《纸牌屋》里的总统与他的好基友克林顿

Kevin Spacey, Star of ‘House of Cards’ and a Bromance With Bill Clinton

《纸牌屋》里的总统与他的好基友克林顿

Before Kevin Spacey got into character as Francis Underwood, the fictional congressman who by the third season of “House of Cards” has murdered and manipulated his way into the Oval Office, he liked to portray a real-life president: Bill Clinton.

在《纸牌屋》(House of Cards)第三季，凯文·斯佩西(Kevin Spacey)所饰演的虚构出来的国会议员弗朗西斯·安德伍德(Francis Underwood)，靠着谋杀和搞阴谋诡计，最终入主总统办公室;在接演这个角色之前，斯派西喜欢扮演生活中的一位真正总统——比尔·克林顿(Bill Clinton)。

“We, in fact, have spent so much time together that sometimes I even become him,” Mr. Spacey said last fall at an event in Little Rock, Ark., to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the William J. Clinton Presidential Center.

“其实我们老混在一起，有时候我觉得自己简直变成了他，”去年秋天，斯佩西在阿肯色州小石城威廉姆·J·克林顿总统中心落成10周年庆祝典礼上说。

“I’m from a place called Hope,” Mr. Spacey said as he feigned Mr. Clinton’s Arkansas accent, which sounded vaguely like Underwood, who is from South Carolina.

“我来自一个名叫霍普的地方，”斯佩西模仿着克林顿的阿肯色口音说道，这口音听起来稍微有点像安德伍德，剧中他是南卡罗莱纳人。

“Let me tell you one thing, I love that ‘House of Cards’ — it’s so good,” Mr. Spacey continued in his Clinton voice. “Ninety-nine percent of what they do on that show is real, and the 1 percent they got wrong is that you could never get an education bill passed that fast.”

“让我告诉你们一件事，我喜欢《纸牌屋》——它太棒了，”斯佩西继续模仿着克林顿，“这部剧里99%的事都是真的，1%的错误是，教育法案不可能那么快就通过。”

Mr. Clinton joined Mr. Spacey onstage, and a bromance between the two men ensued. Mr. Clinton grinned widely, relishing the impersonation. He put his arm around Mr. Spacey.

后来克林顿也登上了舞台，两人之间基情四溢。克林顿露出一个开朗的笑容，很享受斯佩西的扮演。他伸出胳膊搂着斯佩西。

It was only the latest public display of affection between an actor, who is currently best known for portraying one of the most morally bankrupt presidents ever to come out of Hollywood, and a former president, who ever since he played the saxophone on “The Arsenio Hall Show” in 1992, has had a special bond with the small screen.

斯佩西目前最出名的角色，就是饰演了一个好莱坞历史上道德最为败坏的总统，而克林顿这位前总统1992年曾在“阿瑟尼奥·豪尔秀”上演奏萨克斯，从此与电视结下了不解之缘;两人之前就曾经在公共场合秀恩爱，这回只不过是最近的一次。

Mr. Spacey, a Democratic donor, first met Mr. Clinton in the White House during his first term. In two industries — politics and entertainment — known for fleeting friendships of convenience, the men seemed to genuinely bond. They stayed in touch and grew closer in Mr. Clinton’s post-presidency, talking a couple times a month and collaborating often on philanthropic work. It’s a relationship that is well known to those close to Mr. Clinton and that has become evident since I began covering him and his wife, Hillary Rodham Clinton. If you look closely at the décor in Underwood’s office on “House of Cards,” you’ll see a photo of Mr. Spacey and Mr. Clinton at dinner together plugging away on their BlackBerrys. The photo is likely to move to the White House with President Underwood in Season 3, which will begin streaming on Netflix on Feb. 27.

斯佩西是民主党的赞助者，他和克林顿第一次见面是在白宫，当时正值克林顿的第一个任期。政治与娱乐业的友谊一向以转瞬即逝、各取所需著称，这两人之间却似乎建立了真正的联系。在克林顿结束任期之后，他们一直保持联系，并且愈来愈亲密，每月都要在一起聊几次，还经常在慈善事业中合作。熟悉克林顿的人都知道这段友谊，自从我开始报道克林顿和他的妻子希拉里·罗德姆·克林顿(Hillary Rodham Clinton)开始，它就更是广为人们所知。如果你仔细观察《纸牌屋》里安德伍德的办公室，就会发现斯佩西与克林顿一边共进晚餐一边玩黑莓手机的照片。这张照片很可能也会在第三季里随同安德伍德总统一起进入白宫，这一季将于2月27日在Netflix以流媒体形式上映。

Of all the TV shows for Mr. Clinton to be associated with as Mrs. Clinton prepares for a 2016 presidential campaign, the coldly cynical depiction of Washington in “House of Cards” might not be the best for political optics.

