VOA标准英语2010年-Elvis Rocks Washington

Two exhibits mark the king's 75th birthday

Susan Logue Koster | Washington, DC 15 July 2010

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The exhibit at the Newseum features clothing worn by Elvis, which is on loan from Graceland.

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National Portrait Gallery - Echoes of Elvis
Newseum exhibit

It has been more than 30 summers since Elvis Presley died. The singer would have been 75 in January and Washington is honoring him with, not one, but two different exhibits.  

Well-known face

Like his name and his music, his face - decades later - is still familiar.

"It is perhaps possible that Elvis is one of the most recognized human beings in all of history," says Warren Perry, curator of the exhibit "Echoes of Elvis" at the National Portrait Gallery.

The singer's face has appeared on everything from lunch boxes to postage stamps. Both are included in the exhibit.

 The 1993 U.S. stamp featuring Elvis "is the greatest selling stamp in the history of the U.S. Postal¹ Service," Perry says.  It sold 500 million copies. The original portrait by Mark Stutzman is among the works on display. 

Lasting² legacy³

All but one of the works were created after Elvis' death on August 16, 1977. 

"He is a constant source of inspiration, not only in visual art, but in cinema. We see Elvis referenced in movie after movie." Perry says. "Elvis is practically his own genre⁴ in fiction now, and there is a limitless supply of Elvis biographies available on the market."

High Museum of Art, Atlanta, Georgia
Elvis at Three by Howard Finster, 1990

But the focus here is on visual art. There are painted wooden cut-outs of Elvis as a soldier and a three-year-old boy with angel's wings by visionary artist Howard Finster. 

"After Elvis' death, Finster viewed Elvis as an emissary of God if you will," Perry says. "Since Elvis's death, people have taken Elvis and put him into a lot of motifs:  Elvis as a soldier, Elvis as a patriot⁵, Elvis as a boy who loved his mom."

A lithograph⁶ by Tennessee artist Red Grooms⁷ shows Elvis in a gold lame⁸ suit, playing guitar with Graceland and one of his Cadillac automobiles⁹ behind him.

And a golden ceramic¹⁰ bust¹¹ by Robert Arneson compares Elvis to Caesar. There is a small, brown "rock" on Elvis' shoulder stamped with the word "king."

Estate of Robert Arneson/Licensed by VAGA, New York, NY
This ceramic bust by Robert Arneson features a rock on Elvis' shoulder, a reference to the entertainer's status as the ''King of Rock'.

"'King of Rock' is the implication," Perry says.  

There have certainly been mean-spirited portraits of Elvis since his death, but there are none in "Echoes of Elvis." 

"'What we have tried to do here at the National Portrait Gallery is pay tribute to Elvis on the occasion of his 75th birthday, with the more fun spirited, the encomium¹², like works of art."

Through a news lens

At the Newseum, TV broadcasts and newspaper headlines are at the core of the exhibit called, "Elvis! His Groundbreaking, Hip-Shaking, Newsmaking Story." 

"We look at this exhibit through how the news media played a role in Elvis's career," says Patty Ruhl, a writer who worked on the exhibit.

There are news headlines and reviews of performances. Rhul says the critics didn't always rave¹³. Following his 1956 appearance on American television, "They called Elvis talent-free.  The New York Times said that he was vulgar. They said his movements belonged in a bordello."

And they weren't big fans of his movies, either she says. Elvis made 30 feature films. The exhibit includes some of the costumes he wore, and the famous, caped¹⁴ and bejeweled white suit he wore for his 1972 "Aloha from Hawaii" concert.

It "was the first concert broadcast live to more than 40 countries," Ruhl says. She notes that 1.5 billion people watched it on television. "That is more people than watched Neil Armstrong walk on the moon."

Many of the objects are on loan from Graceland, Elvis's mansion¹⁵. They document both his personal and professional life.  There is the uniform he wore as a soldier. Elvis was drafted into the army in 1957 and served for two years. During that time, he met his wife Priscilla.

The exhibit includes an empty champagne¹⁶ bottle from their Las Vegas wedding signed "Mr. and Mrs. Elvis Presley" and baby clothes worn by Lisa Marie, their only child.

Library of Congress
This photo, of Elvis meeting with President Nixon, is the most requested photo in the Library of Congress archives.

Presidential meeting

A velvet¹⁷ jacket worn by Elvis in 1970 is on display. He wore it in a photo taken with President Richard Nixon. It is the most requested photo from the National Archives.

"He walked up to the Nixon White House and said he wanted to meet with the president and a stunned¹⁸ guard actually got him in to meet with President Nixon," Ruhl says. "He wanted to be enlisted¹⁹ in the war on drugs."

Following the visit, Elvis received a badge from the U.S. Department of Justice Bureau of Narcotics²⁰ with his name on it. Ironically, Elvis died of an overdose of prescription²¹ drugs.

And more than 30 years after his death, people of all ages are still interested in the King of Rock. 

"We were afraid that perhaps he would only appeal to a certain generation, the baby boomers who grew up with Elvis and loved his music so," says Ruhl. "But we are seeing young people come to the exhibit."

Some, she says, even listen to his music on their iPods.

