Bob Dylan won't go pick up his Nobel in person, because 'pre-existing commitments'

The Swedish Academy ruffled some literati feathers by choosing Bob Dylan as the first songwriter to win the Nobel Prize in Literature, and Dylan isn't exactly rewarding them with enthusiastic gratitude. He did not take their calls for nearly two weeks, didn't even acknowledge the honor until a brief mention of it appeared then disappeared on his website five days after the Nobel was announced on Oct. 13, and only revealed that he had accepted the prestigious award (and its $870,000 check) in an Oct. 28 interview with a British newspaper. On Wednesday, the Swedish Academy said Dylan won't show up on Dec. 10 to accept his Nobel Prize.

"Yesterday evening the Swedish Academy received a personal letter from Bob Dylan, in which he explained that due to pre-existing commitments, he is unable to travel to Stockholm in December and therefore will not attend the Nobel Prize Ceremony," the academy said in a note on its website. "He underscored, once again, that he feels very honored indeed, wishing that he could receive the prize in person." The Swedish Academy said the decision to skip the ceremony is "unusual, to be sure, but not exceptional," and that the prize is still his as long as he gives a Nobel Lecture within six months.

"It is unclear what commitments Mr. Dylan might be referring to," The New York Times notes. "His official website lists no tour dates after Nov. 23." If this seems rude — and chairman of the Nobel Literature committee Per Wastberg called Dylan's refusal to take their calls "impolite and arrogant," and said his decision to skip the ceremony is baffling — Dylan isn't the first literature laureate to snub the Nobel, or even the rudest. Jean-Paul Sartre refused the Nobel in 1964, and Doris Lessing, who also ditched the ceremony, grumbled "Oh, Christ," when informed that she'd won the award in 2007. Other laureates, like Harold Pinter, could not attend because they were close to death.

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