Neil Simon, the playwright behind 'The Odd Couple, 'Biloxi Blues', 'The Goodbye Girl' and 'Barefoot In The Park', has died at the age of 91.
Simon's career began in 1961 when he wrote the play 'Come Blow Your Horn' and ran for over 678 performances on its first run. Many of Simon's plays were adapted into movies, often with Jack Lemmon and Walter Matthau taking on roles - the most famous of these being 'The Odd Couple', which was nominated for Best Adapted Screenplay. In total, Simon was nominated four times for an Oscar and won a Pulitzer Prize in 1991 for 'Lost In Yonkers'.
Larry Charles, who wrote and directed 'Borat', called Simon's work "deeply influential," whilst Mark Hamill called him a "giant of American theatre."
#NeilSimon, #WoodyAllen and #MelBrooks were three very similar and yet very different pillars of modern American comedy in the seventies (think Annie Hall, Blazing Saddles and the Odd Couple) and all are still deeply influential today. #RIPNeilSimonhttps://t.co/D15lpXFAcT
— Larry Charles (@larrycharlesism) August 26, 2018
“There’s no more money anyone can pay me that I need. There are no awards they can give me that I haven’t won. I have no reason to write another play except that I am alive and I like to do it”-Neil Simon #RIP GIANT of the American Theatre #ThanksForTheLaughs pic.twitter.com/NZIVGPLdst
— Mark Hamill (@HamillHimself) August 26, 2018
Simon is survived by his wife, Elaine Joyce, and his three daughters.
