Dylan for Chrysler

THINGS HAVE CHANGED: It was surreal to see Bob Dylan as a pitchman for Chrysler during the Super Bowl, no matter how stirring the message. For the record, the payoff went like this: “Let Germany brew your beer, let Switzerland make your watch, let Asia assemble your phone. We will build your car.” There was some disagreement about whether the move was inspired or wrongheaded. The two-minute spot was one of the standouts in a WSJ contest for best advertisements, based on a survey of consumers and ad buyers. Forbes, on the other hand, opined that the commercial “wasn’t a good look for Dylan, a counterculture icon, to become a car salesman,” further noting that it may have been a good thing the spot aired toward the end of the blowout, after millions had tuned out. But as Forbes reminded us, this wasn’t the first time the Bard has shilled for an automaker: he starred in a spot for the 2007 Cadillac Escalade. Dylan wasn’t the only rock legend to mess with fans’ heads last night—did you see Prince, with an old-school afro, playing himself in the postgame episode of Zooey Deschanel’s The New Girl? Overall, the experience was like being stuck inside of Bizarro World with the Memphis blues again. More on Super Bowl music in our lead story. (2/3a)