Top 15 Amazing Facts about Paul Newman

Original studio publicity photo of Paul Newman. Image by Studio – Wikimedia

Top 15 Amazing Facts about Paul Newman

*Originally published by Charity N in August 2022 and Updated by Vanessa R on July 2023 

Paul Leonard Newman was an American Academy Award-winning actor, acclaimed director, and noted philanthropist. He helped define the male lead in motion pictures from the mid-1950s through the 21^st century. He was born on January 26^th, 1925 to Arthur Sigmund Newman Sr., a sporting goods store owner, and Theresa Garth.

He was an iconic figure in Hollywood history. His charm, intelligence, and strength informed a wide variety of roles from underdog boxer Rocky Graziano in Somebody Up There Likes Me (1955) and the damaged Brick in Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1958), to roguish antiheroes like Harper (1966), Cool Hand Luke (1967) and Butch Cassidy in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969).

He earned Oscar nominations for his roles in Absence of Malice (1981) and The Verdict (1982), finally winning for his turn as pool hall hustler Fast Eddie Felson in The Color of Money (1986).

Newman privately battled cancer until succumbing on September 26^th, 2008 leaving behind a legacy as one of the greatest screen icons ever.

1. Newman was a race driver

Paul Newman. Image by ABC Television – Wikimedia

Newman had a love for racing. His love for racing came about when he was preparing for a film, Winning (1969). This lesser-known film ignited this new passion.

He won his first racing victory in Connecticut in 1972. Four years later he won the sports car club of America. In 1977 he became a professional racer.

He won several national championships as a driver in the Sports Car Club of America road racing. His team also carried several cups in open-wheel Indy Car racing. In 1995 he was part of the team that won the Rolex 24 a Daytona. This made him the oldest driver to win the 24-hour race.

2. He was philanthropic

Paul Newman, Joanne Woodward, Martha Graham – standing together, talking. Image by Unknown author- Wikimedia

He was a co-founder of Newman’s Own. This is a food company that was started by making bottles of dressing to gift out during Christmas.

He then had the idea to sell the dressing leftovers to stores. They went ahead with the idea. After taxes, all profits and royalties go to charity. As of May 2021, the foundation had donated up to $570 million.

He founded the Serious Fun Children’s Network. This foundation is a global family of summer camps for children with serious illnesses. It has served over 1.3 million children and their families since its inception. These camps are known as Hole in the Wall Camps. It seeks to give the children a memorable holiday. There are now 8 camps all over the US.

Founded Scott Newman Centre. It was founded after his only son died after an accidental overdose of alcohol and prescription drugs. The organization seeks to discourage drug abuse through educational programs.

3. Newman was a voice actor

Doc Hudson Hornet from the movie cars. Image by Greg Gjerdingen from Willmar, USA – Wikimedia

His love of race cars saw him included in the film Cars. His role is Doc. Hudson is a retired race car. This was his final nondocumentary role. When Cars 3 came up 9 years after his death, his voice was used in it.

He came back from retirement to record a narration for the 2007 documentary Dale. This documentary is about the life of NASCAR driver Dale Earnhardt.

In 2008 he recorded another documentary The Meerkats. This marked his last film role.

4. His colour-blindness prevented his dream of becoming a pilot!

Actor Paul Newman. Image by MGM – Wikimedia

Colour blindness can cause one not to distinguish certain colors like blue red and sometimes green. He had enrolled at Yale University in the Navy V-12 Pilot training program. This is a profession where one’s sight needs accuracy. Anything short of that would be problematic. He dropped out when they discovered he was color blind.

He however went to boot camp and trained as a radioman and rear gunner. He qualified in torpedo bombers and was sent out to Hawaii.

His blue eyes that would later become much sought after in the film industry betrayed his dream of becoming a pilot.

5. Newman frequently enjoyed faking his death

Paul Newman. Image by Warner Bros. – Wikimedia

Newman was a man who had a mischievous streak in him. He loved pranks and playing practical jokes with his friends.

George Roy Hill was a frequent target of Newman’s pranks. Hill was a director. One time Newman cut Hill’s desk and car in half during filming. In the middle of another film, he crawled behind the wheel of a wrecked car. He pretended he had been in an accident. Hill was horrified.

Another victim of Newman’s pranks was director Otto Preminger. Newman threw a dummy off a building knowing Preminger would think it was him. Preminger collapsed in shock.

6. He was on President Nixon’s enemies list

Paul Newman. Image by TriviaKing / Original uploader was TriviaKing at en.wikipedia – Wikimedia commons

President Richard Nixon liked to keep tabs on people who opposed his politics. A list was compiled which was called the Enemies List. This list was composed of all the people Nixon was wary of.

This list included Newman. He was very vocal about the Vietnam War. He also supported a presidential candidate, Hubert Humphrey, who was Nixon’s rival. When Nixon gathered his list in 1971, Newman got a copy and had it framed.

