Sam Simon, Atheist Co-Creator of The Simpsons, Has Passed Away

By Alison Lesley --
11 Mar 2015 --

Sam Simon in September 2014 at the ‘Mercy For Animals’ charity event in Los Angeles.

Co-Creator of The Simpsons and atheist and Animal Rights supporter, Sam Simon has passed away after a long hard-fought battle with cancer.

After revealing that he had cancer, Sam Simon had heard it all from people requesting a piece of his fortune.
“Some people just want a million dollars. Or help with college tuition. And the rest have business proposal. Like that should be my legacy: to lose money on your movie or your moisturizer line.”

Simon stated “I’m supporting the charities that I supported during my lifetime, and I want to continue to do that.”

Simon was diagnosed with colorectal cancer in 2012, and passed away in his home in Pacific Palisades, CA at age 59 on March 8, 2015.

He was a vegan, and a supporter of animal rights. Sam Simon said, “I’m an atheist, but there’s a thing called tithing that a lot of religions do. Ten percent was the minimum you were supposed to give to charity each year. And I always outdid that.”

He was very well known for his charitable donations, and for the Sam Simon Foundation which he started in 2002. One part of the foundation rescued animals from kill shelters in Los Angeles, and trained them to be service animals. Another division funded the Feeding Families program, which is a vegan food bank in Los Angeles.

Sam was the largest donor to Save the Children, who announced a new community called the Simon Society.

“People say I’m trying to buy my way into heaven, which I don’t believe in. So that can’t be true,” said Sam Simon. He purchased billboard space for atheist advertisements. One of the more well-known billboards by the Lincoln Tunnel read “IT’S A MYTH” on top of a picture of the stars over Bethlehem.

Sam Simon made his presence known will he was alive, and his contributions will be felt across the world.

“The Simpsons” executive producer Al Jean said “He was a genius and a great humanitarian in ways public and private. I personally owe him more than can be repaid, but I will do my best to help every animal I can in his memory.”

Sam Simon said near to his death “The truth is, I have more money than I’m interested in spending. Everyone in my family is taken care of. And I enjoy this.”