Jean Shepherd: More Than A Christmas Story

It's the time of year when many people dig out the family holiday video favorites, among them the 1983 comedy, A Christmas Story. Far funnier and more lasting that most holiday theme flicks, it was based on the writings and radio musings of Jean Shepherd. Shepherd also narrated the film, voicing the adult "Ralphie" and explaining his boyhood quest for the Red Ryder BB gun.

But for many of us, it was also a satisfying example...almost a tribute...to a fellow we felt we knew personally. That's because hundreds of thousands of us would tune in to Shepherd, often at 11 PM EST, to hear his rambling discourses and stories on WOR radio in New York. Even more found him as the powerful WOR AM signal bounced off the ionosphere and enable him to be heard in the Midwest. Later, edited versions of shows were rebroadcast in syndication.
He did not have guests, no "thank you for taking my call."  It was just him, one guy and a microphone for an hour or more. His story telling blended fact with total fiction seamlessly, sometimes wandering off into an almost stream of consciousness ramble. But you always felt he was talking to you, and you were part of a small select group who "got it."  Even though he did not aim his program at high-schoolers, many of us tuned in at an early age. Commercials for Kent cigarettes, Miller High Life beer and Peugeot cars were lost on us. And we probably missed a number of references he made that were caught by older, more experienced listeners.

Now, 40+ years later, you and I can STILL hear Jean Shepherd, even though he died ten years ago. Hear him via podcasts and recorded collections of shows from the 50's to the 70's. If you are a big Shep fan, right now this last bit of news fills you with amazement!  I will forgive you if you stop reading here and just go to http://www.flicklives.com/Mass_Back/index.asp to hear him after all these years!
If you are reading this and have NO idea what this is about, I understand. As one writer for WIRED put it, "Although he paved the way for Garrison Keillor, Spalding Grey, and even Howard Stern during his 30-odd years on the radio, and he authored numerous books and movies, including the holiday staple "A Christmas Story" (1983), Shepherd is by and large forgotten."

I don't fully agree with the by and large part. Things I did on the radio over 25 years are pretty much forgotten. But, as WIRED put it, Shepherd's material  was and is, "a fascinating mixture of spoken word poetry, Mark Twain storytelling, and Beat prankishness, the likes of which you've never heard on the radio before and probably never will again."

That is why you can go on places like eBay and buy 3 DVDs with more than 1,500 of his shows! These have been lovingly collected by fans from various sources and (due to the easy to copy mp3 format) have been sorted, grouped and presented for sale. I found a seller and a big Shep fan offering that collection for under $20. That is a labor of love!

If you've never heard him, a lot depends on what shows you find first. Don't be turned off by him cranking up his Jews' Harp and twanging along with a Dixieland version of I'm the Sheik of Arabee or some other nutty favorite. Keep listening.  It's like a drug.

To Jean Shepherd:  Rest in peace.  I'm still listening.