In the 'Money' again

Screen legend Paul Newman mulls latest film, retirement

Racing to the finish? Newman considers retirement from behind the wheel

By Donna Freydkin
Reporting for CNN Interactive

April 14, 2000
Web posted at: 2:09 p.m. EST (1809 GMT)

NEW YORK (CNN) -- In a culture that glorifies youth, there is Paul Newman, 75. In a forest of saplings, he's a redwood, firmly rooted as a screen legend.

But he hardly seems legendary in person. Newman -- the embittered Chance in "Sweet Bird of Youth" (1962), the sneering "Hud" (1963), the goofy bandit in "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid" (1969) -- looks like anyone's dad.

He's dressed in a blue plaid shirt, maroon sweater and gray slacks. He's punctual. He's genteel. He eschews cursing. And when asked a question, Newman takes his time answering, leaning back in his chair and thinking a bit before somewhat gruffly voicing a thought. He is, in essence, the antithesis of some of Hollywood's strutting, fretting bad boys.

His real self is at odds with some of Newman's screen personas. The actor established himself by portraying slick rogues such as cynical pool shark Fast Eddie Felson in "The Hustler" (1961) and tough con Luke in 1967's "Cool Hand Luke." In 1986, he reprised the Felson character in "The Color of Money" and won an Oscar.

Now, in "Where the Money Is," Newman returns to that disreputable type, playing a jailed bank robber. The amusing heist caper co-stars Linda Fiorentino and Dermot Mulroney.

"It was a very interesting, implausible situation," says the actor. "It was clean. There's no profanity in it. I hope there's some hint of sexuality in it, but there's certainly nothing offensive or anything."

Maybe there's more than a hint of sex. In one notable clip, Newman, who pretends to be a stroke victim, gets a wickedly funny lap dance from Fiorentino. But when asked about it, he seems visibly disconcerted -- uncomfortable, even.

Paul Newman, a senior sex symbol? His reply is quick and gruff: "I just try to get through the day."

Where the philanthropy is

These days, Newman spends much of his time in charitable works such as the Hole in the Wall Gang Camp. Established with his wife, Joanne Woodward, the camp is named after Butch Cassidy's gang and caters to disabled children. And since his son Scott's 1978 death of a drug and alcohol overdose, Newman and Woodward also have staged an active anti-drug campaign.

Yet Newman probably remains best known off-stage for a line of food products that includes everything from pasta sauce to ice cream to popcorn. Since launching Newman's Own in 1982, the actor has donated more than $100 million of its profits to charity.

Some people would brag about such charity and philanthropy. Newman resists the urge, perhaps to avoid the appearance of capitalizing on his own good works.

"I don't exactly live low on the hog and I have what I need," he says. "And what would I need more than what I can use?"

Life in the fast lane

Newman co-stars with Linda Fiorentino in "Where the Money Is"

Still, there are some things Newman needs that good deeds cannot buy.

Since the 1970s, Newman has been racing cars. In fact, he devoted all of 1984 to the racetrack, and a year later, won several major prizes. Belying his years, he's also taken part in the 24 Hours of LeMans. Newman still takes part in a half-dozen races each year.

The benefits of speed, he says, outweigh the risks.

"My blood pressure always runs somewhere around 117 over 76," he says. "I had a series of really unfortunate circumstances that drove me nuts, so my blood pressure went up to 140, which is really unusual. It went down within 24 hours of (the race at) Daytona."

Still, age has its limitations, especially when an actor has standards, he says. "It's awful dry out there," he says. "It ('Where the Money Is') was fun, it was entertaining; and so much of that stuff is offensive, and it doesn't leave much up to the actors."

That's why, the actor says, that retiring is looking better all the time.

"At some point, you've got to get out of it," he says. "You've got to retire. I've been retiring now for 15 years. I've got to make it stick at some point."

A screen legend, retire? It's easier to imagine ripping a redwood up by its roots.

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Newman's Own
Official 'Where the Money Is' site

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