奥巴马在肯尼迪中心荣誉奖招待会上讲话（视频）

英语自学网

        　　【Remarks by the President at the Kennedy Center Honors Reception】
       奥巴马肯尼迪中心荣誉奖招待会上讲话
        　　THE PRESIDENT: Everybody, please have a seat. (Applause.) Thank you very much. Thank you. Well, good evening, everybody. You all look lovely. (Laughter.) Welcome to the White House on a night when I am nowhere close to being the main attraction.
      总统奥巴马:大家请坐。(掌声)。非常感谢你们，谢谢。大家晚上好，你们看上去都很可爱(笑声)。欢迎你们来到白宫，不过今晚我不是这里的主角。
        　　Thank you, David Rubenstein, Michael Kaiser and the Kennedy Center trustees, and everyone who has worked so hard to uphold President Kennedy’s commitment to supporting the arts. I also want to recognize another of President Kennedy’s amazing legacies, and that is his wonderful daughter Caroline, who is here tonight. (Applause.)
      谢谢你，大卫·鲁宾斯坦，迈克尔·凯泽，肯尼迪中心的受托人以及每一位尽心致力于拥护总统肯尼迪支持艺术的许诺。同样，我要介绍肯尼迪总统的另一个遗赠，那就他了不起的女儿卡罗琳，今晚她就在这里。
        　　None of this would be possible without the co-chair of the President’s Committee on the Arts and the Humanities, George Stevens -- where is George, there he is -- (applause) -- and his son Michael -- where did Michael go, there he is -- (applause) -- who have produced the Kennedy Center Honors for 35 years now.
     没有人文艺术委员会联合主席乔治·史蒂文斯的努力，这一切都不可能。乔治在哪？在那——(掌声)——还有他的儿子迈克尔，迈克尔去哪了，他在那——(鼓掌)——他创办的这个奖项距现在有35年了。
        　　Tonight, we continue a tradition here at the White House by honoring some extraordinary people who have no business being on the same stage together. (Laughter.) We’ve got Buddy Guy sitting next to Dustin Hoffman. (Laughter.) We've got Dave Letterman alongside one of the greatest ballerinas of all time. I don't think Dave dances. (Laughter.) All three living members of Led Zeppelin in one place -- (applause) -- so this is a remarkable evening.
     今晚，我们传承传统在白宫表彰一些取得非凡成就的人，他们本不该同台出现(笑声)。巴迪·盖伊（Buddy Guy)坐在达斯汀·霍夫曼（Dustin Hoffman）旁，大卫·莱特曼坐最伟大的芭蕾舞演员旁。我不认为大卫会跳舞。（笑声）齐柏林飞艇乐队的三名现行成员都在同一地方--（笑声）所以今晚不同凡响。
        　　And it speaks to something that has always made this country great -- the idea that here in America, more than any other place on Earth, we are free to follow our own passions, explore our own gifts, wherever they may lead us. And people from all around the world come here to make sure that they too can provide us the incredible gifts that they have.
     这代表着一直以来造就美国伟大的东西--那就是美国的思想，相比于世界任何地方，我们更能自由的追求自己的激情所在，探索自己的天赋，无论激情和天赋把我们导向何方。世界各地的人们来到这里，确信也能向我们提供他们了不起的天赋。
        　　Tonight’s honorees didn’t just take up their crafts to make a living. They did it because they couldn’t imagine living any other way. That passion took each of them from humble beginnings to the pinnacle of their profession. Tonight, in the People’s House, we have a chance to say thank you.
     今晚的获奖者并不是靠他们的职业来谋生，他们只热衷于自己的事业。那种激情促使他们从起初默默无名的小卒到达职业的巅峰。今晚在这里，我们有机会说声，谢谢你们。
        　　Growing up as the son of a sharecropper in Louisiana, Buddy Guy made his first guitar out of wires from a window screen -- that worked until his parents started wondering how all the mosquitos were getting in. (Laughter.) But Buddy was hooked, and a few years later, he bought a one-way ticket to Chicago to find his heroes -- Muddy Waters and Howlin’ Wolf. Pretty soon he was broke, hungry and ready to head home. And then, one night outside a blues club, a man pulled up and handed Buddy a salami sandwich and said, “I’m Mud,” and "you ain’t goin’ nowhere.” And that was the start of something special.
