Paul Simms, the creator of the NBC comedy NewsRadio and currently showrunner on FX’s What We Do in the Shadows and an executive producer on Atlanta, will be this year’s recipient of the WGA East’s Herb Sargent Award for Comedy Excellence. The honor will be presented by Atlanta‘s Donald Glover at the 75th annual Writers Guild Awards ceremony March 5 at New York’s Edison Ballroom.
“I’m deeply honored to receive the Herb Sargent Award and truly grateful to the writers I’ve worked with over the years,” Simms said. “Without their input, I’m not even capable of coming up with a funny quote, and I look forward to their assessments of all the various ways this quote you’re reading right now missed the mark and could have been better.”
Simms joined the guild in 1990 as a writer for Late Night with David Letterman. He was a writer and producer for the first three seasons of HBO’s The Larry Sanders Show, and in1995 created the NBC sitcom NewsRadio, starring the late Phil Hartman. His many other writing credits include Flight of the Conchords and Girls.
“Paul Simms has been a creative spark for many of this generation’s greatest comedic voices,” said WGA East president Michael Winship. “He brings out the best in those with whom he works and often has been the not-so-secret ingredient who takes a series and makes it a hit. Time and again, Simms has proven that he is more than deserving of the Sargent Award. We are pleased to honor him at this year’s ceremony in New York.”
The Herb Sargent Award is named after the former WGA East president who was a Saturday Night Live writer-producer for more than 20 years. The guild says it’s awarded to a writer “who embodies the spirit, commitment and comic genius of Mr. Sargent, as well as his dedication to mentoring new writers.” Past recipients include Judd Apatow, Lorne Michaels, James L. Brooks, Tina Fey & Robert Carlock, Steve O’Donnell, Norman Stiles and Paula Pell.
