on imdb it lists his height as 5’8 or something to that effect, but my dad says it’s more like 5’1. who’s right?
I met him a couple of years ago and he’s definitely taller than 5’1". I would actually agree with the 5’8" number.
5’8" is short for a man. 5’1" is extremely short. I used to have a girlfriend who was 4’11" and she was TINY!!
5’8" sounds the most likely.
This photo shows him 2-3 inches shorter than Robert Redford. Since Redford is exactly my height (I stood next to him once), and I’m 5’ 9", that makes Newman about 5’6."
I was within a couple feet of him at a race in Watkins Glen in the early 70s. He was a couple inches shorter than me (I’m 5’-8" - or I was back then. Gravity has not been kind.), so I’d agree with the 5’-6" estimation. He’s probably at least an inch shorter than that now, though, since you shrink as you age.
While Reality Chuck’s logic is sound I have to disagree with the conclusion. Mr. Newman was a client at a business I worked for in the early 90’s. I am 5’6" and he was more than a couple of inches taller than I am - though not much more.
Or maybe I was so dazzled by his charming manner and amazingly blue eyes that he just seemed taller. - just re-read singular1’s post.
RealityChuck’s picture does make it seem like Newman is a few inches shorter than Redford, but by the way they’re standing, you can’t tell for sure. Newman looks like he’s slouching a bit, and the way he’s holding his hand suggests that he’s lowered his head, too.
They can and do do stuff in movies to make an actor seem taller than he really is, but without fancy modern special effects, they wouldn’t be able to make a 5’1" guy look average height. Especially over the course of the many movies that Newman has made.
I would think that the height in the bio is the same as the one he gave out several decades ago and does not necessarily match his current condition.
Although I’m 5’7" today, I know for a fact I won’t be in 30 years. I don’t really know when (if ever) I’ll get out of the habit of automatically answering that I’m 5’7" when asked.
It really freaked me out the first time I noticed that my 80 year old Dad, who used to be 5"11", is now shorter than me. He has osteoporosis and has fractured a couple of vertebrae, which does not help in maintaining height.
It’s probably worth pointing out here that people’s perception of someone elses height is influenced by the respect that you have for that person. Someone that you look up to emotionally will seem a little taller than they really are.
I’m 5’1" and Paul Newman is definitely taller than I am. I only saw him across a racetrack, but he was standing next to a bunch of “normal” sized men and he was not significantly shorter than most of them. When I stand next to a bunch of normal sized men, I look like a 10-year-old.
Having stood with Paul Newman several times in Westport, CT, and one particular time behind him in line in the auto parts department of a car dealer, I can validate he was, in his 40s, no taller than 5’ 8” with shoes on. At 6’ 1”, I could see across the top of his head.
That said, he deserves to be perceived as taller. He was a great man, and not just a terrific actor.
Agreed with the second part, but not the first. The Lord of the Rings made the Hobbits look tiny using mostly forced perspective tricks. While those are modern films, forced perspective has been in use for nearly a century (millennia, if you count architecture). A hypothetical 5’1" Newman could easily have been made to look average height.
That said, it wouldn’t be very feasible to make up that difference over so many films. A few inches, certainly–Tom Cruise is made to look taller than he is–but more than that requires more involved camera tricks.
Author Jonathan Carroll’s Carried by Paul Newman wherein he recounts his childhood meeting with Newman. No height references though.
I’m 5’9, which is nothing to brag about in terms of height. Actors that you wouldn’t think I am taller than:
Tom Cruise - 5’7 or 5’8
Josh Hutcherson - 5’5 or so
James McAvoy - 5’7
Danny Trejo - 5’6
Mark Wahlberg - 5’8
I’m sure there are more, but I think those guys are perceived as taller. Danny Trejo was surprising.
I saw Paul Newman in person at a Detroit Grand Prix race and 5’ 8” sounds about right.
Joe Pesci has a listed height of 5’4" and I suspect that’s charitable. Newman is clearly close to 5’8" than 5’1".
Allan Ladd was a Hollywood punchline at 5’6”
That’s the same height as Napoleon, while Frederick the Great was only 5’2”. Peter the Great was 6’8”, but still shorter than his 6’9” adversary Charles XII of Sweden.
I just want to thank everyone for helping me not worry about my height. Hey, taller than Cruise and Trejo? I’ll take it!
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I’m glad you’ve found a hobby.
(Oh, no, not fixing cars. I don’t believe for a minute that you needed any auto parts.)
I find it sad that men are so much defined by their height and feel embarrassed if they’re not 6’ or over. Most of the men in my life are/have been under 6’.