It was a sad day for film students in the AMS faculty on Friday, as news broke that Hollywood legend Paul Newman had lost his battle with cancer aged 83.Perhaps best known for his roles in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid and The Sting, Newman starred in over 60 films spanning across six decades. Younger fans will no doubt remember him for his part in Road to Perdition, as well as the voice of Doc Hudson in the latest Pixar release, Cars.
Despite his great successes onscreen, deservedly winning the Best Actor Oscar in 1987 for his portrayal of Fast Eddie in The Color Of Money (a role he first immortalised in The Hustler, below), Newman lived an undeniably private life. He constantly guarded his wife, Joanne Woodward, to whom he had been married fifty years, and his five children, from the harsh eye of the public.
Newman did, however, step into the limelight when he realized that his fame could help him to help others, and thus, he will also be greatly remembered for the charity work which his life came to revolve around. From setting up the Hole in The Wall Association, a worldwide network of summer camps for terminally ill children, to creating Newman's Own, a non-profit food range, Newman has donated both his time and money to helping out those who need it most.
He was certainly not a typical celebrity by modern standards. In an industry now witnessing the breakdown of marriages, careers, and even the stars themselves almost everyday, Newman will undeniably be remembered for his successful endurance in every aspect of his life.
There is little that can be said to comfort all those he has affected over the years, and his co-star from Road to Perdition, Daniel Craig, admits that Hollywood life will no longer be the same: “He was a beautiful man....I think an era just ended.”
1 comment:
it's hard not to admire Paul Newman for putting his money to work in such productive ways... his Newman's Own line is high quality stuff and the proceeds go to good causes too, it's a win-win
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