One Big Joke — Laurence Shames

“What is with you lately?” Lenny's wife would like to know. “You've been acting like everything is one big joke.” And it's true -- unemployed TV writer Lenny Sullivan has been having trouble seeing his life and times as anything more than fodder for edgy wisecracks. But when he bolts to Key West to refresh his lighter side, things suddenly turn serious. Well, sort of serious. A bullying businessman in league with a pair of bumbling mobsters is plotting to burn down his best friend's struggling comedy club. The pill-popping star of his last best chance at a hit show is under a death threat from a very sore loser in a love triangle. And Lenny's staunchest ally in the fight to keep the club, the star, and the laughs alive happens to be a 90-something named Bert the Shirt. Fortunately, Bert has a soft spot for comedians and is the savviest if not the most grammatical guy in town… Deftly balancing suspense and humor, mayhem and romance, Key West color and showbiz glitz, ONE BIG JOKE uproariously entertains while making a sly but impassioned argument for the saving grace of comedy in tough times.