Exploiting Hollywood 1980.

Gregory Peck has recovered from his illness and came to New York for a script reading. The nurses and masseurs served him very well, and he was in good spirits. Apart from having to take a half-hour break after working for two hours, he was not much different from actors in their prime like Diane and Tom Hanks.

Moreover, because of his rich experience, he didn't expend much energy to deal with this kind of role, and he still had enough time to flirt with the nurse.

For Hollywood actors in the big studio era, the workload of filming and the experience and understanding of different roles cannot be compared to the stars who shoot one or two movies a year now. This ability to steal the show every time he speaks makes Tom Hanks so stressed that he has no choice but to eat donuts to lower his anxiety level.

As for Diane, whose acting skills are slightly inferior, she is even more anxious. She really wanted to match the rhythm of the old drama player evenly, but it was counterproductive. The harder she tried, the harder she could catch the gear. Even the assistant next to him, Sandra Bullock, noticed Diane's anxiety.

Ronald quickly called a halt and went to the battle in person to explain to Diane.

"This sequence is to show Kate Sullivan returning to the New England Cable Factory in Rhode Island, but in a moment of joyful reunion between the factory director, her father Jorgensen and the family, her illegitimate daughter is left out. a feeling of."

"Yeah? So what?" Diane said in a bad tone, thinking, "Don't I know how to read a script?"

"Jorgensen came back to talk to her about Garfield's new proposal to exchange equity for the company's cable factory assets. In this matter, Jorgensen respects Kate's professional opinion. Kate is also very professional and confident. of.

But her childhood wounds have not yet healed. Her mother can attend the Jorgensen family's gatherings as Jorgensen's secretary, but it is impossible for her as a wild child to officially become a member of the family. She longs for her father's love. , and the feeling of rejection enveloped Kate, making her feel that Jorgensen's attitude towards her was not that between a father and his daughter, but that he was asking for something from her..."

"I know..." Diane stood up and picked up the script again. She cut off the conversation with Ronald.

"Don't be too stressed. It's normal for an actor of Parker's level to be robbed of the limelight..." Ronald, who was still unaware of Diane's emotions, gave a few words of advice and went to find Polly Platt. Special discussion on film selection.

"Hey..." Diane didn't expect Ronald to behave like this when he was a director. Didn't he know this? I have been acting since I was four years old, and I don’t know how to comfort others.

"I have worked with many actresses, and the most powerful one is Ingrid Bergman..." Gregory Peck took the initiative to come over and talk to Diane.

"Let me make you a cup of coffee..." Diane stood up and got an instant coffee bag, then brewed it with hot water and handed it to the veteran actor Parker.

"Is this the coffee you gave Ronald?" Gregory Peck took a sip and then put it down with a frown.

"Well, I brewed it for him. You just mentioned Ms. Bergman." Diane still respected Parker as an actor. Follow his words.

"Ah, yes." Pike took another sip and confirmed that the instant coffee could still taste like this. Adding too much water would make it as bland as Indian secret medicine.

"Bergman is very good at dealing with directors. Even if her husband or boyfriend is the director, she also knows to use her charm to conquer them, instead of just listening to them analyze the role. She must clearly distinguish the two identities of wife and actor Better." Gregory Peck pointed out Diane's troubles with a smile.

Mentioning Bergman brought back memories of the past. Everyone said that he and Audrey Hepburn in "Roman Holiday" should also become a couple in life, but it was Ingrid Bergman in "Doctor Edward" that he really fell in love with.

I still don't love passionately enough. If I were like Rossellini later, he really wanted to marry Bergman regardless of criticism and social atmosphere... "Ahem..." Parker, who was about to pick up the coffee, put the cup down again. is too……

"Ah, is that so? I just think Ronnie is a bit...forget it, I understand, thank you." Diane figured it out. Ronald also hoped that she would perform well in the movie, but in the capacity of husband and director It's a bit unaccustomed to myself. In addition, I was not familiar with Ronald’s directing style before..."

