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John Simon (critic)
Encyclopedia
John Ivan Simon is an American
author and literary, theater, and film critic.
, Bačka
, County of Bačka, the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes, later, (after 1929) known as Yugoslavia (now North Bačka District
, Autonomous Province of Vojvodina
, Republic of Serbia). He is of Hungarian descent. The son of Joseph and Margaret (née Reves) Simmon, he grew up in Belgrade
before emigrating to the United States in 1941 on a tourist visa to join his father. By 1944 he was in United States Army Air Force basic training camp in Wichita Falls, Texas
.
He attended Harvard University
where he earned a B.A., an M.A., and a Ph.D. Simon has written theater, film, music, and book reviews for publications such as New York, Esquire
, The Hudson Review
, National Review
, Opera News
, The New Leader
, Commonweal
, The New Criterion
and The New York Times Book Review
. He also contributes a monthly essay to The Weekly Standard
.
Simon was the theater critic at New York magazine for 36 years from October 1968 until May 2005. He wrote theater reviews for Bloomberg News
from June 2005 through November 2010. He currently reviews theater for The Westchester Guardian and Yonkers Tribune.
Simon lives in New York City.
Reporting for Playbill
, Robert Simonson wrote that his "stinging reviews - particularly his sometimes vicious appraisals of performers' physical appearances - have periodically raised calls in the theatre community for his removal." On Simon's dismissal from New York
magazine, critic Richard Hornby wrote in the The Hudson Review
:
While some people loved Simon's reviews in New York magazine and others hated them, many were quick to change positions, depending on what he thought of their latest work. Interviewed for The Paris Review, Simon described a photo taken with producer Joseph Papp
who had "his arm around me after I've given him a good review, and [asked] for the picture back the next month because of a bad review." Lynn Redgrave
and John Clark
were particularly happy with his review of Shakespeare for My Father
, about to begin a struggling debut on Broadway. Others have suggested, however, that his negative criticism is mean-spirited rather than constructive. For example, he is known for dwelling on the unattractiveness of actors he does not like: Wallace Shawn
is "unsightly" and Barbra Streisand
's nose "cleaves the giant screen from east to west, bisects it from north to south. It zigzags across our horizon like a bolt of fleshy lightning." In The Language Instinct
, Steven Pinker
criticised Simon for reviews that obsessively focus on an actor's physical appearance to the detriment of critical acumen. Carol Burnett
wrote a letter to Time Magazine responding to an attack on Liza Minnelli
and she closed with "Could Mr. Simon be suffering from a simple case of heart envy?"
Although not a native English speaker, he also is known for his criticism of the (mis)use of language in American writing, and edited the 1981 collection, Paradigms Lost: Reflections on Literacy and Its Decline. He was one of the guests on the PBS special Do You Speak American?
In addition, Bryan Garner referred to Simon as a language "maven" and credited him with improving the quality of American criticism.
Print
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
author and literary, theater, and film critic.
Personal life
Simon was born in SuboticaSubotica
Subotica is a city and municipality in northern Serbia, in the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina...
, Bačka
Backa
Bačka is a geographical area within the Pannonian plain bordered by the river Danube to the west and south, and by the river Tisza to the east of which confluence is located near Titel...
, County of Bačka, the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes, later, (after 1929) known as Yugoslavia (now North Bačka District
North Backa District
North Bačka District is a northern district of Serbia. It lies in the Bačka region in the autonomous province of Vojvodina. It has a population of 200,140...
, Autonomous Province of Vojvodina
Vojvodina
Vojvodina, officially called Autonomous Province of Vojvodina is an autonomous province of Serbia. Its capital and largest city is Novi Sad...
