N. Kryazheva - The United States and the United Kingdom. Past and Present (doc) (798446), страница 4

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Words and Phrases:

Tasks:

1. False or True?

a. Los Angeles harbor is the busiest on the East coast;

b. Los Angeles is a big industrial center;

c. Hollywood Boulevard is the main street in Los Angeles.

2. Practice with your partner asking and answering questions.

a. Imagine that you are in Los Angeles. What places of interest would you like to visit and why?

SAN FRANCISCO

San Francisco is one of the most beautiful cities in America. It lies on the hills next to a Bay. It is the largest and most important port and chief Naval base on the Pacific coast It has several "sputnik" towns across the Bay - Richmond, Berkeley and Oak­land It was founded by Spanish settlers in 1776. The gold fever raging in California affected its economic development. When there was no more gold, the development of Pacific trade stimulated its further growth. Now it is a large industrial and financial center with the largest bank in the country, the Bank of America. The American Academy of Science and Berkeley University add greatly to the prestige of the city. The town when seen from above produces a silvery impression because for many years the Municipal Authorities made the people paint their houses white or silvery shades.

The population in San Francisco is mixed; in China town we find the Chinese, the Japanese. In the Latin district there live the Italians and the French in large numbers. There are also 50,000 Russians, the first of them settled on Russian Hills. There are several towns in California bearing such names as Sevastopol, Odessa, Kiev, Volga, Kremlin and others. Several towns and settlements are named Moscow. The bridges in San Francisco over the Bay are known everywhere. The Oakland Bay Bridge - the largest in the world - is 8 km long and two-storied, the lower part for heavy trans­port and the upper part - for cars. The other one is called The Golden Gate Bridge and painted an orange color; it looks like a giant sunbeam over the blue ocean.

California is the birthplace of many outstanding American writers: Mark Twain, Sin­clair, Steinbeck, Saxton and Jack London lived there for the greater part of their lives.

Words and Phrases:

Tasks:

1. Answer the following questions:

a. Is San Francisco one of the most beautiful cities in the US?

b.Is it the largest and most important port on the Pacific coast?
с.By whom was it founded and when?

d.What is the population of San Francisco?

e. What Russian names do some settlements and towns have?

f. What outstanding American writers lived and live in California?

THE US MASS MEDIA

The US Press caters for all political views, different levels of education and wide range of interests. It is not subject to the US Administration control or ce sorship. The Press in the USA has the same freedom as the individual does ar says what it likes provided it doesn't transgress the law.

Although pronounced views may be expressed in newspapers and their po| tical learnings may be obvious, they may be financially independent of any po| tical party and not obliged to follow any specific party line. The USA ranks first i the world in the number of newspapers circulated daily. 1,646 daily newspaper are sold every day with the total circulation of about 62 million copies.

The high daily consumption of newspapers in the country is partly due to thi fact that the term "daily" covers both morning and evening newspapers and tha most people buy both.

The average size of national morning newspapers varies between 14 and 3( pages and that of Sunday newspapers between 30 and 50 ones.

Newspaper ownership in the USA is concentrated mainly in the hands of < comparatively small number of large press groups. Many newspapers and maga zines are financed by the money from publicity.

"New York Times", "Washington Post" and "Wall Street Journal" are consid ered to be the quality newspapers in the US.

RADIO AND TELEVISION

Broadcasting of sound and TV is regulated under powers conferred by the Law, which prohibits the sounding or receiving of radio and TV communications except under license.

The radio and TV companies are independent authorities in the day-to-day operations of broadcasting.

The company Council has controlling and regulating powers of a wide and important character over the content and quality of programs.

The external broadcasting services are intended to provide a link of culture, information and entertainment between the people of the USA and other parts of the world.

Broadcasting TV, commercial and noncommercial, is provided by 1200 TV stations, of which about 860 stations are commercial and owned by the same biggest companies. The money for this is taken from the production of films, video cassettes, books and magazines, from sport clubs and also from many military enterprises they are partners of.