"After all, you don't have to worry about anything. Ronald loves you very much." Gregory Peck put down the coffee cup, and then gave the nurse a handsome old smile, "Dear Betty, can you come to me?" a cup of coffee?"

"Why are you so sure?" Diane was upset at first, but when Pike said this, she felt a little unsure.

"God testifies, Ronald drank such terrible coffee as if nothing had happened. If you don't believe it, ask Tom...Tom, Tom..." Gregory Peck had seen many actresses like Diane who were in love and worried about gains and losses. , fortunately this girl has a happy ending.

"Ah, forget it, it's okay, it's okay..." Diane quickly waved to Tom Hanks, then pretended to fix her hair, covered her face with her hands, secretly picked up the cup of coffee, and took a sip from another direction. .

"Ah, bah..." The coffee I brewed really tastes bad...

"Lawrence, if that's the case, we can go to court and make all sorts of charges, costing my client a lot of money, and you a lot of money, and a lot of time, and what's the benefit of that? "

After the break, the main actors continued to read the script. After Diane got the reminder, she no longer paid attention to Ronald's analysis and focused on her own performance. As expected, her two-week internship with Lindsay Dole was not in vain, and she spoke very like a female lawyer. .

"I live in court, you have to come up with a better offer..." Tom Hanks was moved by Diane's lines, and he did a great job taking on the role of a Wall Street banker. Like Diane, he also introduced a middle-aged banker to Bannon and watched him hold meetings, talk to customers, and reprimand his subordinates. In his words, he had the biggest characteristic of Wall Street people—very self-centeredness.

"Very good, no buying for two weeks..." Diane made a gesture to get up and leave.

"Wait a minute, I haven't talked about what I want yet." Tom Hanks said angrily.

"what?"

"The two of us were sweating like crazy under the satin sheets and quilts..."

"Lawrence, put your hand between your legs and say to me..."

"Huh?" Hanks made a puzzled expression.

"Look at your little one and say to me, you must behave like a gentleman in front of ladies."

"Hey hey hey..."

"What did you say to her?" Ronald came back and continued to listen to them reading the script. He was surprised to find that Diane's performance was much better than before. Gregory Peck is indeed a veteran actor from the Golden Age. How come he managed to enlighten Diane with just a few words?

"No, I want to tell you that women are meant for love. For example, my dear Betty..." Pike blew another kiss to the nurse.

"What's the name of the guy you're dating? Ronald? When did you kick Ronald? Run away with me?" Tom Hanks said he could only eat sugar-free donuts, but he still had to make a good decision. He looked very dissatisfied when he ate, so he added something private to his lines and changed the name of the man who was dating Kate Sullivan's lawyer to Ronald. He deliberately said it loudly so that Ronald could hear it.

"Hahahaha..." Diane also heard it and laughed so hard.

"Hahahaha..." When Ronald saw Diane, he instantly remembered that when she was filming "Streets of Rage", she lost her girlish image and suddenly showed a mature feminine style. For a moment he understood what Gregory Peck meant.

Filmmaking is just a game. You don’t need to be nervous all the time. Sometimes you need to enjoy the happiness of getting along with a group of handsome men and beautiful women. Especially since this beauty is still his wife.

Otherwise, actors who make more than four or five movies a year in the era of big studios will definitely not be able to bear it psychologically. Many of their unparalleled brilliance on the screen are due to the natural charm they bring out after they treat shooting as a game and relax.

"Well..." Ronald stepped forward and kissed Diane deeply, "When did you kick me?"

"Never..." Diane felt relieved after being kissed, and Brother Ronnie seemed to have regained his former enthusiasm. "Hey...hey..." Tom Hanks protested from the side.

"Okay, the first assistant director and I told you to make your donuts low-sugar in the future, so don't complain."

"That's pretty much it... hahaha..." Hanks also laughed. The staff at the scene also laughed. This crew is really relaxed, and there are no typical Hollywood crews where stars and directors fight against each other.

……

"Congratulations, Kevin, Cindy..."

After a busy day, Ronald had to call Kevin Costner when he returned to the hotel.

