On This Day
More Happy Birthday
Seth Wenig/AP
Happy Birthday, Neil Simon, Award-Winning Playwright
July 04, 2009
by
findingDulcinea Staff
Crowned by Time magazine “the patron saint of laughter,” the creator of Felix Unger and Oscar Madison (characters so perfectly drawn they’re almost real), along with a host of other memorable characters, has amassed almost every important award and accolade possible during his 60-year career.
Early Days
Marvin Neil Simon was born on July 4, 1927, in the Bronx, New York. After attending DeWitt Clinton High School, he briefly attended New York University and the University of Denver before joining the U.S. Army in 1946. His illustrious writing career had its humble beginnings in the army camp newspaper, according to imagi-nation.com.
When he returned to New York he began working in the Warner Brothers mailroom, but soon abandoned this to write comedy sketches with his brother Danny. In the company of Woody Allen, Larry Gelbart and Mel Brooks, the brothers wrote for established comedians like Sid Caesar, Jackie Gleason and Phil Silvers in radio and television shows of the late '40s and early '50s. Success came quickly; Emmy award nominations for his television writing propelled Simon to write for the theater. His earliest hit, "Come Blow Your Horn," in 1961, launched a long string of Broadway smashes.
When he returned to New York he began working in the Warner Brothers mailroom, but soon abandoned this to write comedy sketches with his brother Danny. In the company of Woody Allen, Larry Gelbart and Mel Brooks, the brothers wrote for established comedians like Sid Caesar, Jackie Gleason and Phil Silvers in radio and television shows of the late '40s and early '50s. Success came quickly; Emmy award nominations for his television writing propelled Simon to write for the theater. His earliest hit, "Come Blow Your Horn," in 1961, launched a long string of Broadway smashes.
Notable Accomplishments
Neil Simon's hit parade kept on coming with shows like "Barefoot in the Park," "The Odd Couple" and "Sweet Charity" making him a household name. Many of his plays were recreated as films, but Simon also wrote original screenplays such as "The Out-of-Towners" and "The Goodbye Girl," according to The Kennedy Center.
He began collecting awards early on—his first Tony came in 1965 for "The Odd Couple"—but actors did well by him too; for example, Richard Dreyfus's Oscar for "The Goodbye Girl" and Matthew Broderick's Tony for "Brighton Beach Memoirs." In fact, it was with the 1983 "Brighton Beach Memoirs," the first of a trilogy of semi-autobiographical plays, that Simon began to change the critical perception of his career and talent from that of a writer of gags to a poignant and perceptive observer of life. Simon won the Pulitzer Prize for "Lost in Yonkers" in 1991.
With 33 plays and almost as many screenplays to his credit, Simon admits that the writing process doesn't necessarily get any easier. For his 30th play, "Proposals," he reflects on the trials and tribulations of writing ... and rewriting, reported The Washington Post.
He began collecting awards early on—his first Tony came in 1965 for "The Odd Couple"—but actors did well by him too; for example, Richard Dreyfus's Oscar for "The Goodbye Girl" and Matthew Broderick's Tony for "Brighton Beach Memoirs." In fact, it was with the 1983 "Brighton Beach Memoirs," the first of a trilogy of semi-autobiographical plays, that Simon began to change the critical perception of his career and talent from that of a writer of gags to a poignant and perceptive observer of life. Simon won the Pulitzer Prize for "Lost in Yonkers" in 1991.
With 33 plays and almost as many screenplays to his credit, Simon admits that the writing process doesn't necessarily get any easier. For his 30th play, "Proposals," he reflects on the trials and tribulations of writing ... and rewriting, reported The Washington Post.
The Rest of the Story
Bill Evans, Simon's longtime publicist and friend, saved the writer from putting that epitaph to use in 2004, reports The New York Times. Simon had been suffering with a kidney ailment for some time and receiving regular dialysis treatment weekly when Evans stepped in and donated a kidney to help restore his friend's health. By way of explanation, Mr. Evans said that his parents raised him to believe that if a loved one is in trouble, you show up.
It's safe to say that somewhere in American there is a Neil Simon play or movie being shown nearly all the time; and there's always the Neil Simon Festival to prove the statement. And you can test your knowledge of Neil Simon at Useful Trivia.
Actor Jack Lemmon had this to say of Simon's characters: "They have foibles. They have faults. But, they are human beings. They are not all bad or all good; they are people we know," according to PBS.
It's safe to say that somewhere in American there is a Neil Simon play or movie being shown nearly all the time; and there's always the Neil Simon Festival to prove the statement. And you can test your knowledge of Neil Simon at Useful Trivia.
Actor Jack Lemmon had this to say of Simon's characters: "They have foibles. They have faults. But, they are human beings. They are not all bad or all good; they are people we know," according to PBS.
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