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'You're So Vain' singer Carly Simon, 82, recalls the moment she realized her father was famous


Carly Simon may be known for the hit single "You're So Vain," but she also comes from a very famous family, which she only realized in junior school.


Rebecca Lewis
Rebecca LewisLos Angeles correspondent
August 15, 2025
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Carly Simon may be known to many for her hit single "You're So Vain," but did you know that her father was also famous?

Turns out, Carly didn't know either until she was in junior school when a friend pointed out her father's name in the library.

"I remember when I first realized my father was famous, was in the school library of my junior school," she recalled in a recently resurfaced interview posted by AXS TV on TikTok.

"I went into the library and someone else pointed it out to me and said, 'Look that's your father,' and I realized he didn't own a shoe store, he was Simon & Schuster."

Her father was Richard Simon, who in 1924 had pooled $8,000 together with Max Schuster to publish the first book of crossword puzzles in 1924 at the age of 25.

The company went on to focus on "fad publishing," following trends and in the 1950s jumped on the educational reading trend due to the baby boom.

Max Schuster and Richard Simon in 1924© Bettmann Archive
Max Schuster and Richard Simon in 1924

After celebrating their 100th year in 2024, Simon & Schuster is now considered one of the "Big Five" English language publishers, and is the third largest in the US, publishing 2,000 titles annually.

Carly's father died when she was 17, and he never saw her successful career which began in 1963 when she began singing with her sister Lucy as the Simon Sisters.

Carly Simon (L) and Lucy Simon of the sibling singing duo "Simon Sisters" in 1964© Michael Ochs Archives
Carly Simon (L) and Lucy Simon of the sibling singing duo "Simon Sisters" in 1964

In 1970 Carly went solo and her debut album featured her breakthrough hit "That's the Way I've Always Heard It Should Be" which was nominated for a Grammy for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance at the 14th Annual Grammy Awards.

That year, Carly also won Best New Artist.

Singer-songwriter Carly Simon photographed in June 1971© Getty Images
Singer-songwriter Carly photographed in June 1971

She was nominated for the same category a year later for her second album, Anticipation, an album that Carly had recalled as "one of the best memories I shall ever have of recording," and in 1972 she released the biggest song of her career "You're so Vain," which received nominations for Record of the Year, Song of the Year and Best Pop Vocal Performance, Female at the 16th Annual Grammy Awards.

The subject of the song has become a matter of intense speculation although it is believed to be a composite of various men Carly knew at the time including Mick Jagger, who sings on the recording, and Warren Beatty.

Carly Simon joined Taylor Swift onstage during the Red tour in 2013© Theo Wargo/TAS
Carly performs with Taylor Swift during the Red tour in 2013

In 2003 Carly auctioned off the details of the song to a winner who bid $50,000, under the condition that they never reveal what they are told.

In 2015 Carly confirmed the second verse was about Warren.

Lyrics for the second verse include: "You had me several years ago when I was still quite naive / Well you said that we made such a pretty pair and that you would never leave / But you gave away the things you loved / And one of them was me."

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