[00:00.00]323 A Player Outside of Stage
[00:04.88]On the night of the play,
[00:06.95]Albert was at the hall early and he had already made up
[00:10.61]and dressed in his policeman's uniform long before the end of the first act.
[00:15.73]He certainly looked the part all right, he thought as he admired himself in the mirror.
[00:21.50]He even wondered if he should go out to see what impression he made on people out there.
[00:26.67]Just for a joke, of course.
[00:29.00]Then he was seized with a sudden attack of stage fright.
[00:33.02]How could he face all these people in the audience? He put his head in his hands and tried to remember his lines.
[00:40.44]He had only a very small part, but his mind was a complete blank.
[00:45.74]A knock on the door made him look up. He was due to go on stage in the second act.
[00:51.77]Had he missed his entrance and ru-ined the play for everybody?
[00:55.75]But it was only the producer, who noticed what a state he was in.
[01:00.24]She suggested he should go and stand near the stage where he could watch the play
[01:05.72]and follow in his script at the same time.
[01:08.41]It was a good way of getting over his nervousness, she said. She was right, it seemed to work.
[01:15.10]In fact, the more he watched the play,
[01:17.71]the more he became in-volved in it, so that he began to feel himself part of it.
[01:22.70]At last the moment came for him to go on stage. But sud-denly the producer was by his side again.
[01:29.68]This time she looked worried as she placed a hand on his arm to hold him back.
[01:34.90]"What's the matter?" he asked. "I'm afraid you are going to be disappointed."
[01:40.08]She said, "they've jumped three pages of the script and have missed your part out completely."
[01:46.37]324 Stories about Hollywood
[01:53.08]Hollywood, a suburb of the city of Los Angeles in Califomi-a,
[01:58.36]is situated between a range of mountains and the Pacific Ocean.
[02:02.17]Until 1908 it was no more than a quiet village on the northern side of the city,
[02:07.95]but in that year William Selig, one of the first people to make films, set up a film-producing workshop in Los Angeles.
[02:15.76]Around 1911, time oil was discovered in the neighbourhood.
[02:19.91]Thus Hollywood quickly became a big district given over to the film industry and to oil wells.
[02:26.05]The early film makers found Hollywood a suitable place for their work
[02:30.86]because of its clear, sunny, rainless weather, which allowed pictures to be taken all the year round.
[02:36.94]Also, it was known that every kind of scene needed for films, whether town, country, sea,
[02:44.23]desert or snow-capped mountains, could be found within the area of California.
[02:49.43]Nowadays, when some films can be "shot" under cover by man-made lighting, these advantages are not so important.
[02:57.92]At present, Hollywood remains a centre of film production
[03:02.33]although nowadays making more films for television than for the cinema.
[03:06.72]There, or in Beverly Hills-nearby, are to be seen the houses of the "stars" and producers famous all over the world.
[03:15.66]325 Three Sons of a Wealthy Businessman
[03:21.56]There were once three sons of a wealthy businessman.
[03:25.40]Whenever they met, the two eldest, who were twins,
[03:29.35]used to quarrel about which of them should take over his father's busi-ness.
[03:33.73]The youngest, who was not the least ambitious, took no part in their arguments.
[03:39.77]Before they left home, the father ar-ranged for an adequate income to be provided for each of them,
[03:45.59]but insisted that apart from this they were to be financially self- supporting.
[03:50.43]The elder twin who had the advantage of good looking and a striking personality, took up the stage as a career.
[03:58.26]He was of-ten unpunctual for his parts and was accordingly unpopular with
his fellow-actors.
[04:05.08]His twin brother considered himself unconven-tional and original, so he became an artist.
[04:11.92]But he was not suc-cessful either.
[04:14.46]Both the twin brothers earned little and so had to live mainly on their father's support.
[04:20.05]The youngest son, who had no special artistic talent, worked hard and was awarded a university scholarship.
[04:27.83]After taking his degree, he was appointed to a teaching post in a grammar school,
[04:33.37]where he earned enough money to live on.
[04:35.67]He lived a happy life with his salary and his father's allowance.
[04:42.51]326 An Unforgettable History Class
[04:47.32]Many university students dislike studying history
[04:51.29]because there is little to get excited about when historical events are pre-sented in a boring manner.
