My Man-Crush On Paul Newman

Nobody exemplifies cool as much, or better than Paul Newman.

He’s in the news this week as people speculate on his health. Does he have terminal cancer resulting from too many years of chain-smoking? Does he have cancer at all? His business partner has made conflicting statements. Newman is quiet. I hope it’s not true because I really like Paul Newman. I’ve had a man-crush on him since I was a kid. Paul Newman is just plain cool.

He’s always been cool. Even when he’s sitting in bed sewing up a jacket - he’s cool.

His movie roles have included playing businessmen, blue collar workers, cowboys, attorneys, con artists, detectives, prisoners and even hockey coaches. In every single one, he was cool. One even had to include the title of cool - Cool Hand Luke. And boy, was he ever!

Paul Newman has qualities that aren’t so common, even among movie stars. George Clooney comes the closest today. Like Newman he’s got a high likability factor. Johnny Depp is very cool, but too quirky. He’s missing out on the high likability factor. Depp also has an arrogance that Newman never did. Maybe that’s why he’s not as likable.

Clooney has most of what it takes to claim cool. Good looks, likability, funny, believable and manly. But Newman is still the Main Man of Cool. Clooney lacks Newman’s brilliant blue eyes. He lacks Newman’s swagger - something not easily done while remaining really likable. Clooney, as many have observed, is the biggest Movie Star of our current era though. And I could easily develop a man-crush on George. He’s easy to watch and like.

I don’t know all the components of cool. If I did, I’d follow the pattern. We just know cool when we see it, or hear it. We know cool when its in front of us. Sadly, we don’t know when we’re not cool. Trust me, it’s best to just assume that you’re never cool because the probability is very high that you are not. I know I’m not.

You must be a superior performer if you’re going to be cool. Has Newman ever given a bad performance? Not in my mind. He’s even married to cool, Joanne Woodward. I’m fond of her, too. She’s got a cool that’s all her own.

Their love story has been cool. Bucking Hollywood tradition they’ve remained faithfully loyal to one another for over 50 years. Few probably realize he did have a wife prior to Joanne Woodward. He was married for about 9 years to the mother of his only son, Scott. Scott overdosed in 1978 and died. He and Joanne have 3 daughters.

Some of my very favorite flicks are Paul Newman flicks. Here’s a list of some of the more noteworthy ones.

The Long Hot Summer - 1957
Cat On A Hot Tin Roof - 1958
The Hustler - 1961
Hud - 1963
Harper - 1966
Cool Hand Luke - 1967
The Secret War of Harry Frigg - 1968
Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid - 1969
Sometimes A Great Notion - 1971
The Life and Times of Judge Roy Bean - 1972
The Sting - 1973
The Drowning Pool - 1975
Slapshot - 1977
Absence of Malice - 1981
The Verdict - 1982
The Color of Money - 1986
Mr. and Mrs. Bridge - 1990
Nobody’s Fool - 1994
Empire Falls - 2005

Go rent any of these and see what cool really looks like. Appreciate it. Women love him. Men can openly declare their man-crush on him. Translation: we wish we were him, or just like him. He’s so cool.