# Paul Newman **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [April 23, 2008, 1:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-newman/446537 "2008-04-23T13:17:29Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2008, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-newman/446537/21 "2008-04-23T18:16:19Z")
[QUOTE=BlinkingDuck] What we have here…is a failure to communicate! Great movie. Careful…one of them might have a rifle. (I heard that they cast Paul and Robert in each others role to start, but wisely switched them during shooting) 🙂 [/QUOTE] I agree. Great movie. But now we’ve got to work on [getting that quote right.](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=421698&highlight=failure+communicate) ---
**Author:** ![BlinkingDuck](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/eada6e/32.png) [@BlinkingDuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BlinkingDuck)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2008, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-newman/446537/22 "2008-04-23T18:29:16Z")
Heh… Ok… On another note…It was Paul N who played the ‘loser’ lawyer suing a hospital/doctor …damn what was the name. He did a great job in that one ---
**Author:** ![Zeldar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/b77776/32.png) [@Zeldar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zeldar)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2008, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-newman/446537/23 "2008-04-23T18:31:15Z")
[QUOTE=BlinkingDuck] Heh… Ok… On another note…It was Paul N who played the ‘loser’ lawyer suing a hospital/doctor …damn what was the name. He did a great job in that one [/QUOTE] _The Verdict._ One of his best. Jack Warden and James Mason helped make that one work, as did Charlotte Rampling. ---
**Author:** ![ShibbOleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/848f3c/32.png) [@ShibbOleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ShibbOleth)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2008, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-newman/446537/24 "2008-04-23T18:34:53Z")
[QUOTE=Zeldar] Yep. And the popcorn guy, too. [/QUOTE] Nah, he’s the racing car guy. ---
**Author:** ![Zeldar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/b77776/32.png) [@Zeldar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zeldar)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2008, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-newman/446537/25 "2008-04-23T18:37:53Z")
[QUOTE=ShibbOleth] Nah, he’s the racing car guy. [/QUOTE] Oh. You’re right. My bad. Maybe I was thinking of Steve McQueen. Never could keep those guys straight. ---
**Author:** ![MovieMogul](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f08c70/32.png) [@MovieMogul](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MovieMogul)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2008, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-newman/446537/26 "2008-04-23T20:01:48Z")
The Top 4 (in chronological order): _Hud The Hustler Slap Shot The Verdict_ As movies (and not just his performances), I honestly don’t think anything else even comes close. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2008, 8:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-newman/446537/27 "2008-04-23T20:03:22Z")
My two cents Five best (that I’ve seen): _Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid_ _Cool Hand Luke_ _The Hustler_ _Slapshot_ _The Verdict_ Five worst: _Quintet_ (tried to sit through this one twice and never made it) _The Silver Chalice_ (never actually seen it but I’ll take Newman’s word for it) _The Sting_ (maybe not really terrible, but vastly overrated) _The Towering Inferno_ (Irwin Allen - no further explanation should be necessary) _When Time Ran Out…_ (great cast wasted in a volcano movie) ---
**Author:** ![Key\_Lime\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/48db29/32.png) [@Key\_Lime\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Key_Lime_Guy)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2008, 8:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-newman/446537/28 "2008-04-23T20:08:47Z")
[QUOTE=Labrador Deceiver] I’m a littel surprised that \*Nobody’s Fool \* hasn’t been mentioned. Maybe my favorite of his movies, and a case where the film was possibly better than the book. [/QUOTE] Agreed - it was the second that came to my mind (after The Hustler). ---
