The Extraordinary Life of an Ordinary Man: A Memoir

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One reason I always thought Brando was interesting was that in the world of actors, he initiated an attitude that in no way catered to the hierarchy of the Hollywood studios. Not because he bangs on about his glorious deeds – in fact, he barely mentions them at all – but because this once very private man reveals so much of his fascinating, never disappointing self. It was still a novelty that a movie actor was racing, so not unexpectedly there were photographers everywhere.

It does help you feel like you know him as a person, and in compiling it they've done a good job of bringing in a few other voices from other people he had interviewed. Full of wonderful stories and recollections by his family, friends, and such luminaries as Elia Kazan, Tom Cruise, George Roy Hill and Martin Ritt, this book will surprise and shock readers as it reveals Newman's previously unknown sides.And in this way, we would learn about the man, the actor, his flaws, his imperfections, and the realness of him. Decades of smoking, drinking and pain produced a rusty baritone that could narrate its way to the very soul of a man’s regret. Newman was the recipient ofnumerous awards, including anAcademy Award, aBAFTA Award, threeGolden Globe Awards, aScreen Actors Guild Award, aPrimetime Emmy Award, theCecil B. Perhaps the most moving material in the book centers around his relationship with Joanne Woodward - their love for each other, his dependence on her, the way she shaped him intellectually, emotionally and sexually.

He puts to shame the vacous celebrities and film stars of today, and the meaningless blockbusters that fill our screens. His children found much of the documents long after his death and decided to share it with the public. Per his daughter, “his obituary in the economist noted he was the most generous individual, relative to income, in the twentieth century history of the United State.More culpably, he also urged his son, Scott – an addict and an unsuccessful actor, with whom his relationship was “a dance of death” – to take high-speed risks on the road. Five years of conversation ensued until, as one of his daughters relays, the men pretty much overwhelmed themselves out of it. I recognize it in almost anything: plumbers, museum guides, limousine drivers, bank tellers—I delight in seeing it. It's rare to hear a man, particularly one of Newman's generation, speak with such frankness about his failures and his emotions or lack thereof. The additional voices - from childhood friends and Navy buddies, from family members and film and theater collaborators such as Tom Cruise, George Roy Hill, Martin Ritt, and John Huston - that run throughout add richness and color and context to the story Newman is telling.