# How long before majority of people forget that Paul Newman was an actor? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [September 22, 2015, 8:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-long-before-majority-of-people-forget-that-paul-newman-was-an-actor/732234 "2015-09-22T20:56:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 7
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2015, 11:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-long-before-majority-of-people-forget-that-paul-newman-was-an-actor/732234/121 "2015-09-23T23:13:47Z")
> [@Dag\_Otto](#): > > Paul Newman? Robert Redford? > > Who are those guys? I saw what you did there. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2015, 11:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-long-before-majority-of-people-forget-that-paul-newman-was-an-actor/732234/122 "2015-09-23T23:38:48Z")
Paul Newman starred in several movies that serious cinema students are already studying in college classes. Some of his movies may be available a hundred years from now. Maybe not on Netflix 2105 but in cinema archives. ---
**Author:** ![Ukulele\_Ike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/df788c/32.png) [@Ukulele\_Ike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ukulele_Ike)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2015, 12:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-long-before-majority-of-people-forget-that-paul-newman-was-an-actor/732234/123 "2015-09-24T00:17:49Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > I saw what you did there. Yeah, that was pretty good. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2015, 1:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-long-before-majority-of-people-forget-that-paul-newman-was-an-actor/732234/124 "2015-09-24T01:24:01Z")
> [@mr.jp](#): > > Not Charlie Chapman, and perhaps not Cary Grant. But the rest are for sure forgotten. I don’t think I know a single person who would recognize any of those other names. I do. ---
**Author:** ![Eonwe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eonwe/32/240_2.png) [@Eonwe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eonwe)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2015, 1:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-long-before-majority-of-people-forget-that-paul-newman-was-an-actor/732234/125 "2015-09-24T01:43:24Z")
> [@Dag\_Otto](#): > > Paul Newman? Robert Redford? > > Who are those guys? And you won the thread . . . at least for those of us in the minority who get the reference, that is 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Dag\_Otto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/439d5e/32.png) [@Dag\_Otto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dag_Otto)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2015, 1:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-long-before-majority-of-people-forget-that-paul-newman-was-an-actor/732234/126 "2015-09-24T01:54:04Z")
> [@Eonwe](#): > > And you won the thread . . . at least for those of us in the minority who get the reference, that is 😉 We’re so old. ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2015, 2:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-long-before-majority-of-people-forget-that-paul-newman-was-an-actor/732234/127 "2015-09-24T02:18:20Z")
^ Millennial: There’s no damned reason I should know that! ---
**Author:** ![Dale\_Sams](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/779978/32.png) [@Dale\_Sams](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dale_Sams)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2015, 3:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-long-before-majority-of-people-forget-that-paul-newman-was-an-actor/732234/128 "2015-09-24T03:01:06Z")
> [@panache45](#): > > I’ve often thought about this issue, regarding music. We are blessed, today, to have virtually every piece of music that’s ever been composed, right at our fingertips. But how many young people would bother to listen to something by Bach or Beethoven? How many can name one song by Gershwin or Cole Porter? Or, yes, an Elvis hit? > > And back to film: How many know that Charlton Heston had another career, before being president of the NRA? And these days, how many even remember him as president of the NRA? > > There’s an old song, “Our Love Is Here to Stay.” Unfortunately, the song itself wasn’t here to stay. Appears on the classic “When Harry Met Sally” soundtrack. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2015, 3:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-long-before-majority-of-people-forget-that-paul-newman-was-an-actor/732234/129 "2015-09-24T03:30:26Z")
> [@Dale\_Sams](#): > > Appears on the classic “When Harry Met Sally” soundtrack. Yes, but there’s a diminishing number of people who’ve seen the movie. ---
**Author:** ![Small\_Hen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ad7895/32.png) [@Small\_Hen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Small_Hen)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2015, 3:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-long-before-majority-of-people-forget-that-paul-newman-was-an-actor/732234/130 "2015-09-24T03:58:51Z")
> [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](#): > > ^ Millennial: There’s no damned reason I should know that! Apparently, there’s no damn reason anyone should bother to clarify it for the people who don’t know, either. ---
**Author:** ![Scumpup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ce73a5/32.png) [@Scumpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scumpup)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2015, 9:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-long-before-majority-of-people-forget-that-paul-newman-was-an-actor/732234/131 "2015-09-24T09:44:05Z")
No damn reason at all. Of course, we aren’t stopping you from watching the movie that would let you get it on your own. Imagine how awesome that would be! You’d get to feel like you were part of the cognoscenti. You’d like that, wouldn’t you? ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2015, 9:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-long-before-majority-of-people-forget-that-paul-newman-was-an-actor/732234/132 "2015-09-24T09:55:34Z")
