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America's and Neil's Birthday
Neil Simon was born on July 4th, 1927 to Irving and Mamie Simon and was raised in the Bronx, New York, New York. He also has a brother who is 8 years older than Neil named Danny. Simon grew up in Washington Heights and was nicknamed 'Doc' by other students. His parents would fight often and the father would leave for months at a time before returning. -
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The Big Sad Times
Between 1929 and 1939, Neil Simon and his family suffered from financial hardships(especially from their father leaving for months at a time). This also caused Neil and his brother to live with different relatives. -
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1940s Schooling
Neil Simon went to DeWitt Clinton High School from 1939 to 1943(this was while World War 2 was current) and then went to join the Army Air Forces Reserve in 1945(near the end of World War 2). During his time in the military, he studied at New York university. Then he got discharged from the army and went to the University of Denver. -
Mail to Scripts: Part 1
Simon had gotten tired of working as a mailroom clerk for Warner Brothers in Manhattan and went to work with his brother Danny in writing scripts with the radio humorist Goodman Ace. He also participated in "Your Show of Shows". -
Joan of Arc?
Born on March 18, 1932, in Brooklyn. Joan R Baim would become a dancer and live a short career and have two children with Simon named Ellen and Nancy. -
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Joan Baim
Joan and Neil got married in 1953 and the marriage lasted until 1973(about 20 years) due to her death from bone cancer. -
First Works?!!?!(Image not related to the play discussed)
This is when Neil Simon experienced his first Broadway works in 1955. He had helped his brother Danny in drawing sketches for the play "Catch a Star". The play was presented at Plymouth Theater and was mainly short lived compared to what Simon would make. -
Ellen and Nancy
Ellen Simon was born in 1957 and Nancy Simon was born in 1962 to Neil and Joan. Both are writers and Nancy also does business and stocks. -
Mail to Scripts: Part 2
Simon went on to write scripts for "The Phil Silvers Show" between 1958 and 1959. These two jobs he had worked in taught him much of what he uses in his plays and writings. -
Come Blow Your Horn
Simons first play is the play "Come Blow Your Horn". It is about a younger brother named Buddy moving into the same apartment with his brother Alan whom is a ladies man and teaches Buddy his ways. However, Their father becomes disappointed in the two and Alan soon fears that his younger brother is now stuck in this lifestyle. It was written in 1961 and was presented on Broadway. It had over 600 shows and was first presented at the Atkinson Theater. -
Poked Feet
Named after a quote from Corie(one of the characters), the play is about Corie and Paul newly wedded couple who move into a brownstone in New York. Paul dislikes how the apartment is in poor condition and Corie wants him to be more easy-going. The play was written in 1963 and was presented on Broadway with about 1,500 productions. -
The Odd Couple
"The Odd Couple" was made in 1965 and was shown on Broadway at Plymouth Theater. It's about a recently divorced man named Felix who moves in with his friend Oscar's apartment. They both have different habits but soon get along while living together in the apartment. -
THEE Star-Spangled Girl
"The Star-Spangled Girl" by Simon was produced in 1966 and is shown on Broadway in Plymouth Theater. It is about a love triangle between Norman, Sophie, and Andy. The two men struggle to make a living by selling their political magazines. The relationship between Andy and Sophie soon risks both the friendship with Norman and their magazine company. -
Moneh Mahn(not a play)
By 1971, Neil Simon was earning about $1 million per year in royalties from Broadway and donated tens of thousands to the American Cancer Society and American Kidney Fund. -
The Sunlight Boys
"The Sunshine Boys" was produced in 1972 by Emanuel Azenberg and Neil Simon and was shown on Broadway. The play is about the comedy duo(aka The Sunshine Boys) Al Lewis and Willie Clark who lose connections to each other after working and soon break apart. Then Ben(the nephew of Willie and a talent agent) gathers Clark and Willie to recreate their acts together. -
Marsha the Mason
