Being a philanthropist made Paul Newman very proud and happy. You could tell it in his face when he saw the people who were affected by his programs relishing the experience. News of his passing last weekend felt closer to home because of the time he spent in Seattle with us a little more than a year ago. During that time, we helped him co-found and launch Camp Korey, a camp for seriously ill children where they can "hike, fish and raise a little hell."
We were asked to help with the project by our friends at Costco. As with the Dalai Lama’s visit, I gathered an experienced group of those I trusted most from DDB Public Relations and the amazing group of marketing pros from our client The Space Needle to handle the project.
I had a few brief encounters with Paul Newman in the course of planning the opening of the camp which is on the site of the historic Carnation Farm on the outskirts of our city. His legendary acting career and his passion for auto racing kept him going well past his 80th birthday and that pleased him too. He talked openly about his age and even made jokes about being the “old man” in the crowd and how people would try to help him move around. Honestly, when I first met him, he looked like Paul Newman’s grandfather but he still had charisma and those blue eyes that could speak more than words. He may have needed some help but he didn’t show it when he was touring the famous farm where kids who are facing some pretty bleak health issues can go now and just have fun.
Talking about his movies was something I tried to avoid, although I’ve seen every one several times, even revisiting Cool Hand Luke about twice a month. Having "a failure to communicate" always inspires me. I think I know his part by heart. He was the same age as my mother so we could talk about the times that they had lived through in the 40’s, 50’s and 60’s…he loved the 60’s. He said when you got involved then, you made waves and things changed. If he said it once to me, he said it twenty times, “I’m just a lucky guy who had a pretty face.” We all know he was much more than that but his saying it is proof of the man that he was…gentle, courteous (he tipped his baseball cap to ladies), smart and a little bit shy. He loved a good joke. He and David Letterman, who I worked with when I was gaining some broadcast experience, shared a passion for race cars. He was a frequent guest on the Letterman show. When Letterman moved from NBC to CBS and into the Ed Sullivan Theater next to the long-running Broadway show “Cats”, Paul hid in the audience on opening night and suddenly stood up and interrupted the proceedings by yelling, “Hey! Where the hell are those singin' cats?!” His deadpan was perfect and it brought down the house.
Paul Newman really did want to be remembered for Newman’s Own, the company he started in his basement that has grown into a $250 million food enterprise…and every dollar made goes to charities like Camp Korey. He liked food and he liked recipes. Cooking moved his mind in a different direction, he told me. Sometimes is was necessary to be precise and other times, it was just a pinch of this and that. It was fun. We shared a love for sushi and talked a lot about different pieces of fish that we had tried. A Seattle friend introduced him to Toyoda Sushi on Lake City Way and it so happens that is one of my favorite places as well. We had some laughs talking about trying to stump the chef with fish organs we had read about.
Paul Newman was a man of substance. He brought his daughter Nell, who started the company with him, and her family to the launch of Camp Korey, now one of his Hole-In-The-Wall-Gang camps. He showed off the whole brood to us, as proud as a dad can be. I was able to get my friend Jean Enersen an exclusive interview with him while he was here and they made a solid connection talking about all aspects of his life and career. Now, Camp Korey is a part of his legacy that does more than make an impact. It changes lives. He seemed to love doing that in my mind…a very quiet-type of stewardship.
Awards did not seem important to him. He told me he was surprised about every one of his Oscar nominations and even more astounded by winning. “I was just doing a job that I loved,” he said. We won two awards for the agency with the work we did for him on Camp Korey. It was Paul Newman and his generosity that made it happen. I sent a note through his assistant telling him how honored we were to work with him and to win these awards on his behalf. His message back was “Congratulations. Now do something good for it.”
My cherished memories will live on in me. As time passes and we grow older, he will always be Butch and Cool Hand Luke in our minds. I will miss the gentleman who made us all take a hard look at what we can do with our lives.
Dan Mc
Posted by Dan McConnell on September 29, 2008 3:25 PM
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