Who shared more than just their Good looks
Onscreen…
The recent passing of Robert Redford at age 89
on September 16th. For reasons unknown, made me Flashback to a passage in Shawn
Levy’s Paul Newman: A Life Biography, that I extensively chronicled here upon
No Fenders in Gory 2022.
The portion I fondly recalled, involved a
certain Sports Car being mischievously given as a gift to one of our two
Hollywood Hunks. Although I searched the All knowing Intrawoods’ to “See” if I’d remembered correctly?
Since after all,
everything on Al gore’s wonderous invention is true, Righto?
Yeah, Redford indeed pulled a massive prank
upon ‘Ol Blue Eyes, ergo Paul Newman for His 50th Birthday in 1975! As Newman
was born January 25, 1925, and Redford born August 18, 1936.
As I’d never before been curious of their
respective age difference, with Newman being some 11.5-plus years older, with
Redford still being 38yrs old when pranking Newman…
Both Redford and Newman were huge
Porscheaphiles’, as I didn’t know until Redford’s death. That He’d once owned
an ultra rare 1964 Porsche 904 Carrera GTS, which He purchased in 1966, and
owned for some ten years.
Thus Redford owned this ultra rare racecar some
three years before His breakthrough to Stardom in Butch Cassidy and The
Sundance Kid, which debuted on September 23, 1969. Following Paul Newman
starring in Winning, which was initially released on May 17th. With both films
being produced by Newman Foreman Company.
Redford became annoyed with how much Newman
incessantly talked about racing and cars. And thus, for Newman’s 50th Birthday,
Redford had a wrecked, totally scrapped Porsch delivered to Newman’s home!
Reportedly, Redford says they were both living
in Connecticut then, and He called a local towing service. Asking if they had
any crushed cars, specifically Porsche’s on hand?
Funny you should ask that. We just so happen to
have a Porsche that was totally crushed by a car falling upon it sitting here.
To which Redford said hold it. I want to wrap it in paper and put a bow on it. Then
He asked if they could deliver it to Paul Newman’s house and put it on His back
porch!
Next, Newman retaliated. As a few weeks later,
a large wooden crate was surreptitiously delivered to Redford’s rented
Connecticut House. Which when Redford opened the crate, contained a wrecked
Porsche automobile that had been crushed into a cube!
Yet undaunted, Redford had the last laugh of
this prank. Having a sculptor friend turn the Porsche cube into a piece of
Garden Art which you guessed it. Was immediately placed in Newman’s garden…
As the best thing about this, and presumably
other countless ensuing pranks. Is that neither man ever mentioned one iota
about them to each other.
You can read my Paul Newman book review in the
following No Fenders link…
Paul
Newman’s A Life Book review
Or pass “GO”, without collecting $200, and skip
directly to my Paul Newman racing career tome instead…
Diving
into Paul Newman’s Racing career
(Info source: rennlist.com)