       作为路易斯安那州一佃农的儿子，巴迪·盖伊的第一架吉他是用纱窗上的金属丝做的--他一直这样直到他父母纳闷家里的蚊子怎么进来的。（笑声）但巴迪对吉他深深的着迷了，几年后他买了一张前往芝加哥的单程票寻找他的偶像--Muddy Waters和Howlin'Wolf。很快Buddy就破产了，饥饿难耐，他打算回去了。然后有一天晚上，他在一家俱乐部门外，一辆车慢慢的停了下来，递给了巴迪一个香肠三明治并说道，“我是Mud”，“你不会无处可归”。这就是不同寻常的开始。
        　　Of course, success hasn’t changed the humble country boy who used to milk cows on a farm outside Baton Rouge. Buddy tells a story about his son Greg wanting to learn to play the guitar like Prince. Buddy told him he’d better learn some Jimi Hendrix first. (Laughter.) It was only after watching a TV special on Hendrix that Greg found out Jimi had borrowed some licks from his dad. So Greg said, "I didn’t know you could play like that.” And Buddy said, "You never asked.” (Laughter.)
      当然，事业上的成功并没有改变这个谦虚的农村男孩，他曾在巴吞鲁日外一农场挤牛奶。巴迪讲了一个故事，关于他儿子格雷格想像Prince（世界著名吉他手）一样学弹吉他。巴迪告诉他你最好先学学吉米·亨德里克斯。（笑声）在看了亨德里克斯一期电视特别节目后，格雷格发现吉米模仿过他老爸的一些小过门。格雷格问道：“我不知道你会弹的这么好”。“你又没问过我。”巴迪答道。（笑声）
        　　Today, Buddy is still going strong -- one of the last guardians of the great American blues. And on a personal note, I will never forget Buddy playing “Sweet Home Chicago” in this very room back in February and him, and a few others, forcing me to sing along -- (laughing) -- which was just okay. (Laughter.) There aren’t too many people who can get me to sing, but Buddy was one of them. And so we are so glad that we can honor him tonight. Congratulations, Buddy Guy. (Applause.)
      今天巴迪依旧劲头十足，他是杰出美国蓝调最后的卫护者之一。就我个人而言，我永远不会忘记二月份，巴迪在这间屋子了，他和其他一些人迫使我一起唱着“Sweet Home Chicago”，唱的还不错。（笑声）没有多少人能让我唱歌的，但巴迪是其中之一。所以今晚我们很高兴能授予他荣誉。祝贺你，巴迪·盖伊。
        　
            
            

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        　　When “The Graduate” was originally written, the main character was supposed to be Robert Redford -- a tall, blond track star. And when Dustin Hoffman auditioned for the part, a crew member handed him a subway token on his way out, saying, “here, kid, you’re gonna need this.” (Laughter.)
     当《毕业生》最初编写时，里面的主角应该是罗伯特·雷德福——一个身材高大，金发碧眼的田径明星。当达斯汀·霍夫曼参加部分试演面试时，一机组人员递给了他一张带他回去的地铁票，说道：“孩子，你会需要这个的。”（笑声）
        　　Dustin ended up getting the role and it launched one of the greatest movie careers of his generation, of any generation. Most actors dream of being in maybe one film that becomes part of our cultural vocabulary. Dustin churned out “Midnight Cowboy,” “Tootsie,” “Rain Man,” “Hook” -- not bad for a guy who signed up for his first acting class after a friend told him, “nobody flunks acting, it’s like gym.” (Laughter.)
