Donald Clarence Simpson (October 29, 1943 - January 19, 1996) was an American
film producerA film producer or movie producer is someone who creates the scenes and conditions for making movies. The producer initiates, co-ordinates, supervises and controls matters such as fund-raising, hiring key personnel and arranging for distributors...
. He is known for such hits as
FlashdanceFlashdance is a musical/romance film released in April . The film was the first collaboration of producers Don Simpson and Jerry Bruckheimer and its presentation of some sequences in the style of music videos was an influence on other 1980s films including Top Gun , Simpson and Bruckheimer's most...
,
Beverly Hills CopBeverly Hills Cop is a 1984 American action-comedy film directed by Martin Brest and starring Eddie Murphy, John Ashton, Judge Reinhold, and Ronny Cox. Murphy stars as Axel Foley, a street-smart Detroit cop, who heads to Beverly Hills, California to solve the death of his best friend...
,
Top GunTop Gun is a 1986 movie that was directed by Tony Scott, and produced by Don Simpson and Jerry Bruckheimer, in association with the Paramount Pictures company...
and
The Rock. In 1985 and again in 1988, he and his producing partner,
Jerry BruckheimerJerome Leon "Jerry" Bruckheimer is an American film and television producer. He has achieved great success in the genres of action, drama, and science fiction. His best known television series are CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, CSI: Miami, CSI: NY, Without a Trace, Cold Case, and The Amazing Race...
, were named Producers of the Year by the National Association of Theatre Owners.
Early life
Simpson was born in
Seattle, WashingtonSeattle is located in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. Situated in the western part of Washington State on an isthmus between Puget Sound and Lake Washington, about south of the Canada – United States border, it is named after Chief Sealth, of the Duwamish and Suquamish tribes...
, grew up in
Anchorage, AlaskaAnchorage is a consolidated city-borough in the U.S. state of Alaska. With an estimated 279,243 municipal residents in 2008 , it is Alaska's largest city and constitutes more than 40 percent of the state's total population; only New York has a higher percentage...
and attended
West Anchorage High SchoolWest Anchorage High School is a public high school in Anchorage in the U.S. state of Alaska and part of the Anchorage School District.-History:...
. He then went on to attend the
University of OregonThe University of Oregon is a public, coeducational research university in Eugene, Oregon, United States. The second oldest public university in the state, UO was founded in 1876, and graduated its first class two years later. The University of Oregon is one of 60 members of the Association of...
, where he was a member of the
Phi Delta ThetaPhi Delta Theta is an international fraternity founded at Miami University in 1848 and headquartered in Oxford, Ohio. Phi Delta Theta, Beta Theta Pi, and Sigma Chi form the Miami Triad. The fraternity has about 160 active chapters and colonies in over 43 U.S. states and five Canadian provinces and...
fraternityFraternities and sororities are fraternal social organizations for undergraduate students. In English, the term refers mainly to such organizations at colleges and universities in North America, although it is also applied to analogous European groups also known as corporations...
.
Personal life
Simpson's unusual personal life has been documented in a number of sources. A chapter in the book
You'll Never Make Love in This Town AgainYou'll Never Make Love In This Town Again is a book published in January 1996 which describes four prostitutes' stories about their sexual encounters with various Hollywood celebrities. Sisters Robin Greer and Liza Greer are contributors. A sequel, Hooking Up: You'll Never Make Love in This Town...
(which describes four prostitutes' stories about their sexual encounters with Hollywood
celebritiesA celebrity is a person who is famously recognized in a society or culture.Generally speaking, a celebrity is someone who gets media attention and most frequently has an extroverted personality. The desire to be notable is implied by some to be a part of Western culture and more specifically the...
) discusses his preferences for
S & MSadism is pleasure in the infliction of pain or humiliation upon another person, while masochism refers to gratification from receiving the same. These practices are often related and are collectively known as sadomasochism as well as S&M or SM...
and
videotapingVideotape is a means of recording images and sound on to magnetic tape as opposed to movie film. Videotapes are also used for storing scientific or medical data, such as the data produced by an electrocardiogram...
of their sessions. He is also known to have had several
plastic surgeryPlastic surgery is a medical specialty concerned with the correction or restoration of form and function. While famous for aesthetic surgery, plastic surgery also includes two main fields: body modification and reconstructive surgery...
operations, allegedly including a
collagenCollagen is the main protein of connective tissue in animals and the most abundant protein in mammals, making up about 25% to 35% of the whole-body protein content. It is naturally found exclusively in metazoa, including sponges. In muscle tissue it serves as a major component of endomysium...
injection to his
penisThe penis is an external sexual organ of certain biologically male organisms, in both vertebrates and invertebrates....
.
People magazine, in an article after his death, alleged that he was a fan of snuff films.
Death
Simpson was found dead in his home in
Los AngelesLos Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the municipality of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123.445 inhabitants...
. The cause of death was a
cardiac arrestA cardiac arrest, also known as cardiopulmonary arrest or circulatory arrest, is the abrupt cessation of normal circulation of the blood due to failure of the heart to contract effectively during systole....
from
Combined Drug IntoxicationCombined Drug Intoxication or CDI, also known as Multiple Drug Intake , is an unnatural cause of human death. While it is sometimes reported as a simple "overdose", it is distinct in that it is due to the simultaneous use of multiple drugs, whether the drugs are prescription, over-the-counter,...
