the kids with life-threatening diseases who benefited from the Hole-in-the-Wall camps he funded with profits from Newman's Own organic products. "I'm the only Oscar winner with his mug on a bottle of salad dressing," Newman told me once, laughing at the absurdity of it. Did everyone like Paul Newman? Hell, no. Obama man Newman was on a lot of right-wing enemies lists, starting with Nixon's. He wore the label like a badge of honor. The critic David Thomson was turned off by Newman's alleged "uneasy, self-regarding personality," and "a smirking good humor" that Thomson termed "more appropriate to glossy advertisements than to good movies." If, like me, you think that Newman was the leading litmus actor of his generation, the one who bridged the Greatest Generation to the boomers and beyond, there's no way you can't take his life personally and treasure it.
• 1973 Rolling Stone cover story: The Redoubtable Mr. Newman
• 1983 Rolling Stone cover story: Paul Newman Takes the Stand
I met him first in 1981, at a press party for a movie he did with director Sydney Pollack (also dead this year, also irreplaceable). The movie was Absence of Malice. Newman played a guy who wanted revenge on a reporter who libeled him. Now here he was surrounded by journalists and critics. “Hiya,” Newman said, shaking my hand, his eyes faraway. I asked what was on his mind. “Getting out of here,” he said, a small smile curving his lips up a fraction, followed by a big goofy laugh that just about fractured his cool. Newman was a private person, even frosty if he felt invaded. But, as I would learn, that cackle of a laugh was a good sign, it let you in. We talked about invasion of privacy (he wasn’t pleased), new President Ronald Reagan (really not pleased), about racing (his passion), and movies (his other passion). I asked him if he tangled with Alfred Hitchcock while making The Torn Curtain. He said the Hitchcock movie he made was Exodus. I said it wasn’t, insisting that Exodus was directed by Otto Preminger. Newman grinned. He was testing me. I liked him instantly, the same way I liked him onscreen. Newman was never in your face. He snuck up on you, kept you off balance.
Over the years, Newman would often express impatience with himself. Why the hell did he star in The Towering Inferno? He hated special effects epics. A human rights activist, Newman stayed pissed at himself for years for bowing to pressure and never acting in a film version of Patricia Nell Warren's 1974 novel The Front Runner, a gay love story between a track coach and a young athlete. Newman would bristle if I pushed him to talk seriously about acting for more than five minutes. But let me tell you, Newman had the worst taste in his own movies. He could tolerate himself best in roles that rendered him unrecognizable, such as the Mexican bandit in The Outrage, and the punch-drunk fighter in Hemingway’s Adventures of a Young Man. Two of the rare times, when the subject came to acting, that Newman was indisputably wrong. Those movies sucked.
I saw him last two years ago. He teased about being so old that the only thing he could play now was an animated jalopy for Pixar. He was referring to his voice role in John Laseiter’s Cars as a 1951 Hudson Hornet, a car put out to pasture. “They quit on me,” says Newman as the Hornet. “When I finally got put together, I went back expecting a big welcome. You know what they said? "You're history." Moved on to the next rookie standing in line. There was a lot left in me. I never got a chance to show 'em."
Newman, of course, always got the chance to show 'em. He took several laps in that '51 Hornet at a speedway in North Carolina. Hell, it was only last year that he won two races at Lime Rock. When he wanted to show ‘em, he did. He was past retirement age and acting for such young turks as the Coen brothers in The Hudsucker Proxy, the living rebuke to the concept behind No Country for Old Men. The thirtyish Sam Mendes directed Newman as a mob boss in Road to Perdition, the 2002 film that won the actor his final Oscar nomination.
You only to need to hear the titles of Newman’s most popular films to see him in your head, and to hear his voice "putting English"—as he liked to say—on his tangiest lines:
--coaxing his non-swimmer pal Robert Redford to jump off a cliff into a river in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. "Why, you crazy—the fall'll probably kill you."
--singing “I don’t care if it rains or freezes/long as I’ve got my plastic Jesus,” as the chain-gang convict in Cool Hand Luke.
--being heartless in Hud, telling his stern, principled daddy: “Price fixing, crooked TV shows, inflated expense accounts. How many honest men you know? Why you separate the saints from the sinners, you're lucky to wind up with Abraham Lincoln.”
--playing bush league hockey and cursing like a fleet of sailors in Slap Shot.
--reteaming with Redford in The Sting, and making Henry Gondorff a con man for the ages. "Glad to meet you, kid," he tells Redford. "You're a real horse's ass."
