Was listening to public radio the other day on the way to pick up Number One from school, and the BBC newsreader at the beginning of The World pronounced Beethoven beeth-oven, just as it's written (instead of bait-oh-ven). I kid you not. Is this some kind of weird alternate British pronunciation?
Then, today the sub host of Fresh Air, introducing a movie review of the new Alain Resnais film, pronounced the director's first name Elaine (well, not eee-laine, but uh-laine, anyway). Wow. If Alain Delon accomplished nothing else in his movie career, I thought at least he might have helped spread an at-least-approximate pronunciation of this name. I don't expect total fidelity to the français, but at least say uh-LAN. Am I crazy?
2 comments:
That's certainly not the German pronunciation, since "th" is pronounced "t".
Funny about the NPR host, because they usually go to absurd lengths to convince everyone they are pronouncing names authentically.
Yeah, the national hosts are usually pretty good, though the OPB hosts have let slip some real doozies. Maybe now that I'm blogging I'll do a better job of keeping track, instead of just snorting and rolling my eyes when I hear them.
You must have skimmed the brunch post, or you would have said something about my subconscious imagining you as an onion farmer.
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