破产边缘的柯达：是该说再见的时候了

 二十世纪五十年代，美国柯达公司曾盛极一时，从家用相机胶卷到好莱坞电影胶片，都深深地烙着Kodak的印记，但是风水轮流传，在进入二十一世纪后，随着数码相机的诞生和数码制片的发展，柯达公司的股票价值已经沦落到了要被纽交所扫地出门的地步了，原因何在？

Generations of American families captured the great milestones¹ of their lives using Kodak cameras. But today you can buy a share of Eastman Kodak's stock for less than we once paid for a roll of Kodachrome film. Anthony Mason tells us that this great American institution is fighting for survival.

Always use the dependable Kodak film, the film in the familiar yellow box.

That yellow box with the red logo was one of the 20th century's titanic² brands.

It's the new Brownie Starmatic camera.

But the company that gave us the Kodak moment and once controlled 90% of film sales in the U.S. is now on the brink³ of bankruptcy⁴.

This week the stock price of the one-time blue-chip company fell below 50 cents a share and if it doesn't climb back above $1 soon, the New York Stock Exchange says it will have to kick Kodak out of the market.

That would be a mighty⁵ fall for the camera maker⁶ founded by George Eastman in 1880. Elizabeth Brayer is Eastman's biographer.

If they go on bankrupt and we read it in the paper, that would be a sad day. But I don't see it being a tremendous change because it's really happened already.

With film sales evaporating in the digital age, Kodachrome was discontinued two years ago. And Kodak has failed to develop another business as profitable. The company that once employed 145,000 workers now has fewer than 19,000.

If you prick⁷ me I would bleed Kodak yellow.

Ed Guards retired⁸ five years ago with a pension but he's worried bankruptcy could affect his medical benefits.

"I have a feeling that's gonna go. That's what we're fearful of."

Kodak has already cut off his life and dental insurance and medical coverage⁹ for his wife.

Which means that for all intents and purposes I worked 34 years for nothing.

Add its headquarters in Rochester New York, the company's been selling off real estate. And Ed Guards worries that the bankruptcy could see Kodak finally fading away.

It'll be a very dull ache for an awful lot of people for an awful lot of years.

Anthony Mason CBS News, New York.

We know, we got to wondering in the news from today about the name Kodak. Well it turns out it's a made-up word invented by the company founder¹⁰ George Eastman. He said he always liked the letter K because it's strong and incisive¹¹, so he put a K at the beginning and a K at the end and experimented with combinations in the middle until he came up with Kodak.

1 milestones   

n.重要事件( milestone的名词复数 )；重要阶段；转折点；里程碑

参考例句：

• Several important milestones in foreign policy have been passed by this Congress and they can be chalked up as major accomplishments. 这次代表大会通过了对外政策中几起划时代的事件，并且它们可作为主要成就记录下来。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Dale: I really envy your milestones over the last few years, Don. 我真的很羡慕你在过去几年中所建立的丰功伟绩。 来自互联网

2 titanic   

adj.巨人的，庞大的，强大的

参考例句：

• We have been making titanic effort to achieve our purpose.我们一直在作极大的努力，以达到我们的目的。
• The island was created by titanic powers and they are still at work today.台湾岛是由一个至今仍然在运作的巨大力量塑造出来的。

3 brink   

n.(悬崖、河流等的)边缘，边沿

参考例句：

• The tree grew on the brink of the cliff.那棵树生长在峭壁的边缘。
• The two countries were poised on the brink of war.这两个国家处于交战的边缘。

4 bankruptcy   

n.破产；无偿付能力

参考例句：

• You will have to pull in if you want to escape bankruptcy.如果你想避免破产，就必须节省开支。
• His firm is just on thin ice of bankruptcy.他的商号正面临破产的危险。

5 mighty   

adj.强有力的；巨大的

参考例句：

• A mighty force was about to break loose.一股巨大的力量即将迸发而出。
• The mighty iceberg came into view.巨大的冰山出现在眼前。

6 maker   

n.制造者，制造商

参考例句：

• He is a trouble maker，You must be distant with him.他是个捣蛋鬼，你不要跟他在一起。
• A cabinet maker must be a master craftsman.家具木工必须是技艺高超的手艺人。

7 prick   

v.刺伤，刺痛，刺孔；n.刺伤，刺痛

参考例句：

• He felt a sharp prick when he stepped on an upturned nail.当他踩在一个尖朝上的钉子上时，他感到剧烈的疼痛。
• He burst the balloon with a prick of the pin.他用针一戳，气球就爆了。

8 retired   

adj.隐退的，退休的，退役的

参考例句：

• The old man retired to the country for rest.这位老人下乡休息去了。
• Many retired people take up gardening as a hobby.许多退休的人都以从事园艺为嗜好。

9 coverage   

n.报导，保险范围，保险额，范围，覆盖

参考例句：

• There's little coverage of foreign news in the newspaper.报纸上几乎没有国外新闻报道。
• This is an insurance policy with extensive coverage.这是一项承保范围广泛的保险。

10 Founder   

n.创始者，缔造者

参考例句：

• He was extolled as the founder of their Florentine school.他被称颂为佛罗伦萨画派的鼻祖。
• According to the old tradition,Romulus was the founder of Rome.按照古老的传说，罗穆卢斯是古罗马的建国者。

11 incisive   

adj.敏锐的，机敏的，锋利的，切入的

参考例句：

• His incisive remarks made us see the problems in our plans.他的话切中要害，使我们看到了计划中的一些问题。
• He combined curious qualities of naivety with incisive wit and worldly sophistication.他集天真质朴的好奇、锐利的机智和老练的世故于一体。