Sep 28

In Pursuit of the Common Good

By Ann Kingman Uncategorized Add comments

This is not the post that I had planned for today.

Like many, many others, I was saddened to hear of Paul Newman’s death yesterday. He touched so very many people through his work. My Paul Newman story involved lunch at a Connecticut restaurant, where I saw a handsome older man with amazing eyes. I looked over a few times, before my dining companion pointed out that it was Paul Newman. He had a home in the area, and I guess it was a fairly common occurrence to see him in this restaurant, but it was a thrill for me to get a sense of his presence by just being in the same room.

I think the Paul Newman business story is almost as fascinating as the Hollywood story. We recently published the paperback version of In Pursuit of the Common Good, by Paul Newman and A.E. Hotchner. The book recounts the founding of Newman’s Own, a food company that began as 25 years ago as a joke and turned into an organization centered on marketing all-natural foods as a way to provide funding to the less fortunate. Newman’s Own gives all of its profits to charity, and they are able to be philanthropic without traditional “fundraising” tactics. It is a company that was truly ahead of its time.

I believe that there are lessons in this book for all businesses, and also for individuals. It’s a light and entertaining read, but also touching in some of the stories about The Hole in the Wall Gang, the organization that Newman and Hotchner founded to build camps and get-aways for children who are seriously ill. I urge you to pick up the book, and to think of ways that you can make a difference, either in your business or in your daily life.

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  We encourage you to write down or print out the title information and shop at your local bookstore. Wherever possible, titles link to LibraryThing, a social networking site that allows you to catalog your home library. LibraryThing also links to various online purchasing options. Here are the books from this post:
 In Pursuit of the Common Good by Paul Newman and A.E. Hotchner, Broadway Books paperback
  • Susanne

    Oh Ann,
    What a wonderful idea….I’ve just ordered the book from Amazon.
    I was so saddened to learn of his death.
    We had a personal business relationship with him many years ago and he was a delightful and dynamic man who shunned the limelight for all of his fame. He was just so down to earth and also very very funny.
    We’ve lost such an caring man and role model…he will be missed.
    RIP Paul…and thanks for everything.

  • Susanne

    Oh Ann,
    What a wonderful idea….I’ve just ordered the book from Amazon.
    I was so saddened to learn of his death.
    We had a personal business relationship with him many years ago and he was a delightful and dynamic man who shunned the limelight for all of his fame. He was just so down to earth and also very very funny.
    We’ve lost such an caring man and role model…he will be missed.
    RIP Paul…and thanks for everything.

  • http://donstuff.wordpress.com donstuff

    Thanks for your post. We live near his Painted Turtle Ranch. I miss him already.

  • http://donstuff.wordpress.com donstuff

    Thanks for your post. We live near his Painted Turtle Ranch. I miss him already.

  • Catyche

    I have Sickle Cell Anemia and I actually attended Paul Newman’s “Hole in the Wall Gang” camp(s) twice (when I was 9 & 12 years old). I believe I met him (without really knowing who he was) once. Those summers that I spent at camp were some of the best times of my life; I was able to lay down the burden of being chronically ill and just feel normal. I swam, fished, played, and rode horses. And through it all, at each meal, I would drink Newman’s Own lemonade, or use Newman’s Own salad dressing. With all my heart, I wish I had thought to write him to thank him for those once in a lifetime experiences. I’ll be sure to check out his book Ann; thanks for the great write-up of a legend.

  • Catyche

    I have Sickle Cell Anemia and I actually attended Paul Newman’s “Hole in the Wall Gang” camp(s) twice (when I was 9 & 12 years old). I believe I met him (without really knowing who he was) once. Those summers that I spent at camp were some of the best times of my life; I was able to lay down the burden of being chronically ill and just feel normal. I swam, fished, played, and rode horses. And through it all, at each meal, I would drink Newman’s Own lemonade, or use Newman’s Own salad dressing. With all my heart, I wish I had thought to write him to thank him for those once in a lifetime experiences. I’ll be sure to check out his book Ann; thanks for the great write-up of a legend.

  • http://www.booksonthenightstand.com Ann

    Catyche, thank you so much for sharing your story. From what I’ve read, his enjoyment of watching you and your friends be able to “just feel normal” would have been thanks enough.

  • http://www.booksonthenightstand.com Ann

    Catyche, thank you so much for sharing your story. From what I’ve read, his enjoyment of watching you and your friends be able to “just feel normal” would have been thanks enough.

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