from Fox News

Neil Simon dead at 91

By Tyler McCarthy

NEW YORK, NY - APRIL 16: Neil Simon attends "The Big Knife" Broadway opening night at American Airlines Theatre on April 16, 2013 in New York City. (Photo by John Lamparski/WireImage)(Getty Images)

Prolific American playwright Neil Simon has died at age 91.

Regarded as the first playwright to have a Broadway theater named after him, Simon’s work dates back to “Come Blow Your Horn” in 1961 followed closely in 1963 with the success of his play “Barefoot in the Park.” Since then, he’s won Tony Awards for shows “The Odd Couple,” “Biloxi Blues” and “Lost in Yonkers.”

In total, Simon wrote more than 30 plays and earned 17 Tony nominations with three wins. He also won a Tony for special achievement as well as a Pulitzer and the Mark Twain prize for humor. Of note is the fact that he had one Broadway season in 1966 in which four of his plays were running simultaneously: “Barefoot in the Park”; “The Odd Couple”; “Sweet Charity”; and “The Star-Spangled Girl.”

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