(单词翻译:单击)
听力文本
I'm Mary Tillotson. And I'm Steve Ember with the VOA Special English program, PEOPLE IN AMERICA. Today we tell about the Marx Brothers. They made many funny movies in the nineteen thirties and nineteen forties that are still popular today.
There were five Marx Brothers. The most famous were Julius, Leonard and Adolph. They were born in New York City between eighteen eighty-six and eighteen ninety. Their father made clothing. Their mother wanted them to become performers. Julius, Leonard and Adolph started performing when they were children. Along with their two brothers, they performed in stage shows called vaudeville in New York. They sang songs, danced and told jokes. Julius, Leonard and Adolph Marx began making funny movies in nineteen twenty-nine. They changed their first names. Julius became Groucho. Leonard became Chico. Adolph became Harpo. Another brother, Herbert, appeared in the first five Marx Brothers movies. He was called Zeppo. He did not play a funny man like the other three. He played a good-looking young man. Groucho Marx looked funny. He had large black eyebrows and a hairy mustache. But they were painted on his face. He spoke very quickly. And he walked in a funny way. He played people with funny names, like Rufus T. Firefly. Otis B. Driftwood. And Doctor Hugo Z. Hackenbush. Groucho was not a very nice person in the movies. He often insulted or made fun of rich or important people. He made fun of doctors, college officials, opera singers, diplomats and government officials. He even insulted his son, played in this example by Zeppo.
ZEPPO: "Dad, let me congratulate you. I'm proud to be your son."
GROUCHO: "My boy, you took the words right out of my mouth. I'm ashamed to be your father. I'd have horsewhipped you if I had a horse. You may go now. Leave your name and address for the girl outside and if anything turns up, we'll get in touch with you. Where are you going?"
ZEPPO: "Well, you just told me to go."
GROUCHO: "So that's what they taught you in college. Just when I tell you to go, you leave me. You know you can't leave a schoolroom without raising your hand, no matter where you're going."
ZEPPO: "Anything further, father?"
GROUCHO: "Anything further, father? That can't be right. Isn't it "anything father, further"? The idea! I married your mother because I wanted children. Imagine my disappointment when you arrived!"
Chico Marx talked as if he was born in Italy. He spoke English that was not correct. Many other funny men spoke as though they came from other countries. They were making fun of themselves and other immigrants who did not speak English well. Chico also made funny jokes about words and expressions that sound alike but have different meanings. For example, in one movie a woman sings with a very high falsetto voice. She says "I have a falsetto voice." Chico then says "Well, my last student had a false set of teeth." Chico also was known for performing what was called the comedy of the absurd. He talked about things that were so untrue or unreasonable that they were funny. Here is an example. Chico is supposed to spy on someone called Rufus T. Firefly. Chico reports his progress to the man who asked him to spy on Firefly. To "shadow" someone is to secretly follow that person.
CHICO: "Well, you remember you gave us a picture of this man and said follow him?"
MAN: "Oh, yes."
CHICO: "Well, we get on the job right away. And in one hour, even less than one hour, we lose the fix. That's pretty good work, eh?"
MAN: “I want a full, detailed report of your investigation."
CHICO: "All right. I tell you. Monday we watch Firefly's house. But he no come out. He wasn't home. Tuesday we go to the ball game, but he fool us. He no show up. Wednesday, he go to the ball game, but we fool him. We no show up. Thursday was a double-header, nobody show up. Friday it rained all day. There was no ball game. So we stayed home. We listened to it over the radio".
MAN: "Then you didn't shadow Firefly!"
CHICO: "Oh, sure, we shadow Firefly. We shadow him all day."
MAN: "What day was that?"
CHICO:" It was Shadowday (Saturday)! That's some joke, eh, Boss!"
Chico also played the piano in a funny way. Chico did to music what he did to the English language. He made fun of it. Harpo Marx had curly yellow hair, but it was not really his hair. It was false hair, called a wig. He never said a word in any of the movies. Instead, he acted out what he wanted to say. He could make people laugh without saying a word. People always knew what he was thinking. He made funny sounds with horns and whistles to express his thoughts and feelings. In one movie, a kind policeman tries to give him some advice to stay away from bad people. As the policeman shakes Harpo's hand, you can hear pieces of silver that Harpo has stolen fall out of his clothes.
