'Twas Not So Brillig

I was totally baffled by the headline from yesterday's NY Daily News (no, I don't read that rag, but there was a copy sitting on the kitchen table in my office). It said: Joba Wacky. Now, I eventually guessed that Joba was the name or nickname of some sports figure who was arrested for DUI. (He's evidently a Yankee named Joba Chamberlain.) And I guess he was acting wacky...? Seemed like a stretch. So I passed this apparently nonsensical headline every time I walked through the kitchen. Finally, it struck me—it's a play on Jabberwocky.

Now, maybe I was being a little dense to not have realized that before. But if I didn't realize that until the, say, tenth time I read the headline, is this a pun that the average Daily News reader will ever get? I'm not trying to sound pompous, but (in true lit-mag dork fashion), I had the whole damn poem memorized at one point. Seems like a rather stupid move for a paper known for its punny, painfully obvious headlines.

In case you're interested, here's a link to one of the few pics of yesterday's front page that I could find online.