I, Libertine

infobox Book |
name = I, Libertine
title_orig =
translator =


image_caption = Cover of first edition (paperback)
author = Frederick R. Ewing
(Theodore Sturgeon)
illustrator =
cover_artist = Frank Kelly Freas
country = United States
language = English
series =
genre = Novel, Literary hoax
publisher = Ballantine Books
release_date = 1956
english_release_date =
media_type = Print (Hardcover & Paperback)
pages = 151 pp
isbn = NA
preceded_by =
followed_by =

"I, Libertine" was a literary hoax that began as a practical joke by late-night radio raconteur Jean Shepherd. Shepherd was highly annoyed at the way that the bestseller lists were being compiled in the mid-1950s. These lists were not determined only on sales figures but also on requests for new books at bookstores.

Creation of the hoax

Shepherd urged his listeners to enter bookstores and ask for a book that did not exist. He fabricated the author (Frederick R. Ewing) of this imaginary novel, concocted a title ("I, Libertine"), and outlined a basic plot for his listeners to use on skeptical or confused bookstore clerks. Shepherd eventually proved his point that the process of choosing bestsellers was flawed.

Publication

Bookstores became interested in carrying Ewing's novel, which reportedly had been banned in Boston. When publisher Ian Ballantine, novelist Theodore Sturgeon and Shepherd met for lunch, Ballantine hired Sturgeon to write a novel based on Shepherd's outline. Betty Ballantine completed the final chapter after an exhausted Sturgeon fell asleep on the Ballantines' couch, having attempted to meet the deadline in one marathon typing session. On September 13, 1956, Ballantine Books published "I, Libertine" simultaneously in hardcover and paperback editions with Shepherd seen as Ewing in the back cover photograph. In effect, the hoax actually begot the book. The proceeds were donated to charity. [ [http://blog.wfmu.org/freeform/2008/06/the-i-libertine.html An interview with Shepherd on the hoax from Long John Nebel's radio show] Long John Nebel's radio show]

A few weeks after publication, "The Wall Street Journal" officially exposed the hoax, already an open secret. [http://web.archive.org/web/20020427051336/flicklives.com/Articles/Wall_Street_Journel/8-1-56/8-1-56.jpg]

Frank Kelly Freas cover

The front cover displays a quote: "'Gadzooks,' quoth I, 'but here's a saucy bawd!'". The cover painting by Frank Kelly Freas includes hidden images and inside jokes: The sign on the tavern, Fish & Staff, has a shepherd's staff, referencing both Sturgeon and Shepherd. A tiny portion of the word often spoken on the air by Shepherd — "Excelsior!" — can be seen in a triangular area at extreme left, and the exclamation is also hidden in the ruffles on the dress worn by the woman on the right side of the painting.

References

External links

* [http://www.sniggle.net/libertine.php Cover with link to documents]
* [http://www.flicklives.com/Books/I%20Libertine/books_I_Lib.htm Documents]
* [http://www.bobkaye.com/ilibertine.html History and back cover scan]
* [http://www.flicklives.com/Books/I%20Libertine/books_I_Lib_audio.htm "I, Libertine" audiobook chapters]