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WARM-UPS

1. CHAT SHOWS: Walk around the class and talk to other students about chat shows. Change partners often. Sit with your first partner(s) and share your findings.

2. CHAT: In pairs / groups, decide which of these topics or words from the article are most interesting and which are most boring.

Larry King / retire / CNN / family time / personal news / 25 years ago / decades later / world records / TV shows / interviews / royalty / autobiography / simple questions

Have a chat about the topics you liked. Change topics and partners frequently.

3. INTERVIEWS: Who would you like a chat with? Complete this table. Talk about what you wrote with your partner(s) Change partners and share what you heard.

	Who?	Why?	First question?	The answer???
Politician
Sports star
Musician
Movie star
Business leader
Other

4. EASY: Students A strongly believe being a good chat show host is easy; Students B strongly believe the opposite.  Change partners again and talk about your conversations.

5. TV: What programmes are best? Rank these and share your rankings with your partner. Change partners and share your rankings again.

chat shows news dramas cartoons

sports documentaries weather comedies

6. CHAT: Spend one minute writing down all of the different words you associate with the word ‘chat’. Share your words with your partner(s) and talk about them. Together, put the words into different categories.

BEFORE READING / LISTENING

1. TRUE / FALSE: Read the headline. Guess if  a-h  below are true (T) or false (F).

a.	Larry King announced his retirement at the end of one of his shows.	T / F
b.	He wants to retire to spend more time with his books.	T / F
c.	His first interview 25 years ago was with a New York mayor.	T / F
d.	CNN accepted King’s resignation without getting angry about it.	T / F
e.	King’s show is the longest running to have the same host and time slot.	T / F
f.	Larry King might hold the record for conducting the most interviews.	T / F
g.	A queen was the most extraordinary person King ever met.	T / F
h.	Mr King said anyone could do his job because it’s just asking questions.	T / F

2. SYNONYM MATCH: Match the following synonyms from the article.

1.	legendary	a.	fall
2	announcement	b.	amazing
3.	suspenders	c.	continuously
4.	autumn	d.	statement
5.	graciously	e.	opening
6.	running	f.	famous
7.	slot	g.	kindly
8.	conducted	h.	braces
9.	extraordinary	i.	substitute
10.	replacement	j.	done

3. PHRASE MATCH:  (Sometimes more than one choice is possible.)

1.	he will retire from hosting his prime	a.	personal news with you
2	he wants to spend	b.	he has met
3.	I want to share some	c.	show
4.	the first broadcast	d.	accepted
5.	CNN has graciously	e.	number of interviews
6.	the longest running	f.	time CNN chat show
7.	hold the record for the most	g.	his success
8.	the most extraordinary person	h.	more time with his family
9.	the secret to	i.	who could do it
10.	there's a ton of people	j.	of Larry King Live

 

WHILE READING / LISTENING

GAP FILL: Put the words into the gaps in the text.

Larry King, the ____________ TV interviewer, has announced he will retire from hosting his prime time CNN chat show. Mr King, 76, made the announcement in a short post on Twitter. In it, he made a ____________ to his fashion: “It's time to hang up my nightly suspenders.” He said he wants to spend more time with his family and will do his ____________ show in the autumn. King wrote: "I want to share some ____________ news with you. 25 years ago, I sat ____________ this table from New York Governor Mario Cuomo for the first broadcast of Larry King Live. Now, ____________ later, I talked to the guys here at CNN and I told them I would like to end Larry King Live, the ____________ show, this fall and CNN has graciously ____________, giving me more time for my wife and I to get to the kids' little league games.”		decades personal reference accepted legendary nightly last across
The Larry King Live TV show ____________ the Guinness Book of World Records for having the longest ____________ show with the same host in the same time slot. Mr King might also ____________ the record for the most number of interviews ever conducted – around 50,000. He chatted to almost every famous person on the ____________, from ____________ to presidents to rock stars and sports stars. He says that Nelson Mandela was the most ____________ person he has met. King very ____________ explained the secret to his success in his autobiography. He wrote: "All I do is ask questions. Short, simple questions." The talk is now about who will be his ____________. Mr King himself said: “I'm sure there's a ton of people who could do it.” He joked” “Come on. It's Q and A."		extraordinary planet modestly running replacement made royalty hold

LISTENING – Listen and fill in the gaps

Larry King, the legendary TV interviewer, ______________________ retire from hosting his prime time CNN chat show. Mr King, 76, made the announcement in a short post on Twitter. In it, ______________________ fashion: “It's time to hang up my nightly suspenders.” He said he wants to spend more time with his family ______________________ in the autumn. King wrote: "I want to share some personal news with you. 25 years ago, I ______________________ from New York Governor Mario Cuomo for the first broadcast of Larry King Live. Now, decades later, I talked to the guys here at CNN and I told them I would like to end Larry King Live, the nightly show, this fall and CNN ______________________, giving me more time for my wife and I to ______________________ league games.”

