PEOPLE IN AMERICA - Remembering Five Special People

PEOPLE IN AMERICA - Remembering Five Special People
By Jeri Watson and Caty Weaver¹

Broadcast: Sunday, December 26, 2004

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VOICE ONE:

I'm Steve Ember.

VOICE TWO:

And I'm Faith Lapidus with People in America in VOA Special English. Today we tell about five special people who died during the past year. We start with actor Christopher Reeve. He became a hero in real life as well as in the movies.

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VOICE ONE:

Christopher Reeve became famous as "Superman" in the movies about the comic-book hero who flew through the air and saved people's lives. But Mister² Reeve may be remembered longest for his activities during the last part of his life. He was thrown from a horse during a horseback-riding competition in nineteen ninety-five. He broke his neck and was unable to move his body. He was even unable to breathe for long periods without mechanical³ help. But later, he exercised hard on special equipment. Doctors expressed great surprise at the progress he made long after his injury.

 
Christopher Reeve breathes on his own
He also was a strong activist⁴ for medical research. He urged scientists to work to cure disabilities caused by back and neck injuries and disease⁵.

VOICE TWO:

Christopher Reeve was born in New York City in nineteen fifty-two. After college, he studied acting⁶ at the Juilliard School of the Performing Arts in New York.

Mister Reeve first acted in a Broadway play in nineteen seventy-six. Then he became "Superman." The movie was a huge success when it opened in nineteen seventy-eight. Mister Reeve starred in three more "Superman" films. Critics praised his performances in a number of other movies and plays.

VOICE ONE:

Mister Reeve continued acting even after his riding accident. He appeared in an award-winning television movie in nineteen ninety-eight. In "Rear⁷ Window", he played a man in a wheelchair who watches a murder in a nearby building. Most recently, Christopher Reeve directed a television film and wrote two books. He died October tenth at age fifty-two. He had suffered a severe infection resulting from his inability to move.

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VOICE TWO:

Do you recognize that voice? Many Americans, especially older ones, would. Julia Child was welcomed into homes across the United States for years through her television show, "The French Chef."

 
Graphic⁸ Image
Julia Child was not French, however. She was born Julia McWilliams in Pasadena, California in nineteen twelve. After college, Julia went to work for the United States' intelligence agency⁹, then called the Office of Strategic¹⁰ Services. World War Two was going on and Julia wanted to be a spy. The O.S.S. put Julia to work in Ceylon, now called Sri Lanka.

VOICE ONE:

There, she met Paul Child, another O.S.S. worker. They married in nineteen forty-six and later moved to Paris, France. Julia began taking classes at the famous cooking school, Cordon¹¹ Bleu. She became friends with two French students, Simone Beck and Louisette Bertholle. In time, the three began a cooking school of their own.

The Childs returned to America after about ten years. Julia kept working with her French friends to write a cookbook. The women wrote what is probably the most famous French cookbook in English. "Mastering the Art of French Cooking" was published in nineteen sixty-one. It was written for the average person. And the recipes called for products that could be found easily in American food stores.

VOICE TWO:

Julia Child was asked to talk about the book on a television show in Boston, Massachusetts. Instead, she cooked on the show. The television station asked Child to create her own cooking show. "The French Chef" was first broadcast in nineteen sixty-three. It became the longest running show on American public television, with more than two hundred episodes¹². Part of the show's popularity¹³ was Julia Child's friendly personality. She made mistakes while cooking and she did not try to hide them.

"The French Chef," died in Montecito, California, on August thirteenth. She would have been ninety-two years old on August fifteenth.

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VOICE ONE:

Poet Mattie Stepanek lived for only thirteen years. But he had an important effect on the world. Former President Jimmy Carter praised the young boy as "the most extraordinary person" he had ever known.

 
Graphic Image
Mattie Stepanek lived in Rockville, Maryland. He suffered from a rare form of a muscle-weakening disease called muscular¹⁴ dystrophy. This same disease had killed his three brothers when Mattie died on June twenty-second.

Mattie's goal in life was to help bring peace to the world. At age three, he was already writing poetry. He began writing after one of his brothers died.

A publisher printed two hundred copies of his collected poems in two thousand one. The book was called "Heartsongs." Before long, people across the country wanted copies. He wrote four more books of poetry. They have sold more than one million copies.

VOICE TWO:

Mattie appeared on television programs and became famous. But he was a very sick boy. He had to use a wheelchair to get around. Mattie spent a lot of time in hospitals. Yet he never seemed sad or angry. Here Mattie Stepanek reads from his poem "About Things That Matter."

(POEM)

"A person by my name and being existed

With a strong spirit and an eternal¹⁵ mindset

To become a peacemaker for all

By sharing the things that really matter."

VOICE ONE:

A very successful business leader also died this year. Estee (es-stay) Lauder died April twenty-fourth at the age of ninety-seven. She had sold beauty products for more than seventy years. Her business, the Estee Lauder Companies, began on the streets of New York City.

She was born Josephine Esther Mentzer in Queens, New York. Her parents had come to America from Hungary. They did not have much money. But they did have a beautiful daughter.

Estee's uncle was a chemist. Together, they worked to develop skin care creams in the nineteen-twenties when Estee was still a teenager. She took her products to New York City and stopped women on the street. She let them try the creams for free, calling the products "jars of hope."

VOICE TWO:

Soon, young Estee was selling the products to large stores that sold things to wealthy women. She wrote powerful marketing¹⁶ messages such as "I have the secrets" or "start the New Year with a new face." She also used many smart sales tricks.