These are the Newman movies everyone knows. But I’d like to pay tribute to this unique actor by saluting three roles that will always stick with me for reasons that have nothing to do with crapshoot of box office. I’m sure you have your own, here are mine, from Newman’s youth, middle age and maturity, and all with that quality critic Pauline Kael called his “smiling deviltry.”
The Long, Hot Summer. His first movie with Joanne Woodward, who married him in 1958 and stuck by him ever since. Based on a short story by William Faulkner, the movie features a scene in which Newman tells Woodward’s Clara that he’s going to get her in his bed no matter what: "AlI right then, run, lady, and you keep on running. Buy yourself a bus ticket and disappear. Change your name, dye your hair, get lost — and then maybe, just maybe, you're gonna be safe from me.” The scene has a timeless heat—how could it not with Newman and Woodward in the perfection of their youth? A decade later, Newman would direct his wife to her best screen performance in Rachel, Rachel, a film that maintains its grit and shining grace.
The Verdict. Arguably, Newman’s finest performance. In Sidney Lumet’s 1982 legal drama, Newman plays a failure, a Boston lawyer on the bottle and heading for the skids until a medical negligence case gives him a leg up on redemption. Not a false move invades Newman’s portrayal. And it’s a kick to hear him dig into juicy David Mamet dialogue, like his attack on a crooked judge: You couldn't hack it as a lawyer. You were a bag man for the boys downtown and you still are, I know about you.” The fire is his eyes as he delivers those last four words—"I know about you"— is unforgettable. Lumet told me that he, Mamet and even Newman admitted at the time that they wanted, really wanted, to win Oscars for The Verdict. That they didn't remains a blot on the Academy.
Nobody’s Fool. Newman was 70 when he received the eighth of his nine Oscar nominations for playing Sully, a small-town wiseass sneaking up on retirement. Director Robert Benton adapted Richard Russo’s novel and gave Newman the perfect launching pad for a sly tour de force. Newman’s carnal comeons to a barmaid are priceless (“I got my truck out back, whaddya say we get in the back, get naked and see where it goes from there?”). Of course, she says OK. It’s Paul Newman.
And so, how to say goodbye? I can't think of a better way than saying hello again to the Newman movies that most touched us. In one of his last appearances, as the Stage Manager in Our Town—he played the role on Broadway and TV—Newman tried to encapsulate life in the 20th century. "This is the way we were," he said. He didn't need the words. At the movies, Paul Newman had already done that for us.
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The Enemy Below | January 6, 2009 6:25 PM
Paul Newman wasn't in"Quo Vadis".
He only appeared in one Biblical/Sword and Sandals Flick in his career:1954's"The Silver Chalice".
Jay Moore | October 24, 2008 11:30 PM
I can personally attest to the humility of Paul Newman after a chance encounter 12 years ago at Charlotte Motor Speedway (now Lowe's Motor Speedway). I was at the track for a practice session as I started racing Legends cars that year and was in the "driver's lounge" inside the track. This "lounge" was the small original one-holer that was built at the same time the track was built. I was getting into my driver's suit when the lounge door opened and in stepped a very familiar face. My shock must have been quite apparent as he strode over to me with his hand out and said "Hi, I'm Paul Newman" as if I never would have known without him saying so. I recovered as I shook his hand and introduced myself. We chatted briefly about him being there to practice in his new Legends Car. We ran some laps together and it soon became apparent that he was a skilled racecar driver as well as a great actor. I was saddened by his passing and grateful for having seen the racer side of him for those few moments that day.
Leti | October 3, 2008 7:29 PM
I was only 12 or 13 when I first saw Mr. Newman in a film on tv. That film was "The Hustler." I asked my mother, "What is that actor's name?" She told me, "That is Paul Newman and he is great." I said, "I think he is the most beautiful man ever created." I didn't know then just how right on I was. Mr. Newman was the most beautiful man. I just didn't know that he was even more beautiful on the inside than he was on the outside. I still have never seen blue like those eyes and I suspect I never will. How we will miss him and how lucky we were to have him with us at all.
Anonymous | October 2, 2008 5:03 PM
We live in the Westport area and I always liked the fact that Newman stayed local. He could have made the move out west years ago. Let's face it, most actors do. It's where the movie business is. I used to see him all the time at the track in Lime Rock where he'd hang out with the fans outside his trailer armed with a can of Bud.
