With the dawn of a new decade, Neil Simon decided he was going to do something different. After a string of comic hits on Broadway throughout the 60's, he set out to write something funny, yet dark, dealing with the very real problem of alcoholism. He also did something else he had never done before, wrote a play with a specific performer in mind. That performer was Maureen Stapleton and the play was called “The Gingerbread Lady.” Simon had first worked with the versatile actress in his 1968 comedy “Plaza Suite” where she played not one, but three roles. Although “Plaza Suite” would run until October 1970, Stapleton left the role(s) to appear in a short-lived comedy called “Norman, Is That You?” before taking on “The Gingerbread Lady.” Stapleton played Evy, a former cabaret singer, wife and mother, whose life was in serious trouble due to her addiction. The role proved a tour de force for Stapleton, who won the 1971 Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play, as well as a Drama Desk, and a Theatre World Award. On the heels of that success, she repeated her role(s) in “Plaza Suite” for the film version, continuing her relationship with the prolific Simon. But she did not repeat her role in the 1976 film version of “Norman, Is That You?” primarily because the film had turned the Jewish family into an African American one. In 1981, when Simon finally got around to filming “The Gingerbread Lady” (retitled “Only When I Laugh”) he had a new muse in his life: his wife, Marsha Mason. Much like he had done for Stapleton, he was now writing for a specific performer – one that he happened to be married to. The story was radically re-worked, including changing the character's name and profession. But it was a busy year for Stapleton, too, who appeared in the film “Reds” on screen and a revival of “The Little Foxes” on Broadway. Ironically, at the 1982 Academy Awards, “Only When I Laugh” and “Reds” were both nominated for various categories. Triumphantly, Stapleton went home with the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress, while Simon and Mason went home empty handed. Shoulda woulda coulda, Doc.
