Myron S. Simon Notebooks

Myron S. Simon (1926-2022) was an American chemist and a specialist in instant color photography processes. Born in Burlington, Vermont in 1926, Simon was educated at Harvard University, where he earned his bachelor’s degree (1946), master’s degree (1948), and Ph.D. in Chemistry (1949). At Harvard, he studied with many notable chemists, including Paul D. Bartlett and Gilbert Stork. He completed his Ph.D. research under Robert Burns Woodward.

Upon completing his studies at Harvard, Simon went to work as a research scientist at Polaroid Corporation in 1949, where he went on to enjoy a distinguished thirty-nine year career. At Polaroid, he became a noted specialist in instant color photography. Simon produced the first effective cyan dye developer. Under the direction of Stanley Bloom, he worked on the opacification process, which was an essential step in the development of Polaroid’s SX-70 instant color photography system. He also developed the “Chemical Curtain”, which protects SX-70 photographs while they are developing in light.

Simon rose through the ranks of Polaroid’s research hierarchy, eventually becoming Research Fellow and Associate Director of Organic Chemistry. Over the course of his career with Polaroid, he was awarded over seventy patents in the field of instant color photography. Simon retired from Polaroid Corporation in 1988.

In addition to his work at Polaroid, Simon was the founder of Image-Imation Associates and served as a consultant through 1996. He was also an active member of the American Chemical Society (ACS), becoming chairman of ACS’ Northeastern Section in 1985. In this capacity, he sponsored Glenn Seaborg’s proposal to end nuclear testing. Simon also served on numerous ACS committees and was co-editor of NUCLEUS.

Myron S. Simon passed away on May 23, 2022.

Sources

Myron S. Simon Notebooks, Science History Institute Archives, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Papers of Myron S. Simon, Science History Institute Archives, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.