Ford Prefect (character) - Name

Name

Although Ford had taken great care to blend into Earth society, he had "skimped a bit on his preparatory research," and thought that the name "Ford Prefect" would be "nicely inconspicuous." Adams later clarified in an interview that Ford "had simply mistaken the dominant life form." The Ford Prefect was, in fact, a British car manufactured from 1938 to 1961. This was expanded on somewhat in the film version, where Ford is almost run over while attempting to greet a blue Ford Prefect. He is saved by Arthur and, in the film version of events at least, this is how the pair meet. The graphics in the TV series provide a similar explanation by listing director John Ford, Arthur Ford, news reader Anna Ford, carmaker Henry Ford, the Ford Anglia, the Ford Consul and finally Ford Prefect.

Adams later observed that this joke was lost on U.S. audiences who assumed it was a typing error for "perfect." In some versions, such as the French (Le Guide Galactique) and the Greek, Ford's name was changed to "Ford Escort." Nowadays, the joke is largely lost on younger audiences in Britain as well, since the Ford Prefect is now a rare sight on British roads. In the film adaptation, his last name was never actually stated on-screen, but it is given in the film's credits as "Prefect."

Prior art for Adams' satirical point – that humans attach such importance to their automobiles that a visiting extraterrestrial might reasonably mistake them for the planet's dominant life form – can be found in a widely reprinted article from The Rockefeller Institute Review titled Life on Earth (by a Martian) by Paul Weiss. The idea was also expounded by Carl Sagan, though this may have postdated Adams' creation of the character of Ford. The 1967 Oscar-nominated animated film What on Earth! from the National Film Board of Canada is also based on this premise.