History Creator / JeanShepherd

* ''Film/ItRunsInTheFamily'' (1994)

* ''Ollie Hopnoodle's Haven of Bliss'' (1988)

[[caption-width-right:350:''[[CatchPhrase "Excelsior, you fathead!"]]'']]

* {{Joisey}}: He considered New Jersey an [[AcceptableTargets Acceptable Target]], even though he lived there at several points in his life.

* LongTitle: Just look at all the titles listed above. Also extended to chapter titles in his books.

* LifeEmbellished: Exactly how truthful his stories are is an eternal debate among Shep fans. Shepherd himself freely admitted that he took liberties with the truth in order to make things more entertaining, but researchers have also dug up many specific details of people and places in his life that he included in his work. But he also very blatantly messed with the actual facts of his life. One example is that Shepherd was really in his late teens in the period when ''Film/AChristmasStory'' took place.

* ''[[Film/AChristmasStory A Christmas Story 2]]'' (2012)--He had nothing to do with the film, on account of having died in 1999, but obviously based on his characters and style.

* FanNickname: Shep

After a stint as a local TV host in the 1950s, he became a regular presence on Creator/{{PBS}} in the '70s and '80s, hosting the video essay series ''Shepherd's Pie'' and ''Jean Shepherd's America'' and presenting dramatized versions of his short stories on the anthology series ''Visions'' and ''American Playhouse''.

After a stint as a local TV host in TheFifties, he became a regular presence on {{Creator/PBS}} in TheSeventies and TheEighties, hosting the video essay series ''Shepherd's Pie'' and ''Jean Shepherd's America'' and presenting dramatized versions of his short stories as [[MadeForTVMovie made-for-TV movies]].

After a stint as a local TV host in TheFifties, he became a regular presence on {{Creator/PBS}} in TheSeventies and TheEighties, hosting the video essay series ''Jean Shepherd's America'' and presenting dramatized versions of his short stories.

Shepherd is noted as one of the writers of the film ''Film/AChristmasStory'', which is based on anecdotes primarily from his book "In God We Trust: All Others Pay Cash." He also provided the voice of the {{nostalgic narrator}} in that film and had a brief [[TheCameo cameo appearance]] in it.

Shepherd is noted as one of the writers of the film ''Film/AChristmasStory'', which is based on anecdotes primarily from his book "In God We Trust: All Others Pay Cash." He also provided the voice of the narrator in that film and had a brief [[TheCameo cameo appearance]] in it.

He once played a prank in which he asked listeners of his late-night radio program to go to their local bookstore and request a nonexistent book by a nonexistent author: ''I, Libertine'' by Frederick R. Ewing, a social satire set in 18th century England about a rakish socialite named Lance Courtenay. The prank was so successful that the book ended up on the ''New York Times'' bestseller list (which was then compiled based on feedback from bookstores) despite not actually existing, and in the process exposed a large number of literary critics as frauds after they began writing phony reviews to cash in on the novel's supposed popularity. After the truth came out, publisher Ian Ballantine approached Shepherd about [[{{Defictionalization}} actually writing the novel]], with science fiction writer Creator/TheodoreSturgeon being brought on as a co-author with Shepherd. As one might expect, the real ''I, Libertine'' then went on to become an ''actual'' bestseller thanks to the notoriety of the prank.

He once played a prank in which he asked listeners of his late-night radio program to go to their local bookstore and request a nonexistent book by a nonexistent author: ''I, Libertine'' by Frederick R. Ewing, a social satire set in 18th century England about a rakish socialite named Lance Courtenay. The prank was so successful that the book ended up on the ''New York Times'' bestseller list (which was then compiled based on feedback from bookstores) despite not actually existing, and in the process exposed a large number of literary critics as frauds after they began writing phony reviews to cash in on the novel's supposed popularity. After the truth came out, publisher Ian Ballantine approached Shepherd about [[{{Defictionalization}} actually writing the novel]], with science fiction writer Creator/TheodoreSturgeon being brought on as a co-author with Shepherd. As one might expect, the real ''I, Libertine'' went on to become an ''actual'' bestseller thanks to the notoriety of the prank.

He once played a prank in which he asked listeners of his late-night radio program to go to their local bookstore and request a nonexistent book by a nonexistent author: ''I, Libertine'' by Frederick R. Ewing, a social satire set in 18th century England about a rakish socialite named Lance Courtenay. The prank was so successful that the book ended up on the New York Times bestseller list (which was then compiled based on feedback from bookstores) despite not actually existing, and in the process exposed a large number of literary critics as frauds after they began writing phony reviews to cash in on the novel's supposed popularity. After the truth came out, publisher Ian Ballantine approached Shepherd about [[{{Defictionalization}} actually writing the novel]], with science fiction writer Creator/TheodoreSturgeon being brought on as a co-author with Shepherd. As one might expect, the real ''I, Libertine'' went on to become an ''actual'' bestseller thanks to the notoriety of the prank.

Shepherd specialized in irreverently humorous monologues about growing up in a middle class family in a small town in Indiana during TheGreatDepression, along with accounts of his young adulthood, including his time in the U.S. Army Signal Corps during UsefulNotes/WorldWarII, which mixed sophisticated reflections with broad comedy.

* {{Catchphrase}}: He had a bunch on his radio show, but the standouts were "Excelsior, you fathead!" (his all-purpose salutation) and "I'm this kid, see..." (generally how he started out his stories about his youth).

* SigningOffCatchphrase: In the '70s, he'd end his radio show with "Remember, kiddies: [[UsefulNotes/{{Baseball}} keep your knees loose and your glove well-oiled]]."

* SigningOffCatchphrase: In the '70s, he'd end his WOR radio show with "Remember, kiddies: [[UsefulNotes/{{Baseball}} keep your knees loose and your glove well-oiled]]."

* SophisticatedAsHell: Could easily toggle between a highbrow and lowbrow tone.

* NostalgicNarrator: Did voiceovers for all his films acting as this.

He once played a prank in which he asked listeners of his late-night radio program to go to their local bookstore and request a nonexistent book by a nonexistent author: ''I, Libertine'' by Frederick R. Ewing. The prank was so successful that the book ended up on the New York Times bestseller list (which was then compiled based on feedback from bookstores) despite not actually existing. Publisher Ian Ballantine hired science fiction writer Creator/TheodoreSturgeon to actually write it.