The Larry King Live TV show made the Guinness Book of World Records for having ______________________ with the same host in the same time slot. Mr King might also ______________________ most number of interviews ever conducted – around 50,000. He chatted to almost every famous person on the planet, from royalty to presidents to rock stars and sports stars. He says that Nelson Mandela ______________________ person he has met. King ______________________ the secret to his ______________________. He wrote: "All I do is ask questions. Short, simple questions." The talk is now about who will ______________________. Mr King himself said: “I'm sure there's a ton of people who could do it.” He joked” “Come on. It's Q and A."

AFTER READING / LISTENING

1. WORD SEARCH: Look in your dictionary / computer to find collocates, other meanings, information, synonyms … for the words ‘chat’ and ‘show’.

chat

show

• Share your findings with your partners.

• Make questions using the words you found.
• Ask your partner / group your questions.

2. ARTICLE QUESTIONS: Look back at the article and write down some questions you would like to ask the class about the text.

• Share your questions with other classmates / groups.
• Ask your partner / group your questions.

3. GAP FILL: In pairs / groups, compare your answers to this exercise. Check your answers. Talk about the words from the activity. Were they new, interesting, worth learning…?

4. VOCABULARY: Circle any words you do not understand. In groups, pool unknown words and use dictionaries to find their meanings.

5. TEST EACH OTHER: Look at the words below. With your partner, try to recall how they were used in the text:

announced post share decades nightly little

running hold conducted secret simple ton

STUDENT CHAT SHOWS SURVEY

Write five GOOD questions about chat shows in the table. Do this in pairs. Each student must write the questions on his / her own paper.

When you have finished, interview other students. Write down their answers.

	STUDENT 1 _____________	STUDENT 2 _____________	STUDENT 3 _____________
Q.1.
Q.2.
Q.3.
Q.4.
Q.5.

• Now return to your original partner and share and talk about what you found out. Change partners often.
• Make mini-presentations to other groups on your findings.

CHAT SHOWS DISCUSSION

STUDENT A’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student B)

a)	What did you think when you read the headline?
b)	What springs to mind when you hear the word ‘chat’?
c)	What do you know about Larry King and his chat show?
d)	Would you be good at hosting a chat show? Why?
e)	Which three people would you like to interview? Why?
f)	Would you like Larry King’s job?
g)	Do you think 76 is a good age to retire?
h)	Why do people like chat shows?
i)	Can you imagine doing the same job for 25 years?
j)	How do you think Larry King feels retiring from this kind of job?

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

STUDENT B’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student A)

a)	Did you like reading this article?
b)	What’s the best interview you’ve ever seen on TV?
c)	What makes a good chat show host?
d)	What do you think it’s like to interview 50,000 people?
e)	Who do you think is the most extraordinary person in the world?
f)	What do you think is the secret to success?
g)	Do you think it’s that easy to ask questions?
h)	What would be difficult questions to answer on live TV?
i)	When do you want to retire? Why?
j)	What questions would you like to ask Larry King?

LANGUAGE – MULTIPLE CHOICE

Larry King, the legendary TV interviewer, has announced he will retire (1) ____ hosting his prime time CNN chat show. Mr King, 76, (2) ____ the announcement in a short post on Twitter. In it, he made a reference to his fashion: “It's time to     (3) ____ up my nightly suspenders.” He said he wants to spend more time with his family and will do his last show in the autumn. King wrote: "I want to share some personal news with you. 25 years ago, I sat (4) ____ this table from New York Governor Mario Cuomo for the first broadcast of Larry King Live. Now, decades later, I talked to the guys here at CNN and I told them I would like to end Larry King Live, the nightly show, this fall and CNN has (5) ____ accepted, giving me more time for my wife and I to (6) ____ to the kids' little league games.”

The Larry King Live TV show (7) ____ the Guinness Book of World Records for having the longest running show with the same host in the same time (8) ____. Mr King might also hold the record for the most number of interviews ever conducted – around 50,000. He chatted to almost every famous person on the planet, from    (9) ____ to presidents to rock stars and sports stars. He says that Nelson Mandela was the most extraordinary person he has met. King very modestly explained the secret (10) ____ his success in his autobiography. He wrote: "All I do is ask questions. Short, simple questions." The (11) ____ is now about who will be his replacement. Mr King himself said: “I'm sure there's a (12) ____ of people who could do it.” He joked” “Come on. It's Q and A."

