“The reality of what we are is often times found in the small snips, way down at the bottom of things.” Jean Shepherd
A decade ago I reviewed Marc Fisher’s “Something in the Air: Radio, Rock, and the Revolution that Shaped a Generation” for Magill’s Literary Annual. It contains a chapter on Calumet Region humorist Jean Shepherd: I noted:
While pop music dominated the AM dial [in the 1950s] an eccentric genius named Jean Shepherd invented what came to be known as talk radio. Twice fired for persistently digressing from the music, he migrated to WOR in New York, where he held forth nightly for four and a half hours. Intermittently spinning jazz records between acerbic monologues, Shepherd’s tales of festering youth had universal appeal, as did his irreverence toward sponsors and management functionaries. His eventual successor, Long John Nebel, attracted night owls interested in UFOs, health nostrums, and conspiracy theories of all kinds.
During the 1960s FM came into its own. The Federal Communication Commission forced stations to stop simucasting AM shows, and automobile manufacturers wired their vehicles for FM. Carrying on Shepherd’s legacy in Los Angeles was John Leonard with Nightsounds,while New Yorker Bob Fass hosted Radio Unamenableon WBAI.
On the radio Shepherd’s avowed objective was to stimulate trains of thought, and his improvisational style was similar to the jazz music he loved.
Bill Clinton and Dale Bumpers in 1999
New York Review of Books contributor Sean Wilentz’s article “Presumed Guilty” on Ken Starr’s “Contempt: A Memoir of the Clinton Investigation” argues that the hatred and distrust of Bill and Hillary by Starr and his staff (including zealous reactionary Brett Kavanaugh) turned “a faltering right-wing political vendetta against a Democratic president into a constitutional crisis over consensual private behavior.” According to former Arkansas governor and senator Dale Bumpers, “Javert’s pursuit of Jean Valjean in Les Miserables paled in comparison”to Starr’s pursuit of the Clintons. An incredulous Wilentz points out the irony of Starr being worried about what he termed “the inherent danger of prosecutorial overreach”in the Mueller probe. “Presumed Guilty” cites several egregious actions by persecutor Starr, in addition to the browbeating of Monica Lewinsky:
Susan McDougal, the ex-wife of the eccentric progenitor of the Whitewater project, Jim McGougal, refused to testify before the grand jury, fearing that saying anything other than what she believed the independent counsel’s office wanted would lead to her indictment for perjury. She wound up serving 18 months in prison for civil contempt of court, eight of them in solitary confinement. Then, upon her release, Starr had her indicted on criminal charges of contempt (which ended in a hung jury) and obstruction of justice (which ended in an acquittal). Julie Hiatt Steele contradicted claims by her friend Kathleen Willey concerning an alleged inappropriate advance by the president. Starr accused her of obstruction of justice and making false statements, which led to a mistrial, whereupon the matter was dropped – but only after Steele had been harassed over the adoption of a Romanian child.
Reading Kurt Vonnegut’s “Cat’s Cradle” for an Advanced English paper, grandson James is fascinated by the narrator’s espousal of a fictitious religion called Bokononism. It reminded me of existentialism, which James learned about in a recent unit. “Cat’s Cradle” opens with this advice supposedly found in the Books of Bokonon, many of which were written in the form of calypsos: “Live by the forma (harmless untruths) that make you brave and kind and healthy and happy.”
Pony Express monument in St. Joseph's, MO
Jim DeFelice’s “West Like Lightning: The Brief, Legendary Ride of the Pony Express” contains fascinating tales about the 1,900-mile mail delivery system from St. Joseph, Missouri to Sacramento, California that, to my surprise, was short-lived and was a financial failure. DeFelice wrote:
Daring young men with colorful names like “Bronco Charlie” and “Sawed-Off Jim” galloped over a vast and unforgiving landscape, etching an irresistible tale that passed into myth almost instantly. Equally an improbable success and a business disaster, the Pony Express came and went in just 18 months but not before uniting and captivating a nation on the brink of being torn apart [by the Civil War].
DeFelice recounts exploits by the likes of Jim Bridger, Jack Slade, “Wild Bill” Hickok, and William “Buffalo Bill” Cody but then admits that many may have been pure fabrications. The two men most responsible for spreading myths regarding the Pony Express were author Edward Zane Carroll Judson, who assumed the pseudonym Ned Buntline, and William Cody, whose Wild West shows usually began with a dramatization on the Pony Express riders.