**Author:** ![BlinkingDuck](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/eada6e/32.png) [@BlinkingDuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BlinkingDuck)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2008, 8:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-newman/446537/29 "2008-04-23T20:33:08Z")
[QUOTE=Zeldar] _The Verdict._ One of his best. Jack Warden and James Mason helped make that one work, as did Charlotte Rampling. [/QUOTE] That’s it! It was one of his best. Fine show and great acting job. ---
**Author:** ![jimmmy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/73ab20/32.png) [@jimmmy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jimmmy)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2008, 11:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-newman/446537/30 "2008-04-23T23:02:59Z")
[QUOTE=TV time] This is for Newman’s performance not the film over all (for instance, the film _The Sting_ was better than _Harper_, but I felt Newman was better in Harper). [/QUOTE] That’s well said I was struggling with a way to put this Top: Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid Somebody Up There Likes Me Cool Hand Nobodys Fool This was hard Bottom: Drowning Pool Verdict Mr & Mrs. Bridge Blaze (I enjoyed this Movie just can’t see saying Sting, Inferno,Slap Shot or Roy Bean) This was harder ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2008, 11:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-newman/446537/31 "2008-04-23T23:30:50Z")
[QUOTE=Labrador Deceiver] I’m a littel surprised that \*Nobody’s Fool \* hasn’t been mentioned. Maybe my favorite of his movies, and a case where the film was possibly better than the book. [/QUOTE] A superb film and at the top of my list of Newman movies by far. Second would be Hud or The Hustler, and then Cool Hand Luke. ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2008, 6:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-newman/446537/32 "2008-04-24T06:04:19Z")
_Exodus!_ (As an aside - the actual captain of the _Exodus_, Ike Aaronson, is a neighbor of my parents. Newman’s character from the movie - Ari Ben Canaan, the most awsome character name ever - is actually a composite of several real-life Hagannah members). ---
**Author:** ![Zeldar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/b77776/32.png) [@Zeldar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zeldar)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2008, 11:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-newman/446537/33 "2008-04-24T11:56:50Z")
Here, as a refresher, is the IMDb listing (sorted by their ratings) for Mr. Newman’s acting work. How many of these have you seen? How many of them do you take strong exception to as far as the rating goes? =================== (8.30) - The Sting (1973) (8.30) - Cool Hand Luke (1967) (8.20) - Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969) (8.10) - The Hustler (1961) (7.90) - Our Town (2003) (TV) (7.89) - Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1958) (7.89) - Hud (1963) (7.70) - Road to Perdition (2002) (7.69) - The Verdict (1982) (7.60) - Cars (2006) (7.40) - The Hudsucker Proxy (1994) (7.38) - Empire Falls (2005) (TV) (7.38) - Somebody Up There Likes Me (1956) (7.29) - Hombre (1967) (7.28) - The Long, Hot Summer (1958) (7.21) - Magnificent Desolation: Walking on the Moon 3D (2005) (7.20) - Nobody’s Fool (1994) (7.18) - Sweet Bird of Youth (1962) (7.16) - The Young Philadelphians (1959) (7.10) - Slap Shot (1977) (6.99) - Harper (1966) (6.98) - Sometimes a Great Notion (1971) (6.95) - Cars (2006) (VG) (6.88) - Mater and the Ghostlight (2006) (V) (6.80) - Absence of Malice (1981) (6.80) - The Color of Money (1986) (6.80) - The Life and Times of Judge Roy Bean (1972) (6.80) - Exodus (1960) (6.70) - The Towering Inferno (1974) (6.70) - What a Way to Go! (1964) (6.69) - The Rack (1956) (6.60) - Mr. & Mrs. Bridge (1990) (6.60) - The Prize (1963) (6.51) - The Left Handed Gun (1958) (6.51) - Paris Blues (1961) (6.50) - Torn Curtain (1966) (6.50) - Fort Apache the Bronx (1981) (6.42) - From the Terrace (1960) (6.41) - Fat Man and Little Boy (1989) (6.41) - The Drowning Pool (1975) (6.35) - Until They Sail (1957) (6.24) - The Outrage (1964) (6.17) - The Secret War of Harry Frigg (1968) (6.13) - The MacKintosh Man (1973) (6.12) - The Helen Morgan Story (1957) (6.11) - Where the Money Is (2000) (6.05) - Hemingway’s Adventures of a Young Man (1962) (6.03) - Buffalo Bill and the Indians, or Sitting Bull’s History Lesson (1976) (6.01) - Twilight (1998) (5.97) - Winning (1969) (5.92) - Rally 'Round the Flag, Boys! (1958) (5.91) - A New Kind of Love (1963) (5.78) - Harry & Son (1984) (5.64) - Blaze (1989) (5.58) - Lady L (1965) (5.48) - WUSA (1970) (5.41) - Message in a Bottle (1999) (5.37) - Pocket Money (1972) (4.82) - Quintet (1977) (4.71) - The Silver Chalice (1954) (4.01) - When Time Ran Out… (1980) ---
