Voting Station

Jean Shepherd

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Author

The Resume

    (July 26, 1921-October 16, 1999)
    Born in Chicago, Illinois
    Radio host/raconteur/short story author
    Hosted a late night show on WOR radio in New York City (1956-77)
    Short stories published in the collections 'In God We Trust, All Others Pay Cash' (1966), 'Wanda Hickey's Night of Golden Memories and Other Disasters' (1971), 'The Ferrari in the Bedroom' (1972), 'The Phantom of the Open Hearth' (1978) and 'A Fistful of Fig Newtons" (1981)
    Co-wrote and narrated the film 'A Christmas Story' (1983)

Why he might be annoying:

    He would ask listeners to throw open their windows and shout nonsense phrases.
    For a hoax, he got his listeners to ask bookstores for 'I, Libertine' by Frederick Ewing, turning the nonexistent book and author into a hot topic in publishing circles.
    He had two children from his first marriage, but publicly denied their existence.
    NBC turned him down as a potential successor to Steve Allen as host of 'The Tonight Show,' deciding he was too caustic.
    He made commercials for Reingold Beer.
    During an appearance on 'Tomorrow' with Tom Snyder, he dismissed his radio career as unimportant.

Why he might not be annoying:

    He delivered his extensive radio monologues without notes.
    Marshall McLuhan called him 'the first radio novelist.'
    He helped John Cassavettes raise the money for his first film.
    He won Playboy's Writing Award for humor/satire five times.
    Jerry Seinfeld said, 'He really formed my entire comedic sensibility. I learned how to do comedy from Jean Shepherd.'
    'A Christmas Story' became a holiday classic.

Credit: C. Fishel


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    In 2023, Out of 3 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2022, Out of 2 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2021, Out of 11 Votes: 54.55% Annoying
    In 2020, Out of 7 Votes: 71.43% Annoying
    In 2019, Out of 8 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2018, Out of 7 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2017, Out of 10 Votes: 20.0% Annoying
    In 2016, Out of 4 Votes: 25.00% Annoying
    In 2015, Out of 10 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2014, Out of 7 Votes: 42.86% Annoying
    In 2013, Out of 17 Votes: 47.06% Annoying
    In 2012, Out of 20 Votes: 35.00% Annoying
    In 2011, Out of 15 Votes: 40.0% Annoying
    In 2010, Out of 57 Votes: 57.89% Annoying
    In 2009, Out of 24 Votes: 54.17% Annoying
    In 2008, Out of 23 Votes: 17.39% Annoying