[04:56.91]However, I'll never forget my Amer-ican History professor, Dr. Williamson.
[05:02.52]Each event leaped from the pages of our text and became as real as the daily news report on the radio.
[05:09.63]My favourite lecture concerned the American Rev-olution.
[05:13.70]Dr. Williamson set the mood for the study by imitating Pall Revere, a well-known silversmith, working in his shop.
[05:22.14]The American colonists were angry because of the British control over their lives.
[05:27.39]Revere felt that war between the British and the colonists was inevitable.
[05:32.41]Then, Dr. Williamson told us about Revere rowing across the Charles River from Baston on April 18, 1775.
[05:41.89]I could see the professor row as he raised his hand to his forehead as
[05:46.78]if he were looking across the Charles River to the old North Church in Boston.
[05:51.95]Suddenly, Revere spotted two lanterns, a signal which meant that the British would attack by sea.
[05:58.32]He jumped on his horse to warn the villagers of the attack.
[06:01.98]Professor Williamson reminded us that the first battles of the American
Revolution were fought at Concord
[06:08.67]and at Lexington, Mas-sachusetts,
[06:11.10]the year before the Declaration of Independence was signed in 1776.
[06:15.98]Never before had history seemed so alive to me.
[06:19.79]And all because a professor cared enough to put his heart into his teaching.
[06:25.25]327 A Rich Brother-in-law
[06:30.95]Dick was a twenty-year-old man.
[06:33.67]His father was a teacher and taught chemistry in a middle school and his mother worked in a shop.
[06:39.93]They lived a happy life until their parents died one night when suddenly an earthquake broke out.
[06:46.54]Luckily his sister took him to see their aunt in the city and they did not stay at home.
[06:52.00]Everything was destroyed in the earthquake and the two children got into trouble.
[06:57.33]Thanks to their aunt who was not rich enough, they grew up but they lived a hard life.
[07:03.24]His sister was so sad that she became a nun.
[07:06.66]After he finished middle school,
[07:09.19]he was introduced to an owner of a hotel and began to work there.
[07:13.08]One day the young man fell to the ground while he was cleaning a window on the second floor.
[07:19.12]He was sent to the hos-pital and the doctor looked him over.
[07:23.35]One of his legs was broken and he had to be in hospital.
[07:27.19]He said to the nurse, "I'm a poor man, madam, arrange a third-class ward for me, please."
[07:33.90]"Can't anybody help you?" "No, madam," answered Dick."I have only a sister.
[07:40.20]She's a nun and she's poor, too." "I don't think so," the nurse said angrily.
[07:46.60]"Nuns usually marry God. And God is the richest in the world, you know!"
[07:51.72]"Well, then," Dick said with a smile.
[07:54.80]"Please arrange a first-class ward for me and post the bill to my brother-in-law."
[08:00.94]328 A Dialogue Between Two Prisoners
[08:08.07]Mr. Young has a shop in the centre of the town in which all kinds of cars are sold.
[08:14.13]These years he has been very successful in business and got a lot of money.
[08:19.23]He bought a beautiful house and often hold some parties and he has made friends with the important people there.
[08:26.25]Now he's well-known in the town and often gives some advice to his friends.
[08:31.32]But one evening, when he was dancing with a beautiful girl at a party, he was called out.
[08:37.72]There were a few policemen in a sitting-room.
[08:40.44]He understood at once why they were waiting for him there. He was soon put into prison.
[08:46.39]There was another man in the cold and wet ward before he got there.
[08:51.67]He lay down on the hard bed and couldn't fall asleep.
[08:55.12]He didn't know what would happen to him.
[08:57.84]The next morning the man came up to him and asked, "What are you put here for?"
[09:03.32]"I have a shop and sell cars there," answered Mr. Young.
[09:07.81]"I often buy some old cars at a low price.
[09:11.00]I repair them and then give them another coat of paint and sell them at a high price."
[09:16.64]"I don't think you break the law," said the man.
[09:20.07]"I paid five hundred dollars for a car the day before yester-day
[09:24.32]and sold it at three thousand-dollars and they brought me here for it."
[09:28.69]"Was it a stolen car?" "Even worse," Mr. Young said sadly. "It was a police car!"
