George Bush gets pipped to "Foot in Mouth" award
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Former England soccer manager Steve McClaren fought off toughcompetition from US President George W. Bush to win a dreaded "Foot inMouth" award on Tuesday from the Plain English campaign.. [ N6 X# K; G9 i: f; Q4 i% u
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Hewas hailed for a supreme example of in talking about star player WayneRooney: "He is inexperienced but he』s experienced in terms of what he』sbeen through."! D+ t7 r- O2 q! c9 N
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George W. Bush came second for "All I can tell you is that when the governor calls, I answer his phone."" a6 ^8 B6 h/ e0 k
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Plain English Campaign spokesman Ben Beer said: "We thought it was abit obvious to honor Bush as he comes up with them every day."
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Every year, the pressure group hands out a raft of awards mockingincomprehensible jargon in a battle to clear the linguistic fog that sooften envelops the English language.
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Past winners include model Naomi Campbell, actor Richard Gere and former U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld.
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7 x' G5 G+ L# z* \. @ There is never a shortage of entrants sent in by people baffled by bureaucratic language and befuddled legalese.
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" L6 g6 q9 B0 S5 S6 t "We get 40 to 50 examples a week, mostly from British documents. Themedia, including advertising and marketing, is riddled with insiderjargon," Beer said.
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Offering the best way to obliteratemeaningless verbosity, Beer said: "Thinking before you write is themain thing and then re-reading what you have written."
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$ \+ h. l; X! q3 k, N6 d" V That message clearly fell on deaf ears at Coleraine railway station in Northern Ireland.
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1 S! z- f3 U/ W5 B L( _( b% |( ^ r The station sign read: "Every autumn a combination of leaves on theline, atmospheric conditions and prevailing damp conditions lead to alow adhesion between the rail head and the wheel which causes servicesto be delayed or even cancelled."
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: e9 J- o+ g% @) F& R. l m3 X London』s Gatwick Airportgot 10 out of 10 for brevity but came bottom of the class for clarityfor one of its signs: "Passenger shoe repatriation area only."
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The campaign was founded in 1979 by Chrissie Maher who only learned to read and write at the age of 14.2 [; u) O2 @7 p- H8 h3 e
/ t! g6 }& {: t9 g 本週二,「簡明英語運動組織」年度「不知所云」大獎揭曉,前英格蘭國家足球隊主教練史蒂夫‧麥克拉倫力挫美國總統布什,贏得這一「殊榮」。
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# O5 p/ b3 u* f. N$ V5 _5 M/ z 麥克拉倫對球星韋恩‧魯尼的評價是最為經典的例子,令人「讚歎」。他說:「魯尼經驗不足,不過他對自己做過的事情還是很有經驗的。」
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! D6 `5 T$ ~% C; C& ` 布什總統「屈居」亞軍。他的「獲獎名言」是:「我想告訴你們,如果州長打來電話,我一定會接。」(譯者註:布什訪問發生火災的南加州,在回答有關應急救援的問題時說了這句話。)
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C& v! H' |3 }3 B! B8 n8 W 「簡明英語運動組織」的發言人本‧比爾說:「我們原以為布什總統奪冠的可能性比較大,因為他說錯話可是家常便飯。」' v* W! S; {, [4 \6 Q
0 k. X4 _" h3 N( Q 為了消滅英語中經常出現的「雲山霧罩」的語言,該「施壓組織」每年都頒發一系列獎項,嘲諷各種讓人摸不著頭腦的晦澀言論。
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1 R$ V7 V; Y$ E9 `3 L6 J& W8 E 歷屆「不知所云獎」得主包括名模納歐米‧坎貝爾、影星理查德‧基爾和美國前國防部長唐納德‧拉姆斯菲爾德。8 S" y$ c5 S! Z
/ Y% h3 f1 U" M( Z7 Z 該組織經常收到人們「舉報」的一些令人費解的「官話」和法律用語。
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! ?! t3 E. y" e: H) b 比爾說:「我們每週能收集到四、五十個這樣的例子,其中大多數來自英國的官方文件。此外,廣告、營銷等傳媒中也充斥著大量的行業術語。」5 X" t5 X* P9 J; L# v% n& ?
8 h% @' Q! V+ k! L 針對這個問題,比爾提出,最好的解決辦法就是「提筆前慎重思考,寫完後再三通讀」。6 y- k) t5 r9 K
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而北愛爾蘭的科勒雷恩火車站顯然沒有做到這一點。
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0 P3 ]4 ]# W' F4 d( j0 L' T5 M 該火車站的一個告示牌上寫道:「每到秋天,鐵道上的落葉、大氣狀況和潮濕的天氣使火車頭和車輪間的粘附力減小,導致火車延誤或取消。」9 m: m1 \% i; A6 f0 [5 G
" {2 Q% h; A9 ~* [ 而倫敦加特維克機場是做到了百分百的「簡要,但是在「清楚」方面卻是最差的了。該機場的一個告示牌是這樣寫的:「乘客鞋遣送專用區」。
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* n2 p5 C. J; L9 ^' j* N 「簡明英語運動」組織成立於1979年,其創始人克裡西‧馬赫在他14歲時才開始識字。
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《音樂之聲》當選「史上最偉大音樂劇」
: y2 }, I, a: Y 『The Sound of Music』 named the 『Greatest Musical of All Time』- ~( E6 i& f: T! O4 W# W
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1960』s classic The Sound of Music has been named the 『Greatest Musical of All Time』 in a new poll." g- J6 e4 } S6 n( @% p+ q
# _+ U6 D M- {) | The 1965 film, starring Julie Andrews, got 15 per cent of the vote in the Twentieth Century Fox poll.
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' a8 n; G* V: m$ } In the film, Andrews plays nun Maria who leaves an Austrian convent totake up a job of a governess to a Navy captain and his seven kids.) V: G( z% v* O4 I! |) H- C
8 c0 U3 Y# h. Z o. j, F Speaking at the launch of the Sound Of Music DVD at London』sPalladium, Charmian Carr, who played Liesl von Trapp said: "It』s such agood feeling to be a part of something that changed so many lives forthe better.
