A History of Greenwich Village in 1960 With Jean Shepherd

This is an amazing short film shot in 1960 about a typical Sunday in Greenwich Village. It was narrated by Jean Shepherd, an American raconteur, radio and TV personality, writer and actor who was often referred to by the nickname Shep. Most people know him for the film A Christmas Story (1983), which he narrated and co-scripted, based on his own semi-autobiographical stories.

According to WikiPedia, “Shepherd began his broadcast radio career on WSAI in Cincinnati, Ohio in 1948. From 1951 to 1953 he had a late-night broadcast onKYW in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, after which he returned to Cincinnati for a show on WLW. After a stint on television (see below), he returned to radio. “Shep,” as he was known, settled in at WOR radio New York City, New York on an overnight slot in 1956, where he delighted his fans[3] by telling stories, reading poetry (especially the works of Robert W. Service), and organizing comedic listener stunts. The most famous[4] of the last involved creating a hoax about a non-existent book, I, Libertine, by the equally non-existent 18th century author “Frederick R. Ewing”, in 1956. During a discussion on how easy it was to manipulate the best seller lists, which at that time were based not only on sales but demand, Shepherd suggested that his listeners visit bookstores and ask for a copy of I, Libertine which led to booksellers attempting to purchase the book from their distributors. Fans of the show eventually took it further, planting references to the book and author so widely that demand for the book led to it being listed on The New York Times Best Seller list. Shepherd, Theodore Sturgeon and Betty Ballantine later wrote the actual book, with a cover painted by illustrator Frank Kelly Freas, published by Ballantine Books.[5] Among his close friends in the late 1950s were Shel Silverstein and Herb Gardner. With them and actress Lois Nettleton, Shepherd performed in the revue he created, Look, Charlie. Later he was married to Nettleton for about six years.”

In the short film, it’s amazing to recognize so many corners, buildings and parks around the Village. Not that much has really changed.