Paul Newman: A Life

Paul Newman: A Life
by Shawn Levy

Paul Newman: A Life
List Price: $29.99
Our Price: $3.00
You Save: $26.99 (90%)
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Buy Used: from $0.01 (click here)
Category: Book
See more book details and other editions


(Click here)
Buy this book at online book store in your country
Canada | UK | Germany | France

Book Summary Information

Author: Shawn Levy
Edition: Hardcover
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Format: Deckle Edge
Published: 2009-05-05
ISBN: 0307353753
Number of pages: 496
Publisher: Crown Archetype
Product features:
  • Brown boards

Book Reviews of Paul Newman: A Life

Book Review: Tasteful Biography of a Class Act!
Summary: 5 Stars

As revealed in Shawn Levy's delightful biography, Paul Newman was many things. An actor, producer, director, race car driver and humanitarian, he was a fascinating human being - talented, analytical, grounded, private, compassionate, involved. Though his stunning, blue-eyed looks set him apart, it was, in fact, his humility, intelligence and humanity that ultimately made him the class act so many people knew and loved. Shawn Levy examines this singular man in this well-written 2009 biography from Harmony Books.

Having recently slogged through biographies of Anthony Hopkins, George C. Scott and Jack Nicholson, Levy's book was a breath of fresh air...for several reasons. First, unlike those three "tortured geniuses," Paul Newman was a likeable human being. He had his faults and failings, as related in the book, but he did a fairly good job of keeping his demons under control. An atypical movie star, he had no use for Hollywood glitz and glamor. Most importantly, he never lost his innate humanity, setting the bar for Hollywood in terms of charity work.

Secondly, it is so refreshing to read a well-crafted biography that never sinks to the trash tabloid level nor does it bury you with reams of needless details. PAUL NEWMAN, A LIFE is a comprehensive, critical yet affectionate and well-done account of one man who made a difference...on many levels. Levy is a wordsmith, a craftsman with a first-rate command of the English language and a perceptive eye to boot. The book runs to 445 pages yet I never had the "enough already" feeling.

In short, PAUL NEWMAN, A LIFE provides a full and fascinating look at what was an intensely private man. Finishing it, there's a touch of sadness that such a talented, vital and productive individual is gone. A reporter once asked the actor what he owed his public. Newman paused for a moment and then simply said: "Thank you." Actually, Mr. Newman, it's the rest of us who should be saying "Thank you."

******
#800

Summary of Paul Newman: A Life

Paul Newman, the Oscar-winning actor with the legendary blue eyes, achieved superstar status by playing charismatic renegades, broken heroes, and winsome antiheroes in such revered films as The Hustler, Cool Hand Luke, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, The Verdict, The Color of Money, and Nobody?s Fool. But Newman was also an oddity in Hollywood: the rare box-office titan who cared about the craft of acting, the sexy leading man known for the staying power of his marriage, and the humble celebrity who made philanthropy his calling card long before it was cool.

The son of a successful entrepreneur, Newman grew up in a prosperous Cleveland suburb. Despite fears that he would fail to live up to his father?s expectations, Newman bypassed the family sporting goods business to pursue an acting career. After struggling as a theater and television actor, Newman saw his star rise in a tragic twist of fate, landing the role of boxer Rocky Graziano in Somebody Up There Likes Me when James Dean was killed in a car accident. Though he would joke about instances of ?Newman?s luck? throughout his career, he refused to coast on his stunning boyish looks and impish charm. Part of the original Actors Studio generation, Newman demanded a high level of rigor and clarity from every project. The artistic battles that nearly derailed his early movie career would pay off handsomely at the box office and earn him critical acclaim.

He applied that tenacity to every endeavor both on and off the set. The outspoken Newman used his celebrity to call attention to political causes dear to his heart, including civil rights and nuclear proliferation. Taking up auto racing in midlife, Newman became the oldest driver to ever win a major professional auto race. A food enthusiast who would dress his own salads in restaurants, he launched the Newman?s Own brand dedicated to fresh ingredients, a nonprofit juggernaut that has generated more than $250 million for charity.

In Paul Newman: A Life, film critic and pop culture historian Shawn Levy gives readers the ultimate behind-the-scenes examination of the actor?s life, from his merry pranks on the set to his lasting romance with Joanne Woodward to the devastating impact of his son?s death from a drug overdose. This definitive biography is a fascinating portrait of an extraordinarily gifted man who gave back as much as he got out of life and just happened to be one of the most celebrated movie stars of the twentieth century.

