Paul Newman, 'Cool Hand Luke' and Huntington, West Virginia

[appalachiablue]

Last edited Thu Dec 8, 2022, 11:07 PM - Edit history (2)

Pt.1. It's been 40 years since the release of Cool Hand Luke, starring Paul Newman in 1967. Before filming began, a Huntington family introduced Newman (from Cleveland) to parts of WV that helped him produce one of his most legendary roles. WV Public Broadcasting, 2008. (9 mins.).
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- Cool Hand Luke is a 1967 prison drama film directed by Stuart Rosenberg, starring Paul Newman & featuring George Kennedy in an Oscar-winning performance. Newman stars in the title role as Luke, a prisoner in a Florida prison camp who refuses to submit to the system. Set in the early 1950s, it is based on Donn Pearce's 1965 novel, Cool Hand Luke. Roger Ebert called the movie an anti-establishment film shot during emerging popular opposition to the Vietnam War. Filming took place within Calif's San Joaquin River Delta region; the set, imitating a prison farm in the Deep South, was based on photographs made by a crew sent to a Road Prison in Gainesville, FL. The film uses Christian imagery.

The film received favorable reviews & was a box-office success. It cemented Newman's status as one of the era's top actors, & was called the "touchstone of an era". He was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor, Kennedy won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor..

In 2005, the United States Library of Congress selected the film for preservation in the National Film Registry, considering it "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant". The film has a 100% rating on the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, & the prison warden's (Strother Martin) line in the film, which begins with "What we've got here is failure to communicate", was listed at number 11 on the American Film Institute's 100 Years... 100 Movie Quotes list...https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cool_Hand_Luke

- Roger Ebert film review, https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/cool-hand-luke-1967

Pt. 2. (3 mins.). West Virginia Public Broadcasting, 2008.

-- PAUL LEONARD NEWMAN (Jan. 26, 1925 – Sept. 26, 2008) was an American actor, film director, race car driver, philanthropist, & entrepreneur. He was the recipient of numerous awards, including an Academy Award, a BAFTA Award, 3 Golden Globe Awards, a Screen Actors Guild Award, a Primetime Emmy Award, a Silver Bear, a Cannes Film Festival Award, & the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award. Born in Shaker Heights, a suburb of Cleveland, Newman showed an interest in theater as a child & at age 10 performed in a stage production of Saint George & the Dragon at the Cleveland Play House.

He received his BA degree in drama & economics from Kenyon College in 1949. After touring with several summer stock companies including the Belfry Players, Newman attended the Yale School of Drama for a year before studying at the Actors Studio under Lee Strasberg. His first starring Broadway role was in William Inge's Picnic, & he starred in smaller roles for a few more films before receiving widespread attention & acclaim for his performances in Somebody Up There Likes Me (1956) & Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1958), the latter of which also starred Elizabeth Taylor...https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Newman
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*JFK: WINNING WEST VIRGINIA * JFK's Primary Campaign 1960, JFK Library . - "I would not be where I now am, I would not have some of the responsibilities which I now bear, if it had not been for the people of West Virginia." - President John F. Kennedy, June 20, 1963.

Religious bigotry was one of John F. Kennedy’s greatest adversaries in the 1960 Presidential primary campaign. In West Virginia, he confronted the issue head-on and defeated it. In early April, JFK arrived in WV, a rural state with a struggling economy, to discover that a strong lead in a state poll tracked 4 months earlier had evaporated. He now trailed his opponent, Senator Hubert Humphrey, by 20 points. The explanation came from Kennedy’s advisors: “No one in West Virginia knew you were a Catholic in December. Now they know.” Yet just 4 weeks later, the people of West Virginia handed him a stunning victory that he credited with securing the Democratic nomination for President.

Sweeping a state in which Catholics comprised barely 5 % of the population, Senator Kennedy proved that a Catholic candidate could win votes.

JFK’s campaign in West Virginia was all-out. He traveled up and down the state—meeting thousands of voters, listening to their stories and speaking at large events and small gatherings. He shone a national spotlight on their plight and detailed a plan for economic recovery. He commended their strength in the face of adversity. He affirmed the separation of church and state. And on May 10, 1960, the people of an economically distressed, overwhelmingly Protestant, hardscrabble state in Appalachia put their trust in the elegant, young Catholic senator, who spoke in a Boston accent about a brighter future. He won their votes, & they won his heart. The people of WV,—their kindness & fairness, their grit & etermination & patriotism—made their mark on this young candidate and helped to shape the President he would become...
https://www.jfklibrary.org/visit-museum/exhibits/past-exhibits/winning-west-virginia-jfks-primary-campaign

[Doc Sportello]

1. One of my favorite all-time movies and what a run for Newman

Earlier, there was Hud and the Hustler, then as it said, Cool Hand Luke cemented his reputation as one of the greats.

I read a bio of JFK talking about the role WV played in his campaign. Later, Bobby toured Appalachia and that - along with Michael Harrington's book - inspired the Kennedys efforts to improve conditions for people in the region.

Thanks for posting. It showed that culture, including great movies, are intimately entwined with the era and places they portray.

[appalachiablue]

4. Great film, I saw it and Exodus as a kid. Newman's later performance in

The Verdict was stellar, what a landmark. I didn't know about Harrington's influence on Bobby, well done. Thanks for posting Doc.

My mom and brother attended an LBJ rally in that solid Democratic era in WV politics. In later years I met Caroline Kennedy and Ted Kennedy, Sr. at conferences which was very special.

[Doc Sportello]

5. I didn't phrase that very well on Harrington

His 1962 book was The Other America and it influenced many in government, but especially JFK, as it led to a more comprehensive approach to tackling problems of poverty. LBJ of course followed up with the War on Poverty and programs like Medicare.

That is so cool that you got to meet Caroline and Teddy. I've seen a few pols speak like Eugene McCarthy and Obama when he was running for the Senate but never got to meet any. You have some great memories there.

[rsdsharp]

2. 40 years? 1967 was 55 years ago.

God I’m old!

[appalachiablue]

3. The local program was made in 2007. We're older but still fighting strong

for democracy! I saw this great film as a kid, what a time.

[twodogsbarking]

6. Turn your clock back.