2006年VOA标准英语-US Film Director Robert Altman Dies

By VOA News
21 November 2006

Pioneering director Robert Altman, the man behind the satirical films "MASH¹", "Nashville" and "The Player," has died in Los Angeles at the age of 81. Mike O'Sullivan reports, he was considered an outsider in Hollywood.

Robert Altman poses with honorary Oscar he received in 2006

Altman was known for his irreverent humor, seen in his anti-war classic MASH, which concerned an Army battlefield medical unit in the Korean War.

Altman was born in Kansas City, Missouri, and served in World War II as a bomber² pilot. Afterward³, he studied engineering and then tried his hand as a screenwriter. He was unable to make much headway in Hollywood, however, so went home to Kansas City to make industrial films.

In 1957 he wrote, produced and directed a low-budget feature called The Delinquents⁴, which led to a career as a director in television.

With the success of MASH in 1970, he entered the ranks of Hollywood's major film directors. But he was always uneasy in Hollywood. Altman said he wanted to make films that examined the human condition.

Many remained obscure and appealed more to critics than audiences. But in 1975, he had another big success with the comedy Nashville, an ensemble⁵ film set in the capital city of country music.

In the 1992 film The Player, Altman blended satire⁶ with drama in a thriller⁷ about murder in the movie industry.

Altman scored another hit in 2001 with the satirical Gosford Park, an ensemble murder mystery set in 1930s Britain.

That film earned Altman his fifth Oscar nomination⁸ as best director. But he did not receive an Oscar until earlier this year, when he was honored for lifetime achievement.

Altman said at the ceremony that he had undergone a heart transplant a decade earlier. He said he had kept it secret to keep working. His most recent film, another ensemble project called A Prairie Home Companion, was released this year.

1 mash   

n.麦芽浆，糊状物，土豆泥；v.把…捣成糊状，挑逗，调情

参考例句：

• He beat the potato into a mash before eating it.他把马铃薯捣烂后再吃。
• Whiskey,originating in Scotland,is distilled from a mash of grains.威士忌源于苏格兰，是从一种大麦芽提纯出来的。

2 bomber   

n.轰炸机，投弹手，投掷炸弹者

参考例句：

• He flew a bomber during the war.他在战时驾驶轰炸机。
• Detectives hunting the London bombers will be keen to interview him.追查伦敦爆炸案凶犯的侦探们急于对他进行讯问。

3 afterward   

adv.后来；以后

参考例句：

• Let's go to the theatre first and eat afterward. 让我们先去看戏，然后吃饭。
• Afterward,the boy became a very famous artist.后来，这男孩成为一个很有名的艺术家。

4 delinquents   

n.（尤指青少年）有过失的人，违法的人( delinquent的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The robbery was committed by a group of delinquents. 那起抢劫案是一群青少年干的。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• There is today general agreement that juvenile delinquents are less responsible than older offenders. 目前人们普遍认为青少年罪犯比成人罪犯的责任小些。 来自辞典例句

5 ensemble   

n.合奏(唱)组；全套服装；整体，总效果

参考例句：

• We should consider the buildings as an ensemble.我们应把那些建筑物视作一个整体。
• It is ensemble music for up to about ten players,with one player to a part.它是最多十人演奏的合奏音乐，每人担任一部分。

6 satire   

n.讽刺，讽刺文学，讽刺作品

参考例句：

• The movie is a clever satire on the advertising industry.那部影片是关于广告业的一部巧妙的讽刺作品。
• Satire is often a form of protest against injustice.讽刺往往是一种对不公正的抗议形式。

7 thriller   

n.惊险片，恐怖片

参考例句：

• He began by writing a thriller.That book sold a million copies.他是写惊险小说起家的。那本书卖了一百万册。
• I always take a thriller to read on the train.我乘火车时，总带一本惊险小说看。

8 nomination   

n.提名，任命，提名权

参考例句：

• John is favourite to get the nomination for club president.约翰最有希望被提名为俱乐部主席。
• Few people pronounced for his nomination.很少人表示赞成他的提名。