克林顿目前正陪伴克林顿夫人一起为2016年的总统竞选进行准备，把自己同以冷峻讽刺的风格描写华府的《纸牌屋》联系起来，或许不是最佳政治策略。

Better to remind voters of the “The West Wing,” Aaron Sorkin’s optimistic ode to the Clinton years with President Josiah Bartlet as an unwavering liberal champion with none of the foibles of the real-life Mr. Clinton. Or, perhaps the current “Madam Secretary,” the glossy CBS drama with Téa Leoni as a glamorous and effective C.I.A. agent-turned secretary of state.

最好还是让选民联想到《白宫风云》(The West Wing)吧，这是亚伦·索金(Aaron Sorkin)对克林顿年代的一曲乐观主义颂歌，片中的乔希亚·巴特勒(Josiah Bartlet)总统是个毫不动摇的自由主义捍卫者，而且没有现实生活中的克林顿身上的任何缺点。又或者应该让选民想起《国务卿女士》(Madam Secretary)，这是CBS台精心打造的剧集，蒂娅·里欧妮(Téa Leoni)饰演一位漂亮精干、中情局特工出身的国务卿。

After all, the second season of “House of Cards” included Underwood pushing a young journalist in front of a train and having a threesome with his wife, Claire, played by Robin Wright, and his eager-to-please secret service agent Edward Meechum.

况且，《纸牌屋》第二季中，安德伍德把一个年轻记者推下铁轨，还和他的妻子——罗宾·怀特(Robin Wright)饰演的克莱尔(Clarie)，以及热衷讨好他们的内勤人员爱德华·米坎姆(Edward Meechum)大玩3p。

Not exactly the stuff of a 2016 campaign ad. (Representatives for Mr. Spacey, Mr. Clinton and Netflix declined to comment for this article.)

这可不是什么2016年竞选广告(斯佩西、克林顿先生与Netflix的代表都拒绝为本文而接受采访)。

Still, the Clintons have not been shy about their ties to “House of Cards.” Last summer, Mrs. Clinton told People magazine she and Mr. Clinton “totally binge-watched” the first season. After a crushing travel schedule as secretary of state, Mrs. Clinton said part of the appeal was “Oh my gosh, I can’t believe we can just sit here and do this.”

但是，克林顿夫妇并不耻于谈起他们同《纸牌屋》的联系。去年夏天，克林顿夫人告诉《人物》杂志(People)，她和克林顿先生“一口气看完了”第一季。当时出任国务卿的克林顿夫人刚刚结束一次令人筋疲力尽的旅行，她说，剧集的魅力部分来自于，她边看边惊叹，“我的天哪，我可不敢相信我们仅坐在这儿就能把这件事给做了。”

The connection extends beyond Mr. Spacey and Mr. Clinton’s friendship. Before he became a TV writer and playwright, the “House of Cards” creator Beau Willimon worked as an intern on Mrs. Clinton’s 2000 Senate campaign.

这种联系还不止于斯佩西与克林顿先生的友情。《纸牌屋》的主创鲍尔·威利蒙(Beau Willimon)在成为电视剧和舞台剧编剧之前，曾在克林顿夫人2000年的参议员竞选班底中担任实习生。

Jay Carson, a political consultant on “House of Cards” and a college friend of Mr. Willimon, worked as a press secretary to Mr. Clinton and served as Mrs. Clinton’s traveling press aide during her 2008 presidential campaign.

《纸牌屋》的政治顾问杰伊·卡森(Jay Carson)是威利蒙在大学时的好友，曾为克林顿先生担任媒体秘书，为克林顿夫人担任2008年竞选总统期间的旅行媒体助理。

In August, Mr. Spacey, in character as Underwood, made a spoof video posted online in honor of Mr. Clinton’s 68th birthday. Underwood pretends to be Mr. Clinton and prank-calls Mrs. Clinton. He suggests that their daughter, Chelsea, then pregnant with her first child, name the baby “Frank” and tries to goad Mrs. Clinton into telling him what she will buy her husband for his birthday.

