Simon (American TV series)
{{Use mdy dates|date=March 2025}}
{{Infobox television
| image = Simon 1995.jpg
| caption =
| runtime = 30 minutes
| company = In Front Productions
TriStar Television
| genre = Sitcom
| creator = Danny Jacobson
| director = Ellen Gittelsohn
| producer = Harland Williams
| camera = Multi-camera
| starring = Harland Williams
Jason Bateman
Andrea Bendewald
Patrick Breen
| composer = Stewart Levin
| country = United States
| language = English
| network = The WB
| first_aired = {{start date|1995|9|10}}
| last_aired = {{end date|1996|3|24}}
| num_seasons = 1
| num_episodes = 21
| list_episodes =
}}
Simon is an American sitcom television series created by Danny Jacobson, that aired on The WB from September 10, 1995 to March 24, 1996.
Premise
A former Wall Street stockbroker moves to Harlem to live with his simple brother Simon.
Cast
- Harland Williams as Simon Himple{{cite book |last=McNeil |first=Alex |orig-date=1980 |date=1996 |title=Total Television: The Comprehensive Guide to Programming from 1948 to the Present |edition=3 |url=https://archive.org/details/totaltelevisionc0000mcne/page/755/ |location=New York |publisher=Penguin Books |via=Internet Archive |pages=755–756 |isbn=0-14-02-4916-8 |accessdate=2025-01-08 }}{{cite news |last=Richmond |first=Ray |date=1995-09-09 |title=WB Debuts New Sitcoms on Emmy's Time |url=https://infoweb.newsbank.com/apps/news/document-view?p=WORLDNEWS&docref=news/0EAE905F2E3594A5&f=basic |newspaper=Los Angeles Daily News |accessdate=2025-01-08 |archiveurl=https://archive.today/20250108130249/https://infoweb.newsbank.com/apps/news/document-view?p=WORLDNEWS&docref=news/0EAE905F2E3594A5&f=basic |archivedate=2025-01-08 }}
- Jason Bateman as Carl Himple
- Andrea Bendewald as Libby Keeler
- Patrick Breen as Mitch Lowen
- Paxton Whitehead as Duke Stone
- Clifton Powell as John Doe
Production
Simon began airing on September 10, 1995, and has a 30-minute run time. Its premiere marked The WB's addition of a second evening in the week for airing shows.{{cite news |last=Feran |first=Tom |date=1995-09-09 |title=New Shows Take On Media |url=https://infoweb.newsbank.com/apps/news/document-view?p=WORLDNEWS&docref=news/0F8085634B28E79C&f=basic |newspaper=The Plain Dealer |accessdate=2025-01-08 |archiveurl=https://archive.today/20250108130241/https://infoweb.newsbank.com/apps/news/document-view?p=WORLDNEWS&docref=news/0F8085634B28E79C&f=basic |archivedate=2025-01-08 }} The WB initially commissioned 13 episodes for the series from the production companies In Front Productions and TriStar Television.{{cite news |last=de Moraes |first=Lisa |date=1995-03-03 |title=WB says 'Simon' for second night |newspaper=The Hollywood Reporter |volume=336 |number=13 |pages=4, 97 |id={{ProQuest|2393589971}} }}{{cite news |last=Beller |first=Miles |date=1995-09-07 |title='Simon' |newspaper=The Hollywood Reporter |volume=338 |number=43 |pages=9, 22 |id={{ProQuest|2469246982}} }} Ellen Gittelsohn directed the series, which was executive produced by Donald Todd, Danny Jacobson, and Marjorie Weitzman and produced by Walter Barnett. Stewart Levin composed the music, Robert Strohmaier was the art director, Vince Humphrey was the editor, and Alan Walker was the director of photography. The pilot episode featured Peter Dobson as Carl Himple, but later episodes had Jason Bateman in the role.{{cite magazine |last=Wild |first=David |date=1995-09-21 |title=TV: The second coming! |magazine=Rolling Stone |issue=717 |page=93 |id={{ProQuest|220147542}} }}
Reception
