The Columnist Who Almost Killed Paul Newman

By: Dave Astor Stamford Advocate columnist Jerry Zezima wrote a tribute today to late Connecticut resident Paul Newman that included a memorable personal memory of the man.

"Paul Newman had such a delightfully wry and self-deprecating sense of humor that he probably wouldn?t mind if I said I'm glad I'm not the reason he's dead," wrote Zezima, who's syndicated by the Los Angeles Times-Washington Post News Service. "But I came close to killing him several years ago....

The humor columnist explained that he brought a dish to a luncheon for Newman to try. "The ingredients were garlic, onions, chicken, hot sausage, red and green peppers, salt, black pepper, red pepper, and a jar each of Newman?s Own Bombolina and Sockarooni sauces," said Zezima. "I also poured in some red wine and vodka and served the whole thing over a bed of pasta....

"I went up to Newman with my plastic bowl of Zezima?s Zesty Ziti Zinger and asked if he wanted to try it. 'Sure, kid,' he said, grabbing a fork. As he was shoveling in the first mouthful, I told him I had fed some to my dog and that if it was good enough for her, it would be good enough for him, too.

"'Gack!,' Newman said in mid-chew. Then his eyes bulged, his face flushed and he gasped for air. 'Oh, God!,' I thought. 'He's going to choke to death on my recipe. I'll forever be known as the man who killed Paul Newman.' Fortunately, he recovered, swallowed the mouthful and asked, 'Is your dog still alive?' "Yes," I assured him."

The complete column can be seen here.

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