2011年ESL之餐饮娱乐 01 Buying TV Programs and Movies（打印版）

2011年ESL之餐饮娱乐 01 Buying TV Programs and Movies（在线收听）

01 Buying TV Programs and Movies

GLOSSARY

box set – a group of related books, CDs, DVDs, video tapes, or similar materialsthat are sold together, often with special packaging, although they can also bebought separately

* For her birthday, Margot asked for a box set of albums by her favorite rockgroup.

of all time – ever; throughout the existence of something

* That was the best song of all time! I can’t imagine anyone ever recordingsomething better.

to contain – to have; to include as a part of something; to encompass

* That diary contains all of his most personal thoughts and secrets.

season – the episodes of a particular television show that are shown during aparticular time of year, most often in the fall

* How many seasons of The Simpsons have been produced?

deleted scene – a recording of some action or conversation that was meant tobe part of a movie or show, but was taken out of the final version and not seen byviewers, usually because the producer decided it isn’t an important part of thestory

* Watching the deleted scenes can provide a lot of insight into the characters’ motivations.

outtake – a small section of a movie or show that is removed from the finalversion, often because it has a mistake in it

* There’s a really funny outtake where the actors couldn’t stop laughing as theywere trying to say their lines.

bonus feature – something that is included in a DVD, but not included in themovie as it was shown in theaters, and that makes the DVD more desirable ormore valuable

* This DVD has an interactive video game as a bonus feature.

must-have – something one wants to have very badly and feels as if he or sheneeds to have it

* Bright red-colored nail polish is the must-have item this season in the fashionindustry.

to spend good money – an informal phrase used to show disapproval for howother people are choosing to spend their money on unimportant or unnecessarythings

* Why would anyone spend good money on fancy jewelry?

to run out and buy – to be very excited to buy something, going to the storewithout thinking about it ahead of time, often as soon as it becomes available

* As soon as I saw that commercial, I wanted to run out and buy a new camera.

trilogy – a group of three related things, usually three movies or three books withthe same characters

* Marcos thinks The Lord of the Rings is one of the best trilogies ever.

director’s cut – the version of a movie approved by a director, but different fromthe one shown in theaters, which must be approved by the film studio

* The director’s cut was almost 20 minutes longer than the version of the film thatwas shown in theaters.

commentary – spoken comments, usually from the director, producer, or leadactor, that are heard throughout a movie as he or she comments on what theviewer is seeing and hearing

* It’s interesting to listen to the main actor’s commentary about what he wasthinking while acting in certain scenes.

never-before-released – being shared with the public for the first time

* This album contains never-before-released songs that the singer recordedbefore her death.

touché – used to show that one agrees with what another person has said in adiscussion or argument and that it is very true in a slightly funny way

* - If you’re trying to save money, why don’t you stop buying so many expensivebooks about living on a budget?

* - Ah, touché.

COMPREHENSION QUESTIONS

1. Which of these things could be a bonus feature?

a) A box set.

b) A season.

c) An outtake.

2. What does Cameron mean when he says, “I just don’t see why people spendgood money buying shows they’ve already seen”?

a) He thinks the shows are too expensive.

b) He thinks people forget what they have seen too easily.

c) He thinks people are wasting their money.

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WHAT ELSE DOES IT MEAN?

contain

The verb “to contain,” in this podcast, means to have or to include as a part ofsomething: “This box contains all the photographs I have of my mother.” Or, “Somany kids are allergic to peanuts that the school has started asking parents notto send any snacks to school that contain nuts.” The verb “to contain” can alsomean to control one’s feelings: “Therese couldn’t contain her happiness, so shejust laughed and smiled.” Or, “Some people try to count to 10 in order to containtheir anger.” When talking about a disease or a problem, “to contain” means tocontrol or limit the spread of something: “The agency didn’t work quickly enoughto contain the problem, so now it has spread throughout the country.”

released

In this podcast, the phrase “never-before-released” means being shared with thepublic for the first time: “In these never-before-released journal entries, you canread Maxim’s most secret thoughts.” A “release” can also be a new song, album,movie, show, or book that has just been made available to the public: “Have youheard the singer’s newest release?” A “press release” is a short document thatdescribes an important event or decision for a business or organization, and thatis sent to the media for publication: “They write a new press release every timethe company starts selling a new product.” The phrase “work release” refers to aprogram that lets prisoners work outside of the jail: “If your good behaviorcontinues, you might be eligible for our work release program.”

