Stunning new book reveals unseen images of Hollywood star Paul Newman

msn.com:

The Oscar-winning star of The Sting, Butch Cassidy And The Sundance Kid, and Absence Of Malice, was happy playing movie roles, but uncomfortable playing himself. "I don't know what to do with myself," he complained to the men and women behind the camera lens. "Give me something to do!"But a few rare photographers were able to get Newman to let down his guard, capturing him as he relaxed with a beer in hand, fishing, racing sports cars, shooting the breeze with co-stars on location, and cocooning with his family at home.

Those images, many previously unseen, have been collected in a stunning new book, Paul Newman's preternaturally piercing baby blue eyes shine through in every picture, and he was well aware of how his fame rested on the colour of his irises. "I picture my epitaph," he said. "Here lies Paul Newman, who died a failure because his eyes turned brown. "But he retained his steely blue gaze to the end of his days, and with his chiselled jaw, rugged good looks and wavy light brown hair he became one of Hollywood's most enduring stars.

Milton H Greene was more than a celebrity photographer; he was Newman's friend and neighbour, living just a mile down the winding Aspetuck River that ran past their homes near Westport, Connecticut.

Greene's son Joshua, also a respected lensman, used to visit the Newmans' estate, and assisted his father on photoshoots. "Our families hung out together, had barbecues and dinner together," he recalls. "We used to go fishing for bluefish and stripers in the Long Island Sound in my father's boat, a really fast 43ft Seacraft flying hull. "Paul loved to take the wheel and plough the boat through the waves as fast as he could, getting us all soaked.