Cable Television is in the hands of the two main companies "Home Box Of­fice" (HBO) and "Showtimes", that show mainly new films and also organize pro­grams for a specialized audience through 30 channels in the evenings. The bulk of money to finance those companies comes from publicity.

Words and Phrases:

Tasks:

1. Ask you group-mate whether she (he) knows:

a. anything about freedom for Press in the US;

b. whether the USA ranks first in the world in the number of newspapers;

c. whom do newspapers belong to?

d. what newspapers are considered to be the quality newspapers.

2. Answer the following questions:

a. Are the radio and TV companies independent authorities in the day-to-day
operations?

b. How many stations are commercial ones?

c. Whom does cable television belong to?

d. How many cable channels work in the evenings?

3. Describe the term "daily" concerning the consumption of newspapers in the US.

THE CINEMA IN THE USA

When the American goes to the pictures, he expects to see a large program: a newsreel (which is usually the first item on the program), a cartoon, a documen­tary and a feature film (a full-length film in a cinema program). Sometimes two feature films are included in the program.

Foreign films are shown with subtitles or are dubbed into English.

The program may have one or two intervals during which is a continuous showing of the program from opening till closing time. In that case exact show times are not fixed and the seats are not reserved. You may enter or leave the hall any time during the show and take any seat you like.

There is a parking ground near big cinemas. For those who want to see a film without leaving the car there are drive-in cinemas (so-called drive-ins).

A great number of films are released in the USA every year. Hollywood films differ in genre and artistic value. Hollywood's early films were westerns, horror films, comedies. Then there were romance films.

There are films based on novels and films which describe historical events. In such films you see familiar characters brought to life.

Hollywood has changed greatly since the time of westerns. American filmslfT today are realistic and up-to-date. They are made with great professional Camera work, setting and acting are usually excellent.

But there are also second-rate films, which critics call "stupid". Such films are nc entertaining. Well, critics know best, but one thing is certain there is too much se n cruelty and violence on the American screen. More than is good for the viewer.

SOME FACTS ABOUT HOLLYWOOD

When people think of Hollywood, they probably think of film stars like Marily Monroe, Gary Grant and James Dean. Indeed, there was a time when Hollywoo с was the most famous place in the USA, if not in the world.

The Hollywood story begins at the end of the last century. The Hollywood filn с industry was born in 1912.

There were several reasons why film makers went to Hollywood. Firstly, then < was a lot of space. Secondly, California's warm sunny weather was ideal for так) ing films outside. Thirdly, there was a variety of locations for filming: the ocean mountains, deserts, villages, woodland and rivers.

In the 1950s and 1960s Hollywood became more international. Famous stars ' like Maurice Chevalier from France, Marlene Dietrich from Germany and Sofia j Loren from Italy came to Hollywood. Even today many international stars like Gerard Depardier and Arnold Schwarzeneger make films in Hollywood.

A big film studio, like MGM or Warner Brothers, brought to life a lot of filmstars. They could make or break a star.

The Hollywood studios produced different types of films. There were the sileni Charlie Chaplin comedies of the 20s, gangster films, Frankenstein horror films and Greta Garbo romantic melodramas of the 30s, the musicals of the 40s and 50s, the westerns (cowboy films) of the 50s, the historical epics of the 60s, the science fiction films of the 70s and the Steven Speilberg action films and violent horror films of the 80s. Who knows what the 21th century will be famous for?

THE FAMILY

The American family has changed greatly in the last 20 or 30 years. Many of these changes are similar to those taking place in other countries.

Young people are waiting longer before getting married. Women are also waiting longer to have children. It's not unusual today for a woman to have the first child in her mid-thirties. And families are having fewer children. The typical family used to have three children. Today most families have one or two children only.

The United States has a high divorce rate: approximately one in every two marriages ends in divorce. One result of this high divorce rate is that many American children live in single-parent families.

Although some women wait until their thirties to have their first child, other women become mothers while they are still teen-agers. Many of these teen-aged

mothers are not married. Many are also poor. Poverty among children in homes ded by single mothers has become a serious problem in the United States.

Характеристики

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