Little fact lovers, let me introduce you to Paul Leonard Newman!
He was an American film director, actor, race car driver, entrepreneur, and also philanthropist! đ˛!
He even received various prestigious awards, including three Golden Globes and a BAFTA Award!
So, let us discuss some amazing facts about the life and achievements of this famous American!
Interesting Paul Newman Facts
Paul Newman was born in Cleveland Heights, Ohio
Hey, little fact-explorers, have you known this amazing fact about Paul Newman?
This famous person took birth đśon January 26, 1925, in Cleveland Heights, Ohio!
He was the second son of Arthur Sigmund Newman, Sr., and Theresa Garth!
Paulâs dad ran a sporting goods store, and he was Jewish!
Paulâs mom was a practitioner of Christian Science. While raising Paul and his elder brother, she worked in her husbandâs store!
Paul Newman was a voice actor
Paul Newmanâs love of race cars saw him included in the well-known film Cars!
His role is Doc. Hudson, who is a retired race carđ! This was Newmanâs final nondocumentary role.
When, nine years after Paulâs death, Cars 3 came up, his voice was used in it!
He came back from retirement to record a narration for his documentary Dale in the year 2007!
This documentary is actually about the life of Dale Earnhardt, a NASCAR driver!
In the year 2008, he even recorded another documentary called The Meerkats, which is famous as his last film role!
Newman was a race driver
Newman had a love for racing! His love for racing came into existence when he was preparing for a movie called Winning (1969).
Though this film was not-so-famous, it still ignited his new passion for Paul!
Later, Paul won his first victory in racing in 1972 in Connecticut! Four years later, he even won the sports club of America.
Later in 1977, Paul became a professional car racer! đ˛
He won multiple national championships as a driver in the Sports Car Club of America road racing!
Paul Newman: The oldest driver to win the 24-hour race
After becoming a professional car racer in the year 1995, Paul was part of the amazing team that won the Rolex 24 a Daytona.
This made Paul the oldest driver who won the 24-hour race. Really impressive, isnât it?
Newman thought his first film was the worst movie
After stints on television and also on stage, including roles in Playhouse 90, Paul was offered the starring role in 1954âs The Silver Chalice!
It was a movie about a Greek slave who crafts the cup which was used during the Last Supper!
While the weekly salary of $1000 was welcome, the film was not.
Paul later asked his friends to sit through it while drubbing it as the worst movie ever made!
However, two years later, he had better luck when he played boxerđĽ Rocky Graziano in the movie Somebody Up There Likes Me (1956).
Newman originally wanted to be a football player
Newman was raised in Shaker Heights, Ohio. His father was a sporting goods store owner! Thus, Paul originally had his sights set on making a bright career in sports!
In high school and college, he played football prior to enlisting in the U.S. Army Navy Corpsđą.
There, he served as a radio operator!
In 1946, when Paul returned home, he attended Kenyon College in Gambier, Ohio, on a footballâ˝ scholarship!
However, later getting arrested and being kicked out of the team shifted his major to the theater!
Later, he wound up in summer stock and then at the Yale School of Drama!
Newman once offered part of his salary to a co-star
I am really amazed to explore this wonderful fact about Paul Newman! What about you, my friends?
While making the film Twilight in 1998, with Susan Sarandon and Gene Hackman, Paul was surprised to find out that both he and Hackman were making more money than Sarandon!
It happened despite all three receiving equal billing!
Later, in the year 2018, Sarandon told the BBC that Newman then offered to give up a portion of his own salary to make things equitable! Isnât it amazing??
Newman was sometimes mistaken for Marlon Brando
Little friends, did you know this fun fact about Newman?
Early in their respective careers, Newman was regularly approached by people! They approached him as they thought him to be Marlon Brando!
Instead of correcting them, he would oblige their request for an autograph đď¸ by signing, âBest Wishes, Marlon Brando.â
Isnât it funny??
Paul Newman was color-blind
Color blindness may cause an individual not to distinguish certain colors, such as red, blue, or even sometimes green!
Newman had enrolled at Yale University in the Navy V-12 Pilotđ§ââď¸ training program.
This is a specific profession where oneâs sight requires accuracy. Otherwise, it might become quite problematic!
So, Newman had to drop out when they found out that he was color blind!
However, Paul went to boot camp and even trained as a radioman and rear gunner!
He was even qualified in torpedo bombers and was sent out to Hawaii!
An ear infection saved Paulâs life
Have you heard this amazing fact about Newman?
While in the Navy, Newmanâs post was as a radioman gunner. His unit was assigned to an aircraft carrier, Bunker Hill!
The aircraftâs pilot had a fluke ear infection! Paul and the rest of the crew were grounded!
The rest of the crew went to Bunker Hill.
Some days later, a kamikaze attack on the vessel took the lives of several hundred airmen and crewmen, including some members of his unit!
It was definitely, a remarkable fortune, though it is not uncommon for the generation of men who fought in the war!
