Paul Newman, the Extraordinary Life of an Ordinary Man, A Memoir, a Review

Worth a second look…

Pilgrim on a Long, Long Journey

When I was in high school, I saw The Hustler, an excellent film about a pool hustler, about three times. I bought my pool cue and became an avid pool player. It was a magnificent film that introduced me to Paul Newman.

Later on, I spent my sophomore year in college living in the fraternity house where Joanne Woodward’s aunt, Aunt Nancy, was the housemother. One evening she brought her sister, Joanne Woodward’s mother, to dinner and we all had time to meet her.

For obvious reasons, I followed Paul Newman’s career carefully and enjoyed other films of his, including Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid and The Sting.

Before reading this book, I had already read Paul’s dear friend, A. E. Hotchner’s biography of Paul. The two books were very different.

Hochner’s went slightly deep, but David Rosenthal’s, the editor, went much deeper. All the interviews and oral…

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Refraining and Comforting

“My feeling is that there is nothing in life but refraining from hurting others, and comforting those that are sad.” Olive Schreiner, the late South African writer. Loving others is central to the Good Book.

Lord knows I need to get better at both. I can tear up during a poignant scene in a movie or the sight of a wounded child on the news. But, consistently offering compassion and kindness in my daily life, that only can get better in God’s hands.That’s love.