Early in his career, Newman was often labeled a Brando imitator or a James Dean successor, more thanks to the characters he played than to any conscious mimicry. Several of his early performances as Southerners, CAT ON A HOT TIN ROOF (1958), THE LONG HOT SUMMER (1958) and SWEET BIRD OF YOUTH (1962), developed his screen image as that of a volatile, cynical if troubled opportunist whose sex appeal was balanced by his seeming contempt for women.
Some of Newman's finest portrayals were of alienated but cocky misfits, characterizations that perhaps began with the early, very strange showcase, THE LEFT-HANDED GUN (1958). He maintained a high batting average of quality films in which the sly, sometimes cruel machismo of his persona was undercut by moments of vulnerability and a propensity for playing losers. Newman's most acclaimed roles in the 60s include his aspiring pool champion in THE HUSTLER (1961), the sexually predatory ne'er-do-well HUD (1963) and the prison inmate COOL HAND LUKE (1967) (featuring the famous egg-eating challenge). His less successful roles during this period completely emphasized either his animal energy (his bandit-rapist in the American revamp of RASHOMON, THE OUTRAGE, 1964) or his keen intelligence (the romantic comedy of A NEW KIND OF LOVE, 1963; Alfred Hitchcock's dreadful TORN CURTAIN, 1966, with Newman as a physicist!).
The late 1960s saw Newman branch out into both production and direction. Fueled by commercial success and a degree of artistic dissatisfaction, he joined with Sidney Poitier, Barbra Streisand, Steve McQueen and several other stars to form the First Artists production company in 1969. The venture, though much imitated, did little for the careers of its founders but did result in some interesting, if intermittent work. His deliberately modest yet highly sensitive directorial debut RACHEL, RACHEL (1968), showcasing his second wife Joanne Woodward as a lonely teacher, garnered the best director award from the New York Film Critics Circle.
Newman continued to enjoy popular success in front of the camera, scoring at the box office with lightweight films such as BUTCH CASSIDY AND THE SUNDANCE KID (1969) and THE STING (1973), both opposite Robert Redford. The late 70s saw some bold project choices that enjoyed varying degrees of success, from the sly critique of Robert Altman's BUFFALO BILL AND THE INDIANS, OR SITTING BULL'S HISTORY LESSON (1976) to Altman's unsuccessful futuristic saga QUINTET (1979), with the engagingly raucous if uneven SLAP SHOT (1977) and the offbeat detective yarn THE DROWNING POOL (1976) in between.
Newman proved highly effective in a number of senior roles in the 1980s and 90s, his physical prowess maturing into a lean asceticism in films ranging from ABSENCE OF MALICE (1981) to MR. & MRS. BRIDGE (1990) (opposite Woodward), with an especially outstanding performance as an alcoholic lawyer attempting a comeback in THE VERDICT (1982). His Huey Long in BLAZE (1989) was vaguely reminiscent of his misbehaving Southerners from days of yore, and his character turn in THE HUDSUCKER PROXY (1994) played upon his status as one of Hollywood's elder statesmen. This position, in some ways surprising given the moody, dangerous persona of his youth, was confirmed with an honorary Academy Award in 1985 and a best actor Oscar the following year for Martin Scorsese's THE COLOR OF MONEY, in which his "Fast" Eddie Felson from THE HUSTLER passed on secrets to a younger generation (Tom Cruise). Newman also earned acclaim for his fifth directorial outing, an adaptation of Tennessee Williams's THE GLASS MENAGERIE (1987), again starring Woodward. He and Woodward also spent a great deal of their time building a camp for children with life-threatening illnesses with the profits from "Newman's Own" brand of food products.
For each of his directors, from Mark Robson to Arthur Penn to John Huston to Robert Altman, Newman has been able to find a nuance of character and a litheness of being that has maintained his long standing as a prime box-office attraction. This extraordinary versatility, combined with a charismatic aloofness, is the hallmark of his craft.
Actor 1986 : THE COLOR OF MONEY
Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award 1993.