Newman on the enemies list of President Nixon
President Nixon kept tabs on people who opposed his politics!
A list was compiled called the Enemies List, which included all of the people Nixon was wary of!
This list included Newman, who even supported Hubert Humphrey, a presidential candidate, and Nixonâs rival!
In 1971, when Nixon gathered his list, Newman got a copy!
These two had crossed paths one time as both shared use of a Jaguar on loan from a dealer of automobile!
When Newman learned that Nixon was driving the car, he left a note saying Nixon should find no trouble operating a car with a tricky clutch đ!!
Paul Newman enjoyed faking his own death
Newman had a mischievous streak that often manifested in practical jokes on his directors!
George Roy Hill, the director of Newmanâs movies The Sting (1973) and Slap Shot (1977), was a frequent target!
Newman cut Hillâs car and desk in half during the filming of the films!
While making Slap Shot, Paul even crawled behind the wheel of a wrecked car and even pretended that he had been in an accident, making Hill seriously scared!
During the making of Exodus (1960), Paul pranked director Otto Preminger by tossing a dummy off a building, and Preminger collapsed in shock! đľ!
Paul Newman was a philanthropist
Newman was the co-founder of Newmanâs Own, a food company that was started by making bottles of dressing to gift out!
Then he had the idea to sell the leftovers of dressing to stores! They implemented the idea, and after taxes, all royalties and profits go to charity!
On May 2021, the foundation even donated about $570 million!
Newman even founded the Serious Fun Childrenâs Network, which is a global family of childrenâs summer camps for serious ailments!
Since its inception, it has served over 1.3 million children and their families!
These camps are called Hole in the Wall Camps!
Paul Newman: Founder of Scott Newman Centre
Newmanâs son Scott, who appeared in several movies, died in November 1978 due to an accidental overdose of prescription drugs and alcoholđˇ!
Later Newman founded Scott Newman Center after the death of his only son, Scott!
This organization seeks to discourage drug abuse through different kinds of educational programs!
Meet Newmanâs first wife
Newmanâs first marriage was to Jackie from 1949 to 1958.
According to a profile in Rocks Off, Witte was an aspiring actor who met Paul during summer stage productions together!
Together they had a son and two daughters, and they were Scott, Susan, and Stephanie.
Susan appeared in Slap Shot with her father!
Newman was married for 50 years
I am really impressed to explore this secret about Newman! Want to know?
In 1953, Newman met actress Joanne Woodward! It was during the production of Picnic on Broadway, which was Newmanâs debut, and Woodward was an understudy!
So, he divorced Witte and married đ°ââď¸Woodward! They bought a home and started living in Westport, Connecticut!
Newman is quite famous for his devotion to his family and wife! They remained married for almost fifty years till his death!
This 50-year marriage is a rare thing among Hollywood couples for its lack of drama and even duration!
Newman was nominated for the Oscars
Did you know this wonderful fact about Newman?
Paul Newman was nominated at the Oscars eight times for Best Actor! Interesting, isnât it?
He also got a nomination for Best Supporting Actor once, for the movie Road to Perdition (2003).
His first Best Actor Oscar nomination was for Cat on a Hot Tin Roof in 1959.
Paul Newman got nomination for many Golden Globes
This amazing actor was nominated for no less than ten Golden Globes for his acting!
All but two were the same, for which he even got his Oscar nominations. Those are Sweet Bird of Youth (1962) and Hemingwayâs Adventures of a Young Man (1962).
Also, Newman won a Golden GlobeđĽ in 1968 for Best Director for Rachel, Rachel.
Another interesting fact that will surely surprise you is that Paul Newman was nominated for two Grammys!
Martha Stewart helped put Newmanâs salad dressing on the map
Newman enjoyed mixing vinegar and oil blend and even offered it to friends and family around holidays!
With friend Hotchner, Paul bottled a batch and dispensed it over the Christmas season in 1980!
Martha Stewart, a then caterer, was residing in Newmanâs neighborhood at the time and even reported a blind taste test was in favor of the dressingđĽ!
Newman even placed his face on the bottle, and call it Newmanâs Own!
Those foods and dressings generated profits that Newman donated to charity!
Illness and death of Paul Newman
In June 2008, it was reported in the press that Paul had been diagnosed with lung cancer and was getting treated at the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York City!
Later, people came to know that Newman had been afflicted with this disease around 18 months earlier!
The actor was a heavy smoker until he quit in 1986!
On the morning of September 26, 2008, Newman died â°ď¸at his home in Westport, Connecticut.
He was cremated after a private funeral service!
Summing up
So, little fact-lovers, how are you feeling after learning so many interestingđ˛ and new facts about Paul Newman?
We have tried to collect as much information about him as possible⌠and we are sure that you are satisfied!
Looking forward to receiving your feedback!
I’m a former teacher (and mother of Two Childs) with a background in child development. Here to help you with play-based learning activities for kids. ( Check my  Next startup Cledemy.Com)
