Paul Newman is an American actor who appeared in numerous productions on screen and stage during his career spanning almost 60 years.
Newman had an inauspicious debut in film with The Silver Chalice (1954), but his performance in Somebody Up There Likes Me (1956) garnered praise and a positive career trajectory. Serious roles in films such as The Helen Morgan Story (1957), The Young Philadelphians (1959), and Exodus (1960) followed soon after. It was around this time he also met the love of his life, Joanne Woodward, whom he would marry and remain with for the rest of his life.
After their first pairing in The Long, Hot Summer (1958), Newman & Woodward became a frequent on-screen team. Their other on-screen collaborations were Rally 'Round the Flag, Boys! (1958), From the Terrace (1960), Paris Blues (1961), A New Kind of Love (1963), Winning (1969), WUSA (1970), The Drowning Pool (1975), Harry & Son (1984), and Mr. & Mrs. Bridge (1990). He remained behind the camera on three further pairings: Rachel, Rachel (1968), his directorial debut, earning him an Oscar nomination for Best Picture plus a Golden Globe win for Best Director; The Effect of Gamma Rays on Man-in-the-Moon Marigolds (1972); The Glass Menagerie (1987); and The Shadow Box (1980), which aired on TV. He also produced, but did not direct, her film, They Might Be Giants (1971). They united once on the small screen, for Empire Falls (2005) on HBO, which won Newman an Emmy and another Golden Globe. Finally, they both participated in the Martin Luther King Jr. documentary, King: A Filmed Record...Montgomery to Memphis (1970).
His career breakthrough occurred with his performance in Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1958), which earned him his first Academy Award nomination for Best Actor. Subsequent nominations would follow via the films The Hustler (1961), Hud (1963), and Cool Hand Luke (1967). In between those, he starred in several other notable titles, such as Sweet Bird of Youth (1962), Torn Curtain (1966), Hombre (1967); and in one of his signature roles, as the former titular character in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969).
Newman next starred in such 1970s films as Sometimes a Great Notion (1971), The Life and Times of Judge Roy Bean (1972), The Sting (1973), The Towering Inferno (1974), and Slap Shot (1977). The 1980s brought two consecutive Oscar nominations along, from Absence of Malice (1981) and The Verdict, followed by an Academy Honorary Award presented in 1986. But it would be the sequel to Hustler featuring the return of "Fast Eddie" Felson, The Color of Money (1986), that would finally see Paul Newman voted the Best Actor Oscar winner at the 1987 awards ceremony.
Over the next two decades, Newman received one more honorary Oscar, the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award. In addition, he garnered two final nominations: one more in lead, for Nobody's Fool (1994); and his only one for Best Supporting Actor, for Road to Perdition (2002). He was featured in a few other occasional films, such as The Hudsucker Proxy (1994), and (in his only major voice acting credit) Pixar's Cars (2006).
And even though his stage career was brief, he had some noted success there as well. He made his Broadway stage debut in Picnic, and also did stints in the 1950s in The Desperate Hours and Sweet Bird of Youth, the latter of which led to him being cast in the film role. Finally, his last big stage role in Our Town earned him his only Tony Award nomination.
Here is a complete list of Paul Newman's known acting credentials.
As actor
Film YearTitleRoleNotes1954 The Silver ChaliceBasil 1956Somebody Up There Likes MeRocky Graziano The RackCapt. Edward W. Hall Jr.1957 The Helen Morgan StoryLarry MadduxUntil They SailCapt. Jack Harding1958 The Long, Hot SummerBen Quick The Left Handed GunBilly the KidCat on a Hot Tin RoofBrick PollittRally Round the Flag, Boys!Harry Bannerman1959 The Young PhiladelphiansAnthony Judson Lawrence1960From the TerraceDavid Alfred EatonExodusAri Ben Canaan1961 The HustlerFast Eddie FelsonParis BluesRam Bowen1962Sweet Bird of YouthChance WayneHemingway's Adventures of a Young ManAd Francis, "The Battler"1963HudHud Bannon A New Kind of LoveSteve Sherman The PrizeAndrew Craig1964What a Way to Go!Larry Flint The OutrageJuan Carrasco1965Lady LArmand Denis1966HarperLew HarperAlternate title: The Moving TargetTorn CurtainProf. Michael Armstrong1967HombreJohn RussellCool Hand LukeLucas "Luke" Jackson1968 The Secret War of Harry FriggPvt. Harry Frigg1969WinningFrank CapuaButch Cassidy and the