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"To love each other and to stay together is sucha wonderful message and I think probably nowadays more than ever peopleneed to hear that message again."( Y5 e. v ?. }( m3 I
8 G* t, ^9 T7 V3 Z2 w& v Olivia Newton-John and John Travolta starred, 1978 musical Grease, bagged the second place, reports The Sun., V- b& I Y4 R2 @5 W6 T
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Musical comedy The Rocky Horror Show landed the third, while MaryPoppins, a Disney musical starring Julie Andrews stood fourth.
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Nicole Kidman starred Moulin Rouge came fifth, while Phantom of theOpera and The Wizard of Oz stood sixth and seventh respectively.
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& [6 T: g, ^- E4 L! M; T Oliver, West Side Story and Chitty Chitty Bang Bang rounded off the top ten 『Greatest Musicals of All Time.』4 B6 d0 e8 f9 q D
7 ^6 M- F% \" m k; ?/ l The top ten 『Greatest Musicals of All Time』 are:, z# F' U c) y+ S/ T
+ W: t: G' b2 `3 i4 |/ H 1.The Sound of Music
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2.Grease- |* T! d m. ?9 h3 o* K7 p
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3.The Rocky Horror Show, U6 Z6 m9 v" d
5 Z m* I+ Y% R9 q4 I _ 4.Mary Poppins
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5.Moulin Rouge
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6.Phantom of the Opera
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. _0 P: d) L$ B9 [& Q* G 7.The Wizard of Oz
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+ a. ?" X" z. e u 8.Oliver7 r$ H5 x* J- v
9 l( e% z9 S1 P8 M' Q; y0 A+ Y" ~ 9.West Side Story# q" r! x7 B7 R) m/ T
1 o/ f7 P6 [3 c4 ` 10.Chitty Chitty Bang Bang
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上世紀60年代名噪一時的經典音樂劇《音樂之聲》在近媽養我一項調查中被評為「歷史上最偉大的音樂劇」。
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在「20世紀福克斯」電影公司開展的調查中,《音樂之聲》以15%的得票率名列榜首。這部音樂劇於1965年上映、由茱麗葉‧安德魯斯主演。
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安德魯斯在劇中飾演修女瑪莉婭,她離開了奧地利的修道院,到一位海軍上校家給他的七個孩子當家庭教師。
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& n2 l$ s8 i9 K- d, K2 h) `% F 在倫敦帕裡蒂亞劇院舉行的《音樂之聲》原聲大碟發佈儀式上,在劇中飾演(大女兒) 麗莎‧馮‧崔普的查爾米恩‧卡爾說:「這部音樂劇讓很多人的生活變得更加美好。能夠參演這部偉大的作品,我感到非常自豪。」
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' I, _6 T, R7 b, W 「互相關愛、相依相伴是人世間最美好的東西,我想如今的人們可能比以往更需要它。」
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" l! P- f0 [* {) l9 i3 x 據《太陽報》報道,由奧立瓦‧牛頓-約翰和約翰‧特拉沃爾塔主演的音樂劇《油脂》位居第二。該劇於1978年上映。" u- E* R: b2 q; s- O$ ~6 V
0 p' l& y- w4 |/ F0 b! C 音樂喜劇《洛基恐怖秀》名列第三,茱麗葉‧安德魯斯主演的另一部迪斯尼音樂劇《瑪麗‧波平斯阿姨》排在第四。
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妮可‧基德曼主演的歌舞劇《紅磨坊》名列第五;《歌劇魅影》和《綠野仙蹤》分別位列第六和第七。! A. G, N& v6 ^3 S% y! r+ a$ a
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《奧立弗》、《西區故事》和《飛天萬能車》也躋身「史上最偉大的十大音樂劇」排行榜。8 o) w0 i( v. r/ g% q
. @* V, j8 i6 T# J0 Q 「史上最偉大的十大音樂劇」如下:
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, v+ Q6 s( C' t 1、《音樂之聲》( J4 \' F" W8 j
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2、《油脂》( V) s% H: Y/ Z7 C
1 Q6 w1 s) r0 @( d: q5 s& T Z 3、《洛基恐怖秀》
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4、《瑪麗‧波平斯阿姨》1 K: k5 `! W. ~- G" V7 ~
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5、《紅磨坊》
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6 O. t! P; R9 Q+ i 6、《歌劇魅影》
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7、《綠野仙蹤》
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8 n$ C1 G4 t; y+ d0 t d, n/ \ 8、《奧立弗》3 G4 ?, Z; x! [5 z# \0 g4 _: _
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9、《西區故事》# Q. u5 W* m& D0 I" H) w
/ B! _ y) K0 m& g 10、《飛天萬能車》 |
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