Full disclosure: I am one of Susan Shepherd's ultra-lucky writers who have contributed scripts to "11 Central Ave." Even as I key in these words for PRX, Shepherd's stellar series, "Writers Write 11 Central Ave," is being launched this month, October 2007. Other writers in the series include the superb novelist, Rick Moody.

As may be evident from criticism I wrote before I knew I would be one of the show's writers, I thought, and still believe, that "11 Central Ave" is the smartest, sassiest drop-in to hit public radio since Steve Inskeep invented The Morning Edition Chuckle. There's nothing quite like "11 Central Ave"; as a sitcom it is absolutely -- to lapse into Latin -- sui generis. In a little more than one year, Shepherd, long an animal lover, has truly found her "voice" in the voices of such urbane, complicated human animals as Nat (Will LeBow), Christine (Paula Plum), Rick (John Kuntz), and Elena (Melinda Lopez).

In episode 54, Anneliese (Harper Kaye) and Dante (Jason Bowen) have a breakfast chat about Anneliese's not-fun summer at sleep-away camp. With the kind of nuanced writing we have come to expect from 800 lb. Productions, Anneliese recounts her woodsy misadventures with a wet sleeping bag, midnight mystery bugs -- "You never actually saw them but woke up every morning covered with volcano-sized welts" -- and showers at gas stations! In contrast, Dante gabs about the glory of being a Fresh Air kid sponsored by a rich white family, escaping summer inner-city fire-hydrant sprays to learn how to swim in the country. Below the surface of Anneliese and Dante's amiable banter crucial distinctions define the huge racial gap in America. Rather than being a ho-hum lesson in cultural studies, however, this episode is funny-sad, with a script as lively as a mayonnaise jar exploding all over a two week supply of melba toast and bologna!

Best of all, the co-star of this episode, high-school actor Anneliese (Harper Kaye), co-wrote the script with Sandra Miller.