Remembering Paul Newman

Intro

1. Learn Vocabulary - Learn some new vocabulary before you start the lesson.

• classic
• charisma
• passing
• icon

• grieve
• philanthropy
• behind him
• charity

• generosity
• environment

2. Read and Prepare - Read the introduction and prepare to hear the audio.

Death is, of course, hardest to deal with when it’s a surprise. Well-loved 83-year-old actor Paul Newman announced over a month ago that cancer would soon kill him, but the world grieved nonetheless when he died a little over a week ago.

Newman was famous not only for acting, but for his philanthropy. He donated a lot of money to charity through his life and left even more in his will. He was that rare combination of a famous person who is also a truly admirable human being.

Listen to Jason and Marni talk about the mix of emotions that Newman’s death made them feel.

Dialog

1. Listen and Read - Listen to the audio and read the dialog at the same time.

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2. Study - Read the dialog again to see how the vocab words are used.

Marni

Jason

Marni:  So I was just eating my Newman-O’s and with every bite was feeling the loss of Paul Newman.

Jason:  It is such a loss. I mean, even though his great acting work was probably behind him for the most part, his whole contribution to charities through his food company was just amazing.

Marni:  Right. Absolutely. All of his after-tax profits were donated to environmental causes and educational causes, which I’m all about. And what a classic American actor, just so much charisma. Cool Hand Luke is just one of the best characters ever.

Jason:  Definitely. Butch Cassidy is my favorite role that he ever did.

Marni:  And then even, you know, The Color of Money which he actually won an Oscar for.

Jason:  Yeah. I mean, he had such a good, long life, but it’s still sad, you know? It’s kind of like loosing your grandpa. He’s at that age where he doesn’t have that much time left, but you can’t help but feel pretty sad about it.

Marni:  It’s the passing of an icon and you realize, “Wow, all these great, classic American actors are like, they’re old, and there’s a new generation and it’s sort of the passing of an era.”

Jason:  Yeah.

Marni:  It’s kind of sad. But he did live a good life and he left us with a lot of great movies.

Jason:  Definitely.

Quizzes

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Lesson MP3

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