Comedian Dave Gorman’s attempt to drive across the USA only using independent suppliers and not giving anything to The Man^TM.

Author:	Dave Gorman
Publisher:	Ebury Press, 2009
ISBN:	9780091899332 ISBN10: 0091899338
Characteristics:	378 pages, Paperback ; 20 cm.
Source:	Street Library and returned.
Date Read:	20-Feb-2026

America Unchained is about Dave Gorman’s attempt to traverse the USA without giving any money to The Man^TM. He buys a 1970 Ford Torino, and joined by Stef, the TV show producer. Unfortunately she develops a bad back and cannot continue.

Dave is left stranded for a few days but another producer, Andrew, steps in and finishes off the tour with Dave.

I loved watching Dave in his show Modern Life is Goodish, where he cleverly uses Power Point slides and a brilliant and funny script to highlight the quirks of modern life. In America Unchained there were some comedic moments, but overall, it was disappointing and nowhere near as good as Modern Life is Goodish.

Much time is spent repairing the Ford Torino and getting fuel (or gas as British Dave keeps saying), and there are some tense moments when no independent gas stations are found. I loved the encounters he has with the business owners; and this highlights why “mom and pop” stores are treasured still. More time should have been spent on why such businesses are important and to show the reader the benefits they have to their local communities. A bit of an opportunity lost I think.

Anyway, it was a good read, even if Dave didn’t seem to be at his amusing best.

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The Car, a Ford Torino

Dave Gorman’s car in America Unchained was a 1970 Ford Torino.  Appropriately and accidentally, it resembled the Griswald’s Family Queen Truckster car from National Lampoon’s Vacation (1983).

Key details about the car:

• Model: 1970 Ford Torino Estate (Station Wagon).
• Condition: It was a “very old” car that frequently broke down during his road trip.
• Purchase: He bought the car in San Diego to start his journey across America.
• Significance: It was a deliberate choice to buy a car that was one year older than himself. 

Googie Architecture

Dave mentions Googie architecture, and it ties in well with the book. Googie architecture and “Mom and Pop” businesses both had their heydays around the same time in the 1970s. It was probably disliked at the time but now as the style becomes scarce people are realising what they had now that it’s gone.

Googie architecture is one of those wonderfully exuberant mid‑century styles that looks like it leapt straight out of a 1950s vision of the future.

Dog Bark Park

The USA is full of quirky places and people, and one of these places is Dog Bark Park. Accommodation is provided in large wooden dogs lovingly built by the owners Dennis and Frances.

The quote below summarises the charm “mom and pop” businesses have over The Man^TM.

I think this might be the best feature of Dog Bark Park. Even
though the accommodation is so strangely housed inside the
belly of a large wooden dog it is undeniably homely. There are
things in the room. Ornaments, books, magazines, photographs,
toys and board games are all there and you know where they
came from. You know who put them there. You could steal them.
But you don’t. And you don’t because in leaving them there,
Dennis and Frances have trusted you not to.

I know that all theft is wrong. At the same time we all have
an instinctive, emotional sense that there is a greater wrong in
stealing from a person than there is in stealing from a business.
If someone was to break into my neighbour’s house and steal
their CDs I know I would feel worse about it than if they broke
into HMV and did the same.

This is why a chain hotel can’t afford to trust us. Because
they know some people will happily steal from them. Why?
Because people are more comfortable stealing from a business
that has no real personality, where the person who suffers the
loss is — we assume — a faceless millionaire with no emotional
attachment to whatever it is you’re stealing.

You could never say the same about a one-of-a-kind business
like Dog Bark Park. There, you know the contents of the room
are the personal effects Of Dennis and Frances. You meet them
when you check in, you look them in the eye and you know that
this very special B&B is theirs. They designed, built and deco-
rated it. And they love it.

America Unchained, by Dave Gorman. Page151.

Further Reading and Information

Featured image: By Dave Gorman, from the colour inserts in “America Unchained”.