It was December 2003. The telephone rang and I answered it. The distinct voice at the other end, said, “Hi Lee, this is Paul Newman…I understand from Bob Snodgrass (then President / CEO of the legendary Brumos Porsche dealership in Jacksonville, FL) that you want to interview me for a Porsche 356 Speedster book.”
I was thinking, “How cool is this?”
At the time of Paul Newman’s telephone call, I was busy researching and writing a chapter for a forthcoming co-authored publication, PORSCHE Speedster TYP 540: Quintessential Sports Car.
The chapter, entitled, Celebrities Pose with a Rising Star, was about world-wide celebrities who owned and drove, and may have even raced Porsche 356 Speedsters. My candidates for this chapter were: Sean Connery, James Dean, Steve McQueen, Richard Boone, Herbert von Karajan, Janis Joplin, and of course, Paul Newman.
I had met Paul Newman at Sebring in 1977 when I ‘crewed’ for the legendary Bruce “King Carrera” Jennings’ 911 S racing team.
Nearly four decades earlier, actor Paul Newman, played the acting role of Lew Harper, a Los Angeles private detective who drove a 1956 light blue/primer Pre-A 356 Speedster in the mystery-thrilling movie, Harper.
Paul was engaging from the start of our conversation…mentioning that he hand-picked this ‘clapped-out’ ’Speedster from a group of European sports cars that Pete Smith of Bob Smith VW and Porsche in Hollywood had assembled and brought over to the Warner Bros. film set.
This Speedster, in Newman’s opinion, was the car best suited for Lew Harper’s quirky detective role in the film.
Paul recalled that he had never owned a Porsche 356 before filming Harper. Paul also mentioned, “that ‘bathtub’ was sure fun to drive…it had a lot of oversteer.”
The 356 Speedster was an original California “black plate” car, that had been someone’s very tired daily driver.
Paul and I agreed this Speedster was the first-ever Porsche to be featured in a co-starring role for a full-length Hollywood film –over a decade before a 1957 Speedster appeared in Jane Fonda and Jon Voight’s Coming Home (1978). Paul commented, “it was my first experience driving a 356 Speedster, as well.”
Perhaps the most memorable scene in Harper for every Porschephile – happens when the Speedster is ‘hot-wired’ by Betty Fraley, played by Julie Harris. Fraley, driving the stolen Porsche, races up the dusty canyon road with Lew Harper and Albert Graves, played by Arthur Hill, in hot pursuit.
Trying to avoid a serious collision with a utility truck stopped in the middle of the road, Fraley suddenly veers left and drives straight over the side of the canyon’s steep hill…a breath-taking sight!
Paul laughingly recalled, “during the filming of the Fraley crash, the Speedster was wired for the throttle to be wide-open. The crew started the engine, put it into first gear...and the rest became film history as the Speedster took off like a rocket.” The Porsche managed to stay on all four wheels as it bounced along the canyon hillside …sometimes in full flight… with the 356 Speedster finally coming to rest a hundred feet below. In the film, the Speedster crash killed Betty Fraley.
Paul mentioned that he didn’t get fully involved with sports cars until after the filming of Harper. It was in the late ‘60s that he had his first driving experience at Lime Rock Park, near his Connecticut home. His local mechanic had a 356 Porsche coupe and Newman drove it around the track at speed with ease. Later, Paul Newman purchased a Porsche Super 90 coupe while living in Southern California.
Paul’s passion for speed began while he was filming the ‘Indy-car’ racing movie, Winning (1969) in which he also drove a Porsche. His wife Joanne Woodward co-starred with Paul in the movie.
He became a pretty good racer during his late 40s, driving for the Bob Sharp-sponsored Datsun/Nissan dealership. Paul won the C-Production SCCA Championships in 1979, 1985, and 1986.
Paul’s first Porsche racing experience came in 1977 at Sebring’s 12 Hour Endurance Race where he co-drove with Bill Freeman in the pink and white #2 Beverly Hills Porsche 911S in GTU. Many of the 15,000 spectators were not even aware that Paul Newman was racing at Sebring. He was listed in the program simply as P.L. Newman. The media wasn’t dialed into who P.L. Newman was either. Paul’s open-faced Bell helmet had the initials: P.L.N. hand-painted on it along with three cartoon characters –a rooster, a chipmunk, and a coyote.
The #2 Freeman/Newman Porsche qualified 41st on the starting grid behind Bruce Jennings’ #77 911S. Throughout the 12-hour race, the Porsche had its share of minor problems and spent precious laps in the pits for repairs. In the final hours of the race, Newman drove the Porsche around the 5.2-mile circuit in the dark with two of the three steering wheel spokes completely broken. Bill Freeman and Paul Newman finished 30th overall and 11th in the GTU class while completing 150 laps.
This was to be Paul Newman’s first and only Sebring 12 Hour race. Paul later recalled, “Sebring was one tough race…that I actually loved to hate.”
Paul proved his driving ability as a professional Porsche racer with his second-place podium finish and a class win at the 1979 24 Hours of Le Mans co-driving with Rolf Stommelen and Dick Barbour-- who sponsored the Porsche 935. Paul also won a major endurance race co-driving with Dick Barbour at the 1981 24 Hours of Daytona.
Paul Newman’s interest in racing accelerated with the Newman/Haas racing program competing in the open wheel series with CART/Champ cars, and the IRL/Indy cars from 1983 to 2008.
Paul Leonard Newman was one of the greatest actors of the 20th century, a world championship motorsports racer, and truly a great guy.
Paul Newman sadly passed away, dying of lung cancer in September 2008 at age 83.
Remembering P.L.N. Race in Peace.
Epilogue: There were two Pre-A Speedsters that were used during the filming of Harper. The blue and primer colored Speedster that was driven mainly throughout the film and was not sent over the cliff…actually survived to be fully restored…and it lives on!
Copyright Lee Raskin, 2025
PORSCHE Speedster TYP 540 Quintessential Sports Car, 2004
HARPER Movie Poster, 1966
Photo credit Warner Bros. Archives
Lew Harper driving his Porsche 356 Speedster
Photo credit Warner Bros. Archives
Paul Newman playing private detective Lew Harper with his 1956 356 Porsche Speedster.
Paul Newman and Pamela Tiffin driving in the Porsche 356 Speedster
Photo credits Warner Bros. Archives
356 Speedster crashing down the canyon hillside.
Photo credit Warner Bros. Archives
Winning Movie Poster starring Paul Newman, Joanne Woodward, Robert Wagner
Photo credit: Universal Pictures Archives
Paul Newman / SCCA Driving Champion at Lime Rock Park
Paul Newman / Bob Sharp Racing Team Archives
Paul Newman and Bill Freeman’s #2 Porsche 911S
Photo credit: Lee Raskin, Sebring 1977
P.L.N.’s racing helmet at Sebring 1977
Photo credit: silodrome.com 2023
Paul Newman racing at Le Mans, 1979
Photo credit: sportshistoryweekly.com 2024