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One of the most famous movie directors is Alfred Hitchcock. He is most famous for his mystery movies. When he died in 1980， he had made over fifty movies.

Hitchcock was born in London in 1899. He was very shy and he went to very strict schools. He studied to be an engineer， but he was always interested in movies. He used to go to the cinema as often as he could. In his free time he also used to write stories that he wanted to make into movies.

Hitchcock gave up the idea of becoming an engineer when he got a small job in a movie company. Later he got a job as an assistant director. He often had some very clever ideas for filming movies， so later his employer gave him a chance to make a movie by himself. His first movie was made in 1920s and it was a “silent movie”.

He made several other silent movies before he made Blackmail， which was his first talking movie， and of course was another mystery movie.

In 1939 Hitchcock moved to Los Angeles， which was becoming a new center for film-making. The first movie that Hitchcock made in the US was called Rebecca. He got most of the stories for his movies from novels and plays. After reading a novel or play， he would create the movie script by himself， and choose the actors and actresses， and also decide where and how to shoot each scene.

Hitchcocks movies are generally thought to be good movies because he did these things well： choosing of the story， writing of the script， selecting of the actors and actresses， and the creating of the scenes. Hitchcock used to do most of these jobs all by himself.

Alfred Hitchcock will be remembered for his mystery stories and for a number of good films that he directed.

1. How did Hitchcock show his interest in movies when he was young？

A. By studying hard at movies.

B. By reading mysterious stories.

C. By going to the cinema frequently.

D. By attending strict schools to learn moves.

2. Hitchcock gave up working as an engineer when ___ .

A. he moved to Los Angeles

B. he became an assistant director

C. he got a chance to make a movie

D. he was employed by a movie company

3. Which is the correct order of the events about Hitchcock？

a. He moved to Los Angeles.

b. He made a silent movie.

c. He made fifty films.

d. He directed Rebecca.

e. He used to write stories.

A. e， b， a， d， c B. a， b， e， d， cendprint

C. a， e， b， c， d D. e， a， d， b， c

4. What was Hitchcock well-known for according to the passage？

A. The plays he wrote.

B. The movie script he created.

C. The mystery films he directed.

D. The way he chose actors and actresses.

B

Jack Benny was one of the most famous names in show business. As a child， Benny learned to play the violin. After finishing his school， he joined the Navy. He continued using his violin to perform for sailors. In one show he was chosen more for his funny jokes than for his skills with the violin. That experience made him believe that his future job was a comedian.

Benny developed a show personality that had all the qualities people dislike. He was known for being so stingy—he refused to spend any money unless forced to do so. On his shows Benny often spoke of his appearance， especially his baby blue eyes. As he grew older， he always claimed to be 39 years old. Benny rarely make jokes that hurt other people. Instead， he would let the other actors on the show tell jokes about him.

In real life， he was very giving and he was a person people liked having as their employer. Benny entered the new media of television in 1950. Five years later， he dropped his radio program to spend more time developing his television show. At first his appearances on television were rare. By 1960 the Benny Show was a weekly television program. It continued until 1965. Benny appeared in about twenty films during his life. a few became popular. But most were not. In 1963 Benny returned to Broadway for the first time since 1931.

Benny received many awards during his lifetime. Perhaps the one honor that pleased him most was that his hometown of Waukeegan named a school for him. This was a special honor for a man who had never finished high school.

Benny continued to perform. He died of cancer in 1974. At his funeral his friend Bob Hope said， “Jack Benny was stingy to the end. He gave us only eighty years.”

5. Benny was determined to be a comedian after he ___ .

A. left the Navy for Broadway

B. joined the Navy with his violin

C. played the violin for the sailors

D. performed in a show for the sailors

6. The underlined word “stingy” can be replaced by “________”.

A. clever B. mean

C. out-going D. hard-working

7. Which of the following statements is TRUE about Benny？

A. He treated all his awards as nothing.

B. His first appearance on TV was very successful.

C. Most of his films became well-known to Americans.

D. His greatest achievement was developing show business.

8. What can we learn about Benny from Bob Hopes words？

A. He was really a mean person.

B. He performed only eighty years.

C. His death made him feel very sad.

D. He devoted himself to developing TV business.endprint