No Sense of Humour

Since it's a common theme in UK media circles to sneer at Americans with their supposed lack of a sense of humour ("they don't get irony" etc. etc.), it's worth noting this ridiculous story about Bob Dylan's Theme Time Radio Hour show:

The eighty-third episode of “Theme Time” was entitled “Street Maps” [see here], and premiered last December. It featured music by everyone from Woody Guthrie to Green Day. After playing Roger Miller’s “King of the Road”, Dylan discussed the origin of the word “Hobo”. Then Dylan, pretending to share a secret with his audience, said,

“You know I don’t usually like to tell people what I’m doing, but I am talking to a couple of car companies about possibly being the voice of their GPS system. I think it would be good if you’re looking for directions and you heard my voice saying something like, ‘Take a left at the next street…no, a right…you know what, just go straight.’ I probably shouldn’t do it, ‘cause whichever way I go, I always end up in one place: on Lonely Avenue. Luckily I’m not totally alone. Ray Charles beat me there.”

This fictitious story was used by Dylan as a humorous way to introduce the next song, and was not taken seriously at the time. However, the program was premiered on BBC 6 radio in the United Kingdom on the evening of August 23.

And the Telegraph immediately came up with this:

Bob Dylan, the legend of folk and rock music, could soon be directing drivers down Highway 61 as car giants frantically bid to sign him up as the new voice of their sat nav systems.

The singer - a global superstar who has sold more than 70 million albums in a 45-year career - revealed that two major motor manufacturers had approached him to provide a audio road map commentary.

The 68-year-old is currently enjoying radio success on BBC 2 and 6 with his unique "Theme Time Radio Hour" show delivered in tone once described as "sandpaper singing".

He disclosed the offers from the sat nav firms on his radio show on BBC6 on Sunday night.

Now that's not having a sense of humour.

The BBC picked up the story, as did the NME. And, of course, the Guardian:

Bob Dylan has spent the better part of the past 40 years on the road, hawking his music around America and abroad seemingly without a pause. So it is perhaps fitting that he is considering lending his extraordinary voice to a GPS navigation system.

The usually impenetrable singer-songwriter revealed on his BBC Radio 6 show that he is in negotiations to become the latest celebrity, after Kim Cattrall and Homer Simpson, to be satnaved. "I am talking to a couple of car companies about being the voice of their GPS system," he said.

The move would finally solve the existential doubts that Dylan himself identified in his song Like a Rolling Stone: "How does it feel. To be on your own. With no direction home." Answer: It feels fine, you just switch on the gadget.

It's sweet really: they manage a little laboured joke of their own at the end there, while spectacularly missing the point.

And then the story headed back over the Atlantic to the NYT and Washington Post. 

Mainstream journalism, eh? Full of humourless idiots.

Comments

[DaninVan]

What tripe; who wants to listen to a guy's voice on their GPS? Women would just ignore it anyway...;)

(yes I get it, just joking.)

[henkie]

not getting a joke is something else than not having a sense of humour.
that's a big difference... so don't blame teh british to be humourless idiots.

but don't think twice, its all right (or left ;-)

[Martin]

This is delicious. We are constantly hearing about the Americans unique sense of humour and their lack of understanding of irony. Indeed an expat relative of mine got into hot water by joking with his trainee who took what he said too literally !
So when Bob uses irony and the British media fails to understand, blowing the story out of all proportion it's what we call a turn up for the book.

[Ray Hunter]

you would have thought that there was some one in the BBC, Daily Telegraph or The Washington Post that would have had enough savvy or nouse to see the joke, have all the "Hip" generation left these body's, took the money and retired to the hills, i Don't blame them at all, these institutions are just too big for their own good, BBC news are bunch of P$ f%%%d idiots now, have you heard what goes for humour on Radio Four now, complete rubbish.

[Zosha]

You would think the folks at the company broadcasting the show would know that the episode was eight months old and the story easily confirmed. But, then, what story would they have run in its place?