NPR 08-17:Griffin's Accomplishments, Both On Screen and Off悼

From game shows such as Jeopardy¹! and Wheel of Fortune, the entertainer and impresario² built a multimillion-dollar empire

This is All Things Considered from NPR News. I'm Debbie Elliot.

Entertainer Merv Griffin died today in a Los Angeles hospital. He was 82 and had prostate cancer. Griffin was not only one of television's best known faces and voices, he was one of the industry’s prime movers behind the scenes. NPR's Mandalit del Barco has more.

Merv Griffin was a fixture³ on television starting in the mid-1950s. He was on game shows, variety shows and he hosted talk shows-- latenight, primetime and daytime. He was known for his genial⁴ manner and he interviewed just about everybody from comedian⁵ Jack⁶ Benny.
Do you remember your first laugh on the stage?
That's the silliest question.
Can you imagine?
To political figures such as Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
What has the civil rights movement done to the Negro individually from his side?
Well I think the greatest thing that it has done is that it has given the Negro a new sense of dignity.
Merv Griffin featured new musical acts.
Here they are. The Jackson Five.
And he also introduced audiences to fads⁷.
America's hottest dance craze - break dancing.

Merv Griffin got his start as a singer as a kid in San Mateo, Calif. He learned to play the piano when he was 4, and his baritone voice landed the teenaged Griffin a job with bandleader Freddy Martin.
This lovely day will lengthen⁸ into evening. We'll sigh goodbye to all we ever had.

The singer became an actor, debuting⁹ in the 1953 film So This is Love, opposite Kathryn Grayson. Griffin went on to sing in nightclubs, and croon and guest host on TV and radio. In 1962, his many talents led NBC to give Griffin his own show. The following year, Norman Brokaw signed him to the William Morris Agency.
when he used to play at the Coconut¹⁰ Grove¹¹. Everybody went to see him for anything out and dancing. I always like Merv. I thought he was terrific. He was great to the industry."

Despite Merv Griffin's omnipresence on TV, he was perhaps even more influential¹² behind the scenes as a producer. Having hosted To Tell the Truth and The Price is Right, he went on to create two of the most famous game shows in TV history: Jeopardy! and Wheel of Fortune.

Merv did write the theme for Jeopardy! and Wheel of Fortune came from Merv playing hangman all the time.

Long time game show host Chuck Woolery says Griffin launched his career by casting him as the first host of Wheel of Fortune in 1975. Woolery says Griffin knew exactly what would make the shows popular and long-lasting.
He said make sure people can play along and the other thing is, make sure when they leave the room, and they come back, that they can pick it up right where it was, and feel like they haven't lost connection with what's going on. So they have to be able to come back in a play immediately wherever you are in the game.

Two years ago, Griffin received a Daytime Emmy for a lifetime achievement.

What a career and a job you love and got up. I couldn't wait to get up everyday and get to work.

And work he did. In addition to being a shrewd entertainment executive, he was also a real estate mogul. He once owned the Beverly Hills Hotel and resorts and casinos in Atlantic city and the Bahamas. At his California ranch¹³, he raised thoroughbred horses. One of Griffin's final appearances on TV came on the David Letterman Show in 2001. He gave a little tour of his four-story yacht. Then, as he often did for friends, he sat down at the piano.

When the guests come, you know, I put a little glass there with some dollars in it and I sing their requests, if they want something, or I play the Jeopardy theme a lot.

Let's sing it as a duet. Do do, do, ...

Before he died, Merv Griffin was said to be at work on a new TV game show called Crosswords¹⁴. Mandalit del Barco, NPR News.

1 jeopardy   

n.危险；危难

参考例句：

• His foolish behaviour may put his whole future in jeopardy.他愚蠢的行为可能毁了他一生的前程。
• It is precisely at this juncture that the boss finds himself in double jeopardy.恰恰在这个关键时刻，上司发现自己处于进退两难的境地。

2 impresario   

n.歌剧团的经理人；乐团指挥

参考例句：

• The impresario will present an expanded series of concerts next season.下个季节将举办一次大型的系列音乐会。
• The impresario had buttoned his astrakhan coat.乐团经理扣好了羔皮外套。

3 fixture   

n.固定设备；预定日期；比赛时间；定期存款

参考例句：

• Lighting fixture must be installed at once.必须立即安装照明设备。
• The cordless kettle may now be a fixture in most kitchens.无绳电热水壶现在可能是多数厨房的固定设备。

4 genial   

adj.亲切的，和蔼的，愉快的，脾气好的

参考例句：

• Orlando is a genial man.奥兰多是一位和蔼可亲的人。
• He was a warm-hearted friend and genial host.他是个热心的朋友，也是友善待客的主人。

5 comedian   

n.喜剧演员；滑稽演员

参考例句：

• The comedian tickled the crowd with his jokes.喜剧演员的笑话把人们逗乐了。
• The comedian enjoyed great popularity during the 30's.那位喜剧演员在三十年代非常走红。

6 jack   

n.插座，千斤顶，男人；v.抬起，提醒，扛举；n.（Jake）杰克

参考例句：

• I am looking for the headphone jack.我正在找寻头戴式耳机插孔。
• He lifted the car with a jack to change the flat tyre.他用千斤顶把车顶起来换下瘪轮胎。

7 fads   

n.一时的流行，一时的风尚( fad的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• It was one of the many fads that sweep through mathematics regularly. 它是常见的贯穿在数学中的许多流行一时的风尚之一。 来自辞典例句
• Lady Busshe is nothing without her flights, fads, and fancies. 除浮躁、时髦和幻想外，巴歇夫人一无所有。 来自辞典例句

8 lengthen   

vt.使伸长，延长

参考例句：

• He asked the tailor to lengthen his coat.他请裁缝把他的外衣放长些。
• The teacher told her to lengthen her paper out.老师让她把论文加长。

9 debuting   

初次表演，初次登台（debut的现在分词形式）

参考例句：

• New debuting analog thermostat welding machine, easy to operate. 新登场模拟式调温电焊台，操作简单。
• With the new tablet device that is debuting next week, Apple Inc. 苹果公司的新型平板电脑将于下周发布。

10 coconut   

n.椰子

参考例句：

• The husk of this coconut is particularly strong.椰子的外壳很明显非常坚固。
• The falling coconut gave him a terrific bang on the head.那只掉下的椰子砰地击中他的脑袋。

11 grove   

n.林子，小树林，园林

参考例句：

• On top of the hill was a grove of tall trees.山顶上一片高大的树林。
• The scent of lemons filled the grove.柠檬香味充满了小树林。

12 influential   

adj.有影响的，有权势的

参考例句：

• He always tries to get in with the most influential people.他总是试图巴结最有影响的人物。
• He is a very influential man in the government.他在政府中是个很有影响的人物。

13 ranch   

n.大牧场，大农场

参考例句：

• He went to work on a ranch.他去一个大农场干活。
• The ranch is in the middle of a large plateau.该牧场位于一个辽阔高原的中部。

14 crosswords   

纵横填字谜( crossword的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Doing crosswords gives the mind some exercise. 做纵横字谜游戏能锻炼脑筋。
• He spends all his time on crosswords and other trifles. 他把所有的时间都用在做纵横填字游戏和其他无聊的活动上。