John Simon | |
|---|---|
| Born | John Ivan Simmon May 12, 1925 Subotica, Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes |
| Died | November 24, 2019 (aged 94) Valhalla, New York, U.S. |
| Occupation |
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| Education | Horace Mann School |
| Alma mater | Harvard University (BA, MA, PhD) |
| Period | 1959–2019[1] |
| Subjects |
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| Spouse |
Patricia Hoag (m. 1992) |
| Military career | |
| Service | United States Army Air Forces |
| Years of service | 1944–1945 |
| Battles / wars | World War II |
John Ivan Simon (né Simmon; May 12, 1925 − November 24, 2019) was an American writer and literary, theater, and film critic. After spending his early years in Belgrade, he moved to the United States, serving in the United States Army Air Forces during World War II and studying at Harvard University. Beginning in the 1950s, he wrote arts criticism for a variety of publications, including a 36-year tenure as theatre critic for New York magazine, and latterly as a blogger.
His reviews were known for their sardonic comments and negative disposition; his obituary in The New York Times called him a "caustic" critic who "saw little that he liked", and The Washington Post reported that a published collection of 245 film reviews that he wrote contained only 15 positive ones. His controversial writing style, which could include harsh remarks about the physical appearances of performers, led to accusations of bigotry, public rebukes from fellow critics, and confrontations with the artists about whom he wrote.[2]