Books with author Neil Simpson

This first volume of The Collected Plays of Neil Simon contains the triumphs that put his unique brand of comic genius on the American stage, and made him the most successful playwright of his generation.This volume includes:• Come Blow Your Horn• Barefoot in the Park• The Odd Couple• Plaza Suite• The Star-Spangled Girl• Promises, Promises• Last of the Red Hot Lover• And an Introduction by the author: “Portrait of the Writer as a Schizophrenic”Neil Simon’s mixture of verbal wit and beautifully crafted farce, ethnic humor and insight into universal foible, and above all compassion and understanding, make even his sharpest barbs touch the heart as well as the funny bone. These seven plays, beginning with his unforgettable debut, Come Blow Your Horn, make us laugh uproariously even as we indelibly identify with the objects of our laughter.

A young boy from Brooklyn comes of age in the first play in Neil Simon’s semi-autobiographical “Eugene Trilogy”—followed by Biloxi Blues and Broadway Bound.Meet Eugene Jerome and his family, fighting the hard times and sometimes each other—with laughter, tears, and love. It is 1937 in Brooklyn during the heart of the Depression. Fifteen-year-old Eugene Jerome lives in Brighton Beach with his family. He is witty, perceptive, obsessed with sex, and forever fantasizing his baseball-diamond triumphs as star pitcher for the New York Yankees. As our guide through his “memoirs,” Eugene takes us through a series of trenchant observations and insights that show his family meeting life's challenges with pride, spirit, and a marvelous sense of humor. But as World War II looms ever closer, Eugene sees his own innocence slipping away as the first important era of his life ends—and a new one begins.Winner of the New York Drama Critics’ Circle Award for Best Play and the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding New Play

Gordon Ramsay is the most exciting and high-profile chef of today. His amazing talent, huge personality and non-nonsense attitude have propelled him to the top of his profession and won him legions of admirers the world over. His television programmes such as Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares and The F Word attract huge audiences; viewers just can't seem to get enough of this driven, outspoken kitchen wizard. But what lies behind the man in the chef's whites and just how did he manoeuvre himself into such a prominent position in the culinary world? A multi-millionaire by the time he was 30, Ramsay is as ambitious today as he was when he was a teenager. At the age of 18, he was a professional footballer playing for Glasgow Rangers. An injury sent him from the football field to the kitchen, where he well and truly made his mark. He juggles 18-hour days in the kitchens of his various restaurants with his television career and his role as devoted father and husband -- and still finds time to run marathons! This in-depth and affectionate book traces the life of Gordon Ramsay from the council estates of Glasgow and the picturesque countryside of Stratford-upon-Avon to some of the finest and most expensive restaurants in the world. It also examines how he has overcome the allegations which threatened to tear apart his world and the empire he has worked so hard to build. Sometimes hilarious and sometimes heart-breaking, it uncovers the secret tragedies that helped to turn Ramsay into one of the most successful men of his generation. An in-depth and affectionate look at what lies behind the man in the chef's whites and just how he manoeuvred himself into such a prominent position in the culinary world.

Best known as the host of Fox's Hell's Kitchen and Kitchen Nightmares, Gordon Ramsay is one of the most driven, successful, and irate chefs around. He has thrown Hollywood actresses out of his restaurants and is notorious for his anger, but his food has been served to numerous heads of state, and he is one of only three chefs in England whose restaurant is rated at three Michelin stars. In this illuminating work, Ramsay discusses the violent, alcoholic, absent father who died just days after the pair had been reconciled as adults; the best friend and protégé whose bizarre suicide came hours after the two had shared a final meal; the decade-long battle to save his younger brother from heroin addiction and crime; and the real reason why he has not attended the birth of any of his four children. Sometimes hilarious and frequently heartbreaking, this is Gordon Ramsay€™s full life, from tenements and poverty to top-notch resta

Comedy / 6m, 2f / Int. This classic comedy opens as a group of the guys assembled for cards in the apartment of divorced Oscar Madison. And if the mess is any indication, it's no wonder that his wife left him. Late to arrive is Felix Unger who has just been separated from his wife. Fastidious, depressed and none too tense, Felix seems suicidal, but as the action unfolds Oscar becomes the one with murder on his mind when the clean-freak and the slob ultimately decide to room together with hilarious results as The Odd Couple is born. "His skill is not only great but constantly growing...There is scarcely a moment that is not hilarious." - The New York Times "Fresh, richly hilarious and remarkably original. Wildly, irresistibly, incredibly and continuously funny." - New York Daily News

