Editing Neil Simon (section)

{{short description|American playwright, writer, and academic (1927–2018)}}
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{{Use mdy dates|date=June 2019}}
{{Infobox writer
| image = Neil Simon - 1974.jpg
| caption = Simon in 1974
| birth_name = Marvin Neil Simon
| birth_date = {{birth date|1927|7|4}}
| birth_place = [[The Bronx]], New York City, U.S.
| death_date = {{death date and age|2018|8|26|1927|7|4}}
| death_place = [[Manhattan]], New York City, U.S.
| occupation = {{flatlist|
* Playwright
* screenwriter
* author}}
| education = {{plainlist|
* [[New York University]]
* [[University of Denver]]}}
| period = 1948–2010
| genre = {{flatlist|
* Comedy
* drama
* [[farce]]
* autobiography}}
| notableworks = {{flatlist|
* ''[[Brighton Beach Memoirs]]''
* ''[[Biloxi Blues]]''
* ''[[Come Blow Your Horn]]''
* ''[[The Odd Couple (play)|The Odd Couple]]''
* ''[[Lost in Yonkers]]''
* ''[[The Goodbye Girl]]''}}
| spouse = {{plainlist|
* {{marriage|Joan Baim|1953|1973|end=died}}
* {{marriage|[[Marsha Mason]]|1973|1983|end=divorced}}
* {{marriage|Diane Lander|1987|1988|end=divorced}}
* {{marriage|<!-- Diane Lander -->|1990|end=div|1998}}
* {{marriage|[[Elaine Joyce]]|1999|<!--Omission per Template:Marriage instructions-->}}}}
| children = 3
| relatives = {{plainlist|
* [[Danny Simon]] (brother)
* [[Michael H. Simon]] (nephew)}}
| awards = {{avoid wrap|[[Pulitzer Prize for Drama]] (1991)}}
}}

'''Marvin Neil Simon''' (July 4, 1927&nbsp;– August 26, 2018) was an American playwright, screenwriter and author. He wrote more than 30 plays and nearly the same number of movie screenplays, mostly film adaptations of his plays. He received three [[Tony Awards]] and a [[Golden Globe Award]], as well as nominations for four [[Academy Awards]] and four [[Primetime Emmy Awards]]. He was awarded a [[29th Tony Awards|Special Tony Award]] in 1975, the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1991, the [[Kennedy Center Honors]] in 1995 and the [[Mark Twain Prize for American Humor]] in 2006.

Simon grew up in New York City during the [[Great Depression]]. His parents' financial difficulties affected their marriage, giving him a mostly unhappy and unstable childhood. He often took refuge in movie theaters, where he enjoyed watching early comedians like [[Charlie Chaplin]]. After graduating from high school and serving a few years in the [[United States Army Air Forces|Army Air Force Reserve]], he began writing comedy scripts for radio programs and popular early television shows. Among the latter were [[Sid Caesar]]'s ''[[Your Show of Shows]]'' (where in 1950 he worked alongside other young writers including [[Carl Reiner]], [[Mel Brooks]], [[Woody Allen]], [[Larry Gelbart]] and [[Selma Diamond]]), and ''[[The Phil Silvers Show]]'', which ran from 1955 to 1959.

His first produced play was ''[[Come Blow Your Horn]]'' (1961). It took him three years to complete and ran for 678 performances on [[Broadway theatre|Broadway]]. It was followed by two more successes, ''[[Barefoot in the Park]]'' (1963) and ''[[The Odd Couple (play)|The Odd Couple]]'' (1965). He won a Tony Award for the latter. It made him a national celebrity and "the hottest new playwright on Broadway".<ref name="Koprince" /> From the 1960s to the 1980s, he wrote for stage and screen; some of his screenplays were based on his own works for the stage. His style ranged from farce to romantic comedy to more serious dramatic comedy.

Overall, he garnered 17 Tony nominations and won three awards. In 1966, he had four successful productions running on Broadway at the same time and, in 1983, he became the only living playwright to have a New York theatre, the [[Neil Simon Theatre]], named in his honor.