[09:35.76]329 Ruban and a Thief
[09:41.83]Ruban lived in a small village.
[09:44.28]There was no school there and he had to study in a school in the town.
[09:48.85]It was nearly five kilometers away from his village.
[09:52.38]His father couldn't buy a bike for him and he had to go to school on foot.
[09:57.19]He got up early in the morning.
[09:59.51]Usually he had to run there in order not to miss the first class.
[10:04.03]He kept running every day and it was helpful to him.
[10:07.74]He was strong and tall and he ran faster than any other man in his village.
[10:13.30]He took part in several sports meetings and won some medals.
[10:17.09]The young man was proud of it and always liked to have a race with others.
[10:21.87]One day his mother was ill and his father told him to buy some medicine for headache in the town.
[10:28.35]The young man got there soon.
[10:30.57]There were many people in the chemist's shop while he was waiting there.
[10:34.46]And when his turn came, he couldn't find his money.
[10:37.91]An old woman hinted a young man had stolen it.
[10:41.75]He saw the thief had already left the shop. He ran towards him quickly.
[10:47.21]The thief saw him and began to run. He was happy and tried to catch up with him.
[10:52.77]"Let's have a race and see who will run faster," Ruban called out from behind.
[10:58.86]Soon after that he caught up-with-the thief. But he didn't stop and went on running.
[11:04.45]At a crossing one of his friends asked, "What are you running for, Ruban?"
[11:09.57]"I'm running after a thief." "Where's the thief, then?"
[11:13.41]"He wants to show that he'll run faster than me, but he's fallen behind!"
[11:20.15]330 Robert and a Smart Thief
[11:26.89]Robert was born in a small town in England.
[11:30.86]His father has a farm and can supply him enough money to finish university where he's studying law.
[11:36.74]The young man studies hard and hopes to be a famous lawyer.
[11:40.97]Last Monday their term was over.
[11:44.08]Robert said to his father on the telephone that he was going to travel in a small country during his summer holiday.
[11:50.77]His father agreed to his plan and posted some money to him.
[11:55.05]So he started four days ago.
[11:57.48]Their plane landed at the only airport of the country safely.
[12:02.26]He took a taxi and got to a hotel in the centre of the capital.
[12:06.36]He felt hungry and tired. So he had a dinner and then a good sleep.
[12:11.45]Next morning he was all right and was going to visit some places of interest.
[12:16.73]He met an English visitor while he was having breakfast and the man told him to be careful of thieves.
[12:23.21]Robert thanked the man and left. But he thought he was smart and strong and he decided to have a try.
[12:30.55]He brought out a piece of paper and wrote on it, "A pig has stolen my wallet!"
[12:36.32]Then he put the note into his empty wallet. After that he put the wallet into a pocket and left.
[12:43.53]He did all carefully and hoped to find out who would steal it.
[12:48.21]"Everything went well," Robert thought to himself after he had returned to the hotel.
[12:54.30]He brought out his wallet and put his money into it again.
[12:57.98]He had a look at the note. To his surprise, it was rewritten.
[13:02.39]It said, "Your uncle has touched your wallet!"
[13:05.71]331 A Criminal in Hospital
[13:12.16]Charlie works in a post office. His father lost his job five years ago and his mother is often ill.
[13:19.79]And he has two brothers. and a sister. He works hard and tries his best to buy enough food for his family.
[13:27.00]Last month his family had to move to an old house outside the city.
[13:31.91]It's farther from the post office and he has to get up early in the morning in order to catch the 6:30 train.
[13:39.25]The head of his office is strict and everybody has to get there on time.
[13:44.27]He knows what it' II mean if he's late. A friend of his had pity on him and lent his old car to him.
[13:51.82]The young man was happy and from then on he could go to work by car.
[13:56.28]Last Saturday Charlie went to buy some medicine for his mother.
[14:00.91]Bad luck!
[14:02.19]When he came out of the shop, he couldn't find the car.
[14:05.74]He was quite worried and began to look for it in front of the shop but he didn't find it.
[14:11.67]Suddenly he saw a woman parking a car there and hurrying into the shop.
[14:17.05]Charlie saw the car wasn't locked. He got on it and drove it at once.
[14:22.85]He was afraid the loser would run after him and drove fast.
[14:26.90]A truck hit it at a crossing and he lost consciousness.