8月，为庆祝克林顿先生的68岁生日，斯佩西以安德伍德的形象拍了一段滑稽录像贴在网上。安德伍德假装自己是克林顿先生，假装给克林顿夫人打电话。克林顿夫妇的女儿切尔西当时怀着第一个孩子，安德伍德建议他们给这个孩子起名“弗兰克”，还试图要从克林顿夫人那里套话，看看她给丈夫究竟买了什么生日礼物。

“This is a very personal decision I will make when I’m ready,” Mrs. Clinton said, a play on the response she gives when asked whether she will run for president. She suggests another name for Chelsea’s baby: Kevin.

“这是非常私人的决定，等时机成熟我自然会选择，”克林顿夫人说，这是在戏仿她被问到是否会竞选总统时的回答。她还说要给切尔西的孩子取另外一个名字——凯文。

Mr. Spacey’s relatively public friendship with Mr. Clinton began around the time of his 1996 re-election campaign. Today, Democrats must be careful not to appear too cozy with liberal Hollywood, lest they seem out of touch with a struggling Main Street. But during the Clinton years, Tinseltown swooned over the first couple, who represented a Democratic break after 12 years of Republican leadership. David Geffen and Barbra Streisand were invited to spend nights in the Lincoln Bedroom, and Mr. Spacey became a fixture on the inauguration and fund-raising circuit.

斯佩西与克林顿先生相对公开的友情是在1996年克林顿第二次竞选总统时传开的。如今，民主党人得更加小心谨慎，不能显得和自由派的好莱坞更加亲近，以免被视为和奋斗之中的主流大众脱节。但在克林顿的时代，浮华的好莱坞竭力讨好第一夫妇，他们象征着12年来民主党对共和党的首次胜利。大卫·格芬 (David Geffen)和芭芭拉·史翠珊(Barbra Streisand)被邀请到白宫的林肯卧室消磨晚上，斯佩西也成了就职仪式和各种资金筹措活动的固定宾客。

After he left office, Mr. Clinton brought Mr. Spacey into his global philanthropic work through the Clinton Foundation. The two men helped struggling Lower Manhattan businesses in the aftermath of Sept. 11. They went on a five-day swing through Africa together to promote efforts to fight AIDS and joined Nelson Mandela onstage to address a crowd of teenagers about H.I.V. awareness. The British news media spotted them having dinner at a McDonald’s in London, sharing chicken nuggets as only old friends would.

总统任期结束后，克林顿先生带着斯佩西加入了自己的克林顿基金会全球慈善工作。9·11事件之后，两人帮助奋斗中的下曼哈顿企业恢复生机。他们一起去非洲做了一次五日之旅，宣传抗击艾滋，并登台与纳尔逊·曼德拉(Nelson Mandela)一起对青少年观众发表关于关注HIV的讲演。英国媒体发现他俩在伦敦的麦当劳一起吃饭，像老朋友一样分吃麦乐鸡块。

Mr. Spacey and Mr. Clinton, both known as expert raconteurs, appear to enjoy candid conversations and debates about politics and books they’ve read.

斯佩西和克林顿先生都是擅长讲述趣闻轶事的高手，他们似乎很喜欢热心地交谈，就政治和书籍展开讨论。

Mr. Clinton seems to have less in common with Mr. Spacey’s on-screen persona. In many ways, the former president, with his preternatural sociability and desire to win over everyone (sometimes to a fault) is the opposite of Underwood, an antihero who has no interest in making friends and hardly ever deigns to meet the voting masses.

克林顿先生似乎和斯佩西在银幕上塑造的形象并无多少共同之处。这位前总统有着不可思议的社交才能，乐于赢得所有人的心(有时候是错误的人)，在很多方面，他都像是安德伍德的反面——安德伍德完全是反英雄的形象，对于交朋友完全不感兴趣，也不大愿意屈尊迎合选民。

Mr. Willimon has said Frank and Claire’s marriage, a complex portrayal of intellectual equals who enable each other in the name of ambition, could just as easily resemble Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt’s partnership. “You can compare it to lots of real-life unions, and you might find parallels, but it’s not based on any one marriage,” he said during a panel discussion in Washington last year.

威利蒙说过，弗兰克和克莱尔的婚姻是两个智力上旗鼓相当的人的复杂写照，他们为了野心而互相成就对方，这和富兰克林(Franklin)与埃莉诺· 罗斯福(Eleanor Roosevelt)的关系很像。“我们可以拿它来和许多现实生活中的联姻相对照，你会发现共同之处，但它并不是建立在某一段特定的婚姻上。”去年他在华盛顿的一次研讨会上这么说。