But the characters in "Laughter on the 23rd Floor, " like "The Sunshine Boys" before it, have a logical reason to be telling jokes, which is that they write them for a living ("If Max Prince laughs, my kids eat this week").

WSJ: Putting the Punch in Punch-Line | Neil Simon | Laughter on the 23rd Floor | Mad Cow Theatre | Review by Terry Teachout

When did you decide to leave the kitchen to write and travel for a living?

FORBES: Anthony Bourdain On His New Memoir, 'Medium Raw'