There’s so much that could be said about Paul Newman that I don’t know where to start. He definitely was an every-man’s actor; a man that the ordinary working man could relate to. He was known for being very charitable by donating all his profits from his Newmans Own food empire to charities. Him and his wife Joanne Woodward were probably the only Hollywood couple that made their marriage work and stayed together for all these years. Newman’s film work included “The Hustler”, “Hud”, “Cool Hand Luke”, “Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid”, “The Sting”, “Slap Shot”, “The Color of Money”, and “Road to Perdition”.
Newman met his wife Joanne Woodward on the set of “The Long, Hot Summer”. They later were to marry and have three kids together. In my opinion I would have to say his most famous starring role and his best was in “Cool Hand Luke”, the story of a man sent to prison who would not conform to society. He teamed up with acting legend Robert Redford in “Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid” and later in “The Sting”. The two have remained as the greatest pairing in film history. 1987 gave Newman his first and only Oscar in his return to the role that made him a star from the film “The Hustler”. Martin Scorcese directed Newman as Fast Eddie Felson in its sequel “The Color of Money” which also starred Tom Cruise. 2002 Newman appeared for the last time onscreen (not counting his voice for 2006’s animated “Cars”) alongside Tom Hanks in “Road to Perdition”. The film earned him his final Academy Award Nomination. Newman officially retired from acting in 2007 and a few months ago it was announced that he was fighting lung cancer. Newman will be greatly missed.
