chunk: One day, Melvin's apartment neighbor, a gay artist named Simon Bishop (Greg Kinnear), is assaulted and nearly killed during a robbery. Melvin is intimidated by Simon's agent, Frank Sachs (Cuba Gooding, Jr.), into caring for Simon's dog, Verdell, while Simon is hospitalized. Although he initially does not enjoy caring for the dog, Melvin becomes emotionally attached to it. He simultaneously receives more attention from Carol. When Simon is released from the hospital, Melvin is unable to cope emotionally with returning the dog. Melvin's life is further altered when Carol decides to work closer to her home in Brooklyn so she can care for her acutely asthmatic son Spence (Jesse James). Unable to adjust to another waitress, Melvin arranges through his publisher (Linda Gehringer) whose husband is a doctor (Harold Ramis) to pay for her son's considerable medical expenses as long as Carol agrees to return to work. She is overwhelmed at his generosity, and they agree there will be no physical