Product Description

Since 1960, a Broadway season without a Neil Simon play has been a rare one. For more than thirty years, Simon's wry and astute observations on life, love, and the human condition have been making audiences laugh uproariously even as his beautifully realized characters touch their hearts. These five plays show Simon at the pinnacle of his extraordinary career.

Rumors

Come Blow Your Horn

Barefoot in the Park

The Odd Couple

The Star-Spangled Girl

Promises, Promises

Plaza Suite

Including the author's introduction: "How to Stop Writing and Other Impossibilities".

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #107053 in Books
• Published on: 1986-11-01
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 672 pages

Features

• ISBN13: 9780452258709
• Condition: NEW
• Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
• Click here to view our Condition Guide and Shipping Prices

Customer Reviews

I never stopped laughing.
After watching Neil Simon's biography on TV, I decided to read some of his plays. A friend had read this book, and loaned it to me, when I was needing some Neil Simon. I read "Come Blow your Horn" and after that, I don't know if I stopped giggling, or laughing once. When reading a play, sometimes it seems dead in the script, Neil Simon plays are just as extraordinary on paper as on the stage, or in a movie. I was picturing the "Odd Couple" arguing and I started to laugh out loud (I later saw the movie and discovered that Walter Matthau and Jack Lemmon perfectly fit the pictures in my mind." I then moved on to "Star Spangled Girl" which had me roaring with laughter, followed by "Barefoot in the Park" which I really loved. It was so sweet, and innocent, yet hysterically funny! Then, I went to a Plaza Suite, where a series of Affairs and arguments take place. On to "Promises, Promises" A play that was funny, and sweet. Finally, I finished this wonderful book with the poignant, and amusing play "The Last of Red Hot Lovers". Now, I am on to the next set of Neil Simon plays, but these six, will always be some of my personal favorites of all time.

It's in there somewhere
Anyone who expects profound one-liners, clever dialogue, and deep philosophical insights from a Neil Simon play might come away feeling a bit cheated. On the other hand. an evening that offers some laughs, encounters with stereo typical suburbanites, and mildly surprising plot twists, is not to be dismissed lightly. The introduction to this compilation of seven Simon plays is by the author himself,and titled, "Portrait of the writer as a Schizophrenic." This identifies the creator of these works as an observer of the human condition who notices the ordinary more readily than the unusual. His characters are "stuffed shirt" lawyers, over anxious mothers, slovenly sports writers, and stressed businessmen, each of whom the author has presumably met somewhere. They are engaging, amusing, and humorous. But do they reveal the rest of us to ourselves?

I am not sure. The twists of plot are fairly predictable and the unraveling of character is equally so. All Simon's plays are entertaining, but perhaps that is his gift, providing the public with a relaxing evening of laughter and amusement, not a battle with conscience or a summons to social justice. Not that I am ready to dismiss Simon as a shallow writer. He's not that, exactly. But neither is he an Ibsen tearing beneath the shallow surface of existence to discover previously undisclosed truths. So we may come to the end of almost any of his plays satisfied, but unchallenged, relaxed but not profoundly stimulated.

Is there a place for this type of drama? Of course there is, but does it come close to being a waste of talent? Perhaps so,in some ways. But if that's case, there's no doubt that Simon has brought delight to many an audience.

How can you go wrong ordering this collection?
I have just recently become involved in a community theater group. "The Odd Couple" is the first play on the schedule. I ordered this collection, which includes this play to familiarize myself with the script. It will definitely become a permanent reference for me as I enjoy my new interest! I highly recommend it.
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