CARACAS, Aug 28: Famed U.S. playwright Neil Simon whose worked reigned on Broadway and Hollywood for five decades died on Sunday from pneumonia at New York-Presbyterian Hospital in New York City. The Bronx born writer was 91 years old.
Simon penned more than 30 plays, 13 of which were made into movies, including the 1980s motion pictures, 'Brighton Beach Memoirs' and 'Biloxi Blues' in both of which Matthew Broderick starred as the leading character based on Simon’s early adulthood.
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The legendary writer told the Paris Review that the plays were therapeutic. "It's one of the main reasons I write the plays. It's like analysis without going to the analyst."
During the late 1960s, Simon had four shows on Broadway at once, including 'The Odd Couple' (1965) and 'Barefoot in the Park' (1963), for which Simon won three of his Tony Awards. His first play was 'Come Blow Your Horn' (1961), which ran 678 times on Broadway.
Simon was well known for his comedy as well as drama. He was awarded a Pulitzer Prize for his 1991 play, 'Lost in Yonkers' based on Simon’s childhood.
He was also known for being a hostile and sometimes angry director, particularly toward women actors. Rita Wilson, Kim Basinger, and Mary Tyler Moore all quit productions of his plays. Simon and had five marriages, two of which were to the same woman.