[14:30.97]Next morning the young man came back to life and saw there were a few policemen standing by his bed.
[14:38.03]He asked, "Where am I?" "In Room 103." "In hospital or in prison?"
[14:47.72]332 A Poor Millionaire
[14:52.21]I know a man called John Smith who is a very unusual mil-lionaire.
[14:57.28]What makes him unusual is that he has no money.
[15:00.52]My idea of a millionaire is a man who has a lot of money and no worries that money can not take care of.
[15:07.65]But John Smith has thought about this a lot.
[15:11.20]He says the average millionaire never uses money and always gets other people to pay for taxis or drinks.
[15:18.36]This is because he is so used to thinking in millions that small amount of money are not worth thinking about.
[15:25.54]But this does not mean he has no worries.
[15:28.81]On the contrary, the average millionaire worries constantly about his business,
[15:33.88]his investments and international rates of exchange.
[15:37.80]A fall in the value of the pound or dollar can give sleepless nights and makes him feel ill.
[15:43.88]John Smith says that he feels very sorry for millionaires who in-stead of being masters of their wealth,
[15:50.70]are slaves of their mil-lions.
[15:53.47]In no way, however, John Smith always behaves exactly like a millionaire.
[15:57.70]I mean he never has any money and generally manages to persuades someone else to pay for his drinks.
[16:04.65]He al-ways makes people happy.
[16:06.87]He has no worries about economic situation, banks, investments and so on,
[16:12.25]and does not even give much thought for tomorrow.
[16:15.02]He is the happiest one I have ever met, and whenever I meet him, he tells me.
[16:20.58]"In money I am not rich, but in peace of mind I am a millionaire."
[16:27.59]333 Driving Trouble
[16:31.50]Some time ago, a friend of mine who works in a part of the city I do not know very well, invited me to call on him.
[16:39.60]It took me hours to get there and I took great trouble to find a proper
spot to park my car.
[16:45.90]As I was already three quarters of an hour late, I parked my car quickly.
[16:50.86]At noon, just as I was leaving my friend's office,
[16:54.83]it sudden-ly struck me that I had no idea where I had parked my car.
[16:59.09]I could hardly go up to a policeman and tell him that I had lost a small green car somewhere.
[17:05.67]I walked down street after street.
[17:08.55]I examined each car closely and was very happy to see a small green car just behind an old car.
[17:15.76]But how disappointed I was to discover that though the car was exactly like my own, it be-longed to someone else!
[17:23.10]Feeling quite tired now, I went off for lunch. Some time later, I left the restaurant and walked down the street.
[17:31.09]Turning the comer, I nearly jumped for joy: my car was right in front of me--and there was no problem this time.
[17:38.74]To tell the truth, driving in crowded cities is far from being a pleasure and it is much easier to walk than to drive.
[17:50.05]334 A Careless Patient and His Doctor
[17:55.38]Not long ago my wife sent me to town to do shopping.
[18:00.56]I walked to the store, and bought a small can of paint. Then I re-turned home.
[18:06.04]Handing my wife the paper bag containing the paint, I said, "Here's the paint you wanted."
[18:12.21]My wife looked in the bag, then looked at me. "I told you," she said slowly, "to get me some ice cream."
[18:20.64]Surprised by my carelessness, I paid a call on my family doctor.
[18:26.34]He was very kind. "Your case," he said, "is a simple one and should give you no concern.
[18:33.42]If you know you are careless, you're Okay. It's nothing to worry about.
[18:38.15]But if you're so far gone you don't know you're careless, you may be in trouble."
[18:43.24]"Many famous people have been careless," the doctor said.
[18:47.86]"Thomas Edison was standing in line one day to pay his taxes.
[18:51.86]When he arrived at the window, he had forgotten his own name.
[18:56.35]He turned to the man next in line and asked, Can you tell me who I am?' The man told him.
[19:03.88]I felt much better and got up to leave. "Thank you, doc-tor," I said "How much do I owe you?"
[19:09.86]"Ten dollars for the check-up," the doctor answered. "But doctor, I didn't have a check-up."
[19:16.94]The doctor looked confused. He scratched his head. "Oh, yes," he said, "it was the patient before you.
[19:25.71]How careless of me!" |