Tributes have poured in all weekend for Paul Newman, who died at his farmhouse home near Westport, Connecticut, on Friday [September 26] following a long fight against cancer. He was 83.
'There is a point where feelings go beyond words,' Robert Redford, a longtime friend who famously starred alongside Newman in Butch Cassidy And The Sundance Kid and The Sting, said. 'I have lost a real friend. My life - and this country - is better for his being in it.'
Jeff Berg, the chairman and CEO of Newman's agency ICM, said the Oscar winning actor's career 'brilliantly co-existed with a lifetime commitment to social justice and philanthropy.' Berg continued: 'He elevated the role of concerned citizen from civil rights and nuclear disarmament to the Hole-in-the-Wall-Camps and many other benefactors of Newman's Own Foundation.
'Our sympathy goes to Joanne Woodward, his wife of 50 years and his five daughters, two grandchildren and brother. Paul will be remembered by his wide circle of friends for his loyalty, his sly humour, and his unbelievable modesty.'
Motion Picture Association Of America chairman and CEO Dan Glickman said: 'The art of film-making and a world in great need of big hearts with bold ambitions is mourning the loss of a legend today. Paul Newman soared to fame with a fondness for portraying scamps, louts and ne'er-do-wells, yet he will be remembered as an artist, gentleman and humanitarian whose extraordinary career was rivalled in every respect by an exemplary life.'
Newman was born in Cleveland, Ohio, on January 26, 1925 and showed an early interest in theatre. Following a stint in the Navy that saw him serve as a radioman/gunner on a torpedo plane in the Pacific during the second world war he returned to Ohio to pursue an economics degree and acted in numerous university plays. He moved to Wisconsin where he met and married his first wife Jackie Witte, with whom he had three children: Susan, Stephanie and Scott, who later died in his twenties.
Newman attended the Yale Drama School and launched a career in television and appeared on Broadway, where he met his future wife Joanne Woodward, whom he married in 1958. His first film role was in The Silver Chalice and he rose to fame with his portrayal of boxer Rocky Graziano in 1956's Somebody Up There Likes Me.
His credits included The Long Hot Summer, for which he was named best actor at Cannes, The Hustler, Hud, Cool Hand Luke, The Left Handed Gun, Sweet Bird Of Youth, The Verdict and Nobody's Fool. He earned ten Oscar nominations and won the Academy Award in 1987 for The Colour Of Money. His last role was as the voice of Doc Hudson in Pixar's 2006 release Cars.
Outside of acting Newman was an accomplished racing driver and finished second in the 1975 Le Mans 24-hour race. His philanthropic pursuits included the launch in 1982 of the Newman's Own all-natural brand, which to date has donated more than $250m to worldwide charities through the Newman's Own Foundation. He also established the Hole-In-The-Wall Camps for children with life-threatening health conditions. He received the Academy Of Motion Picture Arts And Sciences' Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award in 1994.
Newman is survived by his wife Joanne Woodward; his five children Susan, Stephanie, Nell, Melissa (Lissy) and Clea; two grandchildren Peter and Henry Elkind; sons-in-law Raphe, Kurt and Gary; and his brother Arthur Newman.
'There is a point where feelings go beyond words,' Robert Redford, a longtime friend who famously starred alongside Newman in Butch Cassidy And The Sundance Kid and The Sting, said. 'I have lost a real friend. My life - and this country - is better for his being in it.'
Jeff Berg, the chairman and CEO of Newman's agency ICM, said the Oscar winning actor's career 'brilliantly co-existed with a lifetime commitment to social justice and philanthropy.' Berg continued: 'He elevated the role of concerned citizen from civil rights and nuclear disarmament to the Hole-in-the-Wall-Camps and many other benefactors of Newman's Own Foundation.
'Our sympathy goes to Joanne Woodward, his wife of 50 years and his five daughters, two grandchildren and brother. Paul will be remembered by his wide circle of friends for his loyalty, his sly humour, and his unbelievable modesty.'
Motion Picture Association Of America chairman and CEO Dan Glickman said: 'The art of film-making and a world in great need of big hearts with bold ambitions is mourning the loss of a legend today. Paul Newman soared to fame with a fondness for portraying scamps, louts and ne'er-do-wells, yet he will be remembered as an artist, gentleman and humanitarian whose extraordinary career was rivalled in every respect by an exemplary life.'
Newman was born in Cleveland, Ohio, on January 26, 1925 and showed an early interest in theatre. Following a stint in the Navy that saw him serve as a radioman/gunner on a torpedo plane in the Pacific during the second world war he returned to Ohio to pursue an economics degree and acted in numerous university plays. He moved to Wisconsin where he met and married his first wife Jackie Witte, with whom he had three children: Susan, Stephanie and Scott, who later died in his twenties.
Newman attended the Yale Drama School and launched a career in television and appeared on Broadway, where he met his future wife Joanne Woodward, whom he married in 1958. His first film role was in The Silver Chalice and he rose to fame with his portrayal of boxer Rocky Graziano in 1956's Somebody Up There Likes Me.
His credits included The Long Hot Summer, for which he was named best actor at Cannes, The Hustler, Hud, Cool Hand Luke, The Left Handed Gun, Sweet Bird Of Youth, The Verdict and Nobody's Fool. He earned ten Oscar nominations and won the Academy Award in 1987 for The Colour Of Money. His last role was as the voice of Doc Hudson in Pixar's 2006 release Cars.
Outside of acting Newman was an accomplished racing driver and finished second in the 1975 Le Mans 24-hour race. His philanthropic pursuits included the launch in 1982 of the Newman's Own all-natural brand, which to date has donated more than $250m to worldwide charities through the Newman's Own Foundation. He also established the Hole-In-The-Wall Camps for children with life-threatening health conditions. He received the Academy Of Motion Picture Arts And Sciences' Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award in 1994.
Newman is survived by his wife Joanne Woodward; his five children Susan, Stephanie, Nell, Melissa (Lissy) and Clea; two grandchildren Peter and Henry Elkind; sons-in-law Raphe, Kurt and Gary; and his brother Arthur Newman.
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