Dave’s family brought over Chinese food and a key lime pie for my 77th birthday. Dave burned me a Kurt Vile compilation CD and on a card called me his role model. Nice. We played the dice game Qwixx and Love Letter, which involved cards with various powers and worth that I was just starting to comprehend when Becca won. I watched the Oscars intermittently and enjoyed the opening Queen medley with Adam Lambert and original band members, Spike Lee’s speech after winning for best adapted screenplay (for BlacKkKlansman) and Lady Gaga’s incandescent performance with Bradley Cooper singing “Shallow” from “A Star Is Born.” Gaga has previously sung memorable duets at awards shows with Elton John, Tony Bennett, and Metalilca – a true superstar.
Anti-Trump Republican columnist Max Boot laments the decline of college History courses and the public’s ignorance of America’s past. Boot mocked the slogan “Make America Great Again,” as if there were some mythical “Golden Age.” Citing nearly forgotten events, he mentioned the Triangle Shirtwaist Fire, the Red Scare, and the Balangiga Massacre. The latter had me stumped until I associated it with an American atrocity carried out in 1901 on the Philippine island of Samar in retaliation for 48 U.S. soldiers slain by villagers supporting nationalist Emiliano Aguinaldo. In retaliation General Jacob “The Monster” Smith ordered entire towns put to the torch, every Filipino over the age of ten killed, and, most damaging, the population starved into submission. Up to 50,000 civilians perished. Smith was subsequently court-martialed, found guilty, and forced into retirement but otherwise not punished.
Riley Kuzos as Pink Diamond; NWI Times photo by John Luke
Northwest Indiana Comic-Con took place over the weekend in Schererville, featuring cosplay contests and all sorts of displays and items for sale. One of Steve McShane’s former students was a big fan and wrote about attending a Comic-Con in Chicago. I included her journal in my forthcoming Steel Shavings (volume 48).
Julius "Lil Jay" James
Film documentarian Nick Mantis spoke to appreciative seniors at a Munster Center Art in Focus presentation. For the past seven years the Hammond native has been gathering material on Jean Shepherd and had many interesting anecdotes and clips to share, including a brief snippet from an interview with me. I learned that Shep’s childhood home on Cleveland Street in north Hammond is still standing and that his father (the “Old Man”) deserted the family as soon as younger brother Randy turned 18. Though a jazz buff, Shepherd hung out with the Beatles in England before they took America by storm and befriended many New York City literary figures and folk singers. His friend Shel Silverstein wrote “A Boy Named Sue,” recorded by Johnny Cash, after hearing Shep complain about being stuck with a girl’s name.
Mantis spoke with one of Shep’s close friends from their early days in New York City who recalled that he enjoyed starting arguments with fellow patrons in diners of coffeehouses. Verbal jousting was one of Shep’s specialties. After publication of “Land of the Millrats,” folklorist Richard Dorson invited Shepherd to be featured speaker at a conference in Bloomington. Deliberately needling his host, Shep claimed that Gary was not really part of “Da Region,” only Hammond, East Chicago, and Whiting. Over drinks, Shep complained that his books were listed on the New York Timesbest-seller list under non-fiction rather than fiction. During sessions, he’d be smirking and passing notes containing sarcastic or off-color comments. Saturday evening he took the stage and put on a hilarious two-hour performance that pre-teens Phil and Dave still remember.
Shep’s cantankerousness alienated both business associates and admirers, including Jerry Seinfeld, who admitted: “He really formed my entire comedic sensibility. I learned how to do comedy from Jean Shepherd.” Although Shep narrated “A Christmas Story” (1983), he was ultimately banned from the set because of his incessant carping. The TV series “Wonder Years” was inspired by “A Christmas Story” and Steven Spielberg invited Shepherd to provide input to the creators. He was so ornery and obstreperous the meeting abruptly ended within minutes. He hated syrupy nostalgia and termed his literary output anti-nostalgia. Mantis showed a clip where Shep answered a question about whether he had fond memories of growing up in Hammond by asking if one is nostalgic about a cold sore. Shep died virtually friendless in 1999 at age 78, soon after his fourth wife passed away, having disowned his two children.
During Q and A I mentioned Indiana University awarding Shep an honorary degree in 1995 and at a luncheon on my campus beforehand having everyone rolling in the aisles recounting how, after getting discharged from the army, he went to take classes at IU’s East Chicago extension and was made to take an aptitude test. Two days later a guidance counselor told him that results indicated he should become a dentist. Shep’s concluding remark: “I walked out of that building and never looked back.” I’m certain Shepherd was truly touched to receive the honorary degree and making fun at the university in a 20-minute bit was the Hoosier humorist’s way of showing appreciation.
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