Put the correct words from the table below in the above article.

1.	(a)	for	(b)	at	(c)	by	(d)	from
2.	(a)	made	(b)	had	(c)	took	(d)	was
3.	(a)	pick	(b)	hang	(c)	write	(d)	go
4.	(a)	at	(b)	on	(c)	across	(d)	under
5.	(a)	grievously	(b)	grotesquely	(c)	graciously	(d)	gluttonously
6.	(a)	net	(b)	get	(c)	let	(d)	pet
7.	(a)	taken	(b)	done	(c)	been	(d)	made
8.	(a)	slot	(b)	slit	(c)	slat	(d)	silt
9.	(a)	royally	(b)	royalty	(c)	royal	(d)	regally
10.	(a)	from	(b)	at	(c)	by	(d)	to
11.	(a)	speak	(b)	voice	(c)	talk	(d)	dialogue
12.	(a)	ton	(b)	kilogram	(c)	weight	(d)	heavy

WRITING

Write about chat shows for 10 minutes. Correct your partner’s paper.

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HOMEWORK

1. VOCABULARY EXTENSION: Choose several of the words from the text. Use a dictionary or Google’s search field (or another search engine) to build up more associations / collocations of each word.

2. INTERNET: Search the Internet and find out more about the Larry King Live show. Share what you discover with your partner(s) in the next lesson.

3. CHAT SHOWS: Make a poster about chat shows. Show your work to your classmates in the next lesson. Did you all have similar things?

4. INTERVIEW: Write a magazine article about TV interviews. Include imaginary interviews with a chat show host and an interviewee.

Read what you wrote to your classmates in the next lesson. Write down any new words and expressions you hear from your partner(s).

5. LETTER: Write a letter to Larry King. Ask him three questions about his chat show. Give him three suggestions on how he can enjoy his retirement. Read your letter to your partner(s) in your next lesson. Your partner(s) will answer your questions.

ANSWERS

TRUE / FALSE:

a.

F

b.

F

c.

F

d.

T

e.

T

f.

T

g.

F

h.

T

SYNONYM MATCH:

1.	legendary	a.	famous
2	announcement	b.	statement
3.	suspenders	c.	braces
4.	autumn	d.	fall
5.	graciously	e.	kindly
6.	running	f.	continuously
7.	slot	g.	opening
8.	conducted	h.	done
9.	extraordinary	i.	amazing
10.	replacement	j.	substitute

PHRASE MATCH:

1.	he will retire from hosting his prime	a.	time CNN chat show
2	he wants to spend	b.	more time with his family
3.	I want to share some	c.	personal news with you
4.	the first broadcast	d.	of Larry King Live
5.	CNN has graciously	e.	accepted
6.	the longest running	f.	show
7.	hold the record for the most	g.	number of interviews
8.	the most extraordinary person	h.	he has met
9.	the secret to	i.	his success
10.	there's a ton of people	j.	who could do it

GAP FILL:

Larry King to quit his CNN show

Larry King, the legendary TV interviewer, has announced he will retire from hosting his prime time CNN chat show. Mr King, 76, made the announcement in a short post on Twitter. In it, he made a reference to his fashion: “It's time to hang up my nightly suspenders.” He said he wants to spend more time with his family and will do his last show in the autumn. King wrote: "I want to share some personal news with you. 25 years ago, I sat across this table from New York Governor Mario Cuomo for the first broadcast of Larry King Live. Now, decades later, I talked to the guys here at CNN and I told them I would like to end Larry King Live, the nightly show, this fall and CNN has graciously accepted, giving me more time for my wife and I to get to the kids' little league games.”

The Larry King Live TV show made the Guinness Book of World Records for having the longest running show with the same host in the same time slot. Mr King might also hold the record for the most number of interviews ever conducted – around 50,000. He chatted to almost every famous person on the planet, from royalty to presidents to rock stars and sports stars. He says that Nelson Mandela was the most extraordinary person he has met. King very modestly explained the secret to his success in his autobiography. He wrote: "All I do is ask questions. Short, simple questions." The talk is now about who will be his replacement. Mr King himself said: “I'm sure there's a ton of people who could do it.” He joked” “Come on. It's Q and A."

LANGUAGE WORK

1 - d

2 - a

3 - b

4 - c

5 - c

6 - b

7 - d

8 - a

9 - b

10 - d

11 - c

12 - a

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