Sheplives

Last Summary Update: 10-16-2026

Random Factor
Airdate: Thursday - September 16, 1971 (Airdate Confirmed)

WOR Show
Original Airing

audio

(NOTE ABOUT TIME REFERENCES: Since there are many different copies of shows out there from different sources, all time references are from the beginning of one single recorded copy, since various copies, depending on when the recordee started recording, had news at the beginning or shortened themes. The times would vary from copy to copy.)

First Spoken Line After Theme Ends

Shep singing and playin Kazoo to "In the Good Old Summertime"
Opening of show is missing - these are first words of the available recording.

Show Description

[ Courtesy: GROK Summary - - ]   
  Shepherd opens with a comic commercial parody for "Peace" products - Peace automobiles, jockey shorts with peace symbols, wallpaper, cereal ("Peacies All-Brand"), etc. - then riffs on doing commercials as relaxation. He plugs Mandarin House Chinese restaurant in the Village (133 W. 13th St.), noting its automatic Buddha and "sweet and sour ping pong."

He discusses a listener's idea about everyone in Manhattan jumping at the same instant to shake the city free, and the related notion of a simultaneous citywide toilet flush ("John Flush moment"). This leads into power grids, user probability for utilities, and the fear that synchronized appliance use could cause massive outages. He notes how everything is statistically tracked (people running red lights, toothpicks sold on Wednesdays, etc.) and how obscure firms supply radio ratings.

He announces book appearances that Saturday (Sept. 18): 11 a.m. - 1 p.m. at Bamberger�s book department in Newark, then 3 - 5 p.m. at Bamberger's in Paramus, for signing "Wanda Hickey�s Night of Golden Memories". 

The core of the show is a long riff on statistics, random sampling, and the "random factor." He illustrates random sampling with the absurdity of dipping a teaspoon into the Atlantic at Jones Beach and declaring no sharks exist, versus netting sharks off Bimini and declaring the ocean is full of them. He recounts Hitler's staff relying on a flawed worldwide poll (suggesting other nations would not resist German expansion into Poland) as a catastrophic example of believing bad sampling. Shepherd critiques Americans' faith in scientific credentials and explains the "random factor" as the unexplained residue that statisticians invoke when predictions fail - essentially an escape hatch meaning the model was wrong.

He digresses into hollering contests (judged from miles away), vocal power as an athletic skill, and why hollering is as legitimate a physical contest as running or tennis. This expands into sports moments players cherish or dread:
- The "candy hop" (easy infield bounce).
- The "can of corn" (soft fly ball).
- The "hanger" (a hanging curve that looks hittable but is often popped up).

He describes a third baseman (Danny Cater) booting a perfect candy hop after a tough stretch, a tennis player (Stan Smith) missing an easy lob, and a tight end dropping a wide-open touchdown pass - moments of pure frustration. These parallel everyday disappointments, including a personal high-school dating anecdote about missing a clear romantic opportunity through hesitation.      
  

WOR ID

Time	Station ID (All times approximate)
12:05	This is WOR in big old friendly New York. . . .

Commercials (All times approximate)

Time	Sponsor	Notes
05:14	Mandarin House

Music (All times approximate)

Time	Music Title	Notes
00:00	In The Good Old Summertime (2)