Ingles 2014 Charlie Chaplin (1889-1977)

Charlie Chaplin (1889-1977) was a very famous film star. He was from a poor home in South London, and he was already a comedy actor in the theatre when he was a teenager.

He went to the USA in 1910, and in 1914 he was in his first Hollywood film. In those days, the film industry was very young.

Chaplin´s early comedies were in black and white and they were ´silent´- there were no words or music.

Chaplin´s favourite charter was ´the tramp´- a little man with big trousers, an old black hat and a sad face. This was Chaplin´s charter in his famous comedy films – for example The kid (1920), The Gold Rush (1924) and City Lights (1931). Modern times (1936) was his first ´talking´ film, and in The Great Dictator he was the director and music writer as well as the star.

Chaplin decided to leave the USA in 1952 and his new home was in Switzerland. He died there on Christmas Day at the age of 88

Reading tip

Answering questions

Make sure you know what the questions are asking. Study the question words.

- If the questions ask when….? The answer is a date or a time

- If it asks where…? The answer i9s a place.

- If it asks why…? The answer is a reason (because…..).

The carpet fitter

Eddie was a carpet fitter, and he hated it. For ten years he had spent his days sitting, squatting.

Kneeling or crawling on floors, in houses, office, shops, factories and restaurants. Ten years of his life, cutting and fitting carpets for other people to walk on, without even seeing them. When his work was done, no-one ever appreciated it. No- one ever said “Oh, that´s a beautiful jao, the carpet fits so neatly.” They just walked all over it. Eddie was sick of it.

He was especially sick of it on this hot, humid day in august, as he worked to put the finishing touches to today´s job. He was just cutting and fixing the last edge on a huge red carpet which he had fitted in the living room of Mrs. Vanbrugh´s house. Rich Mrs. Vanbrugh, who changed her carpets every year and always, bought the best. Rich Mrs. Vanbrugh, who had never even given him a cup of tea all day, and who made him go outside when he wanted to smoke. Ah well, it was four o´clock and he had nearly finished. At least he would be able to get home early today. He began to day-dream about the weekend, about the Saturday football game he always played for the local team, where he was known as “Ed the Head” for his skill in heading goals from corner kicks.

Eddie sat and sighed, the job was done, and it was time for a last cigarette. He began tapping the pockets of his overalls, looking for the new packet of Marlboro he had bought that morning. They were not there.

It was as he swung around to look in his toolbox for the cigarettes that Eddie saw the lump. Right in the middle of the brand new bright red carpet, there was a lump. A very visible lump. A lump the

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