The screen legend Paul Newman has died at the age of 83 after losing a long battle against cancer.
Newman died yesterday at his farmhouse near Westport, Connecticut, said his publicist, Jeff Sanderson. He was surrounded by family and close friends.
Newman was nominated for an Oscar 10 times, winning a best actor trophy in 1987 for The Colour Of Money. The actor with the piercing blue eyes is best known for his leading roles in The Hustler, Cool Hand Luke and for playing opposite longtime friend Robert Redford in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. He appeared in about 60 films over a period of 50 years.
In May 2007 he said he was giving up acting. "I'm not able to work anymore ... at the level that I would want to," he told the US broadcaster ABC.
"You start to lose your memory, you start to lose your confidence, you start to lose your invention. So I think that's pretty much a closed book for me."
He initially tried to play down concerns about his health after reports that he was having cancer treatment in New York. This year he pulled out of directing a Connecticut stage production of John Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men because of unspecified health problems. He later issued a statement that said he was "doing nicely".
But AE Hotchner, who helped create the successful Newman's Own food company in 1982, confirmed in June that the actor had been ill for 18 months. "It's a form of cancer, and he's dealing with it. Paul is a fighter," Hotchner told the Associated Press.
In August, the US press reported that Newman had finished chemotherapy and told his family he wanted to die at home. The former chain smoker is said to have developed lung cancer.
Newman worked with some of the biggest names in Hollywood including Alfred Hitchcock, Robert Altman, Martin Scorsese, Elizabeth Taylor, Lauren Bacall and Tom Hanks. He appeared with his wife, Joanne Woodward, in several films including Long Hot Summer and Paris Blues, and directed her in others including The Glass Menagerie.
His last film role was as the voice of Doc Hudson, a racing car in the Pixar animation Cars.
Newman was renowned for his philanthropy. All proceeds from Newman's Own salad dressings and snacks go to charity. Newman gave away $120m in 2005 and 2006, Fox News reported earlier this year.
The vice-chairman of the Newman's Own Foundation, Robert Forrester, today praised the Hollywood star's dedication to charity work.
"Paul Newman's craft was acting. His passion was racing. His love was his family and friends. And his heart and soul were dedicated to helping make the world a better place for all," Forrester said.
"Paul had an abiding belief in the role that luck plays in one's life, and its randomness. He was quick to acknowledge the good fortune he had in his own life, beginning with being born in America, and was acutely aware of how unlucky so many others were. True to his character, he quietly devoted himself to helping offset this imbalance."
Forrester said Newman's Own went from being "something of a joke" to a highly respected food company bringing in millions of dollars a year and with profits of $250 million to date going to charity.
Twenty years ago, Newman created the Hole in the Wall holiday camps for children with life-threatening conditions. More than 135,000 children have attended the camps.
Forrester said: "Paul took advantage of what life offered him, and while personally reluctant to acknowledge that he was doing anything special, he forever changed the lives of many with his generosity, humour and humanness. His legacy lives on in the charities he supported and the Hole in the Wall camps, for which he cared so much.
"We will miss our friend Paul Newman, but are lucky ourselves to have known such a remarkable person."
Newman was an accomplished racing car driver and team owner who won several national championships.
He had three children from his first marriage to Jackie Witte, including a son, Scott, who died of an accidental drugs overdose. In 1958 he married Woodward, with whom he had three daughters.
The couple lived away from the glamour of Hollywood, making their home in Westport. Newman was devoted to his wife and family. When asked about infidelity, he said: "Why go out for hamburger when you have steak at home?"