Customer Reviews

The Play Goes On: A Memoir

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I was anxious to see the arrival of "The Play Goes On" as I had really enjoyed "Rewrites", but felt as though Simon had more to say, but hadn't been able to get to it in the first of this biographical series. However, this latest lacked the humor of "Rewrites" and I felt myself without much incentive to keep turning pages other than to get some insights to some of his lesser-known works.

Neil Simon, aside from being a prolific playwright, is also a fascinating subject for a memoir. In this, his second, Mr. Simon not only entertains us all over again with his unique style of relating painfully funny stories, but goes beyond the humor to give us a glimpse of the underlying emotions. I think it's a very brave and generous man who can share this sort of memoir. Rather than sit back and say, "I've written umpteen million plays, made a fortune and had a rocky road through the death of a spouse and two divorces," Mr. Simon puts aside the jokes for a while and examines what made the road so rocky and why writing became his protective shell. Let's hope he's around a lot longer to bring us newer, funnier and even more heartfelt plays as a result of making himself take this personal journey of discovery.

Neil Simon is best studied by reading and seeing interpretations of his plays, but since this book is an autobiography, it is interesting at the very least for seeing what the man's own perspective on his life has been. There are definitely some moments that appear repetitive and unnecessary, but as he says in the book, Mr. Simon was not keeping notes throughout his life with the knowledge that he would someday write a book. That means he and we are forced to rely on his memories and notions when they occur to him, which is why some of the book is out of sequence. I would have loved to have seen more insights into the plays and screenplays themselves, especially since he completely neglects to mention "Laughter On The 23rd Floor", which I saw twice on Broadway and laughed harder the second time than the first. He alludes to it once, but never says anything regarding the production even though he spends at least a few pages on some of his less-successful works. However, it's those exact pages on the lesser known stuff like "The Good Doctor", "Rumors", and "Jake's Women" that are so interesting.

Generally, I find it difficult to read biographies of people who are still with us, for the simple fact that that story can never be complete. One of the good things about the first volume of autobiography, Rewrites, was that it ended at a specific point in time with the death of Mr. Simon's first wife which represented the "end" of a chapter in his life and therefore lent itself to being presented as a complete story. I was impressed at how up to date The Play Goes On was, but how can even this be the definitive story of Neil Simon and his work unless he retires? Surely (and hopefully) Neil Simon has many more years and several plays ahead of him, so maybe he's just leaving open the option of doing a third book.

Having read and enjoyed Simon's first installment of his autobiography, "Rewrites", I was anticipating a good read, and I wasn't disappointed. I read this book in one day -- it's that good. Simon is witty and moving, as you would expect the author of both "The Odd Couple" and "Lost in Yonkers" to be. I imagine it must be daunting to write about your life -- to let the reader in on who you really are without sacrificing your privacy and hurting those close to you. Neil Simon manages it well. I finished the book feeling like I had a good sense of who the man is and an insight into his creative process. I was also impressed with his respectfulness towards his family, and his former wives in particular. If you love the theater, and Neil Simon's work in particular, read this book (and "Rewrites"). You'll be glad you did.

As the author of several books, and currently experiencing the need for encouragement in the writing department, I was pleasantly surprised to THE PLAY GOES ON and find such good advice for writers. This should be a must read for anyone contemplating the reflective life of a writer.

This is a companion piece to his first memoir, Rewrites. I read both back to back, which worked really well. The first one is more in depth, while the second one tends to gloss over much of his work. However, it is still very entertaining and informative. This one also covers his marriage to Marsha Mason and subsequent marriage to 3rd and 4th wife to Diane. Hope there will be another book soon! I thought he came off well.

I will make this short and sweet. If you are a Neil Simon fan, you need to read this book. I found it really interesting to peak into the life of Neil Simon as a human, not just a talented writer. In reading tis book you kind of lern the life experiences and nutrients that helped this creative man to entertain us with characters that we all love.

Mr. Simon seems to be a decent, self-aware, gifted person. The book is an absorbing read. Yet I wish he'd been as clear and specific in discussing his journey through life as he is in giving us synopses of his plays. He leaves us with questions, the need for clarification. I don't understand how he relegates to a footnote what was probably one of the most significant factors in his breakup with Marsha Mason. Her involvement with Siddha meditation coincided roughly with her time married to Mr. Simon. As I was at the time a ditzy post-adolescent enamored of the glamorous exoticism of Siddha Yoga, I remember well Marsha's enthusiasm and dedication to it. It's strange Mr. Simon doesn't seem aware or willing to speak up about what Siddha Yoga taught overtly -- the guru-disciple relationship took precedence over all others -- and subtly, that marriage, although sacred, was a detour, delay, towards enlightenment.Mr. Simon did try to accommodate his wife -- his film, The Goodbye Girl has meditation references, and in Chapter Two, the wall of Jenny's apartment has a tiny photo of her guru in his usual red suit, seated in lotus-position. Marsha spent much time at the India and America ashrams, meditating, happy to share her experiences, cleaning rice, along with the rest of us. Did that bother Mr. Simon? His own daughter was married by the guru before hundreds upon hundreds of "nearest and dearest" strangers.[Olivia Hussey's wedding at the Miami ashram might have had a tad more guests!]What did he, this Jewish father think of that? When Marsha wrote us an abrupt, though warmhearted, polite letter in resigning from being on the yoga board of directors, I wonder why that didn't alert Mr. Simon to the fact that Marsha was in the process of redefining her goals, taking charge of her life, and might do the same regarding their marriage. Maybe Marsha will write her own book. It would be interesting to find out if (1) she ever attained enlightenment or (2) she came away, as I did, with a rather nice consolation prize, some interesting food recipes serving 900.

"The Play Goes On" is a companion piece to Simon's first memoir, "Rewrites." Both books should be read in succession to get a full picture of the artist as a man. They provide not only a look at the life of the most successful playwright in the history of the American theatre, but also valuable insights into his writing process. "The Play Goes On" begins right where the first volume left off, just following the death of Neil Simon's beloved first wife, Joan. It covers his marriage and professional collaboration with Marsha Mason and brings us almost completely up to date in the chronological summary of his works. This book (and the one that came before it) are fabulously entertaining owing to the deft skill with which Simon weaves words together. Put this in someone's Christmas stocking!

"Rewrites" was better than this effort because Neil Simon shared more insights into his creative process than this volume. In "The Play Goes On," he concentrates on whining over the breakup of his serial marriages -- while asking us to believe that nobody was ever responsible for his string of divorces. His explanation? That there's some kind of genetic marker that determines how long people stay married. PLEASE!

Simon also spends a good deal of time asking us to believe other whoppers; that his plays are not all autobiographical (I guess this is true... most -- but not all -- of his plays are that way); and that he has no memory of writing most of his plays, that they just came out of him in some kind of auto-pilot-like trance.

Anyone wanting to learn about Simon and his creative process is better off studying his plays.