Comedian, teatime talk show host and all-round entertainer, multi-award winning Paul O'Grady is one of the most popular figures on British television.But his real-life journey has been more dramatic than any of his on-stage stories.Born into a noisy Irish Catholic household in Birkenhead, Paul was always determined to live a colourful life. He was a boxing champion as a boy. He became a dad as a teenager. He has been a barman in a brothel and spent his first years in London working as a carer to some of the capital's most at-risk kids.In this, the first major biography of the star, Neil Simpson reveals the extraordinary highs and the terrible lows of Paul's life. He explains: how Lily Savage was born as a way to make more money - and help Paul take his mind off the horrors he saw every day as a social worker; how tough it was for the 'blonde bombsite from Birkenhead' to break into the entertainment mainstream; and, why Paul decided to risk everything by throwing off Lily's wig and carving out a new career as himself.The depression, the private grief and the near fatal heart attacks that struck as Paul re-invented himself as the funniest and most successful chat show host in the country. Frequently hilarious and sometimes heart-wrenchingly sad, Paul O'Grady has always lived his life on a rollercoaster of emotions. Today he is a proud grandfather, a multimillionaire and a man loved by millions of devoted fans. This is his incredible story.

They are Britain's best-loved comedians. This unauthorised biography gives the low-down on the men behind the laughter.When Little Britain appeared on our screens, a series of characters was born that would make a nation laugh like no other British comedy in recent years. With its hilarious mocking of British clichés and stereotypes, it was not long before its catchphrases were being quoted in every home, playground and office across the land. And it was all down to the comedy genius of the inspired duo that is Matt Lucas and David Walliams.All of a sudden, two relatively little-known comedians became the nation's entertainment heroes, shooting straight to the A-list of Britain's most wanted TV celebrities. Although such success was new to them, Matt and David's creativity led them to write two more astonishingly successful series, earning them countless industry accolades, numerous British comedy awards and two Baftas.But behind the sketches lie two fascinating individuals whose work in comedy goes way back - Matt and David met in 1990, drawn together by a mutual love for Reeves and Mortimer - and whose life stories provide a fascinating and hilarious insight into what has inspired them to produce some of the finest laughs in the history of British comedy. In this insightful and brilliantly researched biography, Neil Simpson traces their development from boys to men, revealing much about their off-screen lives along the way, and setting the record straight on the various rumours (many of them true!) that have grown around the pair.Kings of Comedy is a fascinating portrait of two men without whose comic creations Britain would be a lot less funny place to live. Show Less

The complete memoirs of playwright Neil Simon—the author of such iconic works as Lost in Yonkers, The Odd Couple, Biloxi Blues, and The Goodbye Girl—now with a new introduction and afterword.This omnibus edition combines Neil Simon’s two memoirs, Rewrites and The Play Goes On, into one volume that spans his extraordinary five-decade career in theater, television, and film. Rewrites takes Simon through his first love, his first play, and his first brush with failure. There is the humor of growing up in Washington Heights (the inspiration for his play Brighton Beach Memoirs) where, despite his parents’ rocky marriage and many separations, he learned to see the funny side of family drama, as when his mother screamed thinking she saw a body on the floor in their apartment—it turned out to be the clothes his father discarded in the hallway after a night of carousing. He describes his marriage to his beloved wife Joan, and writes lucidly about the pain of losing her to cancer. The Play Goes On adds to his life’s story, as he wins the Pulitzer Prize and reflects with humor and insight on his tumultuous life and meteoric career. Now, with the whole story in one place, Neil Simon’s collected memoirs trace the history of modern entertainment over the last fifty years through the eyes of a man who started life the son of a garment salesman and became the greatest—and most successful—American playwright of all time.