 

1 postal   

adj.邮政的，邮局的

参考例句：

• A postal network now covers the whole country.邮路遍及全国。
• Remember to use postal code.勿忘使用邮政编码。

2 lasting   

adj.永久的，永恒的；vbl.持续，维持

参考例句：

• The lasting war debased the value of the dollar.持久的战争使美元贬值。
• We hope for a lasting settlement of all these troubles.我们希望这些纠纷能获得永久的解决。

3 legacy   

n.遗产，遗赠；先人(或过去)留下的东西

参考例句：

• They are the most precious cultural legacy our forefathers left.它们是我们祖先留下来的最宝贵的文化遗产。
• He thinks the legacy is a gift from the Gods.他认为这笔遗产是天赐之物。

4 genre   

n.(文学、艺术等的)类型，体裁，风格

参考例句：

• My favorite music genre is blues.我最喜欢的音乐种类是布鲁斯音乐。
• Superficially,this Shakespeare's work seems to fit into the same genre.从表面上看， 莎士比亚的这个剧本似乎属于同一类型。

5 patriot   

n.爱国者，爱国主义者

参考例句：

• He avowed himself a patriot.他自称自己是爱国者。
• He is a patriot who has won the admiration of the French already.他是一个已经赢得法国人敬仰的爱国者。

6 lithograph   

n.平板印刷，平板画；v.用平版印刷

参考例句：

• Lithograph was introduced from China to Europe.印刷术是从中国传入欧洲的。
• Cole printed 1,000 of the cards on a lithograph stone before having them hand-colored.科尔随即用石版印刷了1000张，之后又让人给这些卡手工着色。

7 grooms   

n.新郎( groom的名词复数 )；马夫v.照料或梳洗（马等）( groom的第三人称单数 )；使做好准备；训练；（给动物）擦洗

参考例句：

• Plender end Wilcox became joint grooms of the chambers. 普伦德和威尔科克斯成为共同的贴身侍从。 来自辞典例句
• Egypt: Families, rather than grooms, propose to the bride. 埃及：在埃及，由新郎的家人，而不是新郎本人，向新娘求婚。 来自互联网

8 lame   

adj.跛的，(辩解、论据等)无说服力的

参考例句：

• The lame man needs a stick when he walks.那跛脚男子走路时需借助拐棍。
• I don't believe his story.It'sounds a bit lame.我不信他讲的那一套。他的话听起来有些靠不住。

9 automobiles   

n.汽车( automobile的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• When automobiles become popular,the use of the horse and buggy passed away. 汽车普及后，就不再使用马和马车了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Automobiles speed in an endless stream along the boulevard. 宽阔的林荫道上，汽车川流不息。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

10 ceramic   

n.制陶业，陶器，陶瓷工艺

参考例句：

• The order for ceramic tiles has been booked in.瓷砖的订单已登记下来了。
• Some ceramic works of art are shown in this exhibition.这次展览会上展出了一些陶瓷艺术品。

11 bust   

vt.打破；vi.爆裂；n.半身像；胸部

参考例句：

• I dropped my camera on the pavement and bust it. 我把照相机掉在人行道上摔坏了。
• She has worked up a lump of clay into a bust.她把一块黏土精心制作成一个半身像。

12 encomium   

n.赞颂；颂词

参考例句：

• He pronounced a splendid encomium upon her in the forum.他在广场上为她作了华丽的赞颂。
• We hear only encomiums to it.我们只听到对它的溢美之词。

13 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。

14 caped   

披斗篷的

参考例句：

15 mansion   

n.大厦，大楼；宅第

参考例句：

• The old mansion was built in 1850.这座古宅建于1850年。
• The mansion has extensive grounds.这大厦四周的庭园广阔。

16 champagne   

n.香槟酒；微黄色

参考例句：

• There were two glasses of champagne on the tray.托盘里有两杯香槟酒。
• They sat there swilling champagne.他们坐在那里大喝香槟酒。

17 velvet   

n.丝绒，天鹅绒；adj.丝绒制的，柔软的

参考例句：

• This material feels like velvet.这料子摸起来像丝绒。
• The new settlers wore the finest silk and velvet clothing.新来的移民穿着最华丽的丝绸和天鹅绒衣服。

18 stunned   

adj. 震惊的，惊讶的 动词stun的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• The fall stunned me for a moment. 那一下摔得我昏迷了片刻。
• The leaders of the Kopper Company were then stunned speechless. 科伯公司的领导们当时被惊得目瞪口呆。

19 enlisted   

adj.应募入伍的v.（使）入伍， （使）参军( enlist的过去式和过去分词 )；获得（帮助或支持）

参考例句：

• enlisted men and women 男兵和女兵
• He enlisted with the air force to fight against the enemy. 他应募加入空军对敌作战。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

20 narcotics   

n.麻醉药( narcotic的名词复数 )；毒品；毒

参考例句：

• The use of narcotics by teenagers is a problem in many countries. 青少年服用麻醉药在许多国家中都是一个问题。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• Police shook down the club, looking for narcotics. 警方彻底搜查了这个俱乐部，寻找麻醉品。 来自《简明英汉词典》

21 prescription   

n.处方，开药；指示，规定

参考例句：

• The physician made a prescription against sea- sickness for him.医生给他开了个治晕船的药方。
• The drug is available on prescription only.这种药只能凭处方购买。