Paul Newman
Filmography from Baseline's Encyclopedia of Film
1954 THE SILVER CHALICE performer
(1925 - )
Biography from Baseline's Encyclopedia of Film
Occupation: Actor
Also: director, producer
Born: January 26, 1925, Cleveland, OH
Education: Kenyon College, Ohio (economics); Yale Drama School; Actors Studio 
Strikingly handsome blue-eyed actor who quickly rose to fame as one of the most respected and popular performers of his generation. Newman briefly ran his family's sporting goods store in Cleveland before venturing, in 1950, into stage work at the Williams Bay Repertory Company in Wisconsin. He attended Yale from 1951-52, during which time he also worked in TV in New York and attended the Actors Studio. After attracting critical attention with his 1953 Broadway debut, Picnic, the compact, good-looking actor with the devasting pale blue eyes was signed by Warner Bros. Newman's first screen appearance came as the star of THE SILVER CHALICE (1954), a curious biblical epic that brought him as much attention for his miscasting as for his talent. His first positive film notices were for his performance as boxer Rocky Graziano in SOMEBODY UP THERE LIKES ME (1956).
Academy Awards®
Nominated for Actor 1958 : CAT ON A HOT TIN ROOF
Nominated for Actor 1961 : THE HUSTLER
Nominated for Actor 1963 : HUD
Nominated for Actor 1967 : COOL HAND LUKE
Nominated for Best Picture 1968 : RACHEL, RACHEL, Producer
Nominated for Actor 1981 : ABSENCE OF MALICE
Nominated for Actor 1982 : THE VERDICT
Honorary and Other Awards 1985.
In recognition of his many and memorable compelling screen performances and for his personal integrity and dedication to his craft. Winner presented a Statuette.
For his humanitarian efforts.
1956 THE RACK performer
1956 SOMEBODY UP THERE LIKES ME performer
1957 THE HELEN MORGAN STORY performer
1957 UNTIL THEY SAIL performer
1958 CAT ON A HOT TIN ROOF performer
1958 THE LEFT-HANDED GUN performer
1958 THE LONG HOT SUMMER performer
1958 RALLY 'ROUND THE FLAG, BOYS! performer
1959 THE YOUNG PHILADELPHIANS performer
1960 EXODUS performer
1960 FROM THE TERRACE performer
1961 THE HUSTLER performer
1961 PARIS BLUES performer
1962 HEMINGWAY'S ADVENTURES OF A YOUNG MAN/
ADVENTURES OF A YOUNG MAN performer
1962 SWEET BIRD OF YOUTH performer
1963 HUD performer
1963 A NEW KIND OF LOVE performer
1963 THE PRIZE performer
1964 THE OUTRAGE performer
1964 WHAT A WAY TO GO! performer
1965 LADY L performer
1966 HARPER performer
1966 TORN CURTAIN performer
1967 COOL HAND LUKE performer
1967 HOMBRE performer
1968 RACHEL, RACHEL director, producer
1968 THE SECRET WAR OF HARRY FRIGG performer
1969 BUTCH CASSIDY AND THE SUNDANCE KID performer
1969 WINNING performer
1970 KING: A FILMED RECORD… MONTGOMERY TO MEMPHIS performer
1970 WUSA performer, co-producer
1971 SOMETIMES A GREAT NOTION/NEVER GIVE A INCH performer, director
1971 THEY MIGHT BE GIANTS producer
1972 THE EFFECT OF GAMMA RAYS ON MAN-IN-THE-MOON MARIGOLDS
director, producer
1972 THE LIFE AND TIMES OF JUDGE ROY BEAN performer
1972 POCKET MONEY performer
1973 THE MACKINTOSH MAN performer
1973 THE STING performer
1974 THE TOWERING INFERNO performer
1976 BUFFALO BILL AND THE INDIANS,
OR SITTING BULL'S HISTORY LESSON performer
1976 THE DROWNING POOL performer
1977 SLAP SHOT performer
1979 QUINTET performer
1980 WHEN TIME RAN OUT/EARTH'S FINAL FURY performer
1981 ABSENCE OF MALICE performer
1981 FORT APACHE, THE BRONX performer
1982 THE VERDICT performer
1984 HARRY AND SON performer, director, co-producer, co-screenwriter
1986 THE COLOR OF MONEY performer
1987 THE GLASS MENAGERIE director
1987 HELLO ACTORS STUDIO performer
1988 JOHN HUSTON performer
1989 BLAZE performer
1989 FAT MAN AND LITTLE BOY performer
1990 MR. & MRS. BRIDGE performer
1991 WHY HAVEL? documentary appearance
1994 NOBODY'S FOOL performer
1994 THE HUDSUCKER PROXY performer
1994 BASEBALL (TV) voice