     达斯汀最终得到了这个角色，他造就了他那时代，甚至任何时代最伟大的一部电影。大多数演员梦想哪怕自己的一部电影成为美国文化词汇的一部分。达斯汀出演了《午夜牛郎》、《窈窕淑男》、《雨人》、《铁钩船长》，在一朋友告诉他“没有人在表演上不及格，就像健身”后的第一堂表演课上他就签约了，这伙计很不错。
        　　Still, I imagine one secret to his success is his inability to see himself as anything but an underdog. Even after “The Graduate” became a runaway success, Dustin says, “I really believed that was a fluke and I refused to believe I had arrived. And in a way, I’ve been hanging on by my fingertips for the entire ride.
      不过，我想他成功的一个秘密是他不会认为自己是被看好的。即使在《毕业生》取得巨大成功，达斯汀说，“我真的认为这是一个侥幸，我不认为我已经到了。在某种程度上，一直以来我一直在坚持。”
        　　Well, Dustin, you’ll be glad to know that this award was not supposed to go to Robert Redford. (Laughter.) He’s already got one. (Laughter.) So tonight we honor Dustin Hoffman -- an actor who has finally arrived. He's made it. (Applause.) He's made it. (Applause.)
     好吧，达斯汀，你会很高兴知道这个奖项不应该给罗伯特·雷德福(笑声)。因为他已经得了一次。所以，今晚我们授予达斯汀·霍夫曼这样的荣誉，一位最终成功的演员。他成功了(掌声)。他成功了(掌声)。
        　　If you ask David Letterman what's it like to tape his show, he'll say, “if it’s going well, it just lifts you. If it’s not going well, it sinks you. It’s exhilarating. It’s my favorite hour of the day.” It’s unclear how Dave feels about this hour. It’s different when you’re not the one with the mic, isn’t it, Dave? (Laughter.) You're looking a little stressed, aren't you? (Laughter.) I'd also point out it's a lot warmer here than it is on Dave's set. (Laughter.)
       如果你问大卫·莱特曼录他节目的感觉，他会说，“如果一切进展顺利，它会让你情绪高涨。如果不顺利，会让你消沉。这很令人振奋，这是我一天最喜欢的小时。”不知道大卫现在感觉如何。你没拿麦克风主持的时跟台上是不一样的，对吧，大卫？（笑声）你看上去有点紧张，不是吗？（笑声）我还要指出，站在这里比大卫那更暖和。（笑声）
        　　But I’ve enjoyed my time in the Ed Sullivan Theater. And earlier this year, Dave celebrated his 30th anniversary in late night television -- the only person to reach that milestone besides Johnny Carson. Now, Dave will be the first to tell you that he’s no Carson, that all his years on television have only made him appreciate even more how unique Johnny was. But that’s a good thing, because if he were more like Johnny, he'd be less like Dave.
      但我一直很享受在埃德沙利文剧场的时光。今年早些时候，大卫庆祝了他主持的《大卫深夜秀》30周年纪念日——这是除约翰尼·卡森外唯一达这里程碑高度的主持人现在，大卫将是第一个告诉你，他是没有跟随卡森，这些年在银幕上只是让他更多的欣赏约翰尼的独特。但这是一个好事，因为如果他更像约翰尼，他就不再是我们的大卫了。
        　　After all, it was Dave who got his start as an Indianapolis weatherman, once reporting that the city was being pelted by hail “the size of canned hams.” (Laughter.) It's one of the highlights of his career. (Laughter.) It was Dave who strapped a camera to a monkey -- (laughter) -- worked a Taco Bell drive-thru, told Lady Gaga that when he was her age, he had a paper route. (Laughter.) It was Dave who came back on the air less than a week after 9/11 to show the world that New York was still standing. (Applause.)　
      毕竟，是大卫一开始在印第安纳波利斯担任天气预报员时曾报道，这座城市被“罐头火腿”大小的冰雹袭击。（笑声）这是他职业生涯的亮点(笑声).是大卫将照相机绑在一只为塔可钟工作的猴子身上，告诉Lady Gaga当他在她的年龄时，他还是一个送报员（笑声）。是大卫在911事件爆发后不到一个星期里恢复播出，告诉世界纽约仍屹立不倒。
        　　So tonight we honor David Letterman, who has always offered us an authentic piece of himself -- sometimes cranky, often self-deprecating, always funny. And those of you who have been on his show know he is also a true gentleman. So thank you, Dave. (Applause.)