, Republic of Serbia). He is of Hungarian descent. The son of Joseph and Margaret (née Reves) Simmon, he grew up in Belgrade
Belgrade
Belgrade is the capital and largest city of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers, where the Pannonian Plain meets the Balkans. According to official results of Census 2011, the city has a population of 1,639,121. It is one of the 15 largest cities in Europe...
before emigrating to the United States in 1941 on a tourist visa to join his father. By 1944 he was in United States Army Air Force basic training camp in Wichita Falls, Texas
Wichita Falls, Texas
Wichita Falls is a city in and the county seat of Wichita County, Texas, United States, United States. Wichita Falls is the principal city of the Wichita Falls Metropolitan Statistical Area, which encompasses all of Archer, Clay and Wichita counties. According to the U.S. Census estimate of 2010,...
.
He attended Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
where he earned a B.A., an M.A., and a Ph.D. Simon has written theater, film, music, and book reviews for publications such as New York, Esquire
Esquire (magazine)
Esquire is a men's magazine, published in the U.S. by the Hearst Corporation. Founded in 1932, it flourished during the Great Depression under the guidance of founder and editor Arnold Gingrich.-History:...
, The Hudson Review
The Hudson Review
The Hudson Review is a quarterly journal of literature and the arts. It was founded in 1947 in New York by William Ayers Arrowsmith, Joseph Deericks Bennett, and George Frederick Morgan. The first issue was introduced in the spring of 1948...
, National Review
National Review
National Review is a biweekly magazine founded by the late author William F. Buckley, Jr., in 1955 and based in New York City. It describes itself as "America's most widely read and influential magazine and web site for conservative news, commentary, and opinion."Although the print version of the...
, Opera News
Opera News
Opera News is an American classical music magazine. It has been published since 1936 by the Metropolitan Opera Guild, a non-profit organization located at Lincoln Center which was founded to support the Metropolitan Opera of New York City...
, The New Leader
The New Leader
The New Leader was a political and cultural magazine begun in 1924 by a group of figures associated with the Socialist Party of America, including Eugene V. Debs and Norman Thomas, and published in New York by the American Labor Conference on International Affairs. Its orientation is liberal and...
, Commonweal
Commonweal
Commonweal is a American journal of opinion edited and managed by lay Catholics. It is headquartered in The Interchurch Center in New York City.-History:...
, The New Criterion
The New Criterion
The New Criterion is a New York-based monthly literary magazine and journal of artistic and cultural criticism, edited by Hilton Kramer and Roger Kimball. It has sections for criticism of poetry, theater, art, music, the media, and books...
and The New York Times Book Review
The New York Times Book Review
The New York Times Book Review is a weekly paper-magazine supplement to The New York Times in which current non-fiction and fiction books are reviewed. It is one of the most influential and widely read book review publications in the industry. The offices are located near Times Square in New York...
. He also contributes a monthly essay to The Weekly Standard
The Weekly Standard
The Weekly Standard is an American neoconservative opinion magazine published 48 times per year. Its founding publisher, News Corporation, debuted the title September 18, 1995. Currently edited by founder William Kristol and Fred Barnes, the Standard has been described as a "redoubt of...
.
Simon was the theater critic at New York magazine for 36 years from October 1968 until May 2005. He wrote theater reviews for Bloomberg News
Bloomberg L.P.
Bloomberg L.P. is an American privately held financial software, media, and data company. Bloomberg makes up one third of the $16 billion global financial data market with estimated revenue of $6.9 billion. Bloomberg L.P...
from June 2005 through November 2010. He currently reviews theater for The Westchester Guardian and Yonkers Tribune.
Simon lives in New York City.
Work
Celebrated for his erudition and longevity as a critic, Simon is equally well-known for his aggressive style.Reporting for Playbill
Playbill
Playbill is a monthly U.S. magazine for theatregoers. Although there is a subscription issue available for home delivery, most Playbills are printed for particular shows to be distributed at the door...
