By
contrast,
the Los Angeles region was full of advantages. In California, they could make films all
through the year; and everything was cheaper. In particular, there was lots of land for sale.
The movie-makers found what they needed a few miles outside Los Angeles; and before
long, large new studios were being built in an area called Hollywood, at the foot of some small
dry hills. Movies quickly became very popular, particularly after "talkies" first appeared in 1925.
Nevertheless, movies were expensive to make, and film companies needed money - lots of it. For
this reason, Hollywood rapidly became (3)
dominated
by a small number of big companies such
as MGM, 20th Century Fox, Warner Bros. and Paramount. Since then, the big companies have
had their (4)
ups and downs
, but most of them are still there. Some old names have disappeared,
but some new ones have appeared, companies like Walt Disney and Steven Spielberg's company
Amblin.(5)
Naturally
, Hollywood has changed a lot in 80 years! Today the biggest studios
belong to huge international firms.
Task A
Circle the word that can replace the underlined word without changing the meaning
Example:
(0) rear cultivate appear keep
1.
monastery statue building shop
2.
Furthermore Additionally On the other hand Simultaneously
3.
liberated depressed controlled undisciplined
4.
difficulties happiness satisfactions gratifications
5.
Unsurprisingly Nevertheless Nonetheless Moreover
Task B
Complete the second sentence so that it has similar meaning to the first one. Do not
change the word given.
Example
0.
At the start of the 20th century, a new city was beginning to grow on some flat land near
the sea in southern California.
Answer:
In southern California, a new city started to grow on some flat land, near the sea , at the
start of 20
th
century.
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