This book examines the life of the remarkable Paul Newman—an iconic actor, director, race car driver, political activist, businessman, philanthropist, devoted husband, and father. Paul Leonard Newman was a true Renaissance man who is known worldwide for his performances as an actor and director. His career in the entertainment industry stretched over 50 years, as did his marriage to Joanne Woodward—an unusual and notable achievement in Hollywood. Newman was also a talented race car driver, an influential political activist, a savvy businessman, and a passionate philanthropist who created a food company that has donated more than $280 million to charities. But Newman also suffered many defeats throughout his life; he was human, just as we all are. This biography provides a chronological narrative that documents Newman's long life and myriad contributions. Information regarding his early years in Ohio, his service in the U.S. Navy during World War II, his success on the stage and screen, his work with charities and business ventures, and his exploits in auto racing is provided.
NEW YORK TIMES BEST SELLER • The raw, candid, unvarnished memoir of an American icon. The greatest movie star of the past 75 years covers everything: his traumatic childhood, his career, his drinking, his thoughts on Marlon Brando, James Dean, Elizabeth Taylor, John Huston, his greatest roles, acting, his intimate life with Joanne Woodward, his innermost fears and passions and joys. With thoughts/comments throughout from Joanne Woodward, George Roy Hill, Tom Cruise, Elia Kazan and many others. A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR: TIME and Vanity Fair "Newman at his best…with his self-aware persona, storied marriage and generous charitable activities…this rich book somehow imbues his characters’ pain and joy with fresh technicolor." —The Wall Street Journal In 1986, Paul Newman and his closest friend, screenwriter Stewart Stern, began an extraordinary project. Stuart was to compile an oral history, to have Newman’s family and friends and those who worked closely with him, talk about the actor’s life. And then Newman would work with Stewart and give his side of the story. The only stipulation was that anyone who spoke on the record had to be completely honest. That same stipulation applied to Newman himself. The project lasted five years. The result is an extraordinary memoir, culled from thousands of pages of transcripts. The book is insightful, revealing, surprising. Newman’s voice is powerful, sometimes funny, sometimes painful, always meeting that high standard of searing honesty. The additional voices—from childhood friends and Navy buddies, from family members and film and theater collaborators such as Tom Cruise, George Roy Hill, Martin Ritt, and John Huston—that run throughout add richness and color and context to the story Newman is telling. Newman’s often traumatic childhood is brilliantly detailed. He talks about his teenage insecurities, his early failures with women, his rise to stardom, his early rivals (Marlon Brando and James Dean), his first marriage, his drinking, his philanthropy, the death of his son Scott, his strong desire for his daughters to know and understand the truth about their father. Perhaps the most moving material in the book centers around his relationship with Joanne Woodward—their love for each other, his dependence on her, the way she shaped him intellectually, emotionally and sexually. The Extraordinary Life of an Ordinary Man is revelatory and introspective, personal and analytical, loving and tender in some places, always complex and profound.
