I was scanning Yahoo Entertainment news this morning, when I saw a small heading at the bottom that said “Legendary Actor Paul Newman Dies at Age 83.” I had already clicked on another link, then it hit me what I had actually read. I went back and sure enough, way down at the bottom of the page was this heading! I checked CNN, Fox News, USA Today, desperately looking for another confirmation, especially after my premature obituaries blog. But, there was nothing there.
Paul Newman at a political rally for Eugene McCarthy in the parking lot of Kohl’s in Menominee Falls, Wisconsin, 1968. (Photo by Christopher Peterson and is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported)
When I looked at the AP article on Yahoo, I saw it was actually only released a minute earlier. A few minutes later, everyone else caught up to the sad news that we all knew was coming – legendary actor Paul Newman has indeed died. His spokesman Marni Tomlijanovic released the news that he has died of cancer yesterday, but no other details were available.
Newman was an incredible actor, having received Academy Award nominations 10 times for such films as Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, Cool Hand Luke, Absence of Malice, and The Color of Money, which turned out to be his only win other than an honorary Oscar awarded in 1986.
Newman, who was married to actress Joanne Woodward for 50 years, also loved auto racing, having appeared in his first professional event in 1972. In 1995, he became the oldest drive (at age 70) to be part of a winning team at a major sanctioned race (the 24 Hours of Daytona). He was a partner in the Atlantic Championship team Newman Wachs Racing.
Outside the acting and racing, which would probably be enough for one man, Newman will be remembered as a philanthropist. He founded the Newman’s Own brand in 1982, which included salad dressings, pasta sauce, lemonade, popcorn, salsa, and wine. By 2006, the company had raised over $200 million in donations with 100% of the money after taxes going to charities such as the Hole in the Wall Gang Camp for seriously ill children. Newman also donated a quarter of a million dollars of his own money to help Kosovo refugees. He donated $10 million to Kenyon College to establish scholarships.
In my eyes, Paul Newman was the consummate actor – good looking and talented. But he also took time to help those that needed it. Combine that with those beautiful blue eyes and you can be assured that Paul Newman’s legacy will not be forgotten for some time now.