Robert F. Simon Studio, through which he became an understudy to Lee J. Cobb for the lead in Arthur Miller's "Death of a Salesman". Simon had two daughters, Barbara Ann Simon Callet (born 1941) and Susan Simon Thompson, and two sons, Robert Louis Simon (born 1950) and James A. Simon (born 1951). Simon's webpage does not include the name of his spouse(s). Simon appeared on Broadway in Clifford Odets's play, "Clash by Night". In 1949, he succeeded Lee J. Cobb as Willy Loman in "Death of a Salesman". His first film appearances were as Inspector Foley in "Where the Sidewalk Ends" (1950) and
Death of a Salesman because “One thing about the play that is very Chinese is the way Willy tries to make his sons successful." The Chinese father always wants his sons to be ‘dragons.’ The original Broadway production was produced by Kermit Bloomgarden and Walter Fried. The play opened at the Morosco Theatre on February 10, 1949, closing on November 18, 1950, after 742 performances. The play starred Lee J. Cobb as Willy Loman, Mildred Dunnock as Linda, Arthur Kennedy as Biff, Howard Smith as Charley and Cameron Mitchell as Happy. Albert Dekker and Gene Lockhart later played Willy Loman during the original Broadway