''God's Favorite'' is a play by

Neil Simon Marvin Neil Simon (July 4, 1927 – August 26, 2018) was an American playwright, screenwriter and author. He wrote more than 30 plays and nearly the same number of movie screenplays, mostly film adaptations of his plays. He received three ...

, loosely based on the

Biblical The Bible is a collection of religious texts that are central to Christianity and Judaism, and esteemed in other Abrahamic religions such as Islam. The Bible is an anthology (a compilation of texts of a variety of forms) biblical languages ...

Book of Job The Book of Job (), or simply Job, is a book found in the Ketuvim ("Writings") section of the Hebrew Bible and the first of the Poetic Books in the Old Testament of the Christian Bible. The language of the Book of Job, combining post-Babylonia ...

. It was produced on

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street ** Broadway Theatre (53rd Stre ...

in 1974.

Production

Produced by Emanuel Azenberg, the play opened on Broadway at the

Eugene O'Neill Theatre The Eugene O'Neill Theatre, previously the Forrest Theatre and the Coronet Theatre, is a Broadway theater at 230 West 49th Street in the Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New York City, New York, U.S. The theater was designed by Her ...

on December 11, 1974 and closed on March 23, 1975, after 119 performances and seven previews."'God's Favorite" Listing"
Internet Broadway Database listing, accessed April 9, 2012 Directed by Michael Bennett with Assistant Director

Bob Avian Robert Avedisian (December 26, 1937 – January 21, 2021), professionally known as Bob Avian, was an American choreographer, theatrical producer and director. Biography Born in New York City to an Armenian family in December 1937, Avian spent h ...

, the cast featured

Vincent Gardenia Vincent Gardenia (born Vincenzo Scognamiglio; January 7, 1920 – December 9, 1992) was an Italian-American stage, film and television actor. He was nominated twice for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor, first for '' Bang the Drum Slowl ...

(Joe Benjamin), Maria Karnilova (Rose Benjamin), and

Charles Nelson Reilly Charles Nelson Reilly (January 13, 1931 – May 25, 2007) was an American actor, comedian, director and drama teacher. He performed in the original Broadway casts of ''Bye Bye Birdie''; '' Hello, Dolly!''; and '' How to Succeed in Business With ...

(Sidney Lipton). Scenic design was by William Ritman, costumes were by Joseph G. Aulisi and lighting was by

Tharon Musser Tharon Myrene Musser (January 8, 1925 – April 19, 2009)Long Island Long Island is a densely populated continental island in southeastern New York (state), New York state, extending into the Atlantic Ocean. It constitutes a significant share of the New York metropolitan area in both population and land are ...

mansion. The household consists of a pious, God-fearing tycoon named Joe Benjamin and his family: a long-suffering wife, Rose, a prodigal son, David, a pair of unique and quirky twins, Ben and Sarah, and the maid and butler, Mady and Morris. One night a messenger from God, Sidney Lipton (with a big G on his sweatshirt) arrives, and, as in the biblical story, goes through all manner of temptations to get Joe Benjamin to renounce God. When he refuses, he is visited by all the afflictions imaginable. He stands firm and the messenger has to admit defeat.

Reception

Clive Barnes Clive Alexander Barnes (13 May 1927 – 19 November 2008) was an English writer and critic. From 1965 to 1977, he was the dance and theater critic for ''The New York Times'', and, from 1978 until his death, the ''New York Post''. Barnes had sign ...

, in his review for ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' wrote:

... this may be Mr. Simon's most imaginative play, it is not one of his better works. Not only is the opening slow, but also the ending is anticlimactic. If you have exploited tragedy for its humor, how do you get around a happy ending? ... More than any other Simon play, ''God's Favorite'' depends heavily on its staging and setting. Michael Bennett's direction lets all God break loose. ... William Ritman's collapsing mansion is some of the most fiendish theatrical real estate we have seen in years.

Thomas S. Hischak (Professor of Performing Arts, SUNY Cortland) wrote that Simon had been writing about "serious issues" in his last several plays, but "stumbled awkwardly" with ''God's Favorite''. Hischak described the play as a "modern version of the story of ''Job'' that moved into schtick the closer it edged to genuine grief". Hischak noted that Simon had said that the play was written "as a reaction to his wife's untimely death from cancer". The pre-production of ''God's Favorite'' was chronicled on a January 1975 edition of the CBS News program ''

60 Minutes ''60 Minutes'' is an American television news magazine broadcast on the CBS television network. Debuting in 1968, the program was created by Don Hewitt and Bill Leonard, who distinguished it from other news programs by using a unique style o ...

''. (via

YouTube YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...

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References

External links

''God's Favorite'' (Neil Simon)
Samuel French {{Neil simon Plays by Neil Simon Comedy plays 1974 plays Broadway plays Book of Job Plays based on the Old Testament