Broadway will dim its lights in honor of Neil Simon.
The Tony Award and Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright, librettist, lyricist, producer, and theatre owner and operator died Sunday at the age of 91. His credits include “Lost in Yonkers,” “Brighton Beach Memoirs,” “The Sunshine Boys,” and “The Odd Couple.”
“Neil Simon’s plays are a testament to the human experience: He made audiences laugh, cry, and think. No other American playwright has had as many performances or as many shows in production simultaneously on Broadway,” said Thomas Schumacher, chairman of the Broadway League. “The outpouring of accolades and personal memories being shared since his death are a tribute to how deeply he influenced our culture and touched the lives of literally millions of theatergoers.”
The lights on the Great White Way will go dark on Aug. 30 at exactly 6:45 p.m. ET for one minute. Simon’s dozens of works include “Barefoot in the Park,” “Plaza Suite,” and “Broadway Bound.” He also wrote musicals such as “Little Me” and “Sweet Charity,” and screenplays for “The Out-of-Towners,” “The Heartbreak Kid,” and “The Goodbye Girl.” At one point, in the late 1960s, there were four Simon-penned shows playing on Broadway at the same time.
Simon received 17 Tony Award nominations and won the award three times over the course of his career. He also received a special Tony in 1975 for his contribution to the theater. Simon is survived by his wife, Elaine; children, Ellen, Nancy, and Bryn; three grandchildren; and one great-grandson.
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