Paul Newman

I'm not one to go gah-gah over movie stars. Actors just don't impress me, at least not any more than anyone else impresses me. So when a famous actor dies, I generally don't get teary-eyed. I didn't KNOW them, for god's sake!

Today, it was different. It wasn't just an actor who died, it was Paul Newman. He seemed so genuinely real to me that I always felt that his acting was no act; he was revealing part of himself. I wasn't a nut-case fan; I didn't have to see a movie just because he was in it, I never tried to meet him, I never even thought about trying to get an autograph. But I did consider him to be a very special actor and I have always held him in high regard, both for his acting and for his humanitarian efforts.

Earlier today, when I sat at a bar in the Fort Lauderdale airport, drinking a beer while waiting for my flight, I fought back tears as I read of his death. He was a fine actor and a fine human being.