____ /20
Full Name: ___________________________Class: _____________ Number: _________ Time: (55 minutes)
[1] George Carlin was born in New York City on May 12, 1937. His mother, Mary, a
secretary, separated from his father when he was an infant, and he grew up with his mother and
his older brother, Patrick, on West 121st Street in Manhattan. After he dropped off high school,
Carlin began working, in the late 1950s, as a wisecracking radio disc jockey and low-key standup comedian known for such whimsical routines as “Wonderful WINO” and the “Hippy Dippy
Weatherman.”
[2] Beginning in the 1970s, however, he transformed himself into a provocative and
incisive anti-establishment comic icon. Carlin was most closely identified with the monologue
“Seven Words You Can Never Say on Television,” in which he satirically analysed the use and misuse of seven of
the raunchiest obscenities in the English language. Indeed, Carlin’s comedy is defined, along with its politically
charged themes, by its clever witty wordplay and dry humour.
[3] Carlin released more than 20 comedy albums and starred in 14 HBO television specials. As an actor, he
usually played a character inspired by his own comic persona. He also appeared in the Tonight Show over 130
times.
[4] George Carlin was arrested for profanity after performing 'Seven Words' on
stage at Summerfest in 1972, but a judge dismissed the case. In 1973 New York City
radio station WBAI-FM triggered a lawsuit by the FCC after it aired a recorded
version of the routine called “Filthy Words.”
[5] Carlin was honoured with the American Comedy Awards’ Lifetime
Achievement Award (2001) and the Mark Twain Prize for American Humour
(2008). In 2004 the cable television network Comedy Central ranked Carlin second on its list of the “100 Greatest
Stand-Ups of All Time, behind African American actor-comedian Richard Pryor and just ahead of the legendary
Lenny Bruce.
[6] His final HBO speci al, It’s Bad for Ya, aired just months before his death in 2008 to heart failure, and it
won the Grammy Award for best comedy album in 2009. His memoir, Last Words, was published later that year.
[7] In honour of his memory, Judd Apatow and Michael Bonfiglio have recently made a two-part
documentary film about him entitled Geroge Carlin’s American Dream. It was released on May 20, 2022, and hopes to
introduce Carlin to the younger generation.
1. Complete the table with information from the text: (4 points)
Date and place of birth
2.
Awards/ Prizes won
Challenges faced
Qualities associated
Answer with TRUE OR FLASE and JUSTIFY your answer. (2.25) (0.75 for each)
a) Carlin’s parents got divorced when he was still a child.
_________________________________________________________________________
b) Of the 100 greatest stand-up comedians, Carlin ranked first.
_________________________________________________________________________
c) George Carlin was never interested in politics.
_________________________________________________________________________
3. Find in the text words that mean THE SAME as the following: (0.75 point)
(0.25 for each)
Seized by the police = (p4) ______________________________________________________
Funny in an intelligent way = (p2) ________________ more than (p3) _____________________
4.
Answer the following questions from the text: (1 point)
(0.5 for each)
1) How does the writer describe George Carlin’s comedy?
____________________________________________________________________________
2) Why was Carlin arrested?
____________________________________________________________________________
1- Complete with the gerund or infinitive forms of the indicated verbs (3 points)
(0.5 for each)
a) Sarah has decided (study) _______________________________ French literature.
b) My brother Kamal is keen on (play) __________________________video games.
c) Sally can’t help (laugh) _________________________when she watches George Carlin.
d) The teacher said we must (submit) _____________________ our project next week.
e) The boss was angry because Marry forgot (send) ____________________ him the email.
f) Let me (try) _______________________to help you with your homework.
1- Complete the table below (provide an adjective an an example) (3 points)
Word
Creativity
adventure
joy
worry
adjective
(0.75 for each)
Example
2- Complete with words from the list: (4 points)
(0.5 for each
Silly --- successful --- hilarious --- laugh at --- imaginative --- bad mood --- activists – cracked a joke
a)
b)
c)
d)
e)
Elon Musk is a ___________________entrepreneur. He is the _co-founder and CEO of Tesla.
J. K. Rowling, the writer of Harry Potter book series, must be very ______________ since she writes fantasy novels.
Although Charlie Chaplin does silent comedy, his moves are really ______________________.
Nobody laughed at his joke; it was very ________________________.
Aicha chenna and Fatima Mernissi are examples of famous women’s rights __________________ in Morocco.
f) You shouldn’t_____________________ people because it is rude.
g) Samir didn’t want to talk to me because he was in a _________________, so I _______________________ to make
him laugh.
1- Match the sentences in column A with those in B.
( A)
(0.5 for each)
(B)