The Play Goes on: A Memoir

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.

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.

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.

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.