So what were you experiencing before your diagnosis?

Well, there was one-- First of all, I may have had, because of the genetic risk, uh, symptoms way before we thought it.

Uh, real quick.

I remember in the, probably about 2009, having a physical, just an annual physical, and seeing my very long-time doctor.

He'd been my internist forever.

And I, I still, I do this 'cause I remember I was buttoning up my shirt and I said, "You know, d- doctor-" You know, I'm wondering if, if there's something wrong with my m-memory.

Um, I think I'm being-- becoming forgetful.

So how did "The Dementia Man," the play come about?

Mm-hmm.

But I didn't understand it as an illness, if you would, or a m- medical issue.

So I would get lost more often.

Uh, this was pre-GPS.

[laughs] Um, I remember just some of the little things you remember.

I remember I stopped...

I'm gonna use the brand name because it's so bright.

I just wanna ask you, um, and, and just to summarize this briefly, what made you decide to actually write your book and then do the play, or did you do the play and then write your book?

Here's Sam.

We were pretty much full houses each time.

Now that I perform the show 50 to 60 times, I do pretty well.

It's still not memorized, but there are still moments where I lose awareness.

My wife, Susan, is now my cognitive navigator, I call.

And Susan can- she'll call out the page or the line number or even say, "To your left, Sam," if need be.

Um, and it's an hour-long show.

And now an update from Sam Simon.

Try to live in the present and make the present the best that you can.

I'm three years into this.

No, four years into this diagnosis.

And it's actually, you know, even longer.

I was diagnosed first with mild cognitive impairment.

One of the things, you know, we want to talk about what the journey is.

Get me off the titles and get me off the accounts.

um you've looked up there's a possible family link um next step in terms of support was there anything there for you

yes um my wife of now 59 years um seven months and 12 days uh so it's an odd thing to say and describe um The bigger support was in fact, you know, family.

But we live in a community that, we live in community, we're very active in the community.

We're Jewish, sort of the synagogue.

It may sound crazy to people, I don't know, but the first people we told were our kids.

The second were our clergy.

And, you know, and they provide comfort and welcome and we belong to a very large synagogue and there was somebody director of caring and they had people there.

Now, I know the title, Dementia Man, but dementia, I know, is a word that you don't like.