Jean Shepherd Biography

Fast Facts

• Began his career in broadcast radio for Cincinnati's WSAI in 1948
• Earned his Amateur Radio Operators License at the age of 15
• Quote: "[on why he called himself a humorist instead of a comic] "A humorist looks outward and sees the world․ A comic looks inward and see himself․""
• Perhaps best known for both writing and narrating 1983's "A Christmas Story․"
• Spent 21 years as a storyteller and announcer at the radio station WOR-AM in New York City
• Often referred to as "Shep" throughout his career
• Was the inspiration for the hero of the film "A Thousand Clowns" and the song "A Boy Named Sue," which was written by Shel Silverstein and made famous by Johnny Cash
• Was a Chicago White Sox fan his entire life
• His script for "A Christmas Story" was semi-autobiographical, based on his youth in Hammond, Ind․, as he had recorded it in his novel "In God We Trust: All Others Pay Cash․"