Newman's Own ...
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Newman's Own ... Posted on Sep 27 2008 at 11:25pm by Paul Newman was one of those actors I grew up with (in my mind) as a kid in the 50's and 60's that left an indelible impression on a wet nosed country boy from Wisdom, Montana. His acting work seemed to always border on the extremes of man against himself.
Whether it was an ostensibly heartless cattle ranchers son in Hud, a rebellious parking meter topper in Cool Hand Luke, a reluctantly introspective high school football hero in Cat On a Hot Tin Roof, ...Fast Eddie Felson in The Hustler, or Butch Cassidy, Sundance’s companion in life, crime, and the inevitable changing of the times and beyond in Butch Cassidy & the Sundance Kid... to name just a few of my absolute favorite works of his career and cinematic history.
This is just a single raindrop on my head of his torrential rainstorm of accredited accolades.
The only entity going to get over on Mr. Newman’s character(s) was himself.
There was something very special that Paul Newman brought to this world during his 83 year stop over, and not just representative in his acting brilliance.
Maybe it was his gutsy political activism during those classic confrontational times in the 60's, or his disdain for pretense in the Hollywood circles he shadowed, which ironically gave him the means and the reason to move quietly away from those bright lights, at the prime of his career, or possibly his raw talent behind the wheel of a 935 Porsche at the 24 Heures du Mans in 1979, or in contrast… his respect for the stage and the labor of love efforts for rebuilding the old playhouses he and so many others honed their crafts nearly a century ago. And maybe more importantly it was his unending philanthropic efforts through Newman’s Own products building an empire of Hole In The Wall Gang retreats for oncological and other seriously ill children who may have never experienced the joy and beauty of country life during their plights so unfairly bestowed upon them in childhood. A quest he ventured into during 1982 and expanded upon until his passing, destined to be succeeded by his Daughter Nell.
Yesterday when I became aware of his passing at home with family and friends I felt a loss not experienced before by just another Hollywood legend, but more of a part of what influenced me as a human being, growing up in this island off the coast of time itself and I feel deeply honored by the mere fact of being able to experience his life altering contributions to this world while he performed his final act... as we knew.
My sincere condolences to his dear family and loved ones.
Long live the spirit of Cool Hand Luke …
and Mr. Paul Newman !!!
PS My all time favorite tribute to Mr.Newman is Mr. Redford’s gracious and heartfelt production of their intimate reuniting on The Sundance Channel's Iconoclasts presentation.
I can only hope the episode will air again sometime soon.