      所以今天我们授予大卫·莱特曼荣誉，他一直向我们展示真实可信的自己——有时脾气暴躁，常常自嘲，但总是很有趣。那些参加过他节目的人都知道他是一个真正的绅士。所以谢谢你，大卫(掌声)
            
            

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        　　When Natalia Makarova defected from the Soviet Union in 1970, she made headlines around the globe. But back home, her name was excised from textbooks, her photos expunged from the walls of her school. And for the next 18 years, her countrymen were forced to rely on underground channels to follow the rise of one of the most accomplished ballerinas in the world.
      当1970年娜塔莉娅．玛卡洛娃脱离苏联，她的新闻遍及全球头条。但回到国家后，她的名字从教科书中删去，她的照片从她学校的墙上摘掉。而在接下来的18年里，她的同胞们被迫依靠地下通道跟随着这位世界上最有成就的芭蕾舞演员日益成功。
        　　But no one can erase what takes hold of the heart. And in 1989, when the Iron Curtain opened, the Russian people welcomed her back with open arms. Over 2,000 people packed the Kirov Theater where she had trained as a young girl -- another 20 people crammed in with the orchestra -- all to watch a dancer who never thought she’d be back. It was a fitting end to a career that began when 13-year-old Natalia, completely double-jointed and possessed of an incredible gift for musicality and movement, told her parents she did not want to be an engineer, thank you, she wanted to dance.
      但没人能抹去她在人们心中的地位。1989年，当铁幕消除，俄罗斯人张开双臂欢迎她回来。超过2000人挤满了基洛夫剧院，在那里年轻的她接受了训练——另有20人挤在管弦乐队里——所有观看这位从未想过还会回来的舞蹈演员。她的生涯画上了完美的句号，13岁开始舞蹈，完全可以屈曲关节，对音乐和动作有着极高的天赋，她告诉她的父母她没有想过成为一名工程师，谢谢你，她想跳舞。
        　　After hanging up her shoes, Natalia moved to Broadway, where she won a Tony Award. And she remains as humble as ever -- once saying, “I’m never proud of what I’ve done. Sometimes, I’m not ashamed.” So thank you, Natalia, for the understatement of the century. (Laughter.) And thank you for sharing your talents with all of us. Congratulations. (Applause.)
      收起她的鞋子，纳塔莉亚来到百老汇，在那里她赢得了托尼奖。但她仍然像以前一样谦逊——她曾经说，“我从来没有对我取得的成就感到自豪。有时，我不觉得丢人。”谢谢您，纳塔莉亚，因为你对这世纪的轻描淡写(笑声)。谢谢你和我们分享你的才能。祝贺你。(掌声)。
        　　I worked with the speechwriters -- there is no smooth transition from ballet to Led Zeppelin. (Laughter.) We were trying to work the "Stairway To Heaven" metaphor and it didn't work. (Laughter.)
      我和演讲撰稿人讨论过，并没有很好的过渡能让我从芭蕾讲到齐柏林飞艇 (笑声)。我们尝试用“通往天国的阶梯”作比喻，但貌似效果不行。(笑声)。　
So when Jimmy Page, Robert Plant, John Paul Jones and John Bonham burst onto the musical scene in the late 1960s, the world never saw it coming. There was this singer with a mane like a lion and a voice like a banshee, a guitar prodigy who left people’s jaws on the floor, a versatile bassist who was equally at home on the keyboards, a drummer who played like his life depended on it.
      所以，当Jimmy Page，Robert Plant，John Paul和John BOnham在上世纪六十年代跃然于音乐现场时，世界前所未有。主唱有长着像狮子样的鬃毛，女妖般的声音，天才吉他手能将人们的下颚置于地板上，多才多艺的贝斯手同样在家里的键盘操练，鼓手就像用自己的生命来饰演。
        　　And when the Brits initially kept their distance, Led Zeppelin grabbed America from the opening chord. We were ready for what Jimmy called songs with “a lot of light and shade.” It’s been said that a generation of young people survived teenage angst with a pair of headphones and a Zeppelin album and a generation of parents wondered what all that noise was about. (Laughter.)
