Reading Who are they Do you like them Today let s learn more about the comedians Read through the article and try to answer the questions on top of page 2 Stand up comedy He went on to act in films Pre reading 1 What is the article about 2 After starting as a stand up comedian what did Billy Crystal go ib to do later in life How many types of stand up are there Our health 3 What is laughter good for Stand up for your health Types of stand up A famous comedian Laughter is good for you Structure of the article A comedian puts on glasses changes his or her voice and pretends to be someone else Impressionist A comedian stands on stage and holds a banana to his ear and pretends to be making a phone call Prop Types of stand up A comedian walks on stage As she introduces herself she falls down Physical A comedian tells jokes about the way people behave when they queue up in lines Observational Will you create similar situations to perform the four types of stand up comedy A toothbrush He thinks it ll bring him good luck They are famous comedians A famous comedian 2 Who were Bob Hope and George Burns Questions 1 What does Billy Crystal always keep when he hosts the Academy Awards Why Fill in the blanks with proper words Doctors have benn doscovered that people who laugh a lot live after researching what stand up and other forms of comedy have on us When we laugh our sends chemicals around the body which are good for us longer effect brain Laughter is good for your health keeps the body healthy as the saying goes Laughter is the best Laughing medicine Further comprehension 1 A stand up comedian while performing A enjoys laughing B enjoys making fun of himself C usually takes advantage of the audience D has prepared a lot of jokes in advance 2 Which of the following is the style of prop A jokes in everyday life B visual humour C body action D imitation of a well known person 3 Billy Crystal started his career A as a television actor B as a film actor C as a stand up comedian D as a host 4 What does the word routine in Para 3 probably mean A road B performance C lines D style 5 At the 2004 Academy Awards a very old actor at first A was asked to make a silent speech B turn off the microphone on purpose C made the audience laugh D couldn t make himself heard 6 What does the word appropriate in Para 4 probably mean A proper B clear C foolish D interesting Crystal was a natural entertainer and had no fears about dancing on stage with top jazz stars A brief introduction of Billy Crystal Crystal studied film and television direction under Martin Scorsese at New York University After graduation and marriage Crystal did substitute teaching while he tried his comedy act at various clubs throughout New York In the seventies the Crystal family moved to Los Angeles Crystal did some stand up at the Comedy Store and was noticed by Norman Lear This was the turning point Crystal started making guest appearances on TV and eventually landed his role in Soap In the eighties Crystal moved his family back to New York There he appeared on cable TV did guest spots and made for TV movies Back on the stand up circuit Crystal became famous for his Fernando Lamas and Sammy Davis Jr impersonations He and his impersonations joined the cast of Saturday Night Live in 1984 He spent only one year with the show but was the most popular member of the cast and he earned an Emmy nomination for Best Individual Performance His ambition now is to have a one man show on Broadway He has the practice from his years of being one of the most popular emcees of the Oscar Awards His opening tributes to the nominees are anticipated every year and talked about more than the winners C1 Read the sentences below and decide whether that are true T or false F according to the article 1 Visual humour can ve boring when you cannot see what the comedian is doing 2 One comedian did not lose any weight even though he had been doing a lot of physical exercise for a month T F 3 People usually laugh at comedians doing impressions because they do not like the person being make fun of 4 The old actor s speech at the Academy Awards was like a silent film because there was no sound 5 Bob Hope and George Burns lived for a ling time probably because they laughed a lot F T T C2 How well did you understand the article Readit again and answer the following questions 1 Where is stand up cpmedy usually done On a stage 2 How might a stand up comedian decide what jokes to tell A stand up comedian might decide what jokes to tell depending upon how the audience reacted to his or her previous joke 3 How many types of stand up are mentioned Four 4 When did Billy Crystal begin practising stand up When he was a child 5 What is one reason Billy Crystal has becone so famous Because he is very quick thinking and is so often able to come up with new jokes about the people abd things around him 6 Who were Bob Hope and George Burns Two famous comedians 7 What does your brain do when you laugh It sends c