Jean Shepherd

Jean Shepherd's theme song Bahn Frei by Eduard Strauss. Bahn Frei is German for "Clear the path".

Jean Shepherd was an amateur radio operator using the call sign K2ORS.

During one of Shepherd's radio shows in 1956, he discussed how the best-seller lists could be manipulated, and how a non-existent book could appear on the New York Times best seller list. To demonstrate, he asked his listeners to go to bookstores and ask about the book I, Libertine, by fake author "Frederick R. Ewing". Booksellers attempted to order the book from their distributors.

Fans of the show planted references to the book and author so widely that demand for the book led to claims of it being on The New York Times Best Seller list.

Shepherd, Theodore Sturgeon, and Betty Ballantine wrote the book later that year, with a cover by illustrator Frank Kelly Freas, published by Ballantine Books.

The book is available today. Click the cover image to see the book on Amazon.