      当英国人最初保持一定距离,，齐柏林飞艇以开场和弦俘获了美国。我们已经准备什么吉米叫做《a lot of light and shade》的歌曲。据说一代年轻人靠着一副耳机和飞艇乐队的一张专辑摆脱年少的烦恼，而一代的父母都想知道这到底唱的是什么(笑声)。
        　　But even now, 32 years after John Bonham’s passing -- and we all I think appreciate the fact -- the Zeppelin legacy lives on. The last time the band performed together in 2007 -- perhaps the last time ever, but we don't know -- more than 20 million fans from around the world applied for tickets. And what they saw was vintage Zeppelin. No frills, no theatrics, just a few guys who can still make the ladies weak at the knees, huddled together, following the music. (Laughter.)
      但即使现在，约翰·博纳姆离世32年后——我想我们都尊重这一事实——齐柏林飞艇的遗赠仍然存在。上次乐队一起表演是在2007年——也许最后一次，但我们不知道——超过2000万来自世界各地的歌迷申请门票，他们看到的是老式的飞艇，并不华丽，没有舞台效果，只是一些人仍然可以让女士们感到两腿发软，跟着音乐一起扭动。（笑声）
            
            

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        　　Of course, these guys also redefined the rock and roll lifestyle. We do not have video of this. (Laughter.) But there was some hotel rooms trashed and mayhem all around. So it's fitting that we’re doing this in a room with windows that are about three inches thick -- (laughter) -- and Secret Service all around. (Laughter.) So, guys, just settle down. (Laughter.) These paintings are valuable. (Laughter.) They look very calm now though, don't they? (Laughter.)
      当然，这些家伙还重新定义了摇滚的生活方式，我们没有视频。(笑声)。但是有一些酒店客房到处混乱不堪。所以在一间窗户有三寸厚的房里做这事是合理的——(笑声)——而且到处都有秘密的服务(笑声)。所以，伙计们，安静下来(笑声)。这些照片都是有价值的(笑声)。尽管他们现在看起来很平静，不是吗?(笑声)。
        　　It is a tribute to you guys. And tonight we honor Led Zeppelin for making us all feel young, and for showing us that some guys who are not completely youthful can still rock.
     对你们这是一种称赞。今晚，致敬齐柏林飞艇让大家都觉得年轻，为我们展示尽管一些人不再年轻仍然可以摇滚起来。
        　　So we've got Buddy Guy. We've got Dustin Hoffman. We've got David Letterman, Natalia Makarova, Led Zeppelin -- (applause) -- each of us can remember a moment when the people on this stage touched our lives. Maybe they didn’t lead us to become performers ourselves. But maybe they inspired us to see things in a new way, to hear things differently, to discover something within us or to appreciate how much beauty there is in the world.
        　　所以我们谈论了巴迪·盖伊，谈论了达斯汀·霍夫曼，谈论了大卫·莱特曼，谈论了娜塔莉娅·玛卡洛娃，齐柏林飞艇——(掌声)——我们每个人都能记住这些人在舞台上触动我们的那一刻。也许他们不让我们成为表演者。但也许他们激励我们以一种新的方式看待事物，从不同的方式去聆听，去发现一些内在的东西或欣赏世界的美好。
        　　It’s that unique power that makes the arts so important. We may not always think about the importance of music or dance or laughter to the life of this nation, but who would want to imagine America without it? That’s why we celebrate artists like the ones here tonight. And that’s why, in this season of joy and thanksgiving, they have earned our deepest appreciation.
      那就是独特的力量使艺术如此重要。我们可能不总是想着音乐、跳舞或者笑声对这个国家的重要性，但谁能想象美国要是没有这些会是什么样子？这就是为什么今晚我们在这里庆祝像你们一样的艺术家们。这就是为什么在这欢乐和感恩季节，他们赢得了我们最深的感谢。
        　　So congratulations again to tonight’s honorees. Thank you all very much. And I look forward to a spectacular evening. Thank you. (Applause.)
