There are two sides to their work.They actually do most of the things you see on the screen.For example, they fall from a high building. However，they do not fall on to hard ground but on to empty cardboard boxes covered with a mattress (床垫)．Again，when they hit one another with chairs，the chairs are made of soft wood and when they crash through windows，the glass is made of sugar!

　　But although their work depends on trick of this sort, it also requires a high degree of skill and training. Often a stuntman's success depends on careful timing.For example，when he is "blown up" in a battle scene，he has to jump out of the way of the explosion just at the right moment.

　　Naturally stuntmen are well paid for their work，but they lead dangerous lives.They often get seriously injured，and sometimes killed.A Norwegian stuntman，for example，skied over the edge of a cliff(悬崖)a thousand feet high.His parachute(降落伞) failed to open，and he was killed.

　　In spite of all the risks, this is no longer a profession for men only. Men no longer dress up as women when actresses have to perform some dangerous action. For nowadays there are stuntgirls too.

　　【语篇解读】　本文告诉我们电影里的一些危险的镜头或者动作都是由特技演员来完成的，同时告诉我们特技演员的一些情况以及他们在工作中可能遇见的危险，并举例进行了说明。

　　4．Stuntmen earn their living by ．

　　A．playing their dirty tricks

　　B．selling their special skills

　　C．jumping out of high windows

　　D．jumping from fast moving trains

　　B　[细节理解题。根据Stuntman这类人的定义可知，特技演员是出卖他们的特殊技能来挣钱的，故选B项。]

　　5．When a stuntman falls from a high building， ．

　　A．he needs little protection

　　B．he will be covered with a mattress

　　C．his life is endangered

D．his safety is generally all right