Neil Simon’s inimitable play about the trials and tribulations that test family ties—winner of the 1991 Pulitzer Prize for Drama.What happens to children in the absence of love? That is the question that lies at the heart of this funny and heartrending play by one of America’s most acclaimed and beloved playwrights. Debuting at the Richard Rodgers Theatre in 1990, Lost in Yonkers went on to win four Tony Awards, including Best Play, as well as the Pulitzer Prize, and tells the moving drama about the cruelties and painful memories that scar a family.It is New York, 1942. After the death of their mother, two young brothers are sent to stay with their formidable grandmother for the longest ten months of their lives. Grandmother Kurnitz is a one-woman German front—a refugee and a widow who has steeled her heart against the world. Her coldness and intolerance have crippled her own children: the boys’ father has no self-esteem; their Aunt Gert has an embarrassing speech impediment; their Uncle Louie is a small-time gangster; and their Aunt Bella has the mentality of a child. But it is Bella's hunger for affection and her refusal to be denied love that saves the boys—and that leads to an unforgettable, wrenching confrontation with her mother. Filled with laughter, tears, and insight, Lost in Yonkers is a heartwarming testament to Neil Simon’s talent.

The complete memoirs of Neil Simon, the greatest—and most successful—American playwright of all time, the author of such iconic works as Lost in Yonkers, The Odd Couple, Biloxi Blues, and The Goodbye Girl, now with an insightful Introduction by Nathan Lane.This omnibus edition combines Neil Simon’s two memoirs, Rewrites and The Play Goes On, into one volume that spans his extraordinary five-decade career in theater, television, and film. Rewrites takes Simon through his first love, his first play, and his first brush with failure. There is the humor of growing up in Washington Heights (the inspiration for his play Brighton Beach Memoirs) where, despite his parents’ rocky marriage and many separations, he learned to see the funny side of family drama, as when his mother thought she saw a body on the floor in their apartment—and it turned out to be the clothes his father discarded in the hallway after a night of carousing. He describes his marriage to his beloved wife, Joan, and writes lucidly about the pain of losing her to cancer. The Play Goes On adds to his life’s story, as he wins the Pulitzer Prize and reflects with humor and insight on his tumultuous life and meteoric career. “Neil Simon’s terrific memoirs are worth revisiting” (New York Post). Now, with the whole story in one place, he traces the history of modern entertainment over the last fifty years as seen through the eyes of a man who started life the son of a garment salesman and became the greatest—and most successful—American playwright of all time.

Comedian, talk show host, and all-round entertainer, multi-award winning Paul O'Grady is one of the most popular figures on television. But his real-life journey has been more dramatic than any of his on-stage stories. Born into an Irish Catholic household in Birkenhead, Paul was always determined to live a colorful life. He was a boxing champion as a boy and became a father as a teenager. He has been a barman in a brothel and spent his first years in London working as a caregiver to some of the city's most at-risk kids. In this intriguing biography, Neil Simpson reveals the extraordinary highs and the terrible lows of Paul's life. Topics addressed include Lily Savage’s origins as a way to make more money and help Paul take his mind off the horrors he saw as a social worker; the difficulties faced by the “blonde bombsite from Birkenhead” to break into the entertainment mainstream; and why Paul decided to risk everything by throwing off Lily's wig and carve out a new career as himself. Frequently hilarious and sometimes heart-wrenchingly sad, Paul O'Grady has always lived his life on a rollercoaster of emotions. Today he is a proud grandfather, a multimillionaire, and a man loved by millions of devoted fans. This is his incredible story.

The complete memoirs of Neil Simon, the greatest—and most successful—American playwright of all time, the author of such iconic works as Lost in Yonkers, The Odd Couple, Biloxi Blues, and The Goodbye Girl, now with an insightful Introduction by Nathan Lane.This omnibus edition combines Neil Simon’s two memoirs, Rewrites and The Play Goes On, into one volume that spans his extraordinary five-decade career in theater, television, and film. Rewrites takes Simon through his first love, his first play, and his first brush with failure. There is the humor of growing up in Washington Heights (the inspiration for his play Brighton Beach Memoirs) where, despite his parents’ rocky marriage and many separations, he learned to see the funny side of family drama, as when his mother thought she saw a body on the floor in their apartment—and it turned out to be the clothes his father discarded in the hallway after a night of carousing. He describes his marriage to his beloved wife, Joan, and writes lucidly about the pain of losing her to cancer. The Play Goes On adds to his life’s story, as he wins the Pulitzer Prize and reflects with humor and insight on his tumultuous life and meteoric career. “Neil Simon’s terrific memoirs are worth revisiting” (New York Post). Now, with the whole story in one place, he traces the history of modern entertainment over the last fifty years as seen through the eyes of a man who started life the son of a garment salesman and became the greatest—and most successful—American playwright of all time.