美国国家公共电台 NPR At 94, Mike Nussbaum Is The Oldest Working Stage Actor In Show Biz

 

SCOTT SIMON, HOST:

Mike Nussbaum is earning rave¹ reviews for his portrayal² of Rudy, a grandfather who's confronting loss and decline in Rachel Bond's play "Curve Of Departure" at the Northlight Theatre near Chicago. Mike Nussbaum won a Drama Desk Award for his performance in David Mamet's "Glengarry Glen Ross" in 1984. He's done lots of Mamet, lots of Arthur Miller³ and had featured turns in several films, including "Men In Black" and "Fatal Attraction." Mike Nussbaum has done a lot - period. He's 94 years old. He is reportedly the oldest working stage actor in America. Mike Nussbaum joins us from member station WBEZ in Chicago. Thanks so much for being with us.

MIKE NUSSBAUM: It's my pleasure, Scott.

SIMON: You started out in your 40s?

NUSSBAUM: No, I started out professionally in my 40s, but I was acting⁴ as a - since I was 9 years old. And as a young man trying to make a living, I was an exterminator⁵, but I was doing community theater for many years before I finally went ahead with it as a professional.

SIMON: Forgive me.- you were an exterminator?

NUSSBAUM: Yes, I was. And in spite of that, I've lived to 94.

SIMON: (Laughter).

NUSSBAUM: There may be a secret ingredient in DDT that we don't know about.

SIMON: (Laughter) Well, you would be a great ad for it.

NUSSBAUM: (Laughter).

SIMON: This current play, "Curve Of Departure..."

NUSSBAUM: Yes.

SIMON: ...I don't know a nice way to put this.

NUSSBAUM: All right.

SIMON: What's it like to play somebody who has to look death in the face when you're 94?

NUSSBAUM: Well, as a 94-year-old man, looking death in the face, it's not a problem at all. I think anybody who reaches my age is aware that it is a gift to be able to live this long and not to expect that it will go on much longer. In my note to BJ Jones, who directed the show and is one of my oldest and dearest friends, I said if this play is my last, it's a great one to go out on. And that's exactly the way I feel. I am gifted and lucky to still be able to do the thing that is the most fun for me in life. As long as I can do it, I will.

SIMON: And at the age of 94, 95 in December, right?

NUSSBAUM: Yes, that's correct.

SIMON: How do you project onstage?

NUSSBAUM: Well, that's one of the things that I still have is a strong voice. And audiences are delighted with an old actor who can speak loud because most of my audiences are also old, and they don't hear the young actors as well because they come from a different era. And they speak softly, and they speak rapidly, and they slur⁶, and I don't.

SIMON: Yeah. So what's your next role, or what you'd like to be your next role?

NUSSBAUM: Well, as a matter of fact, I am going to be playing the gravedigger in April at Chicago Shakespeare in "Hamlet." After that, I have no idea. It would take some courage for a theater to hire somebody who's 95, and I'm just hoping that somebody will.

SIMON: Mike Nussbaum plays Rudy in Rachel Bond's "Curve Of Departure" at the Northlight Theatre right outside of Chicago. We'll repeat it. Mr. Nussbaum will turn 95 in December. Thanks so much for being with us, sir.

NUSSBAUM: My pleasure.

1 rave   

vi.胡言乱语；热衷谈论；n.热情赞扬

参考例句：

• The drunkard began to rave again.这酒鬼又开始胡言乱语了。
• Now I understand why readers rave about this book.我现明白读者为何对这本书赞不绝口了。

2 portrayal   

n.饰演；描画

参考例句：

• His novel is a vivid portrayal of life in a mining community.他的小说生动地描绘了矿区的生活。
• The portrayal of the characters in the novel is lifelike.该书中的人物写得有血有肉。

3 miller   

n.磨坊主

参考例句：

• Every miller draws water to his own mill.磨坊主都往自己磨里注水。
• The skilful miller killed millions of lions with his ski.技术娴熟的磨坊主用雪橇杀死了上百万头狮子。

4 acting   

n.演戏，行为，假装；adj.代理的，临时的，演出用的

参考例句：

• Ignore her,she's just acting.别理她，她只是假装的。
• During the seventies,her acting career was in eclipse.在七十年代，她的表演生涯黯然失色。

5 exterminator   

n.扑灭的人，害虫驱除剂

参考例句：

• You're an exterminator charged with examining a house for bugs. 您装满了杀虫剂准备清除屋里的臭虫。 来自互联网
• Finally, the sparrow was shot by an exterminator with an air rifle. 最后，这只闯祸的麻雀被人用气枪击毙。 来自互联网

6 slur   

v.含糊地说；诋毁；连唱；n.诋毁；含糊的发音

参考例句：

• He took the remarks as a slur on his reputation.他把这些话当作是对他的名誉的中伤。
• The drug made her speak with a slur.药物使她口齿不清。