**Author:** ![mbh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a6a055/32.png) [@mbh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mbh)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2008, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-newman/446537/34 "2008-04-24T19:58:46Z")
I loved _Blaze_ and _The Secret War of Harry Frigg_. Newman is a great comedian. I hated _Sweet Bird of Youth_. Not Newman’s fault, though. Tennessee Williams wrote four alternate endings to the play, so people could have either a sad ending or a happy ending. The suits in Hollywood still butchered it. (I don’t even like Tennessee Williams, but that still ticked me off.) ---
**Author:** ![jsc1953](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/5daacb/32.png) [@jsc1953](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jsc1953)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2008, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-newman/446537/35 "2008-04-24T20:09:35Z")
I think I’ve heard that PN was cast in “Somebody Up There Likes Me” as a replacement for the late James Dean. So think of Paul Newman’s career as an extension of James Dean’s. Perhaps. ---
**Author:** ![Zeldar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/b77776/32.png) [@Zeldar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zeldar)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2008, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-newman/446537/36 "2008-04-24T20:23:27Z")
[QUOTE=jsc1953] I think I’ve heard that PN was cast in “Somebody Up There Likes Me” as a replacement for the late James Dean. So think of Paul Newman’s career as an extension of James Dean’s. Perhaps. [/QUOTE] That’s quite true. There’s even video of Newman and Dean screen testing for the roles in _East of Eden_. Newman was not selected; Dean was. Also of note in the SUTLM lore is that Steve McQueen’s minor role marked their first joint venture and from then on, Steve was trying to catch up with Newman. It finally happened in _The Towering Inferno_. Even so, McQueen always felt he was in Newman’s shadow. ---
**Author:** ![Zeldar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/b77776/32.png) [@Zeldar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zeldar)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2008, 9:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-newman/446537/37 "2008-04-24T21:29:26Z")
[Said video](http://vids.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&videoid=1624433198) ---
**Author:** ![Lamar\_Mundane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lamar\_Mundane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamar_Mundane)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2008, 9:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-newman/446537/38 "2008-04-24T21:44:44Z")
[QUOTE=TV time] (If televison were allowed I would put, _Bang the Drum Slowly_ - that was incredible) [/QUOTE] I’m confused. The only \*Bang the Drum Slowly \* I know of was a film and Paul Newman wasn’t in it. A very young Robert DeNiro was, however. It was a very good film. ---
**Author:** ![SpectBrain](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a87d85/32.png) [@SpectBrain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SpectBrain)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2008, 10:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-newman/446537/39 "2008-04-24T22:51:15Z")
[QUOTE=mbh] I loved _Blaze_ and _The Secret War of Harry Frigg_. Newman is a great comedian. [/QUOTE] He did a very funny, albeit brief, cameo in Mel Brook’s “Silent Movie”. He was driving a miniature race car trying to escape from Brooks who was trying to recruit him for his movie. ---
**Author:** ![NDP](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ndp/32/55_2.png) [@NDP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NDP)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2008, 11:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-newman/446537/40 "2008-04-24T23:14:32Z")
[QUOTE=Lamar Mundane] I’m confused. The only \*Bang the Drum Slowly \* I know of was a film and Paul Newman wasn’t in it. A very young Robert DeNiro was, however. It was a very good film. [/QUOTE] Before it was made into a movie, it was TV play. It aired during the 50’s and featured (I think) Albert Salmi in the role that was later played by DeNiro. Newman’s role was played by Michael Moriarty in the movie. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-newman/446537.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-newman/446537.md?page=3)