Paul Newman---RIP

Paul Newman died. Gulp. But he was 83, so it isn't a tragedy. I feel badly for his wife Joann Woodward; they were married for 50 years. That's just the first thing about him I admired: staying married (and apparently happily) for all that time to the same woman. It is a rare thing among famous Hollywood guys to pull that off.

But there were lots of things about him and his career to admire. I like that he devoted so much time and fortune to good works. He wasn't flashy about it, either. And he was a real human in that he did crazy things like his passion for car racing. Some famous people might have avoided such a risky hobby, but he loved it and so he went out there and did it.

I was junior in high school when Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid came out. In our town, the theater (or showhouse, as it was called) was only open Th Fr Sa. They showed the movie twice, with previews and cartoons in between. Usually, we were late, and so we stayed for the beginning of the second movie to see what we'd missed. But, I could drive in 1969, so my sister and I were on time for the first show. We didn't even budge, and sat all the way through the second show, and on Saturday we came back and watched both of them again. Wow. It was something completely different from what we'd been accustomed to in a Western, and it grabbed me. I went out and bought the album, then the piano music. I've watched the movie a hundred times since, and can quote most of the dialogue. Between the relatively new guy playing Sundance (Robert Redford) and the stunning Mr. Newman, I was in love. It creeped me out when I found out that Newman and MY DAD were only two years apart in age---eeww. My dad...But, it didn't keep me from maintaining the crush.

There were lots of Newman movies that were fantastic, Cool Hand Luke, The Color of Money, The Verdict, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, Hud. They are all iconic, and he was terrific in them all. Oh, yeah: The Sting! But when you're 16 and you fall in love...there's something about that big teenage movie crush...sorry to see him go. Glad he was here.