"In 1954, by then a successful Broadway actor, Newman launched his film career - disastrously - as Basil the slave in The Silver Chalice. Yet before long he would be considered not only a fine actor but one of the sexiest men in films. Eventually determined to control his own career, Newman broke away from the old studio system, which dictated what roles an actor could take, and with astute choices in scripts and directors, he ultimately established a screen presence that has remained both popular and respected. From Cat on a Hot Tin Roof and The Hustler to The Sting and Slap Shot, and on to the The Color of Money, Mr. and Mrs. Bridge, and the recent Nobody's Fool, Paul Newman has demonstrated again and again how versatile and compelling an actor he is." "In films that Newman directed, such as Rachel, Rachel and Harry and Son, which starred Joanne Woodward, his wife of nearly forty years, ordinary people attempt to make sense of their lives. In contrast, this most unordinary man has lived a life of remarkable achievement on the stage and in cinema, has won four national amateur race car titles, devoted himself to political activism, and started a nonprofit food business, Newman's Own, that so far has donated nearly $70 million to worthy causes. Drawing on interviews with Newman and others who have worked with him, Eric Lax has succeeded in bringing out the real man from behind the enduring screen image."--BOOK JACKET.Title Summary field provided by Blackwell North America, Inc. All Rights Reserved
Bestselling author A. E. Hotchner's intimate account of his 53-year friendship with his pal Paul Newman. A. E. Hotchner first met Paul Newman in 1955 when the virtually unknown actor assumed the lead role in Hotchner’s first television play, based on an Ernest Hemingway story. The project elevated both men from relative obscurity to recognition and began a close and trusted friendship that lasted until Newman’s death in 2008. In Paul and Me, Hotchner depicts a complicated, unpredictable, fun-loving, talented man, and takes the reader along on their adventures. The pair traveled extensively, skippered a succession of bizarre boats, confounded the business world, scored triumphs on the stage, and sustained their friendship through good times and bad. Most notably, they started Newman’s Own as a prank and watched it morph into a major enterprise that so far has donated all its $300 million in profit to charities including the Hole in the Wall Camps worldwide, dedicated to helping thousands of children with life-threatening illnesses. Paul and Me, complete with personal photographs, is the story of a freewheeling friendship and a tribute to the acclaimed actor who gave to the world as much as the world gave him.
DIVIn Winning, authors Matt Stone and Preston Lerner present the incredible racing biography of Paul Newman, whose fame as a Hollywood actor largely overshadowed his amazing passion for motorsport./div
“There are three rules for running a business; fortunately, we don’t know any of them.” In 1978, Paul Newman and A. E. Hotchner decided that rather than just distribute Paul’s own salad dressing at Christmas to neighbors, they would offer it to a few local stores. Freewheeling, irreverent entrepreneurs, they conceived of their venture as a great way to poke fun at the mundane method of traditional marketing. Much to their surprise, the dressing was enthusiastically received. What had started as a lark quickly escalated into a full-fledged business, the first company to place all-natural foods in supermarkets. From salad dressing to spaghetti sauce, to popcorn and lemonade, Newman’s Own became a major player in the food business. The company’s profits were originally donated to medical research, education, and the environment, and eventually went to the creation of the eight Hole in the Wall Gang camps for children with serious illnesses. In these pages Newman and Hotchner recount the picaresque saga of their own nonmanagement adventure. In alternating voices, playing off one another in classic “Odd Couple” style, they describe how they systematically disregarded the advice of experts and relied instead on instinct, imagination, and mostly luck. They write about how they hurdled obstacle after obstacle, share their hilarious misadventures, and reveal their offbeat solutions to conventional problems. Even their approach to charity is decidedly different: every year they give away all the company’s profits, empty the coffers, and start over again. The results of this amazing generosity are brought to life in heartwarming stories about the children at their camps. With rare glimpses into their zany style and their compassion for those less fortunate, Newman and Hotchner have written the perfect nonmanagement book, at once playful, informative, and inspirational.
Throughout their 30 years of marriage, Paul and Joanne have grown to be Hollywood superstars, fabulously successful in both their craft and in keeping their intimate lives a secret, even when tragedy put them in the headlines. Readers get a glimpse of the amazing relationship based on love and good business.
One of the last larger-than-life movie stars, Paul Newman will forever be remembered for his rugged cool and rascally charm-and for the bluest eyes this side of Sinatra. Adored by women, admired by men, he racked up unforgettable roles in classic movies like The Hustler and The Sting. This title looks back on the life of this true star.
This book examines the life of the remarkable Paul Newman--an iconic actor, director, race car driver, political activist, businessman, philanthropist, devoted husband, and father. Paul Leonard Newman was a true Renaissance man who is known worldwide for his performances as an actor and director. His career in the entertainment industry stretched over 50 years, as did his marriage to Joanne Woodward--an unusual and notable achievement in Hollywood. Newman was also a talented race car driver, an influential political activist, a savvy businessman, and a passionate philanthropist who created a food company that has donated more than.