Few, if any, movie stars achieve the level of celebrity of Paul Newman without good fortune. No one recognized that more than the screen legend himself.
Newman's luck did not begin with his three-year stint in the U.S. Navy during World War II. He understood during his years in the Pacific (and then in Hollywood) that fate fell in his favor more than once.
Also Read: Why it took 2 decades for 'Patton' to make it to the big screen
While serving his country, forces beyond his control likely saved Newman's life. If a pilot in his squadron hadn't come down with an ear issue, Newman might have died at Okinawa—one of the bloodiest battles in military history. Then Newman was supposed to take part in the invasion of mainland ***** an. Dubbed Operation Downfall, Allied commanders called it off after the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
Newman, who died on September 26, 2008, at the age of 83, admittedly didn't fully consider the potential consequences when he enlisted.
"I thought it would be a big adventure," Newman said of joining the military during wartime. "I was really dumb. I never considered that it might be dangerous."
Academy Award-winning actor Paul Newman served in the Navy for 3 years. (U.S. Navy illustration/Peggy Frierson)
Born on January 26, 1925, in Ohio, Newman was in his first year at Ohio University when he dropped out. Newman signed up for the Navy with the intent of becoming a pilot. He never made it to the ***** pit after a supposedly routine exam revealed he was colorblind.
Newman pivoted from that diagnosis and began training as a rear gunner and radioman for Grumman TBF Avenger torpedo bombers. In the Pacific, the Navy ***** igned Newman to squadrons that trained air crews and pilots. After a stint as a turret gunner, the plan was for Newman and his squadron to meet up with the USS Bunker Hill, an aircraft carrier stationed near the shore of Okinawa.
They never made it that far after their pilot wasn't medically cleared to fly. That turned out to be a likely life-saver after the ***** anese unleashed kamikaze attacks on the USS Bunker Hill on May 11, 1945. Nearly 400 men on the carrier died, with 264 more wounded.
It wasn't the only time that Newman, then only 20 years old, skirted death during the war. He did it again a few months later. When the United States dropped an atomic bomb on Hiroshima on August 6, 1945, Newman was on an aircraft carrier several hundred miles from ***** an. Three days later, another bomb destroyed Nagasaki.
Approximately 214,000 ***** anese citizens, including roughly 38,000 children, died in the attacks, per the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN). Those numbers don't include those who were maimed. While President Harry S. Truman's decision remains a source of debate, but Newman didn't question it.
"I know all of the controversy about those weapons," Newman said. "But I'm one of those guys who says, 'Thank God for the atomic bomb,' because it pro
Newman's luck did not begin with his three-year stint in the U.S. Navy during World War II. He understood during his years in the Pacific (and then in Hollywood) that fate fell in his favor more than once.
Also Read: Why it took 2 decades for 'Patton' to make it to the big screen
While serving his country, forces beyond his control likely saved Newman's life. If a pilot in his squadron hadn't come down with an ear issue, Newman might have died at Okinawa—one of the bloodiest battles in military history. Then Newman was supposed to take part in the invasion of mainland ***** an. Dubbed Operation Downfall, Allied commanders called it off after the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
Newman, who died on September 26, 2008, at the age of 83, admittedly didn't fully consider the potential consequences when he enlisted.
"I thought it would be a big adventure," Newman said of joining the military during wartime. "I was really dumb. I never considered that it might be dangerous."
Academy Award-winning actor Paul Newman served in the Navy for 3 years. (U.S. Navy illustration/Peggy Frierson)
Born on January 26, 1925, in Ohio, Newman was in his first year at Ohio University when he dropped out. Newman signed up for the Navy with the intent of becoming a pilot. He never made it to the ***** pit after a supposedly routine exam revealed he was colorblind.
Newman pivoted from that diagnosis and began training as a rear gunner and radioman for Grumman TBF Avenger torpedo bombers. In the Pacific, the Navy ***** igned Newman to squadrons that trained air crews and pilots. After a stint as a turret gunner, the plan was for Newman and his squadron to meet up with the USS Bunker Hill, an aircraft carrier stationed near the shore of Okinawa.
They never made it that far after their pilot wasn't medically cleared to fly. That turned out to be a likely life-saver after the ***** anese unleashed kamikaze attacks on the USS Bunker Hill on May 11, 1945. Nearly 400 men on the carrier died, with 264 more wounded.
It wasn't the only time that Newman, then only 20 years old, skirted death during the war. He did it again a few months later. When the United States dropped an atomic bomb on Hiroshima on August 6, 1945, Newman was on an aircraft carrier several hundred miles from ***** an. Three days later, another bomb destroyed Nagasaki.
Approximately 214,000 ***** anese citizens, including roughly 38,000 children, died in the attacks, per the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN). Those numbers don't include those who were maimed. While President Harry S. Truman's decision remains a source of debate, but Newman didn't question it.
"I know all of the controversy about those weapons," Newman said. "But I'm one of those guys who says, 'Thank God for the atomic bomb,' because it pro
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