|
|
Post by KC on Dec 22, 2014 2:56:45 GMT
So, I'd started on the transcription for Stemwinder I and got sidetracked by something fun: the KGB dossiers on Lee and Amanda that Andreev hands to Alexi in the newspaper... I decided that I was going to try translating them, even though I don't have the foggiest how to read/write Russian.  I armed myself with the Cyrillic alphabet and an online translation tool, and tried to figure out what I could from the documents. Obviously, the biggest problem is that--like I said--I don't have the foggiest how to read/write Russian. The second problem is that--as we know--the resolution of even the DVDs isn't spectacular, so I'm guessing at characters most of the time. I managed to get quite a chunk translated, but have given up past education. --> Does anyone out there read/write Russian and would like to try their hand at filling in the blanks (and/or checking what I've translated already)?I'll post what I have below for everyone to look at (and laugh at--some of it is pretty funny... either SMK wanted us to believe that the KGB had no clue about Lee and Amanda's stats, or--more likely--WB just grabbed some random person, unfamiliar with SMK, to write the dossiers in Russian). For example, Amanda is listed as living in Alexandria, not Arlington, both of their zip codes are in Los Angeles, Amanda's phone codes is for Idaho and Lee's is for Central California. I'll leave this just at Ned's for a few days, then maybe post over at Yuku... |
|
|
|
Post by KC on Dec 22, 2014 3:27:44 GMT
|
|
|
|
Post by KC on Dec 22, 2014 3:36:09 GMT
   Russian:АМАНДА КИНГ
54I7 МОРНИНГВЬЮ ПЛАЙС
АЛЕКСАНДРИЯ, ВИРДЖИНИЯ 900I5
ТЕЛЕФОН: 208-555-7634
ФИЗИЧЕСКИЕ ХАРАКТЕРИСТИКИ:
РОСТ: 5 футов 7 инчей
ВЕС: II5 фунтов
ЦВЕТ ВОЛОС: БРЮНЕТКА
ЦВЕТ ГЛАЗ: КАРИЕ
ЗДОРОВЬЕ: ОТЛИЧНОЕ
НИКАКИХ ОСОБЫХ ОТМЕТОК
ДАТА РОЖДЕНИЕ: 8 ИЮЛЯ 1954 ГОДА
БОЛЬНИЦА СВ. ДЖОНА
НОВЫЙ ОРЛЕАН, ЛУИЗИАНА
РОДИТЕЛИ: БРАДФОРД УИЛЬЯМ ВЕСТ
ДОРОТИ ЭНН ВЕСТ
ОБРАЗОВАНИИ: НАЧАЛЬНАЯ ШКОЛА СВ. МАРИ
СРЕДНИЙ ШКОЛА СЛОАН
ЗАКОНЧИЛА СТАРШИЕ КЛАССУ ?? СРЕДНЕЙ
ШКОЛУ
УВЛЕЧЕНИЯ: СПОРТИВНЫЕ ТАНЦЫ, ТЕННИС,
ШКОЛЬНЫЙ ЕЖЕГОДНИК
СМИТ УНИВЕРСИТЕТ
ЗАКОНЧИЛ С ОТЛИЧИЕМ
В НАСТОЯЩЕЕ ВРЕМЯ: СОСТОИТ В РАЗВОДЕ
ИМЕЕТ ДВА СЫНА - ФИЛЛИП, 12 ЛЕТ
ДЖЕЙМИ, 10 ЛЕТ
НЕ ИМЕЕТ ПОСТОЯННОГО ДРУГА
ЧАСТО ВИДЕЛИ* В ОБЩЕСТВЕ ЛИ СТЕТСОНА
СОСЛУЖИВЦА, ХОТЯ ОТНОШЕНИЯ КАЖЕТСЯ
ПЛАТОНИЧЕСКИУЙ.
