PAUL NEWMAN
1925 – 2008
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I was 12 years-old, in the 7th grade, a Californian suddenly living in a suburb of Dallas and feeling totally lost and out of place, when I saw Cool Hand Luke the first time. I resonated to the character then and still do in some ways. While “What we have here is failure to communicate” is the most well-known line from the movie, the line I remember most is a beaten-down Luke telling a guard – “Calling it your job don't make it right, Boss.”
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Two years later, for a Father’s Day present my brother and I took Dad to see Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. Dad reluctantly went. He didn’t enjoy going to the movies any longer. I can still hear Dad laughing throughout Butch & Sundance. "Think ya used enough dynamite there, Butch?" "Rules? In a knife fight? No rules."
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Thank you, Mr. Newman. Rest in peace.
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Some of my favorite Newman movies are:
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Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid
Cool Hand Luke
Nobody’s Fool
The Verdict
The Sting
The Hustler
Hud
Harper
Absence of Malice
Cars