Hey, remember when this was a site devoted to combating ignorance? Boy, **those** were the days! 🆒 ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2015, 1:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-long-before-majority-of-people-forget-that-paul-newman-was-an-actor/732234/133 "2015-09-24T13:20:37Z")
> [@terentii](#): > > Hey, remember when this was a site devoted to combating ignorance? Boy, **those** were the days! 🆒 Millennial: We don’t like that damn song, either! ---
**Author:** ![WOOKINPANUB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wookinpanub/32/132_2.png) [@WOOKINPANUB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WOOKINPANUB)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2015, 1:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-long-before-majority-of-people-forget-that-paul-newman-was-an-actor/732234/134 "2015-09-24T13:44:53Z")
> [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](#): > > Jerry Seinfeld was on Letterman once, telling a story about being at the Hole in the Wall Gang Camp. He was up on stage either doing a routine or just talking with the folks there, when Paul walks up on stage and just stands there, grinning. Seinfeld tries to ignore him, but Paul won’t go away–if anything he looks like the cat that swallowed the canary; he was fit to burst with the giggles. After minutes of this, Jerry turns to Paul and bellows, “Hello, Newman!” Everyone loses it. I love this. Wish I’d have been there. ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2015, 1:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-long-before-majority-of-people-forget-that-paul-newman-was-an-actor/732234/135 "2015-09-24T13:52:35Z")
> [@panache45](#): > > Yes, but there’s a diminishing number of people who’ve seen the movie. Are you saying absolutely NO ONE on the planet is watching this movie ever again? Or are you including the people recently born who haven’t had a chance to see the movie, yet? In other words: **CITE?** ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2015, 1:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-long-before-majority-of-people-forget-that-paul-newman-was-an-actor/732234/136 "2015-09-24T13:55:41Z")
> [@Small\_Hen](#): > > Apparently, there’s no damn reason anyone should bother to clarify it for the people who don’t know, either. Watch the damn movie! A running (snerk!) gag throughout the majority of the movie is the increasing exasperation of the title duo as they wonder “Who **are** those guys?” ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2015, 2:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-long-before-majority-of-people-forget-that-paul-newman-was-an-actor/732234/137 "2015-09-24T14:58:35Z")
And which movie would that be? ---
**Author:** ![Small\_Hen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ad7895/32.png) [@Small\_Hen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Small_Hen)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2015, 3:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-long-before-majority-of-people-forget-that-paul-newman-was-an-actor/732234/138 "2015-09-24T15:02:26Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > Watch the damn movie! > > A running (snerk!) gag throughout the majority of the movie is the increasing exasperation of the title duo as they wonder “Who **are** those guys?” Is the movie “Butch Cassidy” or is it “The Sting?” Because I’ve seen Butch Cassidy, and it wasn’t a joke that jumped out at me. If it’s “The Sting,” I’ve got that one lined up next to watch. I was going to watch it last night, but my sister and I decided to finish another Robert Redford classic, “All the President’s Men.” All I’m saying is, if you all think it’s important to keep the legacy of Paul Newman alive, perhaps you should be a little less smug and exclusive about it? ---
**Author:** ![Ukulele\_Ike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/df788c/32.png) [@Ukulele\_Ike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ukulele_Ike)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2015, 3:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-long-before-majority-of-people-forget-that-paul-newman-was-an-actor/732234/139 "2015-09-24T15:05:31Z")
NO! It’s a secret club! Our password is “swordfish.” ---
**Author:** ![Master\_Wang-Ka](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/master_wang-ka/32/3325_2.png) [@Master\_Wang-Ka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Master_Wang-Ka)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2015, 3:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-long-before-majority-of-people-forget-that-paul-newman-was-an-actor/732234/140 "2015-09-24T15:07:16Z")
It occurred to me last night that I’ve never seen a Rudolph Valentino movie. I’ve seen parodies, reenactments, other actors PLAYING Valentino, and old clips from Valentino’s movies… but I have never seen a Valentino movie, despite knowing perfectly well who he is. The same would be true of Charlie Chaplin, Buster Keaton, Fatty Arbuckle, and a variety of other silent comedians, if not for a film festival in college, and some extremely cheap videotapes. I know who all these guys WERE, of course, but you seldom see their movies broadcast any more, except on old film channels, and usually only late at night. Food for thought. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-long-before-majority-of-people-forget-that-paul-newman-was-an-actor/732234.md?page=6) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-long-before-majority-of-people-forget-that-paul-newman-was-an-actor/732234.md?page=8)