CULTURE NOTE

Box sets are an easy way for product manufacturers to increase sales of theirproducts. Americans purchase box sets not only of DVDs, but also of manyother types of products.

For example, many books are sold in box sets. These are normally “series” (agroup of books or shows with the same characters), such as a Harry Potter boxset or a Nancy Drew box set. Popular trilogies such as The Lord of the Ringscan also be purchased as box sets. Sometimes these box sets include specialfeatures, such as a DVD of a related movie or TV show, or stickers or jewelryrelated to the main character.

Other box sets might include all the “works” (things someone has created) of aparticular author or musician. For example, there is a box set of four CDsfeaturing the music of Elton John. These box sets are often released “shortly”

(soon) after an individual’s death or any other event that makes the individual“rise to prominence” (become famous; become talked about), such as a decisionto give a special award to that individual.

Even some foods are sold as box sets, and are often given as “impersonal” (notclose or intimate) gifts. For example, a box set of tea might include a few“teabags” (small filter-paper bags filled with tea leaves, placed in a mug so hotwater can be poured over them to make one serving) for each “variety” (type) oftea sold by the manufacturer. “Spice” (plant products used to flavor food)manufacturers also sell box sets so that people can “sample” (try) many of thespices the company sells.

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Comprehension Questions Correct Answers: 1 – c; 2 – c

COMPLETE TRANSCRIPT

Welcome to English as a Second Language Podcast number 650: Buying TVPrograms and Movies.

This is English as a Second Language Podcast episode 650. I’m your host, Dr.

Jeff McQuillan, coming to you from the Center for Educational Development inbeautiful Los Angeles, California.

Our website is eslpod.com. Go there to download a Learning Guide for thisepisode that will help you improve your English faster – and, make you a happierhuman being!

This episode is a dialogue between Cameron and James. It’s all about buyingTV programs and movies to watch at home. Let’s get started.

[start of dialogue]

Cameron: What did you get for Christmas?

James: I got a box set of my favorite TV show of all time, the McQ Files. Itcontains all five seasons of the show, deleted scenes, and outtakes. I can’t waitto watch it all!

Cameron: Didn’t you see the entire series when it was shown on TV?

James: I did, but the bonus features make it a must-have for a big fan like me.

Cameron: I just don’t see why people spend good money buying shows they’vealready seen.

James: Hey, wait a second. Didn’t you run out and buy the Podinator trilogy boxset when it went on sale last month?

Cameron: Uh, yeah, but that’s different. Those are movies, not TV shows. ThePodinator box set had the director’s cut and commentary, not to mention neverbefore-released scenes.

James: Hadn’t you seen all three movies when they were shown in the theaters?

Cameron: Yes, but…

James: And don’t you own all three movies on video already?

Cameron: Well, maybe I do but…James: Then I don’t see why you needed to buy the box set. I think it’s best thatyou give it to me.

Cameron: Touché.

[end of dialogue]

Cameron begins by asking James, “What did you get for Christmas?” What gifts;what presents did you get for Christmas? James says, “I got a box set of myfavorite TV show of all time, the McQ Files.” A “box set” is a group of relatedCDs (compact discs), DVDs, videotapes, books, or some other material, usuallya video or a print material that is sold together. For example, you might want tosee all three of the Godfather movies from the early 70s: The Godfather, TheGodfather II, The Godfather III. Well, you can buy a box set of those threemovies. They come together in DVD form in a little box that often contains otherinformation about whatever it is that you’re buying.

James got a box set of his favorite TV show of all time. The expression “of alltime” means the same as ever, throughout the existence of something. If yousay, “This is the best book of all time,” you mean there has never been a betterbook than this one. James says that the box set contains all five seasons of theshow, deleted scenes, and outtakes. The verb “to contain” means to have, toinclude as part of something. “My book contains a lot of violence.” It has a lot ofviolence in it. “Contain” has a couple of different meanings, and those can befound in our Learning Guide.

James says that the box set contains all five seasons of the show – of the TVprogram. A “season,” when we are talking about a television program, is thegroup of programs that are shown usually in a period of six to eight months. Inthe United States, typically most of the new TV shows begin in September. Andthen, during this summer, they don’t have the show on the air. That is, you can’twatch it on television or you can only watch old episodes, and then they start anew season in the fall, in September the following year.

