Mr. Simon attended Manhattan's prestigious Trinity School and Princeton University, intending to pursue a career in film & theater. He has worked in nearly every aspect of the entertainment industry, as a child actor in commercials, off Broadway director, story editor (for Lewis Allen Productions), and producer of the International Ski Film & Video Festival (1986--96) held annually in Colorado.

He defected to the world of journalism to help launch the American edition of TAXI magazine and remained as contributing editor, specializing in travel, food & wine and the arts. In the following decade, he participated in the launches of Hamptons International (travel editor) and Vermont Vacations (food/wine editor), as well as the re-launch of Miller Publications' Mountain Sports & Living fka Snow Country (food & wine editor). He also served as an original contributing editor of the Shermans Travel print magazine, news editor for International Meetings & Incentives--Caribbean (2006--2008), food/wine editor of Ski Impact (1991--95) and wine editor of Atlanta Homes & Lifestyles (1997--2001), Second Home (1998--2001) and Hamptons (2000). Under the pseudonym of J. Scott Stanton, he penned astrology columns for Hamptons, Atlanta Homes & Lifestyles, Out Traveler and St. Louis Homes & Lifestyles. He oversaw creation and development of Wine Country International magazine (2003--4), serving as founding Editor-in-Chief of Wine Country Network. Current positions include associate editor/features writer for Caribbean Escapes, contributing travel editor for Nikki Style, lifestyle editor for Caribbean Living magazine, features writer for AOL Travel, contributor Jetsetter.com, blogger Restaurant magazine's World's 50 Best website and New York Wine Salon (starting 12/10), and fantasy-sports columnist for Fantasygameday.net.

Mr. Simon has contributed regularly to Diversion, Art & Antiques, Aboutwines.com, Arthur Frommer's Budget Travel, USAir Magazine, Caribbean Travel & Life, Modern Bride, Family Travel Times, Seattle Homes & Lifestyles, Medical Economics, ShermansTravel.com, Out Traveler, Physicians Travel & Meeting Guide, Fodors.com, and Interval Intl.

He has written on various topics for Cooking Light, Wine Enthusiast, Condé Nast Traveler, Sotheby's Domain, Town & Country, N.Y. Times Syndicate, Elle, Travel+Leisure, Los Angeles magazine, Market Watch, Beverage Media, Backstage, American Way, Food Arts, AmEx Lifestyle & Travel for Physicians, TravelAge, Travel Agent, Fine Dining, Travel Smart, Cedar Living, Palm Beach magazine, et al.

He is the (original) author of Frommer's Irreverent Las Vegas, Frommer's Portable St. Maarten/St. Martin (with Anguilla & St. Barts), Fodor's Colorado, Fodor's Branson: The Official Travel & Souvenir Guide, the Gousha/USA Today Ski Atlas, Frommer's Irreverent U.S. Virgin Islands, and Frommer's Madrid & Barcelona By Night. He also co-authored, with Mo and Jennifer Siegel, The Celestial Seasonings Cookbook: Cooking with Tea (Park Lane); Astronumerology: Your Key to Empowerment Using Stars & Numbers (with Pam Bell; Avon Books)' and Edge Atlanta (with Jeff Clark; Longstreet Press). He has acted as co-editor and/or contributor to numerous books, including Frommer's Miami By Night, Las Vegas By Night, and Irreverent Manhattan guides; Fodor's Caribbean, Bed & Breakfast, USA, Sports, Hungary, and Virgin Islands guides; the Ocean Spray Cookbook; the Complete N.Y. Mets Fans Almanac; and the Gousha/USA Today Golf Atlas. His latest book, Fodor's In Focus Cayman Islands, debuted August 2008.

Mr. Simon has served as a featured panelist on several major writing seminars, such as the bi-annual American Society of Journalists and Authors convention; an online expert (Fodors.com, msnbc.com, et al); a corporate wine tasting leader (for restaurant groups such as Toscorp and alumni associations such as Boston Latin School and Trinity School); a wine list consultant for leading resorts (The Hermitage on Nevis, Ottley's on St. Kitts); and as a judge for numerous food and wine competitions (San Francisco International Wine Competition; Restaurant Magazine S. Pellegrino World's 50 Best Restaurants; Quady Dessert Wine/Food Pairing; Mendocino County Fair Wine Competition; Connoisseur Classic Southwest Wine Festival, et al.)