Playwright Neil lands humour prize

Simon became the ninth recipient of the prize, handed out by Washington’s Kennedy Centre, for a career that has included more than 40 Broadway plays, including such hits as The Odd Couple and Barefoot In The Park

Among the actors paying tribute to the writer at last night’s ceremony were Seinfeld star Jason Alexander, Malcolm In The Middle’s Jane Kaczmarek and Richard Dreyfuss.

‘There's no good reason to change a Neil Simon line,’ said Alexander. ‘The day that I'm funnier than Neil Simon, hell will be a very chilly place.’

Simon began his comedy career writing on Sid Caesar's Your Show of Shows in the Fifties, alongside the likes of Mel Brooks, Woody Allen and Carl Reiner. His cracked Broadway in 1963 with Barefoot In The Park, the first of many plays set in his native New York.

Richard Dreyfuss said: ‘By writing about the specific time and place that he grew up in, he managed to write about our whole world.

Robert Redford added: “Some say he's the most successful playwright since Shakespeare. Except that he's more prolific and he's still writing.’

Simon himself said: ‘Getting the award is great, but I'm not the kind of person who looks forward to these things. I'm that quiet guy in the back just writing - that sounds a little too poetic,’ he said.

Richard Pryor won the first award in 1998. Other recipients have been Jonathan Winters, Carl Reiner, Whoopi Goldberg, Bob Newhart, Lily Tomlin, Lorne Michaels and Steve Martin.

Published: 16 Oct 2006