Estee Mentzer married Joseph Lauder in nineteen thirty. He became her business partner. Estee Lauder once said, "I never dreamed about success. I worked for it." In nineteen ninety-five, she decided¹⁷ she had worked long enough, so she retired¹⁸. Today, her two sons and a grandson lead the Estee Lauder Companies. The business is worth about ten thousand million dollars. It employs more than twenty thousand people.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

Singer Robert Merrill lived a long and musical life. He died at home in New York State on October twenty-third. Records say he was either eighty-five or eighty-seven years old.

For thirty years, his rich baritone voice rang out at the Metropolitan¹⁹ Opera in New York City. Mister Merrill recorded popular music as well as opera music. He also played a leading part in the musical play "Fiddler on the Roof."

Robert Merrill took pleasure in New York City life. He often traveled on the underground subway train to sing at the Metropolitan Opera. For many years, he sang America's national song at the opening game of the New York Yankees baseball team.

VOICE TWO:

Mister Merrill was born in the Brooklyn area of New York in about nineteen seventeen. As a young man he worked in a poorly paid job in the area of New York where clothing is made.

One day, he heard singers preparing for a performance of Giuseppe Verdi's "La Traviata" at the Metropolitan Opera. On that day, the young man decided what he wanted to do with his life.

Robert Merrill worked and studied hard at his music. He sang at weddings and in hotels. In nineteen forty-five, the Metropolitan Opera hired Robert Merrill. His first performance was in "La Traviata." He sang more than five hundred performances of operas there during his long life.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

This program was written by Jerilyn Watson and Caty Weaver. It was produced by Caty Weaver. I'm Steve Ember.

VOICE TWO:

And I'm Faith Lapidus. Join us again next week for another People in America in VOA Special English.

1 weaver   

n.织布工；编织者

参考例句：

• She was a fast weaver and the cloth was very good.她织布织得很快，而且布的质量很好。
• The eager weaver did not notice my confusion.热心的纺织工人没有注意到我的狼狈相。

2 mister   

n.(略作Mr.全称很少用于书面)先生

参考例句：

• Mister Smith is my good friend.史密斯先生是我的好朋友。
• He styled himself " Mister Clean ".他自称是“清廉先生”。

3 mechanical   

adj.机械(学)的；力学的；机械似的；手工操作的

参考例句：

• He borrowed a mechanical book from me.他从我这儿借了一本力学方面的书。
• He looks very mechanical.他看上去非常呆板。

4 activist   

n.活动分子，积极分子

参考例句：

• He's been a trade union activist for many years.多年来他一直是工会的积极分子。
• He is a social activist in our factory.他是我厂的社会活动积极分子。

5 disease   

n.疾病，弊端

参考例句：

• The doctors are trying to stamp out the disease.医生正在尽力消灭这种疾病。
• He fought against the disease for a long time.他同疾病做了长时间的斗争。

6 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。

7 rear   

vt.抚养，饲养；n.后部，后面

参考例句：

• We had to rear it in a nursery and plant it out.我们不得不在苗棚里培育它，然后再把它移植出来。
• The hall is in the rear of the building.礼堂在大楼的后部。

8 graphic   

adj.生动的，形象的，绘画的，文字的，图表的

参考例句：

• The book gave a graphic description of the war.这本书生动地描述了战争的情况。
• Distinguish important text items in lists with graphic icons.用图标来区分重要的文本项。

9 agency   

n.经办；代理；代理处

参考例句：

• This disease is spread through the agency of insects.这种疾病是通过昆虫媒介传播的。
• He spoke in the person of Xinhua News Agency.他代表新华社讲话。

10 strategic   

adj.战略（上）的，战略上重要的

参考例句：

• The army moved for strategic reasons.军队作了战略转移。
• The bridge is of strategic importance to us.这座桥对我们至关重要。

11 cordon   

n.警戒线，哨兵线

参考例句：

• Police officers threw a cordon around his car to protect him.警察在他汽车周围设置了防卫圈以保护他。
• There is a tight security cordon around the area.这一地区周围设有严密的安全警戒圈。

12 episodes   

插曲，片断( episode的名词复数 )； 一集

参考例句：

• The novel deals with the romantic episodes of her early life. 小说叙述了她早期生活的浪漫插曲。
• Three episodes have been telescoped into a single programme. 把叁集的内容压缩成了一个节目。

13 popularity   

n.普及，流行，名望，受欢迎

参考例句：

• The story had an extensive popularity among American readers.这本小说在美国读者中赢得广泛的声望。
• Our product enjoys popularity throughout the world.我们的产品饮誉全球。

14 muscular   

adj.肌肉发达的，强壮的，（有关）肌（肉）的

参考例句：

• He is a muscular young man.他是个健壮的年轻人。
• The player is tall and muscular.那名运动员身高力大。

15 eternal   

adj.永久的，无休止的，永恒的，永不改变的

参考例句：

• Stop this eternal chatter!不要唠叨个不停！
• Rome has been called the Eternal City.罗马一向被称为不朽之城。

16 marketing   

n.行销，在市场的买卖，买东西

参考例句：

• They are developing marketing network.他们正在发展销售网络。
• He often goes marketing.他经常去市场做生意。

17 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

18 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。

19 metropolitan   

adj.大城市的，大都会的

参考例句：

• Metropolitan buildings become taller than ever.大城市的建筑变得比以前更高。
• Metropolitan residents are used to fast rhythm.大都市的居民习惯于快节奏。