Tuesday, July 26, 2022

It's the birthday of humorist Jean Shepherd, born in Chicago, Illinois (1921) - Writers Almanac

Some men are Baptists, others Catholics. My father was an Oldsmobile man--- Jean Shepherd 


July 26, 2022

Every morning I get an email from Garrison Keillor who manages Writers Almanac, a daily chronicle of well-known literary figures and events. I learn so much every day from this short post. I recommend subscribing - it's free, though donations are welcome: Subscribe now

Today I was reminded of one of my favorites as a teenager, Jean Shepherd. You know him from the great movie, Christmas Story -- that's him narrating - I listened to that voice on my transister radio in bed every night. His stories were mesmerizing. I went with some friends to see him in person at the Village Voice Car Rallye July 26, 1959, a fun event which he narrated. 

 learn more about Shepherd here. And a tribute site: https://www.flicklives.com/

Here's Keillor's short description --

It's the birthday of humorist Jean Shepherd, born in Chicago, Illinois (1921). He's remembered for the autobiographical stories he told on the radio about a boy named Ralph Parker growing up in Hohman, Indiana. One of his stories was made into the movie A Christmas Story (1983), which he narrated. It's about a boy who wants a BB gun for Christmas, even though every adult in his life says that he'll shoot his eye out.

The stories Shepherd told on-air were always improvised, but he later wrote them down and published them in collections like In God We Trust: All Others Pay Cash (1967) and Wanda Hickey's Night of Golden Memories and Other Disasters (1972).

Jean Shepherd said: "Some men are Baptists, others Catholics. My father was an Oldsmobile man."

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

I too loved listening to Shepard in the dark at night.

Anonymous said...

My parents loved him! I did, too. Kept my first transistor radio under the pillow each night...