Paul Newman announced last week that, at the age of 82, he is retiring from film work after a career spanning over 50 years with 40+ films. He has been nominated 9 times for Academy Awards (8 for acting and
1 for producing) finally winning on his 7th try. He will continue with his auto racing and food product production but felt that film work was too demanding, especially trying to remember his lines. There have long been rumors that Robert Redford had finally found a project for the two of them but apparently a rumor was all it was and movie lovers will be left wondering what if?If Newman does indeed hold to his retirement announcement then his last movie was the animated hit “Cars” from last summer. His last on screen performance was the HBO mini-series “Empire Falls” and his last big screen performance was 2002′s “Road To Perdition.”I can’t imagine a movie world where movie lovers can’t look forward to a new Paul Newman movie but its better he go out while he can and not be forced to due to illness or worse. I wanted to take a look back at his long and storied career with all the highs befitting his immense talent and all the lows befitting an actor working for money or simply choosing poorly.1950′s – Newman’s film debut came in 1954′s “The Silver Chalice,” a film so bad that Newman would later take out a newspaper ad apologizing and advising fans to never watch it. His next film got him his first real notices as boxer Rocky Graciano in “Somebody Up There Likes Me.” His next few films (The Rack; The Helen Morgan Story; Until They Sail) provided Newman with good roles that were little seen. 1958 saw the release of “The Long Hot Summer” and “Cat On A Hot Tin Roof” and the success of both films made Newman a movie star. He finished the decade with the forgettable “Rally Round the Flag, Boys” and the inspired “The Young Philadelphians.”
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