I always admired him and bought
a ton of Newman's Own lemonaide, salad dressing, popcorn, etc.
I agree with Peter Travers-The Verdict is his best movie. You see the transformation in the character as he starts to get his feet under him again.
R.I.P. Paul Newman
Michael | October 1, 2008 10:26 AM
The thing that I liked most was he was his part. I spent most of my life as a hustler. When I watched him act out a character, I could see the truth in his acting. The Sting, Hustler, Cool Hand Luke, Color of Money, and many others he was the perfect man for the part. When he played the part of the Lawyer, Detective, and father he again was perfect. I remember him in early westerns as a kid. I will always have my favorite five western actors, but in the overall acting abilities, he will always be remember by me as one of the top ten actors of my life time.
InncntCrmnl | October 1, 2008 6:58 AM
I can't believe there were so few mentions of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof. And none by Mr. Travers.
Fantastic movie, with memorable dialogue and a Tennesee Williams script that is just outstanding. One of his best performances.
sonicid | September 30, 2008 8:44 PM
A class act & a prince of a guy has left the building, that's for certain. Since there's nothing more that I need to add to the eloquent comments above regarding COOL HAND LUKE, BUTCH CASSIDY, THE VERDICT, CARS and the other usual suspects, I'll instead echo Christian H.'s praise for ROAD TO PERDITION, laud Mr. Newman's stellar directing job on the 1987 adaptation of THE GLASS MENAGERIE (starring John Malkovich, Karen Allen & Mrs. Newman herself, Joanne Woodward), and someone's gotta give it up for WHERE THE MONEY IS, and underrated little heist flick from 2000 in which he makes music with the saucy Linda Fiorentino.
The Enemy Below | September 30, 2008 8:06 PM
Paul Newman;like The Duke;was a true American Icon!!
Granted;their political beleifs were polar opposites;
but you got right down to it;
they knew how to connect with the average guy both on screen and in real life!!
Granted,I've never really been too fond of Show Biz Political Types,but Paul Newman managed to rise above the fray and stood above the rest.
And let's not forget his on screen roles:Fast Eddie Felsen in'The Hustler';Governor Earl Long in'Blaze';The Title Roles in'Hud'and'Butch Casssidy'and his final role as Doc Hudson in'Cars'!!!
I've always felt a spiritual kinship with the loner and his potrayal as Fast Eddie Felsen in'The Hustler'was one of the silver screen's greatest loners:
The others being John Wayne as Ethan Edwards in'The Searchers';Alan Ladd as'Shane';
Bogie as Rick Blaine in'Casablanca'and Clint Eastwood as'The Outlaw Josey Wales'.
Only a few American Actors ever reach the status of Icons
and Paul Newman was one of them!!
Rest In Peace Paul!!
We'll Miss You!!
Jeff | September 30, 2008 3:13 PM
The roles in "Luke," "Hombre" and the others are classic, but I'm always surprised people (even all the critics inthe last few days who have been going on and on) fail to mention his directing. "Rachel, Rachel" was superbly done (Woodward, of course, was fantastic) and the little seen "Sometimes a Great Notion" has a number of well-directed moments -- including the heartbreaking death of Richard Jaekel.
Newman was a class-act!
DRYER | September 30, 2008 9:44 AM
i dont care if it rains or freezes
long as i got my plastic jesus
sitting on the dashboard of my car
comes in colors pink 'n pleasant
glows in the dark --
caus its irradescent
take it with you when you travel far
get yourself a sweet madonna
dressed in rhinestone
sitting on a pedstal
of albalony(?) shell
goin ninety ' i aint scary
cuase i got the virgin mary
assurin' me that i wont go to hell
r.i.p.
Jack in Mountain, Wi. | September 30, 2008 7:50 AM
I have watched "Cool Hand Luke" numerous times, always with wonder. It doesn't get any better as an example of acting.
I treasure the movie more than ever now....
Marty J | September 30, 2008 3:01 AM
Anyone who takes away from the iconic power of Butch n' Sundance's final freeze-frame by invoking 'The 400 blows' can shut up and go back to their cheese an' wine parties. That shot is now going to be more powerful than ever. And in 'Cool Hand Luke' Newman sets the bar too high for rebels bucking the system performances.
ChristianH | September 29, 2008 6:10 PM
And who could forget his excellent job in Road to Perdition, a movie brilliant but for one annoying teenager.