*Obviously this isn't the word; I'm still working on what the word is--but it's something similar... Translation:AMANDA KING 5417 MORNINGVIEW PLACE ALEXANDRIA, VIRGINIA 90015 TELEPHONE: 208-555-7634 PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS: HEIGHT: 5 feet 7 inches WEIGHT: 115 pounds HAIR COLOR: BRUNETTE EYE COLOR: BROWN HEALTH: EXCELLENT NO SPECIAL STAMP (MARKS) BIRTH DATE: 8 JULY 1954 YEAR HOSPITAL OF ST. JOHN (ST. JOHN’S HOSPITAL) NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA PARENTS: BRADFORD WILLIAM WEST DOROTHY ANN WEST EDUCATION: ELEMENTARY SCHOOL ST. MARIE MIDDLE SCHOOL SLOANGRADUATED FROM SENIOR CLASS ?? MIDDLE SCHOOL HOBBIES: SPORT DANCE, TENNIS, SCHOOL YEARBOOK SMITH UNIVERSITY GRADUATED WITH HONORS CURRENTLY: IS DIVORCED HAS TWO SONS - PHILLIP, 12 YEARS JAMIE, 10 YEARS HAS NO PERMANENT FRIENDFREQUENTLY SEEN* WITH LEE STETSON COLLEAGUES, ALTHOUGH THE RELATIONSHIP SEEMS TO BE PLATONIC. *Obviously this isn't the word; I'm still working on what the word is--but it's something similar... |
|
|
|
Post by KC on Dec 22, 2014 3:43:29 GMT
I think that the last line on the physical characteristics is something like: НИКАКИХ ОСОБОЕ ОТМЕТОКwhich, when translated separately, is NO SPECIAL MARKS but, when translated as a phrase, is NO SPECIAL STAMP What's on the dossier looks close; I think НИКАКИХ is probably fine, and ОТМЕТОК, but ОСОБОЕ is obviously not what's on the sheet. The first four characters look right, but I've tried all sorts of combinations for the last two and ОСОБОЕ was the only thing that made sense. Note that this phrase, whatever it turns out to be, is on both dossiers. Also, I tried every type of street I could think of (e.g., AVENUE, BOULEVARD, CIRCLE, LANE...), reverse translated, but nothing came close to what's shown for the addresses.  If anyone has any ideas, I'd love to hear (see) them!  Oh, and I tried enhancing the images to better see the text, but it's limited by the original low resolution... |
|
|
|
Post by KC on Dec 23, 2014 4:59:39 GMT
I've got a bit more done on the education sections; Lee's dossier is clearer than Amanda's, so easier to work with...  |
|
|
|
Post by learjet on Dec 23, 2014 5:05:35 GMT
So how many universities did Lee go to ? |
|
|
|
Post by KC on Dec 23, 2014 5:10:39 GMT
According to the KGB dossier--one. (But maybe the KGB only included universities he graduated from. LOL!)
|
|
|
|
Post by KC on Dec 24, 2014 5:43:07 GMT
Added more, if anyone's interested...
|
|
|
|
Post by learjet on Dec 24, 2014 6:10:23 GMT
When I was younger (aged 10 to 17), I was obsessed with a series of school stories but was fascinated by the fact that the author clearly didn't keep track of details. So some of the less major characters' names would change (the spelling or completely different), and other minor details weren't consistent. I always wondered why the author didn't keep notes. I wonder the same thing here. Didn't they keep a list of details so there would be consistency? I gather (from wikipedia) that Alexandria is adjacent to Arlington so why couldn't they get it right. And then there are Lee's names... and they went with Dorothy (as per Any Number Can Play) as opposed to Dorothea (One Bear dances...). Am stepping down from my   KC you're a marvel getting this far....!  |
|
|
|
Post by KC on Dec 24, 2014 22:46:45 GMT
... KC you're a marvel getting this far....! Thanks, Learjet -- you make a great cheerleader.  |
|
|
|
Post by KC on Dec 28, 2014 19:47:35 GMT
Updated again; just a few unknowns now. Not sure there's any point in me spending more time--I think I've bashed my head enough on the last unknowns. I'll probably post it at Yuku and hope that someone there can read/write Russian... while I get back to transcribing Stemwinder! I think that some of the awkward phrases are a matter of translation; for example: IS NOT REGISTERED IN THE POLICE is probably IS NOT REGISTERED WITH THE POLICE or HAS NOT BEEN ARRESTED or similar. However, the translations--even as they stand (incomplete/awkward)--are both funny and interesting. Did SMK really not give a rat's you-know-what, or was the KGB supposed to be incompetent (or The Agency that good)? |
|
|
|
Post by Khell on Dec 28, 2014 22:58:11 GMT
Well, some of that stuff in the dossiers sounds legit but - sorry, I just don't buy the birth dates. Maybe the dates themselves but not the years.
|
|
I armed myself with the Cyrillic alphabet and an online translation tool, and tried to figure out what I could from the documents.
