Biographic - Sunday September 4, 2016 Comic Strip Licensing and Permissions

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Paul Simon Born in Newark, New Jersey, on October 31, 1941, Paul Simon was only 15 years old when he teamed up with classmate Art Garfunkel as the duo Tom & Jerry. They had a minor hit with the single "Hey Schoolgirl" which sold more than 100,000 copies. They soon went their separate ways, and each performed as a solo artist during their college years. They reunited as Simon & Garfunkel in 1963, and landed a recording contract. But when sales of their debut album "Wednesday Morning, 3 AM" provided disappointing, Simon headed to England, where he performed and recorded as a solo artist. Meanwhile, a late-night deejay in Boston had started to play a track from that album... and within a short time "The Sound of Silence" was a smash hit. When he remixed version topped the Billboard charts, Simon reunited with Garfunkel, songs such as "Homeward Bound" "I Am A Rock" and "Scarborough Fair/Canticle" made the duo one of the hottest folk-rock acts on the music scene. The 1967 Dustin Hoffman movie "The Graduate" propelled the single "Mrs. Robinson" to the top of the charts. Released in Early 1970, "Bridge Over Troubled Water" topped the charts in 10 countries and became the best-selling album of all time to that date. It earned six Grammys and has gone on to sell more than 25 million copies worldwide. But at the height of their success. Simon and Garfunkel went their separate ways. Simon's freedom encouraged him to embrace musical diversity. He went to Jamaica to record the reggae-flavored "Mother and Child Reunion" used Brazillian instruments on "Me and Julio Down By the Schoolyard" and experimented with gospel music. He journeyed to Johannesburg to enlist South African musicians, including Ladysmith Black Mambazo, for the very successful "Graceland" album, and he recorded "The Rhythm of the Saints" album in Brazil. Simon & Garfunkel have reunited periodically most notably in the early 1980s, for a concert in central park and a world tour, in 2003, they were reunited to receive a lifetime achievement Grammy, followed by a tour that culminated in a free concert at the colosseum in Rome that drew 600,000 people. (It is worth noting that a 1991 Paul Simon concert in Central Park attracted an audience of 750,000). After two previous marriages (one to Carrie Fisher), Simon wed singer Edie Brickell, he now has four children. He has made missteps along the way- the failure of "The Capeman" musical reportedly cost him 11 million dollars- but they are far outweighed by his triumphs, they are far outweighed by his triumphs. The 12-time Grammy winner is a two-time inductee into the rock and roll hall of fame.

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