by Damozel | This is a sad day and a great loss to us all. Paul Newman was a charismatic, enthralling actor. Many of his characters became American icons. Our condolences to Mr. Newman's family, friends and fans.
Much more than that, Paul Newman was a true humanitarian, who actually devoted his time and money to bettering the lives of people in need. The company that Mr. Newman founded 25 years ago (Newman's Own) has generated and donated more than $250 million in proceeds to charities.
Though Newman's company and foundation still live on, our world will be lesser for Newman's absence. There's a bit on Mr. Newman's career and personal life after the jump.
He acted in more than 65 movies over more than 50 years, drawing on a physical grace, unassuming intelligence and good humor that made it all seem effortless. (NYT)
In addition to those for which he is best known, he directed---and appeared in---many subtle, unconventional films. His achievements in his field were remarkable----though not only his achievements in his field.
Yet he was also an ambitious, intellectual actor and a passionate student of his craft, and he achieved what most of his peers find impossible: remaining a major star into a craggy, charismatic old age even as he redefined himself as more than Hollywood star. He raced cars, opened summer camps for ailing children and became a nonprofit entrepreneur with a line of foods that put his picture on supermarket shelves around the world. (NYT)
He was married for 50 years to the luminous Joanne Woodward.
In an industry in which long marriages might be defined as those that last beyond the first year and the first infidelity, Mr. Newman and Ms. Woodward’s was striking for its endurance. But they admitted that it was often turbulent. She loved opera and ballet. He liked playing practical jokes and racing cars. But as Mr. Newman told Playboy magazine, in an often-repeated quotation about marital fidelity, “I have steak at home; why go out for hamburger?” (NYT)
And in the age before the age when roles for women---in the immortal words of Goldie Hawn's character in the otherwise forgettable "The First Wives' Club"---stretched even so far as "babe, district attorney, and "Driving Miss Daisy,"" he actively fostered Woodward's career.
When good roles for Ms. Woodward dwindled, Mr. Newman produced and directed “Rachel, Rachel” for her in 1968. Nominated for the best-picture Oscar, the film, a delicate story of a spinster schoolteacher tentatively hoping for love, brought Ms. Woodward her second of four best-actress Oscar nominations....
Mr. Newman also directed his wife in “The Effect of Gamma Rays on Man-in-the-Moon Marigolds” (1972), “The Glass Menagerie” (1987) and the television movie “The Shadow Box” (1980). (NYT)
The New York Times has much, much more.
Goodbye, Paul Newman. You stood--and stand---alone. And--to quote e e cummings (writing of an iconic star of his own day):
Jesus
he was a handsome man
and what i want to know is
how do you like your blueeyed boy
Mister Death
Memeorandum has more blogger tributes
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