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MILLER: Paul Newman, an American Original
Written by: Robin Miller   
09/27/2008
Indianapolis, Ind.
 
Two of a kind: Mario Andretti and PL Newman. (LAT photo) ยป More Photos

He was a reluctant movie star, a philanthropist of magnanimous proportions, a late-blooming race driver, a happily married father, a passionate car owner and a guy's guy who enjoyed his beer, telling stories and hanging out at the track.

But the main reason Paul Newman had such a love affair with auto racing for the past 40 years was the essence of this very special man.

"He enjoyed everything about our world and he definitely felt embraced," said Mario Andretti. "But everyone respected his privacy and gave him space.

"And he really cherished just being one of the boys."

While it may be hard to imagine this Hollywood icon blending in with the scenery, that's exactly what he did from the time he started sports car racing in the '70s with PLN scribbled on the side of his car to his last appearance at Milwaukee this past June.

Whether he was perched in the corner of his garage watching the crew change engines, standing on the podium with Carl Haas, competing at the 24 Hours of Daytona, riding his scooter through the paddock, testing a sprint car or chatting up one of his legendary drivers, Newman never acted like a person of privilege, he just felt privileged to be part of the action.

Acting was how he made his living, but it ran a distant second to racing.

Hollywood was make believe, but racing was reality and it gave him a satisfaction like nothing he ever experienced in front of a camera. Newman said many times that driving fast was the one thing he felt like he had an aptitude for and it challenged him like nothing else.

"When Paul started driving for my dad, he was just so enthusiastic and full of questions and he could not get anough of racing," said Scott Sharp, who teamed with Newman in his dad's (Bob) Datsun 240Zs in Trans-Am.

"I mean, you've got to remember he was in his mid-40s when he started and he really had natural ability. You can only imagine where he might have gone if he'd started in his 20s."

Winning SCCA National titles and Trans-Am races confirmed his talent yet his appetite for faster cars never went away. He tested super-modifieds, stock cars, midgets,
dirt modifieds and sprint cars.

Three years ago, dirt-track ace Corey Kruseman took some of his 850-horsepower sprinters out to Perris Speedway near Riverside, Calif. so Sebastien Bourdais, Bruno Junqueira, Paul Tracy and Newman could hot lap them on the half-mile dirt track. Bourdais could not believe his eyes.

"Here's this 80-year-old guy who weighs about 125 pounds guy thowing this sprint car into the corner," recalled the four-time Champ Car king. "I mean, these things are powerful and then he gets in too hot and rides up on the wall. Thankfully, it came back down on all four wheels instead of flipping.

"Paul came in with a big grin on his face and said: 'Can you imagine how you guys would have explained that to Joanne (Woodward, his wife)?"

About that same time, the great writer Brock Yates was toying with the idea of bringing back the original Cannonball Baker Sea-to-Shining-Sea Memorial Trophy dash (of which I'd had the pleasure of running in 1972). Eddie Wirth, a helluva racer on two or four wheels, was PLN's best bud so I approached them about teaming up.

Newman's response was classic: "There's no way Joanne would ever let me do that," he said. I screamed back: 'First of all, your Paul F...... Newman, you can do whatever you want and, besides, you almost killed yourself in a sprint car a couple months ago and this will be tame compared to that."

He grinned and put his index finger up to his mouth and indicated he had not shared that latest adventure with his wife. But by the end of the summer he'd started asking questions about who might be in the Cannonball, how long it might take and what kind of car we would use. I responded by saying whatever car he could promote. "Oh, so that's why you want me on the team?," he said.

No, not really, was my response. We want you because every time we get stopped for speeding by the state troopers, they'll recognize you and let us skate.

"Don't bet on that," he chuckled. "I'm not that big anymore. Hell, I don't even recognize me."

Of course it was that self-depreciating sense of humor that endeared Newman to everyone lucky enough to become his friend.

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