[General] what does this sentence mean?

[michael lee]

Hi, guys.

Richard Roundtree was so well known for the part that he was chosen to play few other roles in the 1980s and 90s.
That’s because the movie casting director believed that moviegoers could not see him as anyone other than John Shaft.

These are two sentences I extracted from VOA special english program. The one I under-lined got me confused. I don't understand what it sands for? not a clue...

Could someone tell me what it means in an more easily-understood way?

Thank you.

 

[emsr2d2]

It means that film directors believed that people who go to see films had become so accustomed to seeing him play the role of John Shaft that they could not imagine him playing any other role. For that reason, film directors were reluctant to give him any other roles to play.

 

[MikeNewYork]

Hi, guys.

Richard Roundtree was so well known for the part that he was chosen to play few other roles in the 1980s and 90s.
That’s because the movie casting director believed that moviegoers could not see him as anyone other than John Shaft.

These are two sentences I extracted from VOA special english program. The one I under-lined got me confused. I don't understand what it sands for? not a clue...

Could someone tell me what it means in an more easily-understood way?

Thank you.

The first sentence desperately needs a comma after "part".

 

[michael lee]

It means that film directors believed that people who go to see films had become so accustomed to seeing him play the role of John Shaft that they could not imagine him playing any other role. For that reason, film directors were reluctant to give him any other roles to play.

Thank you. What you answered help me a lot.
It you don't mind, I have an another question for you. It's not related to the previous one.

...had become so accustomed to seeing him...

It's a peice of you answer. I don't understand why you add up "doing" after "to" here. Is it some kind of grammar rule?
Thanks

 

[michael lee]

The first sentence desperately needs a comma after "part".

May I ask you why?:roll:

 

[emsr2d2]

May I ask you why?:roll:

At the moment, it is tempting to read the first part as "Richard Roundtree was so well known for the part that he was chosen to play ..." which would lead you to expect that the next word would be "that". However, "the part" refers back to a previously mentioned example of "John Shaft" so in fact it should read "Richard Roundtree was so well know for the part (the part of John Shaft), that he was chosen to play few other roles".

 

[emsr2d2]

Thank you. What you answered help me a lot.
It you don't mind, I have an another question for you. It's not related to the previous one.

...had become so accustomed to seeing him...

It's a peice of you answer. I don't understand why you add up "doing" after "to" here. Is it some kind of grammar rule?
Thanks

We "become/grow/are accustomed to verb+ing something".

I have grown accustomed to swimming in rivers.
He has grown accustomed to wearing high heels when he dresses as a woman.
We have become accustomed to seeing politicians wearing suits.

 

[MikeNewYork]

May I ask you why?:roll:

emsr answered your question well. A comma will prevent people from stumbling as they read the sentence. I had to read it twice to get the real meaning.

 

[michael lee]

At the moment, it is tempting to read the first part as "Richard Roundtree was so well known for the part that he was chosen to play ..." which would lead you to expect that the next word would be "that". However, "the part" refers back to a previously mentioned example of "John Shaft" so in fact it should read "Richard Roundtree was so well know for the part (the part of John Shaft), that he was chosen to play few other roles".

Thank you for anwsering my question. But I still don't follow you.
I have seen the word "that" appeared in other sentences many times, but there is no comma before "that".
e.x.
Why continue to use a term that is no longer officially meaningful?

I can't tell the different usage between these sentences. I got confused. Again.

 

[michael lee]

We "become/grow/are accustomed to verb+ing something".

I have grown accustomed to swimming in rivers.
He has grown accustomed to wearing high heels when he dresses as a woman.
We have become accustomed to seeing politicians wearing suits.

The sample sentences explained everything clearly. Thank you.

 

[MikeNewYork]

Thank you for anwsering my question. But I still don't follow you.
I have seen the word "that" appeared in other sentences many times, but there is no comma before "that".
e.x.
Why continue to use a term that is no longer officially meaningful?

I can't tell the different usage between these sentences. I got confused. Again.

In your example, "that" is a relative pronoun used to introduce a restrictive clause that defines "term". We would not use a comma there.

That is exactly what the first sentence seemed to be: [Richard Roundtree was so well known for the part that he was chosen to play] [few other roles in the 1980s and 90s]. The part in the first brackets seemed to have "that he was chosen to play" as a restrictive clause modifying "part". But that reading left the part in the second bracket just hanging there. That was not the correct reading. The correct reading was: [Richard Roundtree was so well known for the part] [that he was chosen to play few other roles in the 1980s and 90s]. That is why the sentence needed a comma after "part". In the correct reading, "that" is a conjunction.