Newman and Nixon had crossed paths one time. Both men shared use of a Jaguar on loan from an automobile dealer. Newman learned that Nixon was going to drive the car. His humorous side saw him leave a note telling Nixon should find no trouble operating a car with a tricky clutch.

7. An ear infection saved his life

While in the navy, his post was as a radioman gunner. His unit was assigned to Bunker Hill, an aircraft carrier. The pilot of his aircraft had a fluke ear infection. Newman and the rest of the crew were grounded.

The rest of the squad flew to Bunker Hill. Days later, a kamikaze attack on the vessel killed several hundred crewmen and airmen. These included members of his unit.

It was an astonishing piece of fortune, though one not uncommon to the generation of men who fought in the war.

8. Newman originally wanted to be a football player

Paul Newman. Image by 20th Century Fox – Wikimedia

His mother loved the theatre. It must have eventually rubbed up on him. However, he originally had his sights set on a sports career. He played football in high school and college before enlisting in the U.S. Navy Air Corps.

He returned home in 1946 and went to attend Kenyon College, Ohio on a football scholarship. After getting arrested for fighting, he got kicked off the team.

He decided to shift his major to theatre. He eventually wound up in summer stock and then at the Yale School of Drama.  He later headed off to be a full-time actor in New York.

9. He did not like his first film

Paul Newman’s star in Mexico. Image by Thelmadatter – Wikimedia

His first film was the Silver Chalice. It is a 1954 American historical epic drama film directed and produced by Victor Saville. It is based on Thomas B. Costain’s 1952 novel of the same name.

He was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for his performance. He was however not proud of his performance. When the film was broadcast on television, he took out an advertisement in a Hollywood trade paper apologizing for his performance. This did not work, and the broadcast received unusually high ratings.

He requested people not to watch the film. He called it the worst motion picture produced during the 1950s. He once screened it for guests at his home, handing out pots, wooden spoons, and whistles and encouraging them to offer noisy critiques.

10. Newman was married for 50 years

Publicity portrait of the movie The Long, Hot Summer, depicting Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward. Image by 20th Century Fox – Wikimedia

Newman was married twice. His first marriage was to Jackie Witte. They had a son, Scott, and two daughters.

Newman met actress Joanne Woodward during the production of Picnic on Broadway. It was Newman’s debut and Woodward was an understudy. He divorced Witte to marry Woodward.  They bought a home and started a family in Westport, Connecticut. They were one of the first Hollywood movie star couples to choose to raise their families outside California.

He was well known for his devotion to his wife and family. They remained married for 50 years until his death in 2008. His 50-year marriage is a rarity among Hollywood couples for its duration and lack of drama.

11. Newman turns down a role in Jaws

Paramount Pictures, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Once an actor has proven themselves in Hollywood, many film producers and directors start offering roles to people without even having them attend an audition. The role of Quincy in the well-known film Jaws was offered to Newman. According to What Tha Fact, Newman declined the part, and Robert Shaw eventually received it as a result.

Nonetheless, Jaws would have been quite a different film if Paul Newman had instead agreed to play the lead role in Quincy. Newman never regretted declining the part despite Jaws becoming a major blockbuster.

12. He didn’t like dressing up

Celebrities dress up for a number of different reasons in Hollywood. There are many red carpets for award ceremonies, charity events, movie premieres, and much more. Yet, Paul Newman was among the famous people who hated dressing up. Even worse, according to PPcorn, on his 75th birthday, he really threw away his suit because he was “done with formality.”

Just because Newman always looked so good in a tux or suit, it’s difficult to think that he hated dressing up. 

13. Paul Newman was mistaken for Marlon Brando

Trailer screenshot, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

When people mistake them for another celebrity, some famous people become very irritated. When he was just starting out in his career, Paul Newman was really confused about Marlon Brando. Newman never expressed annoyance that people mistakenly believed he was Marlon Brando.

Instead, he would follow the natural course of events, and as a result, he ended up signing roughly 500 signatures as Marlon Brando. Marlon Brando is best known for his roles in The Godfather and Last Tango in Paris, so we wouldn’t be offended if someone mistakenly assumed we were him either.

14. He was there at the famous “March on Washington” speech by Martin Luther King Jr

People’s rights were highly important to Paul Newman. Norman not only advocated for rights but also showed his support by showing up at movement activities. The most well-known event that Newman went to was the 1963 Martin Luther King Jr. March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom in Washington, D.C. King delivered his famous “I Have a Dream” speech at this point. Because of Newman and others, equality was allowed to grow and become the norm, and his support for equal rights reveals what he values and believes in.

15. He created an organization that has donated $460 million to charities

When Paul Newman and his colleague, the writer A. E. Hotchner, founded Newman’s Own, they determined right away that it would be a charitable organisation. Furthermore, according to Mental Floss, Newman’s Own has donated $460 million to charity worldwide since its 1982 introduction, giving away 100% of its income. Newman’s Own has undoubtedly had a major influence on the world by giving that much money.