POLICEMAN: "You better come with me, young fellow."
GROUCHO: "Don't take him away, officer."
POLICEMAN: "All right. I'll let him go this time. But I want to give you some advice. You're running around with the wrong kind of people. Why don't you go home?"
CHICO: "He got no home."
POLICEMAN: "Go home for a few nights. Stay home. Don't you know your poor old mother sits there, night after night, waiting to hear your steps on the stairs?"
CHICO: "He got no stairs."
POLICEMAN: "I can see a little light burning in the window."
GROUCHO: "No you can't. The gas company turned it off."
POLICEMAN: "Now, what I'm telling you is for your own good. And if you listen to me, you can't go wrong."
As you might have guessed from his name, Harpo Marx was famous for playing the musical instrument called the harp. He made beautiful music like this on the harp in several movies. The three Marx Brothers -- Groucho, Chico and Harpo -- made fourteen movies together. The movies made fun of officials in many areas of society, like colleges, hospitals or the government. The Marx Brothers made most of their movies during the nineteen thirties. This was during the great economic Depression. Many Americans had no jobs and not much hope. Many people went to the movies to try to forget their troubles. The Marx Brothers thought people might like to see funny things happen to rich and important people. The Marx Brothers' first two movies were "The Cocoanuts" and "Animal Crackers." These were based on earlier shows that they starred in on Broadway in New York City. Some of their most famous movies are "Horse Feathers," "Duck Soup," and "A Night at the Opera." In "Horse Feathers," the Marx Brothers make fun of colleges. Groucho is a professor and the president of Huxley College. He wants to improve the college by having a successful football team. Here, he talks to other college officials.
GROUCHO: "Now I say to you gentlemen that this college is a failure. The trouble is, we're neglecting football for education."
COLLEGE OFFICIALS: "Exactly, the professor is right."
GROUCHO: "Oh, I'm right, am I? Well, I'm not right. I'm wrong. I just said that to test you. Now I know where I'm at. I'm dealing with a couple of snakes. What I meant to say was that there is too much football and not enough education."
COLLEGE OFFICIALS: "That's what I think."
GROUCHO: "Oh you do, do you? Well, you're wrong again. If there was a snake here, I'd apologize. Where would this college be without football? Have we got a stadium?"
COLLEGE OFFICIALS: "Yes."
GROUCHO: "Have we got a college?"
COLLEGE OFFICIALS: "Yes."
GROUCHO: "Well, we can't support both. Tomorrow we start tearing down the college."
COLLEGE OFFICIALS: "But, professor, where will the students sleep?"
GROUCHO: "Where they always sleep – in the classroom!"
Some critics say "Duck Soup," is one of the greatest comedies ever made. Groucho is the leader of a country called Freedonia. He declares war on a nearby country. The movie makes fun of war, diplomats and dictators. Other critics say "A Night at the Opera," is their finest film. Groucho tries to get a rich woman to invest in an opera company. The movie has many funny parts. One of the most famous is when fifteen people are crowded into a very small room on a passenger ship.
Experts say the Marx Brothers movies were extremely popular for several reasons. The brothers had been performing together since they were children. They shared a sense of what was funny.
In addition, they all loved music. Most of their movies include music. When a song begins in their movies, everything else stops. When Harpo plays his harp, his face shows how much he loves what he is playing. Then, when the music is over, the Marx Brothers immediately start being funny again.
The Marx Brothers' movies were like vaudeville shows. They contained something for everyone. There was comedy, speeches, music and songs. Often Groucho sang a funny song. Here is an example, called "Hello, I Must be Going." The Marx Brothers performed together and then separately for more than seventy years until the last one died in the late nineteen seventies. Their comedy influenced many other present day comedians including Woody Allen and Robin Williams. Critics have called the Marx Brothers the most influential comedy team of the twentieth century.
重点解析
1.insult 侮辱冒犯
I did not mean to insult you.
我并非故意要冒犯你。
2.disappointment 失望；沮丧
For many, their long-awaited homecoming was a bitter disappointment.
对很多人来说，他们期盼已久的返乡成了一件令人伤心失望的事。
3.immigrant 移民
North Africans make up the largest and poorest immigrant group in the country.
