English 2

Readings Homework unit 2

Readings

“Famous Presidents of the US”

1. Abraham Lincoln was born Feb 12, 1809, in

Hardin Country, Kentucky. His family upbringing
was modest; his parents from Virginia were
neither wealthy nor well known. At an early age,
the young Lincoln Abraham lost his mother and
his father moved away to Indiana. Abraham had
to work hard splitting logs and other manual
labor. But, he also had a thirst for knowledge and worked very hard
to excel in his studies. This led him to become trained as a lawyer.
He spent eight years working on the Illinois court circuit; his
ambition, drive and capacity for hard work were evident to all
around him. He also had a good sense of humor and was
depreciating about his looks.

“If I were two-faced, would I be wearing this one?” He married Mary

Todd and had four children, although three died before reaching
maturity.

2. John F Kennedy was America’s

second youngest elected president. He
oversaw one of the most crucial
moments in the Cold War (Cuban
Missile Crisis) and sought to affirm
America’s beliefs in basic human rights
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Readings Homework unit 2

by calling for civil rights legislation and an attack on poverty and

degradation. Assassinated in November 22, 1963, his tragic death
shocked America and the world. He was born in May 1917, John F.
Kennedy came from an illustrious political family; his father Joseph
Kennedy was a leading member of the Democrat party and Joseph
encouraged John F. Kennedy in his political ambitions after the war.
John graduated from Harvard after completing a thesis on
“Appeasement in Munich” His thesis was later converted into a
successful book – Why England Slept.

3. Franklin D. Roosevelt (January 30,

1882 – April 12, 1945), often referred to
by his initials FDR, was the thirty-second
President of the United States. He served
through the Great Depression and the
Second World War.
“The only thing we have to fear is fear
itself.”

FDR was elected during the height of the Great Depression in 1932
and remained President until his death in 1945. During his period of
presidency he oversaw an expansion of the Federal Government and
helped America lose its isolationist stance as it joined World War Two
and helped formulate the United Nations. He was an influential figure
in both American and world politics. Roosevelt came from a privileged
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Readings Homework unit 2

background, but was influenced by his headmaster at Groton School in

Massachusetts who inculcated the importance of Christian duty in
helping less fortunate people.

4. Lyndon Johnson was the 36th President

of the US from 1963 to 1969. It was one of
the most turbulent and influential periods in
American politics. Lyndon Johnson helped
to implement ‘great society’ reforms –
extending welfare support and civil rights
legislation. He also presided over an
escalation of American involvement in
Vietnam which proved increasingly
controversial.
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Readings Homework unit 2

Johnson was born on August 27, 1908, in central Texas. Growing up in

the Great Depression, he gained a firsthand perspective on poverty
and the great society reforms he later implemented were an attempt to
make this kind of poverty a thing of the past.

He successfully won election to the House of Representatives in 1937,

aged only 29. During the Second World War he served in the navy,
winning the Silver Star for service in the Pacific. In 1948, he was
elected to the Senate and become the youngest minority house leader
in 1953. He worked closely with Dwight D Eisenhower and helped to
get some of his policies through the Senate.

BEFORE THEY WERE FAMOUS.

1. Did you know that Rod Stewart worked as a grave digger or that
Mick Jagger was once a porter in a mental hospital? If you find you
are stuck in a rut and dream about being famous, don’t give up.
Some of the most famous celebrities started their working lives in
some very simple Jobs.

2. When Madonna first arrived in New York looking for fame and fortune, she
only had $35 in her pocket. She took a job working at Dinky Donuts in Times
Square, but later lost her job for squirting jam at one of the customers.

3. Bob Geldof had many different Jobs before he started working as a music journalist.
While working in London, one of his Jobs was as a hot dog salesman in Soho. In 1975 he
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found fame as the lead Singer of the Irish band, The Boomtown Rats. He has strong political ideas
too, and he organized concerts like live Aid to try and change the situation in Africa.

4. Before being an actor. Johnny Depp used to sell pens. He used to telephone
people to sell them pens with their names printed on them. But he didn’t enjoy
the job; sometimes he tried using different voices on the telephone to make the
job more interesting.

5. When Texas released their first single, Sharleen Spiteri was working as a hairdresser in Glasgow.
She says she loved the job because her clients told her such shocking gossip. “I was a great
hairdresser” she says “People told me everything!”

6. Before Annie Lennox became famous she worked in a bookshop. She then spent
time singing in pubs and clubs and worked as a waitress in Hampstead, London,
Where she met Dave Stewart. They eventually formed the Eurythmics and went
on to have many chart successes.