The Human Resources person asked the young Engineer fresh out of MIT, “And what starting salary are you looking for?”

The Engineer said, “In the neighborhood of $75,000 a year, depending on the benefits.”

The HR person responded, “Well, what would you say to a package of 5 weeks vacation, 14 paid holidays , full medical and dental, company matching retirement fund to 50 percent of your salary, and a company car leased every two years, says a red Corvette?”

The Engineer sat straight up said, “WOW! ARE YOU KIDDING!”

HR person replied, “Certainly … but you started it.”

In this job interview, neither found anything funny about it. Ludicrous perhaps, but definitely not funny. But can humor benefit the job seeker? Is it right or wrong, or somewhere in between?

The long-running example of humor and stupidity is Seinfeld’s George Costanza who always put his foot in his mouth, no matter the occasion. And when he tried to be funny, he was usually fired or humiliated.

In the real world, the answer isn’t so simple. Using humor is usually instinctual and circumstantial. If the interviewee is relaxed and happy—and you sense a real rapport, humor can be a benefit. It the interviewee is a woman dressed to the nines, has pursed lips, a pearl necklace, hair in a bun and sits behind her desk with the posture of Queen Elizabeth, and stares through you like you were a vapor, not so much.

What about humor and e-mail correspondence? Recently, a person applied for a job via e-mail. Rather than pontificate about experience, results and “all about me,” he simply sent a note saying “I’m your guy. I get results. I’ll make it happen. For you. And for me. I get to pay my mortgage and feed the kids. ” Emoticon included. He got an interview within 24 hours.

There is a plague that can kill off your chances for employment. It’s the “What’s Funny” problem. What’s humorous to Bob is not so funny to Jill. Humor can’t be condescending, sexist or explicit. It must be positive, light-hearted and limited. Don’t crack a complete comedy routine during the interview. You’re a job-seeker not Jerry Seinfeld. You also want to balance your humor with statements and content that creates a perception that you are a quality individual that works hard, offers required skill sets, is organized, works well within a team and brings an uplifting happy demeanor. Not a corporate clown. No matter what, the job interview must demonstrate that the Interviewer is respected, holds the top position in the room, and that you subjugate yourself to their authority, comments and questions.

One career expert cautions against humor. He says there are “too many ‘ifs’ involved; however he ends his advice like this: “Another way to look at things is that if humor is just part of the way you communicate, then you should feel free to do it. If you don’t get the job because of that, then you really wouldn’t want to work in that kind of environment anyway, would you?”

Besides, the world’s greatest philosopher—Mark Twain—says humor “is Mankind’s greatest blessing.”

You can’t beat that.