Paul Newman, the Oscar Award winning actor, and husband of Joanne Woodward, known for his suave roles in movies such as "Cool Hand Luke" and "The Color of Money" has died from lung cancer.
Paul Newman was 83, and is survived by his wife, five children, two grandsons and his older brother Arthur Newman.
Newman's death occurred Friday evening at his home following a long battle with lung cancer, publicist Jeff Sanderson said. His family and close friends surrounded Newman to the end.
During the course of his career, Paul Newman was nominated for ten Academy Awards, winning one Oscar and two honorary awards, and starred in over fifty motion pictures, including "Exodus," "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid," "The Verdict," "The Sting" and "Absence of Malice", 'Cool Hand Luke", "The Hustler" and "The Color Of Money" to name only a few.
Newman's list of movies is too long to list here, and we invite you to review his esteemed career and list of works provided here: "
Paul Newman Site At IMDB".
In addition to acting, Newman was an activist, a racecar owner and driver, and popcorn entrepreneur. He was a also best friend to fellow actor Robert Redford, who created the "Sundance film Festival".
Newman became a racecar owner and formed a partnership with Carl Haas, starting Newman/Haas Racing in 1983, and joined the CART series. Hiring Mario Andretti as their first driver, the team was an instant success, and throughout the last 26 years, the team - now known as Newman/Haas/Lanigan and part of the IndyCar Series - has won 107 races and eight series championships.
Newman had a soft spot for underdogs in real life, giving over $250 million to charities through his food company and foundation "Newman's Own", and setting up camps for severely ill children through his "Hole In The Wall" camps program.
In May 2007, he told ABC's "Good Morning America" he had given up acting, though he intended to remain active in charity projects saying.
"I'm not able to work anymore as an actor at the level I would want to," he said. "You start to lose your memory, your confidence, your invention. So that's pretty much a closed book for me."
Newman had two daughters, Susan and Stephanie, and a son, Scott, from a previous marriage to Jacqueline Witte. Scott died in 1978 of an accidental overdose of alcohol and Valium. After his only son's death, Newman established the Scott Newman Foundation to finance the production of anti-drug films for children.
Thanks for a great life Mr. Newman. The world will miss you.
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