Paul Newman Quotes

I was terrorized by the emotional requirements of being an actor. Acting is like letting your pants down; you're exposed.

The first time I remember women reacting to me was when we were filming Hud in Texas. Women were literally trying to climb through the transoms at the motel where I stayed. At first, it's flattering to the ego. At first. Then you realize that they're mixing me up with the roles I play — characters created by writers who have nothing to do with who I am.

You only grow when you are alone.

"To that extent that you can sustain and maintain that childlike part of your personality is probably the best part of acting.

Quoted in "Paul Newman's Road To Glory", interview with Paul Fischer, Film Monthly (2002-07-01)"

You can get straight As in marketing and still flunk ordinary life. — NEWMAN TO LEE IACOCCA AFTER IACOCCA’S PINTO CAUGHT FIRE

When I realized I was going to have to be a whore, to put my face on the label, I decided that the only way I could do it was to give away all the money we make. Over the years, that ethical stance has given us a 30 per cent boost. One in three customers buys my products because all the profits go to good causes and the rest buy the stuff because it is good.

"On adultery: "Why fool around with hamburger when you have steak at home?

This is not a celebrity issue. This is a political issue and the concept that a person who has a lot holds his hand out to someone who has less, or someone who isn't hurting holds his hand out to someone who is, is simply a human trait that has nothing to do with celebrity. I am confounded at the stinginess of some institutions and some people. I'm bewildered by it. You can only put away so much stuff in your closet. In 1987, the average CEO against someone who was working in his factory was 70 times. It's now 410 times. If you eliminate the middle class, which we are slowly doing, incidentally, Aristotle said the greatest government is the government that has the least number of people on each end. It makes sense. So, I don't think that there's anything exceptional or noble in being philanthropic. It's the other attitude that confuses me.

Those with a moral deficit put on a good show, and sleep like a baby.

I like racing but food and pictures are more thrilling. I can't give them up. In racing you can be certain, to the last thousandth of a second, that someone is the best, but with a film or a recipe, there is no way of knowing how all the ingredients will work out in the end. The best can turn out to be awful and the worst can be fantastic. Cooking is like performing and performing like cooking.

I picture my epitaph: 'Here lies Paul Newman, who died a failure because his eyes turned brown.

It's always darkest before it turns absolutely pitch black.

"There are two Newman's laws. The first one is "It is useless to put on your brakes when you're upside down." The second is "Just when things look darkest, they go black.

It's been a privilege to be here.

I'm a supporter of gay rights. And not a closet supporter either. From the time I was a kid, I have never been able to understand attacks upon the gay community. There are so many qualities that make up a human being... by the time I get through with all the things that I really admire about people, what they do with their private parts is probably so low on the list that it is irrelevant.