From rags to riches : the story of a successful immigrant.

Todays governor of California, Arnold Schwarzenegger was born in Europe on July 30, 1947. He
grew up in a small isolated village in Austria, near Germany. He lived in a house with no telephone, no fridge
and no toilet. His father was a policeman and he had one older brother, Meinhard. His mother didnt work.
Arnold often played football, and he was good at sport. At the age of 15, he decided to become a bodybuilder.
He trained a lot, every day, in the schools gym. At 18, he served one year in the Austrian military, where he
was a tank driver. Then he went to national and international bodybuilding competitions. He won five Mr.
Universe titles (amateur and professional) and was named Mr. Olympia seven times.
After conquering the world as the greatest bodybuilder who ever lived, he left Europe and went to
America at the age of 21, speaking very little English. By the age of 22, Schwarzenegger was a millionaire,
well before he began his career in Hollywood. He had a university degree in business and marketing and he
made clever investments.
Fame had always attracted him, so he decided to make his name in the movie business. But because of
his impossible name, which he refused to change, and his thick accent, he didnt have much success during
many years. In 1970 he was chosen to play the role of Hercules, in Hercules in New York. The film wasnt a
big success, and Arnolds part was dubbed by another actor, as the producers thought the spectators
wouldnt understand him. His real name didnt even appear in the credits, only Arnold Strong.
He was then offered the role of Conan in Conan the Barbarian, which was a huge success, as well as
its sequel Conan the Destroyer. In the following years, a succession of blockbusters (such as The
Terminator, Total Recall, Commando, True Lies ) made him an international movie star.
He became an American citizen in 1983. He signed his name and left his footprints and fingerprints
on Hollywood Boulevard in 1987. His success made it possible for him to select the movies in which he
wanted to appear. But the film that made him an international movie star was Terminator, (1984). Millions of
people in the world saw it. In that science-fiction film, his character was a cyborg : a robot half man/ half
machine. The two sequels, Terminator 2- Judgement Day and Terminator 3- Rise of the machines were also
very popular. In the first film, his character was programmed to kill the heros mother, but in the two sequels
he tried to help him and fought other cyborgs.
By alternating violent action films with lighter comedies, he has solidified his position as one of the
most popular - if not the most popular - movie stars in the world. He has been awarded a Golden Globe for
best actor in a comedy film, Junior.
He met Maria Shriver, a television journalist, in New York in 1977. They fell in love and got married

in 1986. His wife is the niece of John F. Kennedy, who was President of the USA before he was assassinated.
They have now four children. They live in Brentwood, in Los Angeles, California.
After his long, and successful movie career, he decided to turn to politics. The fact that his wife was a
member of the Kennedy family gave him many opportunities. He was elected Governor of California as a
Republican on 7 October 2003, and was immediately nicknamed Governator and Conan the Republican
by the medias. He was re-elected in 2006, and he is now the 38 th Governor of California. American people are
used to seeing actors become politicians : former action-film star Jesse Ventura was elected governor of
Minnesota and former American president Ronald Reagan used to act in westerns.

A- Find the answers in the text

Full name : ..
Age :
Nationality - at first :, today : ..
Jobs- He was first a ., then an and
finally
Family : Brothers and sisters : ..
Parents jobs - father : mother :.
Married ? : Yes / No Children ? Yes / No If yes, how many? .
Place of residence : ...
B- True or false? Circle the correct answer then justify your choice by quoting from the text.
1- Arnold Schwarzenegger was born in Australia.
True
False
..
2- He became rich when he became an international movie star.
True
False
..
3- He became an American at the age of 30 years old.
True
False
..
4- His name handicapped him.
True
False
..
5- He only acted in action films.
True
False
..
6- He received an Oscar for best actor.
True
False
..
7- He wasnt the first actor to become a politician.
True
False
..
C- Deduce from the text the meaning of the words followed by a number.

D- Turn these sentences into the active.

He was named Mr. Olympia seven times.
.

In 1970 he was chosen to play the role of Hercules

.

He has been awarded a Golden Globe for best actor.

.

E- Turn this sentence into the passive.

Fame had always attracted him.
.

..
..