(CDI). According to
High Concept, a Simpson biography by reporter Charles Fleming, Simpson had a $60,000 per month drug habit at the time of his death. His job as an executive at
Paramount PicturesParamount Pictures Corporation is a Worldwide American film production and distribution company, located at 5555 Melrose Avenue in Hollywood, California. Founded in 1912 and currently owned by media conglomerate Viacom, it is the world's oldest existing American film studio; it is also the last...
came to an end when he allegedly passed out in the middle of a meeting.
The Rock is dedicated to the memory of Don. This fact is mentioned at the end of the movie; the beginning identifies him as co-producer with
Jerry BruckheimerJerome Leon "Jerry" Bruckheimer is an American film and television producer. He has achieved great success in the genres of action, drama, and science fiction. His best known television series are CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, CSI: Miami, CSI: NY, Without a Trace, Cold Case, and The Amazing Race...
.
Enemy of the State also has Simpson given screen credit as an executive producer, although the final film was released several years after his death. This is presumably because both Bruckheimer and Simpson developed the story before his death.
The SopranosThe Sopranos is an American television drama series created and produced by David Chase. It premiered on the premium cable network HBO in the United States on January 10, 1999 and ended its original run of six seasons and 86 episodes on June 10, 2007. The show has also been broadcast on A&E in...
references Simpson's death—in the episode "
He Is RisenHe is Risen can refer to:*A paschal greeting at Easter*He Is Risen TV episode...
," at the funeral of Gigi Cestone (who dies of heart failure while on the toilet), Anthony Soprano states that it's
"..how Elvis went." Silvio DanteSilvio Manfred Dante, often referred to as "Sil", played by Steven Van Zandt, is a fictional character on the HBO TV series The Sopranos. He is the Consigliere to Tony Soprano in the Soprano crime family. He is believed to be based on New Jersey mobster Thomas Ricciardi. Silvio has one of the...
mistakenly replies,
"That guy in Hollywood, too. 'Don' something. Producer of The SimpsonsThe Simpsons is an American animated television sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical parody of a middle class American lifestyle epitomized by its eponymous family, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa, and Maggie...
.
Filmography
FlashdanceFlashdance is a musical/romance film released in April . The film was the first collaboration of producers Don Simpson and Jerry Bruckheimer and its presentation of some sequences in the style of music videos was an influence on other 1980s films including Top Gun , Simpson and Bruckheimer's most...
(1983) (producer)
Beverly Hills CopBeverly Hills Cop is a 1984 American action-comedy film directed by Martin Brest and starring Eddie Murphy, John Ashton, Judge Reinhold, and Ronny Cox. Murphy stars as Axel Foley, a street-smart Detroit cop, who heads to Beverly Hills, California to solve the death of his best friend...
(1984) (producer)
Thief of HeartsThief of Hearts is a 1984 film produced by Don Simpson and Jerry Bruckheimer. It was written and directed by Douglas Day Stewart.A burglar; Scott , robs the home of a couple. One of the items he takes is the wife's diary. Scott begins to read the diary and discovers that the wife, Mickey, yearns...
(1984) (producer)
Top GunTop Gun may refer to:* The United States Navy Fighter Weapons School, commonly referred to as TOPGUN* Top Gun , a 1986 movie starring Tom Cruise set at the school**Top Gun , soundtrack to the movie...
(1986) (producer)
Beverly Hills Cop IIBeverly Hills Cop II is a 1987 action-comedy film starring Eddie Murphy and directed by Tony Scott. It is the first sequel in the Beverly Hills Cop series. Murphy returns as Detroit police detective Axel Foley, who returns to Beverly Hills, California to track down a group of international...
(1987) (producer)
Days of ThunderDays of Thunder is an auto racing drama film released in 1990 by producers Don Simpson and Jerry Bruckheimer and director Tony Scott. The cast includes Tom Cruise, Nicole Kidman, Robert Duvall, Randy Quaid, Cary Elwes and Michael Rooker. The film also features appearances by real life racers,...
(1990) (producer)
The RefThe Ref is a 1994 black comedy film directed by Ted Demme and starring Denis Leary, Judy Davis and Kevin Spacey.- Premise :...
(1994) (executive producer)
Bad BoysBad Boys is a 1995 action comedy film directed by Michael Bay, produced by Don Simpson/Jerry Bruckheimer, producers of Top Gun and Beverly Hills Cop, and starring Martin Lawrence and Will Smith...
(1995) (producer)
Crimson TideCrimson Tide is a 1995 submarine film directed by Tony Scott, starring Denzel Washington and Gene Hackman, produced by Don Simpson and Jerry Bruckheimer, and written by Michael Schiffer and Richard P. Henrick...
(1995) (producer)
Dangerous MindsDangerous Minds is a 1995 drama film loosely based on the book My Posse Don't Do Homework by LouAnne Johnson. The book is an autobiographical account of her experience as a Marine who left her career to become a teacher at a well-off high school attended by bussed-in students from a ghetto...
(1995) (producer)
The Rock
(1996) (producer)
Quotes
"We have no obligation to make history. We have no obligation to make art. We have no obligation to make a statement. Our obligation is to make money."
"To make money, it may be important to win the Academy Award, for it might mean another ten million dollars at the box office."
External links
New York Times
article about Simpson
The Independent article about Simpson
Don Simpson Dead from CDI/MDI