REMEMBERING THE GREAT ‘PAUL’ NEWMAN
I wrote about Paul Newman three years ago in the Review-Journal, a few days after talking to him on the phone.
"Hi, this is Paul Newman," he said, when I answered.
"Thanks for calling Mr. Newman," I replied hiding any inflections that would make me sound like the giddy school kid I felt inside.
"Just call me Paul," he said in a soft, reassuring tone that made me feel the way Robert Redford must have when they first met.
Paul, as he asked me to call him, died last Friday from cancer. He was 83.
Our world lost a great actor, race car driver and enthusiast, and, most importantly, a great humanitarian.
What a life he had.
What enhanced lives we've had because of him.
His movies will continue to provide joy, as will memories of his passion for racing that began in 1968 when he starred in "Winning" as an Indianapolis 500 driver.
Paul took racing seriously from his first amateur sports car win in 1972, to when he was co-driver on the winning team in the 24 Hours of Daytona at age 70, to when he died. This year marked his 26th as an IndyCar owner with Carl Haas.
Interviewing famous racers never makes me nervous, but I didn't grow up idolizing men and women because they could wheel race cars.
Interviewing Paul was like meeting a lifetime friend for the first time. I rooted for him in "Cool Hand Luke" and cheered for him and Redford in "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid" and "The Sting."
In the 1981 movie "Absence of Malice," his role reinforced the pitfalls of irresponsible journalism when a reporter puts a rush to break news ahead of getting the facts. And he slept with co-star Sally Field in that movie. Really admired that.
It took several calls with publicists before being approved for a telephone interview with him. I had to submit questions — which I rarely do — and agreed not to ask him about acting.
That wasn't easy because our conversation was a day after he won an Emmy for best supporting actor in the HBO miniseries "Empire Falls."
But I learned long ago, you don't go back on your word to Cool Hand Luke.
And he wasn't acting when he shared his passion for racing.
"Anybody who sponsors a car and any driver who gets in a car – whether it's roundy-round, it has fenders, (or) open wheels and ground effects – it's an extraordinary endeavor," he said.
Near the end of our interview a woman picked up an extension at his home and apologized for interrupting before reminding him they had to drive into town from their home in Westport, Conn., to pick up some vitamins.
"Was that your wife?" I asked, hoping it was Joanne Woodward.
"Yes, that was the boss," he said.
What a special moment.
Paul leaves many legacies: father, husband, actor, racer.
None, however, is greater than his humanitarian contributions through his Hole in the Wall Gang camps for children with serious illnesses. More than 100,000 kids have benefited from his generosity and the nearly $250 million he has donated from profits of his
"Newman's Own" food products.
His camps were the impetus for NASCAR star Kyle Petty and his wife, Pattie, to form Victory Junction Gang Camp to honor the memory of their son, Adam, who died in a 2000 crash in Loudon, N.H., while practicing for a NASCAR race.
"He's not just an actor, he's not just a motor sports enthusiast — he's all those things — but (also) he's a tremendous person who has given back," Kyle Petty has said. "That's why Paul Newman is a special person and that's why he's special to us."
And nearly everyone else.
"I've been a very, very lucky fella and I try to give back a little something to the people who are less fortunate than I am," he told me.
The character played by George Kennedy in "Cool Hand Luke," had foresight when he said:
"He was smiling... That's right. You know, that, that Luke smile of his. He had it on his face right to the very end. Hell, if they didn't know it 'fore, they could tell right then that they weren't a-gonna beat him. That old Luke smile. Oh, Luke. He was some boy. Cool Hand Luke. Hell, he's a natural-born world-shaker."
And our world is a much better place because of Paul.