Actors & Actresses Books

Book Subjects
Most talked about in Actors & Actresses Books
Leaving a Doll's House: A Memoir ImageLeaving a Doll's House: A Memoir
by Claire Bloom
Little Brown & Co (T); Published: 1996-11; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $6.75
Price in other shops: $23.95
Ginger Rogers: A Bio-Bibliography (Bio-Bibliographies in the Performing Arts) ImageGinger Rogers: A Bio-Bibliography (Bio-Bibliographies in the Performing Arts)
by Jocelyn Faris
Greenwood; Published: 1994-03-14; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $72.00
Price in other shops: $99.95
But We Need the Eggs: The Magic of Woody Allen ImageBut We Need the Eggs: The Magic of Woody Allen
by Diane Jacobs
St Martins Pr; Published: 1982-06; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $98.81
Astaire and Rogers (Film and Culture Series) ImageAstaire and Rogers (Film and Culture Series)
by Edward Gallafent
Columbia University Press; Published: 2004-07-07; Paperback; Book
Best price: $3.22
Price in other shops: $25.00
The Good, the Bad, and Me: In My Anecdotage ImageThe Good, the Bad, and Me: In My Anecdotage
by Eli Wallach
Mariner Books; Published: 2006-05-08; Paperback; Book
Best price: $7.42
Price in other shops: $14.00
On The Couch ImageOn The Couch
by Lorraine Bracco
Penguin Audio; Published: 2006-06-06; Audio CD; Book
Best price: $1.00
Price in other shops: $34.95
A Promise to Ourselves: A Journey Through Fatherhood and Divorce ImageA Promise to Ourselves: A Journey Through Fatherhood and Divorce
by Alec Baldwin
St. Martin's Press; Published: 2008-09-23; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $0.01
Price in other shops: $24.95
There and Back Again: An Actor's Tale ImageThere and Back Again: An Actor's Tale
by Sean Astin, Joe Layden
St. Martin's Griffin; Published: 2005-10-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $8.00
Price in other shops: $14.95
Pieces of My Heart Low Price CD ImagePieces of My Heart Low Price CD
by Robert J. Wagner
HarperAudio; Published: 2009-09-15; Audio CD; Book
Best price: $3.84
Price in other shops: $14.99
Model Patient: My Life As an Incurable Wise-Ass ImageModel Patient: My Life As an Incurable Wise-Ass
by Karen Duffy
Harper Paperbacks; Published: 2001-11-13; Paperback; Book
Best price: $3.25
Price in other shops: $13.00
Similar Books and other products
Winning: The Racing Life of Paul Newman ImageWinning: The Racing Life of Paul Newman
by Matt Stone, Preston Lerner
Motorbooks; Published: 2009-10-09; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $2.29
Price in other shops: $30.00
Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (Two-Disc Collector's Edition) ImageButch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (Two-Disc Collector's Edition)
TCFHE; Release date: 2006-06-06; DVD
Best price: $10.00
Price in other shops: $19.98
Nobody's Fool / Fat Man & Little Boy (Double Feature) ImageNobody's Fool / Fat Man & Little Boy (Double Feature)
Lions Gate; Release date: 2008-03-18; DVD
Best price: $12.98
Furious Love: Elizabeth Taylor, Richard Burton, and the Marriage of the Century ImageFurious Love: Elizabeth Taylor, Richard Burton, and the Marriage of the Century
by Sam Kashner, Nancy Schoenberger
Harper; Published: 2010-06-15; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $6.99
Price in other shops: $27.99
The Long, Hot Summer ImageThe Long, Hot Summer
NEWMAN,PAUL; Release date: 2003-05-20; DVD
Best price: $6.23
Price in other shops: $14.98
Paul and Me: Fifty-three Years of Adventures and Misadventures with My Pal Paul Newman ImagePaul and Me: Fifty-three Years of Adventures and Misadventures with My Pal Paul Newman
by A E Hotchner
Nan A. Talese; Published: 2010-03-23; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $0.70
Price in other shops: $26.95
In Pursuit of the Common Good: Twenty-Five Years of Improving the World, One Bottle of Salad Dressing at a Time ImageIn Pursuit of the Common Good: Twenty-Five Years of Improving the World, One Bottle of Salad Dressing at a Time
by Paul Newman, A.E. Hotchner
Broadway; Published: 2008-08-12; Paperback; Book
Best price: $3.08
Price in other shops: $16.00
Paul and Me: Fifty-three Years of Adventures and Misadventures with My Pal Paul Newman ImagePaul and Me: Fifty-three Years of Adventures and Misadventures with My Pal Paul Newman
by A E Hotchner
Anchor; Published: 2011-04-19; Paperback; Book
Best price: $9.07
Price in other shops: $15.95
People: Paul Newman (People Tribute the Life of a Movie Legend) ImagePeople: Paul Newman (People Tribute the Life of a Movie Legend)
by Editors of People Magazine
People; Published: 2008-11-25; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $32.11
Robert Redford: The Biography ImageRobert Redford: The Biography
by Michael Feeney Callan
Knopf; Published: 2011-05-03; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $10.99
Price in other shops: $28.95
Book store. Illustrated catalog of books on different categories