In a mixed review, The Plain Dealer television critic Tom Feran said Simon{{'}}s television pilot "is slightly overloaded and tries a bit too hard" and called it "a dumb domestic comedy grafted onto a Dumb and Dumber workplace comedy". He liked some aspects of the pilot, writing, "The broadly played workplace scenes offer some real laughs. Simon's so-dumb-it's-smart attitude becomes almost endearing, and there's a real cleverness lurking in the script." Giving the television series 2.5 stars, the Minnesota Star Tribune reviewers Noel Holston and Neal Justin wrote, "Like (Forrest) Gump, WB's Simon is dumb but likable."{{cite news |last1=Holston |first1=Noel |last2=Justin |first2=Neal |date=1995-09-03 |title=Every Single Night - The new fall season // Prime time '95 |url=https://infoweb.newsbank.com/apps/news/document-view?p=WORLDNEWS&docref=news/0EFD664C24B98AA2&f=basic |newspaper=Minnesota Star Tribune |accessdate=2025-01-08 |archiveurl=https://archive.today/20250108130300/https://infoweb.newsbank.com/apps/news/document-view?p=WORLDNEWS&docref=news/0EFD664C24B98AA2&f=basic |archivedate=2025-01-08 }}
Walt Belcher of The Tampa Tribune enjoyed the numerous callbacks to classic television series but found the show to be slightly "silly". He concluded, "Kids will love this one but it's likely to get lost on WB, which has yet to establish itself."{{cite news |last=Belcher |first=Walt |date=1995-09-10 |title=Tube Du Jour |url=https://infoweb.newsbank.com/apps/news/document-view?p=WORLDNEWS&docref=news/0EB0F53B415E455F&f=basic |newspaper=The Tampa Tribune |accessdate=2025-01-08 |archiveurl=https://archive.today/20250108130414/https://infoweb.newsbank.com/apps/news/document-view?p=WORLDNEWS&docref=news/0EB0F53B415E455F&f=basic |archivedate=2025-01-08 }} The Christian Science Monitor{{'}}s Judy Nichols found Simon Himple's "lethargic voice" to be "really tiresome" and called the show "cliched humor".{{cite news |last=Nichols |first=Judy |date=1995-09-15 |title=Weekend Fall TV |url=https://infoweb.newsbank.com/apps/news/document-view?p=WORLDNEWS&docref=news/0EB41EB3E9935095&f=basic |newspaper=The Christian Science Monitor |accessdate=2025-01-08 |archiveurl=https://archive.today/20250108132130/https://infoweb.newsbank.com/apps/news/document-view?p=WORLDNEWS&docref=news/0EB41EB3E9935095&f=basic |archivedate=2025-01-08 }} The Hollywood Reporter critic Miles Beller praised the performances of Harland Williams and Jason Bateman but criticized the show's premiere for tending "more toward the indulgent and forced, an effort to wring humor out of everydayness that fails to connect as something based on resonating experience".
Episodes
{{Episode table |background=#785000 |overall=5 |title= |director= |writer= |airdate= |episodes=
{{Episode list
|Title=Watch This
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1995|9|10}}
|EpisodeNumber=1
|DirectedBy=Ellen Gittelsohn
|WrittenBy=Danny Jacobson
|ShortSummary= Simon gets a job at a cable TV network.
|LineColor=785000
}}
{{Episode list
|Title=Simon Goes on a Date
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1995|9|17}}
|EpisodeNumber=2
|DirectedBy=Rob Schiller
|WrittenBy=Donald Todd
|ShortSummary= Simon and Libby go out on a date. Carl finds a job as a balloon salesman.
|LineColor=785000
}}
{{Episode list
|Title=Simon Gets a Butler
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1995|9|24}}
|EpisodeNumber=3
|DirectedBy=Rob Schiller
|WrittenBy=Tom J. Astle
|ShortSummary= Simon wins a butler in a game of poker.
|LineColor=785000
}}
{{Episode list
|Title=Simon Gets Carl a Job
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1995|10|1}}
|EpisodeNumber=4
|DirectedBy= Linda Day
|WrittenBy= Charleen Easton & Kurt Schindler
|ShortSummary= The owner of a hot dog cart demands payment when Carl destroys the cart.
|LineColor=785000
}}
{{Episode list
|Title=Simon's Ship Comes In
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1995|10|8}}
|EpisodeNumber=5
|DirectedBy= Arlene Sanford
|WrittenBy= Rick Wiener
|ShortSummary= Simon wins a boat in a sweepstakes.
|LineColor=785000
}}
{{Episode list
|Title=Simon Says Surprise!
