GOOD.is
GOOD is a collaboration of individuals, businesses, and nonprofits pushing the world forward. Get involved.
  • Home
  • |
  • Columns ▶
    • BoingBoing on GOOD
    • Joe Ippolito on Business
    • Carol Coletta on Cities
    • Alissa Walker on Design
    • Ben Jervey on the Environment
    • Peter Smith on Food
    • Truman National Security Project on Foreign Policy
    • Picture Show
    • Mark Peters on Language
    • Anne Trubek on Literature
    • See All Columns
  • |
  • Video
  • |
  • Infographics
  • |
  • Community
  • |
  • Events
  • Follow GOOD:
  • twitter
  • flickr
  • facebook
  • youtube
  • rss feed
  • Business
  • |
  • Cities
  • |
  • Culture
  • |
  • Design
  • |
  • Education
  • |
  • Environment
  • |
  • Food
  • |
  • Health
  • |
  • Media
  • |
  • People
  • |
  • Politics
  • |
  • Technology
  • |
  • Transportation
  • 1

Tribute to the Creative Life of Paul Newman

  • Posted by: BarbaraBowen
  • on October 17, 2008 at 10:18 pm
September brought a sad, sweet farewell to Paul Newman, who died in September at the age of 83.  Amidst the media gloom and campaign rancor of the season, a glance at his life makes for refreshing fare.  
What film lover could forget Newman’s understated blue-eyed “Cool Hand Luke,” his tortured soul as Brick in “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof,” his romantic charm as the Sundance Kid.  Over the years, his characters helped us to articulate the spirit of our times. He became like a friend, journeying alongside us through the decades. His colleagues have long commented on his lack of outsized ego, his generosity on stage, and his abiding Ohio-born, down-to-earth perspective.
But he left not only fine work as an actor, or warmth of personal character. He left us an example, by his later work in philanthropy.  
It all started the Christmas of 1980, when he and his Westport neighbor, A.E. Hotchner, filled old wine bottles with Paul’s homemade salad dressing as gifts to friends. They wound up lining the shelves of a local gourmet shop, as a joke.  But sobriety arrived when the dressing sold out, detailed years later in a book the two wrote  – “Shameless Exploitation in Pursuit of the Common Good.”  In a nutshell, by 2008, Newman’s Own Foundation had given more than 250 million dollars to charities around the world. His Hole in the Wall Camps bring, at no charge, joyful experiences to seriously ill children. He also helped found the Committee Encouraging Corporate Philanthropy.
Strange how we can grow to love a public figure whom we’ve never met. His passing, for many Americans, feels akin to losing a family member.  One whose roles are still very much alive:
loving family man and friend, gifted actor, progressive activist, and philanthropist with a sense of humor. To sum it up, a class act.
  • Filed under: Blog : The Community Board
  • Categories: Business , Design
  • Tags: activist , actor , artist , creative contribution , creativity , philanthropist , philanthropy , tribute to paul newman
  • Share
  • Discuss
  • Mark it good!
  • Facebook
  •   Twitter
  • Digg
  • Stumble
  • del.icio.us
  • Reddit
Direct link to this post:
Send as an Email:
Your email address:
Recipient's email address:
Message:

X
Login or Sign up to discuss this article

Related Content

  • Blog : GOOD Blog

    Paul Newman Inspired a Generation of Entrepreneurs

    The accidental entrepreneur blazed the trail for Ben and Jerry's, Stonyfield Farms, and other socially responsible businesses. I think most of the country knows him as Fast Eddie Felson or Cool Hand Luke. My kids think of him as an aging Hudson Hornet, pining away his days in the mythical Radiator Springs. But in my mind, I regard Paul Newman as perhaps the most successful social entrepreneur of our time and a role model who seeded a revolution.
    Read & Discuss

  • Blog : GOOD Blog

    Gift Subscriptions

    Christmas is only a week away. Hannukah is in full swing. Kwanzaa is coming up soon. What better way ...
    Read & Discuss

  • Blog : The Community Board

    Worldwide Gifting Ideas And Its Advantages

    Some people prefer to give gifts rather than receiving but there are also those who simply love to receive gifts. Giving ...
    Read & Discuss

  • Blog : GOOD Blog

    You'll Be Missed, Paul Newman

    Paul Newman died of cancer yesterday at age 83. He was an icon of American film, ...
    Read & Discuss

  • General : The Community Board

    Thoughtful gifts that give back!

    Giftback.com was created to be a different kind of gift company. Ofcourse any company that is in the industry ...
    Read & Discuss

Recent Readers

  • dejesusjessica
  • rob273b
  • morganclendaniel
See all

This Week In Blogs

  • Most Discussed
  • Most GOODMarked
  1. How Thanksgiving Got Its Turkey
  2. Is Newsweek’s Sarah Palin Cover Sexist?
  3. Transparency: The Effects of Bike Commuting on Obesity
  4. Prison and College: California’s Ridiculous Priorities
  5. Are You Raising a Furkid?
  6. The GOOD 100: Cowpooling
  7. Sad or Cute: Hermit Crab Makes Home in Broken Bottle
  8. Tips on How to Reduce Food Packaging Waste
  9. The Charter for Compassion
  10. New School: How the Web Liberalized Liberal Arts Education
  1. New School: How the Web Liberalized Liberal Arts Education
  2. The Charter for Compassion
  3. The GOOD Guide to COP15: The Fire this Time: Copenhagen and the War for the Future
  4. Singularity 101: What Is the Singularity?
  5. Picture Show: Breach
  6. Prison and College: California’s Ridiculous Priorities
  7. Charging Forward with Mission Motor’s Electric Superbike
  8. Intermission: Eye-popping 3D Building Projections
  9. Tips on How to Reduce Food Packaging Waste
  10. The Changing Music Business: The Chart

GOOD Magazine
About
|
Join
|
Sign In

Categories

  • Business
  • Cities
  • Culture
  • Design
  • Education
  • Environment
  • Food
  • Health
  • Media
  • People
  • Politics
  • Technology
  • Transportation

Special Features

  • Blogs
  • Events
  • Infographics
  • Look
  • Picture Show
  • Q&A
  • Video

Community

  • Community Board
  • Member directory
  • Join the Community

Social

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • YouTube
  • Flickr

Magazine

  • Current issue
  • Back issues
  • Subscribe
  • Gift a gift
  • Renew/Service

GOOD

  • What is GOOD?
  • Make GOOD better
© GOOD Worldwide LLC. - all rights reserved
  • Company details
  • Contact
  • Advertise
  • Careers
  • RSS
  • Privacy
  • Terms
  • Powered by Verkata