Carried by Paul Newman
I met Paul Newman on the set of The Hustler, a film my father had written the screenplay for. I was a boy and quickly bored by the slow going of a movie set. What I remember most about that day was every time Newman had a break in filming he would come over, sit down nearby, and perform goofy tricks for me. He smoked Salem cigarettes and must have done four different tricks with the pack alone. I was mesmerized and thought this was the greatest guy in the room. The fact he was around the corner from becoming the most famous movie star in the world meant nothing to me. That day he was your favorite uncle who whenever he appears, is full of jokes and tricks and wonders just for you.
A couple of years later I was in Los Angeles on the 4th of July. My family went to a party given by a friend of Newman’s. The actor arrived that day with a bunch of his children. He had on a bright orange flight suit — the kind jet fighter pilots wear. Even then I thought how cool it was for a guy to wear that on just any day. I waved to him but he didn’t wave back. There were a lot of people at the party and he disappeared into the crowd.
Half an hour later someone touched me on the shoulder. Before I had a chance to turn around he said, “Don’t tell anyone, but I've got firecrackers. Want to go shoot them off?” Fireworks of any kind are sex to 12 year old boys, so I would have gone with Dracula if he’d had some. Turning around to that famous voice, I saw the great orange suit and off we snuck. He knew exactly where he wanted to go — way down back in a field behind the house. It was just the two of us and we trotted to get there because he was in such a hurry to start. He kept looking at me and grinning — that famous Paul Newman ‘Cool Hand Luke’ grin— two adventurers off on a secret mission.
When we got to the spot, he reached into his pocket and pulled out a bunch of small red firecrackers. He lit one, tossed it in the air and we jumped back. It exploded with a great loud satisfying BAM! He handed the next one to me along with the pack of matches. I lit mine and immediately it blew up in my hand. Both of us stood stunned, staring. I don’t remember if it was blackened or bloody, but something must have looked really bad because Newman immediately snatched me up, threw me over his shoulder and ran full speed for the house. In the end I was fine; no big deal. Hands washed and a couple of Band Aids later I went back to the party.
Paul Newman running with a kid on his shoulder, only a father then, scared the boy was hurt, ready to do anything to make it better. That’s how I will remember him.
Jonathan Carroll is the author of over 20 novels and short story collections. His latest novel “Bathing the Lion” is now available in trade paperback. If you liked this piece, there’s lots more on his monthly newsletter. You can subscribe here