Nate | September 29, 2008 2:36 PM
Paul Newman's movies have always just popped into my life at different points, and never failed to leave a great impression on me. My favorite character's of his were Fast Eddie Felson, as Ed Harris' father in Empire Falls, and The Verdict. I look forward to shortly finding all of his films I haven't seen, and finding something new in his memory. Rest In Peace Mr. Newman.
Nathan | September 29, 2008 2:15 PM
Paul Newman was one of the greatest there ever was, my personal favorite Newman film was The Hustler. He will be missed greatly. Rest in peace, Mr.Newman.
Slapshot | September 29, 2008 1:59 PM
How anyone could say anything disparaging about Paul Newman is unfathomable. I can only assume our friend Terry is a gun-toting, moose-splitting, bible-thumping villager. Sorry I never met up with him at the Mensa meetings.
ned | September 29, 2008 1:44 PM
my favorite actor, as a young man saw "someone up there likes me". that movie inspired me so much he was the very best at his craft.
Candy | September 29, 2008 1:33 PM
Love the man, love the actor, love the race car driver, love the love in Paul Newman!!! One of the few in Hollywood that we 'oldtimers' truly respect. Joanne is a doll - what a wonderful couple -just good, good down-to-earth people! I wish that all the "wantabees " out in Hollywood would have an ounce of the great values, ethics, self-respect, and love that Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward possess. No need for publicity stunts with those two, because they have REAL fame and fortune obtained through good works and honesty and a good life style.
Juan Carlo | September 29, 2008 1:32 PM
In the blog "Firstshowing.net", there's a story of him, a mother and an ice cream that (as racy as that sounds) is so funny and touching I felt it was about my own father. I think that warmth speaks more about him than any of his movies. I've only seen two (three if you count CARS), but I feel the void left anyway. RIP Blue Eyes.
MegaSudz | September 29, 2008 1:22 PM
Lost one of my favorites. This man was class and cool wrapped into one package. I believe it was an interview Paul Newman did for Absence of Malice, he told Rolling Stone that he never had a problem leaving a role behind, except for Slap Shot. He asked his family to pass the fucking salt. That always stuck with me!
Sharon, NC | September 29, 2008 1:18 PM
May he find comfort in the arms of angels. The world has lost a great soul. He will be missed
Chris | September 29, 2008 12:39 PM
One of a kind, a great actor and an even better human being.truly a great loss.
Fan Two | September 29, 2008 11:49 AM
May Paul rest in the arms of our Savior and may his family be upheld by the peace of our Father.
Ramivo | September 29, 2008 10:45 AM
Another great down to earth review by Peter Travers.
Immerstahl | September 29, 2008 10:22 AM
My best memories of Paul Newman were from the first film of his I saw, "Somebody Up There Likes Me." Newman plays a Bowery Boy-esque young Rocky Graziano, who takes up fighting to make his way in the world. I remember thinkng, "Man, how can someone as PRETTY as this guy, be this tough?" I was hooked--I watched as many of his films as I could. Cool Hand Luke, Quo Vadis, Exodus, The Hustler, Hud, Winning, on and on. He was just the coolest cat around. Lot's of actors--few real stars. Paul Newman was one of the best; and sadly, one of the last. Thanks for the memories, Paul. I'll miss you...
JR | September 29, 2008 9:33 AM
I don't always agree with Peter Travers take on movies but he definitely wrote an accurate sendoff for Hollywood's greatest. Best Player - Coach hockey's ever seen.
Anonymous | September 29, 2008 8:52 AM
The Paul Newman I liked best was the film star. His private life and his philanthropy did not interest me in the least. In fact I hated seeing those drawings on the front of his salad dressing with a ruff round his neck. He was the fantasy in my life, the escape from the ordinary, the beautiful face and the way he moved. Butch Cassidy and The Sundance Kid was my favorite Paul Newman film, (the bicycle ride my favorite scene) then Cool Hand Luke, then Cat on a Hot Tin Roof. He was my dream man. I hated it when he had a face lift it took all the character and sexiness out of his face. I went to look at Paul Newman in a film the way a man would look at a brand new Porsche in a show room window. He was a feast for the eyes, but only a dream, untouchable. We will always have those films, that was his working legacy. He was so good he made me forget reality, he transported me into the story of the film. Thank you Paul for brightening my life. YOU DID AN EXCELLENT JOB.
Carmella | September 29, 2008 8:36 AM
A true hollywood icon. He was the best of the best. He will truly be missed.
Kevin Lee | September 29, 2008 8:34 AM
Everyone has a favorite Paul Newman role, but Luke truly touches my soul...R.I.P. Mr. Newman...
