Paul Newman: A Life [Paperback]

A racy leading man, a devoted husband and father, an American icon. Any of these would describe Hollywood legend Paul Newman. Almost everyone the world over knows the public story of America's heartthrob, but few know what really went on beyond the silver screen—until now. Quirk's book chronicles how Newman, armed with his astonishing good looks and what his acting teacher called magnetic presence, rushed into acting and marriage to get away from his father's disapproving eye. As Quirk deftly unveils, however, Newman was unprepared to settle down, and the vows of marriage only served to ward off rumors of his suspected homosexuality. Quirk details Newman's rocky marriage, the joyful birth of his first child, and his first acting breaks on Broadway where he met his second wife, Joanne Woodward.Lawrence J. Quirk is the author of over thirty books, includingThe Kennedys in Hollywood,Fasten Your Seat Belts: The Passionate Life of Bette Davis, andRobert Francis Kennedy. Quirk lives in New York City.[E]ngaging and revealing . . . Recommended.This biography takes a comprehensive approach to this great actor/director's life, examining all aspects of his character, fair or foul, both on and off the screen. . . . A superb biography....[O]verall an honest biography...a tribute to a man whose life story would be done an injustice by anything less vivid.Paul Newmanpresents a very human view of the film icon, a top pick for biography collections with a focus on the silver screen.