Paul Newman Dead at 83; 'Luke' Left Local Legacy

"Paul Newman at Camp Korey," from the Camp Korey website

The news of Paul Newman's death yesterday from cancer has hit Seattlest especially hard. While the 83-year-old actor/writer/director/race car driver/activist/healthy food mogul touched millions of lives with his far-flung work, we were especially appreciative of Newman's work in helping to purchase the Carnation Farm last year and convert it from corporate training center to Camp Korey, a free camp for seriously-ill children. In recent years, after former owner Nestle shut down the dairy operation at the farm, locals feared that the 810-acre complex would become condo hell, much like Redmond Ridge and other icky places.

However, local investors, along with Newman, reached a deal last year to purchase the farm and add it to Newman's far-reaching network of camps which provide medically-supervised week-long stays, all free of charge. A few months ago, the camp began its first sessions.

Just last night, we parked on a bluff overlooking Camp Korey, walked the dogs, watched the leaves fall, skipped stones on the river, looked for elk and had a heart-to-heart with our sweetie. It's a magical place and we thank Mr. Newman and his family for saving it.

One of Newman's most famous roles was as "Cool Hand Luke" in the movie of the same name. (After seeing the movie, our father tagged our mother with the nickname "Luke" and it's stuck ever since. We don't claim to understand, but it's cute as hell.)

Here's a clip from that movie:

What's your favorite Paul Newman movie, Seattle?