北非人构成了该国最大的、也是最贫困的移民群。
4.Instead, he acted out what he wanted to say.
act out 把…表演出来
I used to come home and act out the movie for the kids.
以前到家后，我会把电影内容再表演给孩子们看。
5.He made funny sounds with horns and whistles to express his thoughts and feelings.
express 表达
Teachers have expressed concern about the changes.
教师对这些变化表示忧虑。
6.One of the most famous is when fifteen people are crowded into a very small room on a passenger ship.
crowd into 挤入
They had managed to crowd into a train.
他们勉强挤上了一列火车。
参考译文
我是玛丽·蒂洛森。我是史蒂夫·恩贝尔。这里是VOA慢速英语栏目《每美国人物志》。今天我们将讲述马克思兄弟的故事。他们在1930年代和40年代创作出了很多喜剧电影，至今仍是非受欢迎。他们是马克思五兄弟。最出名的是朱利叶斯、伦纳德以及阿道夫。他们于1886年至1890年间出生于纽约。他们的父亲是服装制造商。他们的母亲希望他们成为表演者。朱利叶斯、伦纳德和阿道夫从童年就开始表演。他们和哥哥一起在纽约的杂技舞台上表演。他们唱歌、跳舞还讲笑话。
1929年，朱利叶斯、伦纳德和阿道夫开始制作喜剧电影。他们给自己改了名字。朱利叶斯变成了格劳乔。伦纳德变成了基科。阿道夫是哈珀。另一个哥哥赫伯特，首次出现在五兄弟的电影中，他叫泽波。他并没有像其他三个兄弟扮演搞笑的人，他扮演的是一个长相不错的年轻人。格劳乔·马克斯看起来很搞笑。他有着浓密的黑色眉毛和毛茸茸的胡子。但是这些都是画上去的。他讲话非常快。他走路也很好笑，他取笑那些名字搞笑的人，比如Rufus T. Firefly、Otis B. Driftwood以及Doctor Hugo Z. Hackenbush。格劳乔在电影中扮演一个不太友善的人。他常常侮辱或取笑那些富人和名人。他取笑医生、高校领导、剧院歌手、政治家和政府官员。他甚至侮辱泽波扮演的儿子。
“爸，祝贺你，很骄傲成为你的儿子。”
“儿子，这正是我想说的。作为你的爸爸我很惭愧。如果你是一匹马的话。我都想抽你。你现在可以滚了。给门外那个女孩留下你的名字和地址，有事的话，我们会联系你。你要去哪？”
“你刚让我滚啊。”
“大学就教了你这些么。我说走你就走。你知道在课堂上不举手是不能离开的么。”
“还有什么吗，父亲？”
“还有什么吗，父亲？这样说是不对的。难道不应该是‘父亲，还有什么？”傻子！我和你妈结婚是想要孩子。你出生的时候，知道我有多失望么！”
基科·马克斯讲话听起来像是他出生在意大利一样。他讲的英语都不对。很多其他搞笑艺人说话时就好像他们来自其他国家一样。他们取笑自己和那些讲不好英语的移民。基科还有很多关于同音不同字的词语和短语的笑话。例如，在一部电影中，一位女士用假音唱歌。她说“我唱的是假音。”然后基科说“好吧，我最后一位学生有一套假牙。”基科还善于表演荒诞喜剧。他讲的都是非常不真实毫无道理的事情，但是很搞笑。以下为例，基科要去监视Rufus T. Firefly.基科向上级报告他的进程。“遮蔽”某人指的是秘密跟踪这个人。
“好吧，你还记得你给了我们这个人的照片还说要跟着他么？”
“记得。”
“我们马上开始这项任务，一个小时内，不用一个小时，我们就搞定了。我们做的不错，是不？”
“我需要你们调查的全部详细报告。”