Sherry | September 29, 2008 8:04 AM
I have loved him since I was 11 years old and saw "Hud" in a big old movie theatre in 1963. I feel like I've lost someone I really knew. He was my favorite all these years; such a beautiful man.
You're right Peter, 'The Verdict' was his best and he should've won the Oscar that year.
Love you, Paul.
d70 | September 29, 2008 5:24 AM
gorgeous and heard,
a superior being ! In every respect, ever granted on a human being/ universally !
rfacas | September 29, 2008 5:00 AM
Got to agree with Laura, of all the great movies he made, some box office hits (the sting and butch cassidy), others not so great a hit, Nobody's Fool will rise as a perennial favorite, akin to It's A Wonderful Life which was forgotten for thirty years later. But most of his movies are period pieces some of which will in time be classics. Another favorite and I think a sleeper is Fort Apache The Bronx. In his later career, he resonated with beaten down ordinary guys, aka losers, who manage to survive and maybe find a strand of redemption in their haywire lives.
Leonsita | September 29, 2008 3:17 AM
Paul what a beautiful and charming man you were! So unassuming, such humaness that touches everybody's heart. You will forever live in my heart and in my memory. May you rest in peace you beautiful and one of a kind guy! Love always....
dave | September 29, 2008 3:14 AM
Newman didn't have "a hollywood hugging nod to political liberalism". He was a liberal. In the best sense of that beautiful word.
Cynthia | September 29, 2008 2:41 AM
Paul, you charmed and inspired us all. Our world is a better place because of you. To the Woodward-Newman family all of our best to you at this sad time.
Isabella | September 29, 2008 2:34 AM
What a beautiful man...inside and out. My fave of his films are Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, The Verdict, and Cool Hand Luke.
PS Does anybody know the title/lyrics to the Plastic Jezus song?
Mike U | September 29, 2008 2:24 AM
Nice article but Newman's line about getting naked in his truck and seeing where it goes in the movie "Nobody's Fool" was to the bar tender. She says yes and he says "Haven't cha got any dignity?". I guess you'll have to watch that one again (It's one of my favs).
Kent Ponder | September 29, 2008 2:21 AM
The male American actors I value most as exemplary human beings are just these four: Paul Newman, Robert Redford, Clint Eastwood, and Harrison Ford. Of these four, the guy who most certainly deserves the top spot is Paul Newman.
Paul | September 29, 2008 2:18 AM
I did and do hate his Hollywood-hugging nod to political liberalism. However, if imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, I could only hope that I could be reincarnated with the wit, wisdom, and cool of Paul Newman. He had a soul that will transcend even the most cosmic of boundaries.
Linnae | September 29, 2008 2:14 AM
Rest in peace, Paul. Great actor, greater humanitarian - the world will miss you. You are a legend.
Grateful | September 29, 2008 2:10 AM
He was a good and decent human being. Not many of them walk among us these days.
He was a role model. He was for the people and of the people.
He cared for those less fortunate. He not only spoke for them, he took affirmative steps to help them - over and over and over again.
A prince of a man. A prince among men.
Goodnight, sweet prince, goodnight.
PatR | September 29, 2008 2:02 AM
I grew up watching Paul Newman- always wished he was mine... to have and to hold- he was wonderful!-helped make stars out of others- many great movies that never could have happened without him- I grieve for his family and their great loss, also for mine...
Dave | September 29, 2008 1:56 AM
On the set, the crew members knew who they were working with and polished their professionalism. Paul could on occassion be found with the crew after wrap having a beer, but it was just one.
Joanne Woodward visited us twice in Louisiana on Blaze, she is a graduate of LSU. When this quite, polite, unassuming lady came to the set you saw the all, and the most grissle
of crewmembers in the awe of this royal visit. Everyone knew of the career that was given up when this lady married
the man with the blue eyes!
Steve Baldwin | September 29, 2008 1:53 AM
Some people, by their deeds, will never die. It's a short list, but Paul Newman is on it.
Good night, sweet prince.
Fan#1 | September 29, 2008 1:40 AM
Go back under your rock, Terry. It misses you, like we miss Paul.
Aenya | September 29, 2008 1:27 AM
All of you are right.. all of it so true.. Paul Newman was a man among men and I can't believe he's gone.
My prayers go out to his family and Joanna Woodward, his wife, who right now are missing him more than all of us. Know that in time the sweet memories will take over and the pain of his absence will be replaced by remembrances of love and all he was to you.
