I. READING COMPREHENSIONJames Paul McCartney was born in Liverpool, England, on June 18, 1942. McCartney showed and early interest in music and was encouraged by his father, who was a jazz musician. When he was 14 years old, Paul’s mother died of cancer. Despite this trauma McCartney remained an excellent student and began playing the guitar. In 1957, McCartney was introduced to John Lennon, who played in a band called The Quarrymen. Paul soon joined the group and started writing songs with John. Over the next few years the group evolved into The Beatles, with Paul playing the bass guitar. During The Beatles years, McCartney and Lennon wrote and sang the majority of The Beatles songs.
A) Read Paul McCartney’s biography above and answer True or False. If False, give evidence from the text to support your answer.1. Paul McCartney was a jazz musician. _____________________________________________
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2. When Paul’s mother died, he stopped playing the guitar. _______________________________
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3. Paul wrote and sang most of The Beatles songs. _____________________________________
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B) Read Paul McCartney’s biography again and answer the following questions.1. Where and when was Paul born? __________________________________________________
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2. When did Paul and John meet? ___________________________________________________
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3. In which band did Paul’s friend, John, play before forming The Beatles? ____________________
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II. LANGUAGE AWARENESSA) Read the following newspaper article and fill in the blanks with the appropriate form of the verbs in brackets.On March 12, 1969, Paul McCartney married Linda Eastman, an American photographer. When The Beatles 1)______________(have) to select a new manager several months later, McCartney 2)_______________(suggest) Linda’s father, Lee Eastman. The other Beatles, especially John, 3)__________________ (not want) Lee, so after a while The Beatles 4)_________________(give) the job to the American businessman Allen Klein. This 5)_______________(create) new problems in the already troubled group, separating Paul and John even more.
According to the British rock magazine “Q”, Paul McCartney 6)_____________(be) the richest rock star in the world today. Paul’s songs 7)_____________(have) hundreds of copies worldwide. McCartney also 8)______________(hold) the world record for largest paid audience at a concert given by a solo performer.
B) A journalist from the Rolling Stone magazine is interviewing Paul McCartney about his favorite film. Complete Paul’s answers using the Passive.J: What is your favorite film, Paul?
Paul: My favorite film is “Star Wars: Episode 1. The Phantom Menace”
J: Who is the director?
Paul: The film 1)___________________(direct) by George Lucas.
J: And who is the producer?
Paul: Well, actually, the film 2)________________(produce) by George
Lucas, too.
J: Really? I didn’t know that. What about the cast?
Paul: The film 3) _______________(star) by Jake Lloyd, Ewan McGregor and
Harrison Ford.
J: Do you know who distributes it?
Paul:
I think that the film 4)___________________(distribute) by Warner Bros.
III. VOCABULARYA) Read the newspaper article in A and find the word or words that have the same or a similar meaning to the words and phrase below.1. choose ________________________
2. particularly _______________ ____
3. public ________________________
4. around the world _____________
B) Fill in the blanks with the appropriate words from the newspaper article in A.1. Paul McCartney and John Lennon wrote almost all The Beatles’___________________ together.
2. Paul McCartney is ___________________________. He was born in Liverpool, Britain.
IV. WRITINGImagine you are a journalist for the Rolling Stone magazine. Write Paul McCartney’s daily routine to publish in the next magazine edition. The first sentence has already been written as an example. Use some or all of the words from the box below.
Get up – Breakfast – Always - Toasts and coffee – Do exercise – Sometimes - Lunch – Write songs - Sing - Have a shower – Often - Have tea – Watch - Usually – Have dinner - Go to bed
Example:
Every moring Paul McCartney wakes up at 8.00 in the morning._____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
