| Jean Shepherd was a writer, humorist, satirist, actor, TV & film personality and an American original.
He was a master story teller in the league of Mark Twain, S.J. Perlman and P.G. Wodehouse.
Taking bits and pieces from his own life, he weaved tales of the joys, humor, and intrigue.
To many, Jean Shepherd was a radio genius and more. Frequently referred to as “a Mark Twain for our time“. At the same time, J.S. was a unusual individual who meant different things to different people. However, most will collectively concur that he was a wonderful storyteller.
J. Shepherd entered this world in Chicago's windy city on July 26, 1921 and divided his youth between Chicago's south side and Hammond, Indiana. In the years when Dwight D. Eisenhower was the United States President, J. Shepherd was the revolutionary voice of popular culture in the best sense of the word. in the most basic way.
J. Shepherd was a humorist, in the classic comedy tradition taken from the adages stating that “truth is often found in humor” and also “pain is often found in truth“. Jean Shepherd was a very popular cult radio and cabaret personality in New York during the 1950’s and 1960’s. One thing that makes Shepherd’s appeal so universal was the fact that his stories hit close to home and were nostalgic for listeners whether or not they lived during the timeframe he usually wrote and spoke about. A well known talk radio and PBS personality, J. Shepherd was responsible for creating volumes of nostalgic humorous treasures of American storytelling which later led to comparisons to the likes of Garrison Keilor.
Previous to that from 1950-1954, Shepherd was a radio DJ on WSAI Radio he also appeared nightly on a comedy show, "Rear Bumpers," J. Shepherd's most well known achievement was perhaps the creation of Ralphie Parker's relentless quest for a BB gun in the classic “A Christmas Story“.
In the social transition from the “Leave It To Beaver 1950s” to the new world of the revolutionary 1960's Shepherd was an influential voice of an era of rebellion, non-conformity, new art, an explosion of music and social humor. Favorite books by Shepherd include “In God We Trust, All Others Pay Cash” and “Wanda Hickey’s Night of Golden Memories”. But the most widely held memories are of Shepherd narrating great stories on the radio. Regarding Jean Shepherd's radio appearances there is a great legacy remaining and hundreds of hours of entertainment still available.
Whether you are an loyal fan of Jean Shepherd or not, these old radio shows are a “must listen” for anyone who is interested in the history of humor. Fortunately, due to the rebirth of fascination with classic radio programming hundreds of great Jean Shepherd episodes are readily available online.
Garrison Keilor and Mark Twain will always receive due respect as two of America’s premier story tellers ever, while Jean Shepherd rarely gets a mention . But consider this, Jean Shepherd was arguably the greatest kazoo player of the past 50 years, and a persistant defender of its use. Who else can say that? O. M. Wakefield is active in the Old Time Radio Community as a Collector and Old Time Radio Website Reviewer. He advises folks to visit Bookzap's Giant OTR Collectionsand Radio Treasury OTR Online Catalogsfor wonderful values and information regarding the Old Time Radio Show possibilities. |
