I've been told to speed up my delivery when I perform. But if I lose the stammer, I'm just another slightly amusing accountant.

Well I was much too practical to presume to have a career in comedy.

Laughter gives us distance. It allows us to step back from an event, deal with it and then move on.

Well, if you’re a native Chicagoan, you know how dumb he [Dr. Robert Hartley] is. He gets on the Ravenswood El, he goes past his stop on Sheridan Road, he gets off in Evanston, where the El is on the ground, and then he walks back 55 blocks to his apartment. Now, would you want to have that man as a psychologist? A man who misses his stop every day?

I think one reason for a successful marriage is laughter. I think laughter gets you through the rough moments in a marriage.

It was a decision to work clean. I just prefer to work that way. I have no problem with comedians who don't work that way. There was a temptation in the early '70s to reconsider. I decided against it.

I'm most proud of the longevity of my marriage, my kids, and my grandchildren. If you don't have that, you really don't have very much.