Born in 1942, in Saint Louis, Missouri. Marsha Mason would become an actress in many plays and films. Her first marriage was with Gary Campbell between 1965 and 1970(divorce). She then married Neil Simon in 1973 all the way to 1983(also divorced). She is still currently alive and is 81 years old. -
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Marsha Mason
Although it was sad to see Joan pass away, Neil Simon soon married Marsha Mason a few months after her death(3 weeks after meeting each other). They would be caught making out in the theater halls multiple times. Neil did ask her once to stop her acting career and soon after 10 years, their marriage ended in a divorce. -
Mississippi
In 1985, "Biloxi Blues" was published and it premiered on Broadway in Ahmanson Theater. The play is about a group of soldiers training at Biloxi, Mississippi for World War 2. Eugene is training at the base while Sergeant Toomey and Arnold battle each other for power. The play has two sequels called "Brighton Beach Memoirs" and "Broadway Bound". -
Diane has Landed
Diane Lander was born in 1951 in Dobbs Ferry, New York. She is an actress who has a daughter named Bryn Lander from a previous relationship before marrying Neil Simon. She was married from 1987 to 1988 before divorcing. Then they remarried in 1990 and lasted until 1998 when they divorced again. She is currently 71 years old and -
Jake's Women
Created in 1992, "Jake's Women" is shown on Broadway in the Neil Simon Theater. The play's about a writer named Jake who has psychosis(hallucinations and a loss of reality). Throughout the play, he struggles to differentiate between his current family and hallucinations of his past family. -
The Bye Bye Girl
In 1993, Neil produced a play called "The Goodbye Girl". It is about a former dancer named Paula and her 10-year-old daughter who are now stuck living with an Off-Broadway actor named Elliot(who is friends with Paula's ex-boyfriend) in an apartment. Both are resentful of each other before finally agreeing to share the apartment and then later on falling in love. The first time it was shown was in the Marquis Theater on Broadway. -
Elaine Joyce
Elaine was born in Cleveland, Ohio in 1945. She is an actress who married Neil Simon in 1999 and stayed married until 2018 when Neil Simon died. She is currently 77 years old and was popular for being that one 'dumb blonde character'. -
Death of Neil Armstrong(Simon)
In 2018, Neil Simon passed away from pneumonia while in the hospital for kidney failure. He died in New York-Presbyterian Hospital in Manhattan at the age of 91. -
Neil Simon Awards
Two Tony Awards for Best Play(1985 and 1991), a Tony Award for Best Author(1965), a Helmerich Award(1996), a Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Play(1991), a Golden Globe Award for Best Screenplay(1978), a David di Donatello David Speciale(1978), a Kennedy Center Honors(1995), a Mark Twain Prize for American Humor(2006), three Outer Circle Critics Award for Outstanding Broadway Plays(1983, 1985, and 1991), and many more I'm not counting. Most if not all of his plays soon became tv films. -
Sources 1
https://abtc.ng/joan-baim-cause-of-death-what-happened-to-neil-simons-first-wife/
https://www.weichert.com/agents/Ellen-Simon-0963E
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Come_Blow_Your_Horn
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Goodbye_Girl_(musical)
https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0800319/
https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/lifestyle/lifestyle-news/neil-simon-dead-marsha-mason-recalls-whirlwind-courtship-playwright-1138057/ -
Sources 3
https://www.amazon.com/prime-video/actor/Diane-Lander/amzn1.dv.gti.e955d3f5-7787-4617-974d-b48c32563004/#:~:text=Diane%20Lander%20was%20born%20on,previously%20married%20to%20Neil%20Simon
https://pagesix.com/2018/09/05/neil-simon-left-fifth-wife-12m-in-cash-and-two-luxe-apartments/
https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0800316/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elaine_Joyce -
Sources 2
https://filmstories.co.uk/features/the-strange-tale-of-bogart-slept-here-the-movie-that-never-was-and-robert-de-niro-was-fired-from/
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/198968968/joan-r-simon
https://www.linkedin.com/in/ellen-simon-2557252
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_awards_and_nominations_received_by_Neil_Simon
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Star-Spangled_Girl
https://playbill.com/production/the-sunshine-boys-broadhurst-theatre-vault-0000002030