Sadly, my favorite actor, Paul Newman, passed away on Friday. I'm not really sure why, but I've always been a big, big fan of his. I think it's because in spite of being a movie star for more than forty years, he always seemed to me, anyway, to be grounded, humble and modest. He was married to Joanne Woodward, his second wife, for fifty years. Also, his Newman's Own brand of products, started in 1982, has generated profits of more than 200 million dollars, all of which have gone to charity. He created a string of camps, worldwide - "the Hole in the Wall Gang" - which provide free summer recreation for children with serious illnesses. He was a true philanthropist.
On a more personal note, I guess I've always felt a bit of a connection to him, since from a very early age, people would mistakenly call me "Paul" or joke and ask if I was related to him. My standard reply was that he was my uncle. As proof, I would note that we spelled our last names the same way.
Paul Newman starred in some of my favorite movies - "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid," "Cool Hand Luke" and "The Sting."
Here's a link to a beautifully written obituary in today's New York Times -
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/28/movies/28newman.html?_r=1&scp=2&sq=paul%20newman&st=cse&oref=slogin.
Also, here's a link to a short article that contains remembrances from one of his best friends, A.W. Hotchner -
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/28/movies/28hotchner.html?ref=movies.
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