TV writer, former sex columnist, memoirist are nominees for Thurber Prize for American Humor

TV writer, essayist among nominees for humor prize

NEW YORK — Cue the laugh track: A former sex columnist, a TV comedy writer and a best-selling memoirist are nominees for the Thurber Prize for American Humor.

Jancee Dunn, who has reported on music for Rolling Stone and written about sex for GQ, is a finalist for her essay collection, “Why is My Mother Getting a Tattoo?”

The other nominees are Steve Hely, who has written for “The Late Show With David Letterman” and “American Dad,” for a novel about novels: “How I Became a Famous Novelist”; and Rhoda Janzen, for her popular memoir, “Mennonite In a Little Black Dress.”

The finalists were announced Thursday. They will attend an Oct. 4 ceremony at New York’s Algonquin Hotel, where Keith Olbermann will host. The winner receives $5,000.