What do Lucille Kallen, Mel Brooks, Neil Simon, Woody Allen, Michael Stewart, Mel Tolkin, Larry Gelbart, Carl Reiner and Selma Diamond have in common? Most are Jewish, and all were denizens of the famed “Writer’s Room,” where they labored to create the comedy sketches for the live, 90-minute weekly variety series “Your Show of Shows,” starring the legendary Sid Caesar.

Composites of these writers make up the characters in Neil Simon’s comedy, “Laughter on the 23rd Floor,” set in 1953 during television’s golden age.

The play takes a behind-the-scenes peek at what often felt like a “war zone,” where the writers each battled for Caesar’s nod of approval to make their words and lines a part of the show. In this fictionalized account of that time, the Caesar character becomes Max Prince, embattled king of the airwaves who is struggling, not only with his own issues of alcohol and prescription drugs, but also with the rising threat of McCarthyism as the TV network executives try to cut his show. In the new TV age, the NBC executives are afraid that Prince’s humor may be too sophisticated for mid-America.

The production ends the nearly two seasons of the “Wandering Jewish Theatre” as it officially inaugurates the Marvin & Harlene Wool Studio Theatre at the newly renovated JCC in Creve Coeur as the home of the New Jewish Theatre. Running dates are June 2 – 20 with performances on Wednesdays and Thursdays at 7:30 p.m., Saturdays at 8 p.m. and Sundays at both 2 and 7:30 p.m. Individual tickets are $24 to $34 and may be purchased at www.newjewishtheatre.org or by calling the box office at 314-442-3283.