, Robert Simonson wrote that his "stinging reviews - particularly his sometimes vicious appraisals of performers' physical appearances - have periodically raised calls in the theatre community for his removal." On Simon's dismissal from New York
New York (magazine)
New York is a weekly magazine principally concerned with the life, culture, politics, and style of New York City. Founded by Milton Glaser and Clay Felker in 1968 as a competitor to The New Yorker, it was brasher and less polite than that magazine, and established itself as a cradle of New...
magazine, critic Richard Hornby wrote in the The Hudson Review
The Hudson Review
The Hudson Review is a quarterly journal of literature and the arts. It was founded in 1947 in New York by William Ayers Arrowsmith, Joseph Deericks Bennett, and George Frederick Morgan. The first issue was introduced in the spring of 1948...
:
His removal seems to have been political, with a new editor-in-chief acceding to the usual pressure from theatrical producers to replace him with someone more positive....In fact, Simon was no more negative than most critics, but his lively writing style meant that his gibes were more memorable than those of the others. His enthusiasms were expressed with the same vigor-after heaping praise on the writing, acting, directing, and even the set designs of Doubt, for example, he described it as "a theatrical experience it would be sinful to miss." But positive reviews tend to be taken for granted, while negative ones are seen as personal insults. (I regularly get angry letters and e- mails of complaint from actors and theatre companies, but no one has ever thanked me for a favorable notice.) Theatrical producers in particular become enraged when reviews do not sound like one of their press releases. They finally seemed to have prevailed.
While some people loved Simon's reviews in New York magazine and others hated them, many were quick to change positions, depending on what he thought of their latest work. Interviewed for The Paris Review, Simon described a photo taken with producer Joseph Papp
Joseph Papp
Joseph Papp was an American theatrical producer and director. Papp established The Public Theater in what had been the Astor Library Building in downtown New York . "The Public," as it is known, has many small theatres within it...
who had "his arm around me after I've given him a good review, and [asked] for the picture back the next month because of a bad review." Lynn Redgrave
Lynn Redgrave
Lynn Rachel Redgrave, OBE was an English actress.A member of the well-known British family of actors, Redgrave trained in London before making her theatrical debut in 1962...
and John Clark
John Clark
-Entertainers:*John Clark , opera singer known as Signor Brocolini*John Clark , British actor, ex-husband of Lynn Redgrave*John Clark , jazz horn player and composer-Politicians, judges, and civil servants:...
were particularly happy with his review of Shakespeare for My Father
Shakespeare For My Father
Shakespeare for My Father is a one-woman play written and performed by Lynn Redgrave. The play concerns Redgrave's relationship with her father, the imposing actor and family patriarch Sir Michael Redgrave....
, about to begin a struggling debut on Broadway. Others have suggested, however, that his negative criticism is mean-spirited rather than constructive. For example, he is known for dwelling on the unattractiveness of actors he does not like: Wallace Shawn
Wallace Shawn
Wallace Michael Shawn , sometimes credited as Wally Shawn, is an American stand-up comedian, actor, writer, author, voice artist, and intellectual. His best-known film roles include Wally Shawn in My Dinner with Andre , Vizzini in The Princess Bride , and debate teacher Mr...
is "unsightly" and Barbra Streisand
Barbra Streisand
Barbra Joan Streisand is an American singer, actress, film producer and director. She has won two Academy Awards, eight Grammy Awards, four Emmy Awards, a Special Tony Award, an American Film Institute award, a Peabody Award, and is one of the few entertainers who have won an Oscar, Emmy, Grammy,...
's nose "cleaves the giant screen from east to west, bisects it from north to south. It zigzags across our horizon like a bolt of fleshy lightning." In The Language Instinct
The Language Instinct
The Language Instinct is a book by Steven Pinker for a general audience, published in 1994. In it, Pinker argues that humans are born with an innate capacity for language. In addition, he deals sympathetically with Noam Chomsky's claim that all human language shows evidence of a universal grammar...
