It's a bit of a stretch to call this book a critical study, but it was one of the first comprehensive looks at Neil Simon's oeuvre, and it has some valid points. The chapters read like detailed synopses--which could be valuable in their own right--and it does offer some interesting insights to the story. I've included relevant notes. I will bring this book to rehearsals as well. Please take these notes with a grain of salt - the business of interpretation is still up to us in the rehearsal room!
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37: Simon is obliged by his characters to present them as men with totally different orientations to life, not at all connected to their masculinity or lack thereof.
38: Because the playwright is skilled at creating people recognizable to the audience, the poker players come off as distinct individuals who interact humorously just because they are what they are, rather than by reason of one-liners.
38: There is Murray, the policeman, a good-natured clod... There is Roy, Oscar's accountant, somewhat sarcastic about unpleasant odors of dirt in the first act, but equally put out by the smell of ammonia in Act II. There is Vinnie, who is going to Florida in the middle of summer because the rates are cheapest then, the winner who must "leave early," a definite cheapskate. And there is Speed, who is interested primarily in playing cards with his male friends in order to "get away from the aggravation" he has at home.
39: We also get a picture of Oscar as a very careless and supposedly carefree person as he good-naturedly continues to borrow money from the other players to "stay in the game," and laughingly describes the brown and green sandwiches as "either very new cheese or very old meat." He is also far behind in his alimony and child support payments for his ex-wife, Blanche... but this debt doesn't seem to disturb him either.
40: [During Felix and Oscar's first scene] we begin to see under the stereotyped conformities two rather nice human beings who will never be able to communicate with one another simply because each man has a completely different way of viewing the world and is committed to what amounts to an extreme position with no intention of compromise... this inflexibility will continue to block [their] achieving happiness regardless of the sex of the "mate" [they] choose.
40: Underlying Felix's behavior is his feeling that he is "nothing" without Frances or the children... a common problem with people who define themselves in terms of their jobs, their families... of extraneous circumstances and/or other people.
40: [Felix] is powerless to change.
41: [Felix] thinks his way is always the only right way, a conviction which evokes inevitable conflict and causes him to fail in his relationships with other people.
43: [Felix's tears are shed in self-pity.]
45: Completely in character, Felix will have none of such a reasonable attitude. He prefers to imply by his words and his behavior that he will now commit suicide and that it will be Oscar's fault... he leaves with "that human sacrifice" look again.
46: It is not that Felix is compulsively neat whereas Oscar is careless; it is not that Felix cries aloud while Oscar represses his feelings; it is not even that their total "chemistries" clash when they are forced to see each other on a daily basis. More significantly, neither man is able to compromise... on even the smallest details of living.
47: The inevitable need for a middle course rather than an extremely polarized position in pursuit of harmony.
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