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1995|10|15}}
|EpisodeNumber=6
|DirectedBy= Arlene Sanford
|WrittenBy= Bernie Keating
|ShortSummary= When Mitch gets depressed, Simon shows him how great life is.
|LineColor=785000
}}
{{Episode list
|Title=Simon Has Faulty Pants
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1995|10|29}}
|EpisodeNumber=7
|DirectedBy= Linda Day
|WrittenBy= Donald Todd
|ShortSummary= Simon marries an immigrant, when she loses her job because of him.
|LineColor=785000
}}
{{Episode list
|Title=Simon Plays Carnegie Hall
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1995|11|5}}
|EpisodeNumber=8
|DirectedBy= Linda Day
|WrittenBy= Rick Wiener
|ShortSummary= Simon gets mistaken for a pianist at Carnegie Hall.
|LineColor=785000
}}
{{Episode list
|Title=Simon Hunts a Rat
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1995|11|12}}
|EpisodeNumber=9
|DirectedBy= Paul Kreppel
|WrittenBy= Tom J. Astle
|ShortSummary= Carl goes to talk to the building's landlord when he is bitten by a rat.
|LineColor=785000
}}
{{Episode list
|Title=Simon and the She-Devil
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1995|11|19}}
|EpisodeNumber=10
|DirectedBy=
|WrittenBy=
|ShortSummary= Simon and Carl has to evict a sexy vixen.
|LineColor=785000
}}
{{Episode list
|Title=Simon Saves a Restaurant
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1995|11|26}}
|EpisodeNumber=11
|DirectedBy=
|WrittenBy=Rick Ellis
|ShortSummary= Simon helps a restaurant that is about to go out of business.
|LineColor=785000
}}
{{Episode list
|Title=You Can Run from Christmas, But You Can't Hide
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1995|12|17}}
|EpisodeNumber=12
|DirectedBy=Paul Kreppel
|WrittenBy=Bernie Keating
|ShortSummary= Simon and Carl is looking for the perfect Christmas gift for Duke.
|LineColor=785000
}}
{{Episode list
|Title=Simon Kicks Ass
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1996|1|7}}
|EpisodeNumber=13
|DirectedBy=Paul Kreppel
|WrittenBy=Charleen Easton & Kurt Schindler
|ShortSummary= Simon agrees to fight a delivery man who has been starting trouble at the office.
|LineColor=785000
}}
{{Episode list
|Title=Simon Takes the Helm
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1996|1|14}}
|EpisodeNumber=14
|DirectedBy= Paul Kreppel
|WrittenBy= Rick Wiener
|ShortSummary= Simon takes over the whole cable network.
|LineColor=785000
}}
{{Episode list
|Title=Simon Sinks the Putts
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1996|2|4}}
|EpisodeNumber=15
|DirectedBy= Paul Kreppel
|WrittenBy= Mark Ganzel & Josh Goldstein
|ShortSummary= Carl and Mitch play a game of golf where the winner wins a month's salary.
|LineColor=785000
}}
{{Episode list
|Title=Simon Gets the Goal
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1996|2|18}}
|EpisodeNumber=16
|DirectedBy= Paul Kreppel
|WrittenBy= Tom J. Astle
|ShortSummary= Simon and Carl buy a hockey team.
|LineColor=785000
}}
{{Episode list
|Title=Simon Night Fever
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1996|2|25}}
|EpisodeNumber=17
|DirectedBy=
|WrittenBy=
|ShortSummary= Carl falls for a new employee.
|LineColor=785000
}}
{{Episode list
|Title=Simon Makes the Split
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1996|3|3}}
|EpisodeNumber=18
|DirectedBy=
|WrittenBy=
|ShortSummary=
|LineColor=785000
}}
{{Episode list
|Title=Simon Looks a Gift Horse in the Mouth
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1996|3|10}}
|EpisodeNumber=19
|DirectedBy=
|WrittenBy=
|ShortSummary=
|LineColor=785000
}}
{{Episode list
|Title=Simon Saves Tinky Town
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1996|3|17}}
|EpisodeNumber=20
|DirectedBy=
|WrittenBy=
|ShortSummary=
|LineColor=785000
}}
{{Episode list
|Title=Simon Goes to the Dogs
|OriginalAirDate={{Start date|1996|3|24}}
|EpisodeNumber=21
|DirectedBy=
|WrittenBy=
|ShortSummary=
|LineColor=785000
}}
}}
References
{{reflist}}
External links
- {{IMDb title|112162}}
- {{TV Guide show|204407}}
- {{epguides|Simon}}
Category:1995 American television series debuts
Category:1996 American television series endings
Category:1990s American multi-camera sitcoms
Category:American English-language television shows
Category:Television shows set in New York City
Category:Television series by Sony Pictures Television
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