, Steven Pinker
Steven Pinker
Steven Arthur Pinker is a Canadian-American experimental psychologist, cognitive scientist, linguist and popular science author...
criticised Simon for reviews that obsessively focus on an actor's physical appearance to the detriment of critical acumen. Carol Burnett
Carol Burnett
Carol Creighton Burnett is an American actress, comedian, singer, dancer and writer. Burnett started her career in New York. After becoming a hit on Broadway, she made her television debut...
wrote a letter to Time Magazine responding to an attack on Liza Minnelli
Liza Minnelli
Liza May Minnelli is an American actress and singer. She is the daughter of singer and actress Judy Garland and film director Vincente Minnelli....
and she closed with "Could Mr. Simon be suffering from a simple case of heart envy?"
Although not a native English speaker, he also is known for his criticism of the (mis)use of language in American writing, and edited the 1981 collection, Paradigms Lost: Reflections on Literacy and Its Decline. He was one of the guests on the PBS special Do You Speak American?
Do You Speak American?
Do You Speak American? is a documentary film and accompanying book about journalist Robert MacNeil's investigation into how different people throughout the United States of America speak. The book and documentary look at the evolution of America's way of speaking from the English language to...
In addition, Bryan Garner referred to Simon as a language "maven" and credited him with improving the quality of American criticism.
Publications
Simon's compilations of film, theater, poetry, and music criticism include Acid Test (1963), Private Screenings (1967), Movies Into Film: Film Criticism, 1967-1970 (1971), Uneasy Stages: A Chronicle of the New York Theatre, 1963-1973 (1975), Singularities: Essays on the Theatre, 1964-1974 (1976), Reverse Angle: A Decade of American Films (1982), Something To Declare: Twelve Years of Films from Abroad (1983), Dreamers of Dreams: Essays on Poets and Poetry (2001), and John Simon on Film, John Simon on Music, and John Simon on Theater (all 2005). Other works include Ingmar Bergman Directs (1974) and The Sheep from the Goats: Selected Literary Essays (1989). Some of his essays can be found at Broadway.com.- Garner, Bryan. Garner's Modern American Usage. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1998.
- Gilman, Sandra. Making the Body Beautiful. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2000.
- Pinker, Steven. The Language InstinctThe Language InstinctThe Language Instinct is a book by Steven Pinker for a general audience, published in 1994. In it, Pinker argues that humans are born with an innate capacity for language. In addition, he deals sympathetically with Noam Chomsky's claim that all human language shows evidence of a universal grammar...
. London: Penguin, 1994. - Stefanova-Peteva, Kalina. Who Calls the Shots on the New York Stages? London: Routledge, 1993. ISBN 9783718654383
On-line
- The Art of Criticism No. 4: John Simon The Paris Review interview by Davi NapoleonDavi NapoleonDavi Napoleon, aka Davida Skurnick is an American theater historian and critic. She is a theater columnist for The Faster Times, an online newspaper, and a regular contributor to Live Design, a monthly magazine about entertainment design and designers...
- Simonson, Robert. "John Simon to Leave Long-Held Post" PlaybillPlaybillPlaybill is a monthly U.S. magazine for theatregoers. Although there is a subscription issue available for home delivery, most Playbills are printed for particular shows to be distributed at the door...
- Jones, Kenneth. "Critic John Simon Hangs His Own Shingle on the Web" Playbill
External links
- Harvard Crimson profile
- Archive of Simon's New York Magazine theater criticism (1997-2005)
- John Simon - Downstage Center interview at American Theatre Wing.orgAmerican Theatre WingThe American Theatre Wing is a New York City-based organization "dedicated to supporting excellence and education in theatre," according to its mission statement...
- "Simple Simon" Salon.comSalon.comSalon.com, part of Salon Media Group , often just called Salon, is an online liberal magazine, with content updated each weekday. Salon was founded by David Talbot and launched on November 20, 1995. It was the internet's first online-only commercial publication. The magazine focuses on U.S...
article by Charles Taylor