Well, this show, the McQ Files, has five seasons. The box set also containsdeleted scenes and outtakes. When you buy a DVD, for example, of a TVprogram or a movie often they will include on the DVD things that were not partof the original movie or the original television show. Something that is “deleted” is something that is removed. So, “deleted scenes” are parts of the story thatwere taken out for the final version, for what you saw on TV. But when you buythe box set you get to see some of these scenes – some of these parts of the TVshow or movie that no one else has seen. Well, no one else who has not boughtthe box set! An “outtake” (outtake – one word) is a small section of a movie thatis usually removed because there was a problem with it, often there’s a mistake.

In many box set DVDs you’ll find outtakes from a movie that are funny, when theactors or actresses make a mistake. That’s typically what outtakes are.

James says that he can’t wait to watch it all – watch all of the programs in this TVseries. Cameron says, “Didn’t you see the entire series when it was shown onTV?” That is, when you could watch it on the regular television. James said, “Idid, but the bonus features make it a must-have for a big fan like me.”

Something that is a “bonus” (bonus) is something that is extra. A “feature” in thiscase is just a characteristic of something, some part of something. So, a “bonusfeature” are things that you get extra when you buy the DVD box set. A “musthave”

is something that you want and feel that you absolutely need to have.

James says that getting the box set with the bonus features is a must-have for a“big fan” – that is, someone who likes this TV series a lot – like me.

Cameron says, “I just don’t see why people spend good money buying showsthey’ve already seen.” The expression “to spend good money” is an informal onethat’s used to show your disapproval, how you don’t like the way someone ischoosing to spend their money. You think it’s on unimportant or unnecessarythings. Some people might say, “You shouldn’t spend good money on buying afancy car. All you need is something that will take you from here to there.” Thatwould be an example of using this expression “to spend good money.” I, forexample, will not spend good money on some expensive shampoo, since I don’treally need it!

Cameron doesn’t think James should spend good money on buying televisionshows – DVDs of shows he’s already seen. James says, “Hey, wait a second.

Didn’t you run out and buy the Podinator trilogy box set when it went on sale lastmonth?” “Wait a second” means hold on; stop; don’t go any farther. James asksCameron, “Didn’t you run out and buy,” meaning you were very excited and soyou went to the store immediately, as soon as it was available to buy it. “Didn’tyou run out and buy the Podinator trilogy box set?” A “trilogy” (trilogy) is a groupof three related books or movies typically. The Lord of the Rings was a trilogy;The Godfather series was a trilogy, and so forthCameron says, “Uh, yeah, but that’s different. Those are movies, not TV shows.

The Podinator box set had the director’s cut and commentary, not to mention never-before-released scenes.” When you buy a movie on DVD sometimes theywill include a special version of the movie called the “director’s cut.” The“director” is the person who is in charge of the movie when it is being filmed.

Often, the director takes things out of the movie in order to be able to sell it to themovie companies – the movie studios. When they have a chance to sell theDVD, then the director will often put in that original cut – that is, that originalversion of the movie. Often, movies will have “commentary.” That is, there’ll bethe director, maybe the producer, possibly the lead actor talking through themovie, giving you descriptions of what was happening or giving you the storybehind this particular part of the movie. And, when you buy a DVD withcommentary you can turn the commentary on so that you can hear them talkingliterally over the movie. “Never-before-released” means that it has not beenshown to anyone until now. It’s sort of like deleted scenes. “Release” has acouple of different meanings however; take a look at the Learning Guide forsome additional explanations.

James says, “Hadn’t you seen all three movies when they were shown in thetheaters (in the movie theater)?” Cameron says, “Yes, but…” “And don’t youown all three movies on video already?” That is, Cameron already has copies ofthis movie, perhaps on an old videocassette tape. Cameron says, “Well, maybe Ido but…” James continues, “Then I don’t see why you needed to buy the boxset. I think it’s best that you give it to me.” He’s joking, of course. James issaying you should give me the box set because you already own these threemovies. Cameron, of course, realizes that James is criticizing her for the samereason that she criticized him. So the last word of the dialogue is “Touché.”

“Touché” (touché – with an accent over it) is a French word that in English weuse to show that you agree with what another person has said, and that there’ssomething somewhat funny about it. We’re acknowledging that the other personsaid something that was true and that perhaps we didn’t realize until they said it.

For example, someone could say to you, “If you are trying to save money, whydon’t you stop buying so many expensive books (books that cost a lot of money)about saving money?” And, you would say, “Ah, touché.” In other words, youare accepting, in a sense, this criticism – this observation about something that issomewhat funny, something that perhaps shows that you didn’t think about thesituation as completely as you should have.

Now let’s listen to the dialogue, this time at a normal speed.