Sam Simon, the Simpsons co-creator who is trying to give away all of his money in the last months of his life, blasted the generosity of those in Hollywood and New York who regularly attend various social and charitable functions.
In an extended interview with the The Hollywood Reporter, one of the questions Simon was asked was: “Do you get frustrated with bad things happening to good people? Like, why didn’t someone else get this cancer?”
Simon first answered, “No. I don’t think that’s what karma is. It never crossed my mind.”
Simon, who finances his progressive causes with his own money, took an opportunity to criticize the shallow denizens on the Hollywood and New York social circuits who often feign generosity while wanting taxpayers to fund all of their pet causes.
“But I don’t think the spirit of Hollywood is such a spirit of generosity. I think people really begrudge giving,” Simon said. “In New York, it’s like that. A lot of charities spend a million dollars on a fundraiser to make $15,000. It’s a social swirl. They do some great stuff and then–it’s called mission drift. It becomes more about the parties.”
Simon, 58, went to school at Stanford in liberal Northern California and is as progressive as one can get. PETA named a building after him. He only serves Vegan food at his popular Los Angeles food bank. He believes meat is the greatest cause of global warming.
He was diagnosed with terminal colon cancer and has three to six months to live. Simon makes “tens of millions” annually from Simpsons royalties, and since his family is all taken care of, is trying to give all of his money away to various causes that will outlive him.