       所以再次祝贺今晚的获奖者。非常感谢你们。我期待一个非常精彩的晚上。谢谢你们。(掌声)。
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        　　注：1.肯尼迪中心荣誉奖
肯尼迪中心荣誉奖（Kennedy Center Honors）用以表彰终身为美国文化作出贡献的杰出人士，也称为肯尼迪中心终身成就奖。该奖项于1978年开始每年在美国华盛顿肯尼迪艺术中心颁发。每年年初，肯尼迪艺术中心理事会提交一份候获选人名单，其中包括全球知名的艺术家而以前落选的候选人。这些艺术家终身致力于美国和全球文化，领域包括音乐、舞蹈、戏剧、歌剧、电影和电视。之后从每一个艺术分支选出一名代表者，由委员会在年中的时候宣布。每年的12月的第一个周末举行颁奖典礼，这是一场没有界线，没有失望，没有竞争的艺术界盛会。[1]电视台也会全程摄制，之后在圣诞节期间播出。
        　　2.Buddy Guy是芝加哥blues的代表人物，曾经影响了hendrix, clapton, SRV乃至整个摇滚发展的先驱；即使你对blues一窍不通，当buddy弹响第一个音符时，你一样会为他疯狂。 对许多人来说，Guy是在B.B.King后的下一位"布鲁斯之王"。他的吉他风格在King的诗一般的揉弦、推弦基础上，又增加了后现代布鲁斯的狂热。Hendrix和Jeff Beck都承认他们在音乐上深深地受到了Guy的影响，Clapton也成Guy是"最伟大的布鲁斯演奏者"。
        　　3.达斯汀·霍夫曼（Dustin Hoffman），1937年8月8日出生于美国加州洛杉矶，美国电影演员。代表作品有《毕业生》、《小人物大英雄》、《恐怖地带》、《克莱默夫妇》、《雨人》等。两届奥斯卡影帝。
        　　4.大卫·麦克尔·莱特曼（David Michael Letterman，1947年4月12日－）是一位美国脱口秀主持人、喜剧演员、电视节目制作人。莱特曼的充满讽刺意味的荒诞主义喜剧受到了喜剧演员诸如史蒂夫·艾伦(Steve Allen)、俄尼·科沃斯(Ernie Kovacs)和强尼·卡森等的强烈影响。
        　　5.Jimi Hendrix吉米·亨德里克斯,1942年11月27日－1970年9月18日）是一位著名的美国吉他演奏家，歌手，和作曲人，被公认为是流行音乐史中最伟大的电吉他演奏者。Hendrix生于华盛顿州的西雅图，他在出生时叫做Johnny Allen Hendrix，他的父母叫做Al Hendrix和Lucille Jeter。
        　　6.查尔斯·罗伯特·雷德福二世 (Charles Robert Redford, Jr.，1936年8月18日－)为知名奥斯卡获奖导演、演员，亦为监制、商人、模特儿、环保人士和慈善家。
        　　7.达斯汀·霍夫曼（Dustin Hoffman），1937年8月8日出生于美国加州洛杉矶，美国电影演员。代表作品有《毕业生》、《小人物大英雄》、《恐怖地带》、《克莱默夫妇》、《雨人》等。两届奥斯卡影帝。
        　　8.Natalia Makarova 娜塔莉娅．玛卡洛娃13岁进入著名的瓦加诺娃舞蹈学校（原俄罗斯皇家舞蹈学校），在学校的一个特殊实验班里，她接受了严格而近乎残酷的训练，仅用六年时间完成了九年的常规课程。出演的首部百老汇音乐剧是《足尖上》，此剧赢得“托尼奖”的“音乐剧最佳女主角奖”、美国“戏剧委员会奖”“斯坦尼斯拉夫斯基奖”以及其他许多大奖。1984年，在伦敦西区主演《足尖上》，赢得“劳伦斯．奥利文奖”。
        (编辑：何莹莹）