POPCULTURE · HISTORICAL MARKER
Cool Hand Luke
Pop Culture
2
In September 1966, as part of his research into Appalachian dialect for the film Cool Hand Luke, Paul Newman arrived at Tri-State Airport and, through contacts involving Sargent Shriver, A. James Manchin, Andy Houverous, and local administrator John D. Jones, traveled quietly through Wayne and Cabell counties. In the town of Wayne, Newman spoke with men whittling on the courthouse lawn and recorded their voices with a handheld tape recorder, and Jones introduced him to his staff at the Burgess Ferguson Building. The people of Wayne thus played an integral role in shaping Paul Newman's character in the film.
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Wayne, West Virginia
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