Sundance KidButch Cassidy1970WUSARheinhardtKing: A Filmed Record... Montgomery to MemphisHimselfDocumentary1971Sometimes a Great NotionHank StamperAlternate title: Never Give A Inch1972Pocket MoneyJim Kane The Life and Times of Judge Roy BeanJudge Roy Bean1973 The Mackintosh ManJoseph Rearden The StingHenry Gondorff1974 The Towering InfernoDoug Roberts1975 The Drowning PoolLew Harper1976Silent MovieHimselfCameoBuffalo Bill and the Indians, or Sitting Bull's History LessonBuffalo Bill1977Slap ShotReggie "Reg" Dunlop1979QuintetEssex1980When Time Ran Out...Hank Anderson1981Fort Apache, The BronxMurphyAbsence of MaliceMichael Colin Gallagher1982 The VerdictFrank Galvin1984Harry & SonHarry Keach1986 The Color of MoneyFast Eddie FelsonAcademy Award for Best Actor1989Fat Man and Little BoyGen. Leslie R. GrovesBlazeGov. Earl K. Long1990Mr. & Mrs. BridgeWalter Bridge1994 The Hudsucker ProxySidney J. MussburgerNobody's FoolDonald J. "Sully" Sullivan1998TwilightHarry Ross1999Message in a BottleDodge Blake2000Where the Money IsHenry Manning2002Road to PerditionJohn Rooney2004Tell Them Who You AreHimselfDocumentary2005 Magnificent Desolation: Walking on the Moon 3DDave ScottVoice; documentary short2006Roving MarsNarrator (introduction)DocumentaryCarsDoc HudsonVoice; special racing consultant; final traditional film roleMater and the GhostlightVoice; short film2007DaleNarratorVoice; documentary2008 The MeerkatsPosthumous release; voice; documentary; final film role2015Winning: The Racing Life of Paul Newman Himself Posthumous release; documentary; archival footage 2017Cars 3Doc HudsonPosthumous release; voice (unused audio recordings from Cars)
Television Year Title Role Notes 1952Tales of TomorrowSgt. WilsonEpisode: "Ice From Space"1955Producers' ShowcaseGeorge GibbsEpisode: "Our Town"Appointment with AdventureMackEpisode: "Five in Judgement" 1956 The United States Steel HourHenry WiggenEpisode: "Bang the Drum Slowly"1958Playhouse 90Christian DarlingEpisode: "The 80 Yard Run"1971Once Upon a WheelHimselfABC Television documentary1982Come Along with MeHughieVoice; television film2001 The SimpsonsHimselfVoice; episode: "The Blunder Years"2003Our TownThe Stage ManagerShowtime / PBS Television film 2005Empire FallsMax RobyHBO miniseries; two episodes2022 The Last Movie Stars HimselfPosthumous release; HBO Max docu-series; archival footage2023Restless - Being Paul Newman Posthumous release; television documentary; archival footage
Theatre YearTitleRolePlaywright Venue1949 Harvey Elwood P. Dowd Mary Chase Belfry Players Theater, Williams Bay, Wisconsin1951 Phaedra Hippolytus of Athens Jean-Baptiste Racine Yale University Experimental Theatre1952 Beethoven Karl van Beethoven Dorothy B. Bland Yale University Theater, New Haven, Connecticut1953 Picnic Alan Seymour William Inge Music Box Theatre, Broadway1955 The Desperate Hours Glenn Griffin Joseph Hayes Ethel Barrymore Theatre, Broadway1959 Sweet Bird of Youth Chance Wayne Tennessee Williams Martin Beck Theatre, Broadway1964 Baby, Want a Kiss? Emil James Costigan Little Theatre, Broadway2002 Our Town The Stage Manager Thornton Wilder Booth Theatre, Broadway 2004 Trumbo Dalton Trumbo Christopher Trumbo Westport Country Playhouse, Westport, Connecticut
Video games YearTitleVoice roleNotes2006CarsDoc Hudson Voice
As director or producer YearFilmNotes1962On the Harmful Effects of TobaccoDirector and producer (name removed from sole 16mm print)1968Rachel, RachelGolden Globe Award for Best Director - Motion PictureNew York Film Critics Circle Award for Best DirectorNominated – Academy Award for Best PictureNominated – Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding Directing – Feature Film1969Butch Cassidy and the Sundance KidCo-executive producer (uncredited)Winning1970WUSACo-producerSometimes a Great NotionDirector and co-executive producer1971They Might Be GiantsProducer1972The Effect of Gamma Rays on Man-in-the-Moon MarigoldsDirector and producerNominated – Palme d'Or for Best DirectorThe Life and Times of Judge Roy BeanCo-executive producer (uncredited)1980The Shadow BoxNominated – Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Directing for a Miniseries, Movie or a Dramatic Special1984Harry & SonDirector and producer1987The Glass MenagerieDirectorNominated – Palme d'Or for Best Director2005Empire FallsExecutive producerNominated – Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding MiniseriesNominated – Producers Guild of America Award for Outstanding Producer of Long-Form Television
See also List of awards and nominations received by Paul Newman
References
External links