Melissa Newman once told her father: Paul Newmanthat he imagined him standing in front of a huge billboard depicting his handsome face. But he himself wanted people to see him as he really is, and not as he is in front of the public.

This desire lies “at the heart” of the memoirs.Paul Newman: The Extraordinary Life of an Ordinary Manreleased now, 14 years after his death. The material began to be collected 36 years ago, when the legendary Hollywood star asked his close friend Stuart Stern to interview not only him, but also his wife, an American actress. Joan Woodward as well as other family members and friends who have watched him grow from an unknown member of the creative team at the Actors Studio in New York to one of the most popular faces in the entertainment industry. But aside from his career, Newman asked his interlocutors to be honest about him. The actor revealed that he had an unhappy childhood that still affects him today. Among other things, he confesses to his relationship with alcohol, family problems and aspects of his professional life.

The release of the book follows the HBO documentary series The Last Movie Stars, which chronicles Newman’s life with Woodward.

“He was trying to find a way to feel better,” said his youngest daughter, Clea Newman Sunderland, who wrote the book’s afterword. “It was a big ‘inside’ journey and the interviews were part of that process.”

But in 1991, the actor decided that the journey was over and destroyed the cassettes. He lived another 17 years and died shortly after Woodward. The daughters decided to honor their mother’s memory with a documentary about her career. This project seemed difficult until their childhood friend made a startling discovery. He found a locked cabinet inside the house that a locksmith had to open. There were 14,000 pages of interviews conducted by Stern with John Huston, Sidney Lumet, Tom Cruise and Newman’s first wife, Jackie Witt.

The youngest daughter believes that her father kept these pages because he wanted his story to be told. The elder added that in the manuscripts, Newman had written: “in case there is interest in the biography.” This agreement prompted them to enter into a book deal.

The family approves of the final product. And although they expected the book to be larger in number of pages, the daughters are pleased with the result. “It was good teamwork, you never get what you dream of.”

Clea Newman Sunderland has one regret: she wished all five of Newman’s daughters spoke in interviews. So it will show “how hard he worked to have a meaningful relationship with us. The last quarter of his life was more real and reciprocal.”

The last detail was to find a suitable cover. The art director presented 20 images of Newman from the films Hustler, Hud and others to the table. The final image is in black and white, with the actor covering one eye with his hand. “He was more than his eyes and handsome face… I think this photo is the one that reveals his true side.”

According to the Los Angeles Times