Goodbye Paul..you old goat.
silvercrone | September 29, 2008 1:22 AM
he was my hero and I loved him like a Daddy, a boyfriend, a friend- now they are all gone- and I am sad. thank heavens we have his movies. Poor Joanne- she must be lonely already without his smile to see and laugh to hear.
Terry | September 29, 2008 1:13 AM
No loss, he was a stinking liberal just like the majority of the Hollywood elitists.
Aussie | September 29, 2008 12:58 AM
It is a sad day to farewell Paul Newman, he has certainly earned his rest. May he rest in Peace with his Maker
John | September 29, 2008 12:52 AM
What a lovely, personal reflection on your feelings toward Paul Newman. He is among those actors who, when they pass, we struggle to somehow quantify and qualify their significance. But, ultimately, it's all for naught. He was, unmistakably and unrepentantly, what he was. It was unique and it made us all just a bit better.
I'm buying a Newman's Own product in tribute, to help keep the camps going. I hope others will to.
admirer | September 29, 2008 12:50 AM
He puts today's celebreties to shame. Drugs, alcohol, arrests, absurd, ostentatious displays of wealth, temper tandrums, promiscuity - such self indulgence as to be unreal.
One can only hope they will look at how Paul Newman lived and learn a little something about how to live an honorable and decent life.
Goodnight, sweet prince...goodnight...
Psy (Mexican Fan #1) | September 29, 2008 12:50 AM
COOL HAND LUKE, something I will always like, his acting doesn't have borders, Descanse en Paz
Ed | September 29, 2008 12:47 AM
Hombre, The Hustler, The Long Hot Summer... excellent Newman. However Paul was even a greater man off the screen than on.
Diana | September 29, 2008 12:46 AM
Well done, good and faithful servant. You're work is finished. Rest well knowing the world is a better place for your having been here.
becca, CO | September 29, 2008 12:45 AM
Paul Newman the best of everything. I will miss you along with so many others.
Cracker | September 29, 2008 12:41 AM
The Sting - Newman's scene on the train when he's in the card game acting drunk and pissing off Robert Shaw was awesome. Even more so than Redford, he was a movie star in every sense.
His charity, his marriage to Joanne Woodward and the way he lived his life was something to look up to and admire.
He will be missed but never forgotten.
Fan#1 | September 29, 2008 12:32 AM
What a life! What a man! He was like no other. His good works, his exceptional acting, his basic decency - all remarkable. He did it all right. Every single thing.
...and when he shall die, we shall take him and break him into little pieces...and he shall light up the night like the stars.
Good night, sweet prince.
Fan#1 | September 29, 2008 12:32 AM
What a life! What a man! He was like no other. His good works, his exceptional acting, his basic decency - all remarkable. He did it all right. Every single thing.
...and when he shall die, we shall take him and break him into little pieces...and he shall light up the night like the stars.
Good night, sweet prince.
GUESS WHO | September 29, 2008 12:18 AM
May His Soul Rest In Eternal Peace,Amen!!!
Laura | September 29, 2008 12:07 AM
Nobody's Fool is a family favorite. It is a great movie about everything and nothing. I've heard the critics did not care for it. We have watched it so many times I can not count. The "I've got my truck out back..." line was delivered to the barmaid and not Griffin, but if you have not seen this movie it will leave you with alot of one liners. Another great that teamed up Newman and Woodward is the HBO "Empire Falls" also written by Richard Russo. We will miss his acting and style.
timbowolf | September 29, 2008 12:04 AM
Very occasionally you see a moment of such simplistic perfection in a performance that it never leaves your mind and the thought of it has you shaking your head and smiling in awe. In 'Nobody's Fool' there is such a moment. After making a good natured but intentional suggestion of sex to Melanie Griffiths she quickly lifts her shirt for a brief second to show him her breasts...its a gently dismissive move merely to appease the situation...we know Newman is surprised as we all are...he doesnt show it...he merely pauses and says...'ok'.Its hard to describe how utterly beautiful this 'ok'was and all that it carried with it. It encapsulated everything that made Paul Newman a master actor and the envy of many a man...
dryer | September 28, 2008 12:11 PM
Ive always cried during Newmans singing of "Plastic Jesus" in COOL HAND LUKE its a very poignant & touching moment for all of us vagabonds & outsiders. If there ever was a way to capsulate a mans work this would be the film.
R.I.P "LUKE"