This column first appeared in July 2010.
I have many heroes in my life ranging from the rich and famous (Abraham Lincoln, Jimmy Carter, Harry Truman, Franklin D. Roosevelt, Martin Luther King, Jr. to name a few) to the not-so-rich and famous (My wife Rhonda, my kids Jasmine and Addison, and my mother Ruth McDuffee) as well as people I admire but really wouldn’t want to emulate (Hunter S. Thompson, Wilt Chamberlain, Frank Sinatra, Keith Richards). However, one of the people that I admire and aspire to emulate most has a strong connection to Indianapolis and the month of May, but is no longer with us. Although Paul Newman died on September 26, 2008, his spirit lives on at Indy and he’ll always be one of the first things I think of when my mind wanders to the Indy 500.
Way back in 1968, when I was a small child living on Bluebell Lane (near 34th & High School Road) on Indy’s west side, I remember laying in my room in the middle of the day listening to the sounds of cars whizzing around the Indianapolis Motor Speedway track while catnapping to the sound of speed. A.J. Foyt was a frequent visitor to our neighborhood (his chief mechanic lived two houses away) and my dad was a tower time keeper for over 40 years. Back then, the big deal for us was to walk over to the neighborhoods bordering the track to gaze upon sights usually only found in carnival sideshows. I remember seeing drunks sleeping in shopping carts and scantily clad women passed out in the grass of the Coca-Cola parking lot. We ALWAYS found money, pop bottles to return for 8 cents apiece and coolers full of goodies left over by departing race fans who were obviously flying home.
Even though I was very young, I can remember that in May of 1968, Hollywood came to town to film a major movie at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Although I didn’t know it at the time, the film was called “Winning,” and starred Paul Newman and his real-life wife, Joanne Woodward. The plot focused on an ambitious race driver determined to win the Indianapolis 500 in an effort to resurrect his flagging career. The film also starred Richard Thomas, soon to become more famous as John Boy on The Walton’s TV series and Robert Wagner (of Hart to Hart TV fame). Several real-life racing figures-including the Speedway’s owner, Tony Hulman, and race driver Bobby Unser, portrayed themselves in the movie.
I could have easily ridden my Schwinn “Greenie Meanie” 5-speed with sissy bar and wheelie poppers over to the Speedway Motel to see these guys, but I didn’t. They were filming many of the scenes in the motel itself and several of my neighbors and some of my family members could’ve gotten me access without a problem. Things were different then; there were no stalkers, no serial killers, and no crazy Manson family maniacs on the Indianapolis radar screen back then. Looking back, I sincerely wish I’d have made the trip.
Born January 25, 1925 in Shaker Heights, Ohio, Paul Newman showed an early propensity for acting and landed his first motion-picture role in 1954. He went on to star in more than 60 movies, including The Long Hot Summer, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, The Hustler, Hud, Cool Hand Luke, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, The Sting, Nobody’s Fool and Cars. He garnered 10 Academy Award nominations, including eight for Best Actor. His sole Oscar win came in 1986 (Best Actor) when he reprised his role from The Hustler as Fast Eddie Felson alongside Tom Cruise in The Color of Money.
Newman began racing cars as a hobby in 1972, three years after completing the movie Winning. Newman and Wagner attended the Bob Bondurant racing school to prepare for the movie and Newman performed many of the racing scenes himself without a stunt driver. The experience resonated with Newman for the rest of his life, to the point that he embarked on a successful second career as a driver. Newman’s greatest accomplishment as a driver was a second-place finish in the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1979, driving a Porsche 935. He remained active in endurance racing, making his last start at the Rolex 24 at Daytona International Speedway in 2006 at the age of 81. When he was racing, Newman kept a low profile at the track and maintained an intense focus on the task at hand. He always raced under the name P.L. Newman to avoid drawing attention to his status as a Hollywood icon.
Paul Newman, who died from cancer at the age of 83, was best-known as one of the most famous actors in the world, one of the most fervent race fans on the planet, one of the best race car drivers as a second career and in his role as founder of the popular Newman’s Own brand of organic food products, one of the most successful private sector philanthropists in the history of the United States, donating more than $250 million of after-tax profits to charity since 1982.
It helped fuel my admiration for Paul Newman to know that many of the values he stood for in his lifetime were shared by me. For his strong support of Eugene McCarthy in 1968 and his strong opposition to the War in Vietnam, Newman was placed 19th on Richard Nixon’s enemies list, which he claimed was his greatest accomplishment. He attended the first Earth Day event in Manhattan on April 22, 1970. Newman was a vocal supporter of gay rights, including same-sex marriage. Newman was concerned over global warming and supported alternative energy development as a solution to our nation’s addiction to fossil fuels. In short, he was a man with a conscience.
I was lucky; I got to meet Paul Newman several times at the track through my time keeper dad. Contrary to his reputation, he was always a gracious autograph signer for me and for anyone who was polite enough to say “please” and “thank you.” But it was an unexpected encounter in 1992 that I will cherish the most. I pulled into the Roselyn Bakery on Rockville road during the month of May to pick up Toffee Cookies for me and Butter Jumbles for my wife. As I waited in line behind a large crowd of people, I didn’t notice that there was a limousine parked idling at the side of the building.
I was standing in line holding my 2-year-old daughter Jasmine in my arms, waiting for my turn when the crowd of people parted and Paul Newman himself stepped out wearing his trademark glasses, smiled and said “Boo” to my daughter while tickling her tiny tummy. Jasmine squealed with delight and Paul Newman formed his finger and thumb into the shape of a gun and “shot” at us saying “Get the Butter Jumbles, they’re my favorite kid.” It happened so fast that before I knew it he was in the limo and out of the lot. Paul Newman was a good husband, father, grandfather and human being and I’m lucky that I had the opportunity to meet him.
When the Speedway Motel was torn down in February of last year, I recalled a quote from Newman’s last visit to my birth city a short time before his death, “It’s good to be back at Indianapolis,” he added. “It brings back a lot of fond memories. My favorite tradition was that it took a whole month. Indy started at the first of May, and you had your reservation at the Speedway Motel. If you wanted a room for two days, you took it for the whole month or you wouldn’t get it.”
So, if you really think about it and take that statement literally, it can easily be said that all of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway heroes of our youth, A.J. Foyt, Mario Andretti, Al and Bobby Unser, Rick Mears, Johnny Rutherford, Rodger Ward, Gordon Johncock, the Bettenhausens, the Vuckovichs, and Paul Newman called our city home for one month every year, the month of May in Indianapolis.
Al Hunter is the author of the “Haunted Indianapolis” and co-author of the “Haunted Irvington” and “Indiana National Road” book series. His newest books are “Bumps in the Night. Stories from the Weekly View,” “Irvington Haunts. The Tour Guide,” and “The Mystery of the H.H. Holmes Collection.” Contact Al directly at Huntvault@aol.com or become a friend on Facebook.