“好的。我告诉你。周一我们看了Firefly的家。但是他没有出现。他不在家。周二我们去了打球了，但是他耍了我们。他没有出现。周三，他去打球，但是我们耍了他一次。我们没去。周四又出现这种情况，谁都没去。周五下了一整天的雨。没有比赛了。所以我们就待在家里。听收音机。”
“然后你们根本就没有跟踪他啊！”
“跟了啊，我们整天都跟着他。”
“哪天？”
“影子日（周六）啊！开玩笑。”
基科也以一种搞笑的方式弹钢琴。基科弹钢琴就像他说英语一样。拿着钢琴开玩笑。哈勃·马克斯有着卷卷的黄毛，但是这并不是他的真发，是假发。他在每部电影中没说过一句话。他通过表演的方式表达他想说的。即使没有语言，他也能逗乐观众。人们总能知道他在想什么。他用喇叭和口哨制造出搞笑的声音表达他的想法和情绪。在一部电影中，一位善良的警察试图给他建议让他远离那些坏人。当警察和哈勃握手时，你可以听到哈勃从警察那里偷银器掉落的声音。
“你最好跟我来，年轻人。”
“不要带走他，警官。”
“好吧。这次我放了他，但是我想给你一些建议。你周围都是坏人，为什么不回家呢？”
“他没家可回。”
“回家待几晚。待在家里。你难道不知道你那年迈贫穷的母亲，日日夜夜坐在那里，希望听到你归家的脚步么？”
“他没楼梯。”
“我可以看到窗户上微弱的灯光。”
“你看不到的。燃气公司把气给停了。”
“现在我告诉你是为了你好。如果你听我的，你是不会出错的。”
从他的名字可以猜出，哈勃·马克斯擅于玩乐器竖琴。在几部电影中，他用竖琴演奏了美妙的音乐。三个马克思兄弟一起拍了14部电影。电影拿社会中的很多领域开玩笑，比如大学、医院和政府。他们的电影多出于1930年代。这是经济大萧条时期。很多美国人没了工作和希望。很多人走进电影院希望忘记烦恼。马克思兄弟觉得大家喜欢看发生在夫人和名人身上的搞笑事件。马克思兄弟的头两部电影是《椰子果》和《动物饼干》。电影是基于他们早期在纽约百老汇的演出改编的。他们的一些最出名的电影有《Horse Feathers》、《鸭羹》以及《A Night at the Opera》。电影《Horse Feathers》中，马克思兄弟取笑大学。格劳乔是一名教授，是赫胥黎大学的校长。他想有一支成功的球队来提升自己的学校。以下是他和其他校领导的对话。
“现在各位先生，这间学校就是个错误。问题是，我们因为教育而忽视了足球。”
“没错，教授说的对。”
“嗯，我说的对，是不。好吧，我说的不对，是错的。我这么说只是为了试探你们。现在我知道了我是在应对蛇啊。我是说足球太多而没有足够的教育。”
“我就是这么想的。”
“是么？好吧，你又错了。如果有蛇的话，我很抱歉。学校怎么能没有足球呢？我们有体育场么？”
“有的。”
“我们有学院么？”
“有的。”
“我们不能两边都支持。明天我们开始拆除学院。”
“但是教授，学生们睡在哪？”
“睡在他们常睡的地方——教室！”
一些评论家认为《鸭羹》是最好的喜剧之一。格劳乔是弗里多尼亚国的领导人。他对附近的国家宣战。这部电影嘲弄战争、外交官和独裁者。其他评论家认为《A Night at the Opera》是他们最搞笑的电影。格劳乔想让一个有钱的女人投资一家歌剧公司。这部电影有很多搞笑的地方。最著名的部分是15个人挤在一个客船的小房间里。专家表示马克思兄弟的电影非常受欢迎是有原因的。这些兄弟们从小时候就一起表演。他们有着相同的喜剧感。此外，他们都爱音乐。他们多数电影中都有音乐。当电影中的音乐响起，其他一切都停止了。当哈勃演奏竖琴，他的表情告诉大家他有多爱这个乐器。然后，音乐结束，马克思兄弟立即开始变得搞笑。马克思兄弟的电影像是杂耍剧。其中每个都有所涉及。有戏剧、演讲、音乐和歌曲。常常是格劳乔演唱搞笑的歌曲。以下是《我必须离开》。七十多年里，马克思兄弟一同演出也分开出演过，知道1970年代末最后一位兄弟去世。他们的喜剧影响了很多其他现在的喜剧演员包括伍迪·艾伦和罗宾·威廉姆斯。评论家称马克思兄弟是20世纪最具影响力的喜剧组合。
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