The latest news brought by Richard is that "Dances with Wolves", which premiered on a small scale across the country last weekend, achieved staggeringly good results.

"The Love of Ghosts" still occupies the second place in the box office rankings. Despite the revolving door of the first round, it has remained unchanged for sixteen weeks.

And "Dances with Wolves" was only released in twenty-eight theaters, maintaining Michael Gray's hunger marketing strategy. While meeting the application rules for the Oscars, it also maintains high box office and reputation. (The Oscars stipulate that it must be screened in at least 14 theaters across the country for more than two weeks)

The previous screenings were very effective. Hard-core moviegoers who like to watch movies in the top five big cities in the country, fans of Kevin Costner, and upper-class people who are interested in the Indian Act are all waiting for the release. arrival.

As soon as it opened, all 28 designated theaters were sold out, with an astonishing box office sales of US$42,000 per theater in one weekend. During the entire first weekend, the box office performance exceeded 1.1 million, ranking 13th.

How amazing is this result?

The eleventh one on the list is "Goodfellas" directed by Martin Scorsese and starring the old partners Robert De Niro and Joe Pesci. It has been in theaters for six weeks and has 900 theaters. This weekend's The result was $1.7 million.

The twelfth place is "The Tenant from Hell", which spent a week at the top of the box office. This movie starred Melanie Griffiths and Michael Keaton, who were popular in the previous two years. It earned $1.3 million from 1,090 theaters.

The number of double-digit movie theaters has achieved box office figures comparable to those of three-digit and four-digit movie theaters. This medium-sized miracle really shocked Hollywood.

"Hahahaha... I just said that everyone still likes to watch Western movies." Kevin Costner was also smiling from ear to ear on the other end of the phone. His salary is converted into investment, plus a share of the overseas box office. In addition to getting back the original investment, it seems that he can also make a lot of money.

"That's it..." Ronald smiled and hung up the phone. Kevin Costner actually doesn’t know much about the inside story. This movie's box office success is largely a side effect of the "Indian Business Act" that President George Sr. is pushing.

From Washington, D.C., to New York, Los Angeles, and Chicago, countless people want to squeeze in to the screenings early. Who among these hostesses of upper-class and upper-middle-class families doesn’t want to have something special to talk about in the social circle?

What better topic to talk about than a popular new film with limited release, a film that talks about the concept of equality, eulogizes the peace of Indians and indigenous people, and the concept of harmonious coexistence with nature?

There are also those two handsome guys with interracial sentiments, an Indian actor with long flowing black hair. They also said on TV that the Sioux people never beat their children, and that by treating children equally, they can teach such capable children. This kind of The educational philosophy is really worth learning.

"Do you plan to expand the number of screening theaters and enter large-scale screenings in advance?"

Later, Disney’s Katzenberg also called. He was so surprised by the amazing screening results that he listened specifically to the distribution department's returns. Thinking that Kevin Costner would soon go to Washington, D.C., to host a lottery ceremony and announce the lucky audience who could travel to an Indian reservation. He knew that the movie was only getting more popular, so he picked up the phone and called Rona. Germany, ask his opinion.

"Both my distribution department and my marketing department told me that it would be best to maintain this release pace for a few more weeks. It would be most beneficial to the box office to wait until the week when the Indian Business Act is passed on Capitol Hill and then switch to large-scale screenings."

Ronald told Katzenberg the conclusion of his afternoon discussion with his daydreaming colleagues. In fact, it is a good way for him to slowly ferment such a heated discussion. As long as the same box office performance is maintained for a few more weeks, it will usher in a big explosion when it is released on a large scale.

"Your subordinates are very capable, and I have to respect their opinions. God, I hope I have subordinates like this." Katzenberg didn't say much. This kind of operation is impressive. Let these people give full play to themselves. Much better than the managers of the distribution department under him.

"Did you finish the phone call?" Diane popped up and asked Ronald. She was awakened by Gregory Peck and understood that an outstanding man like Ronald needed to be charming at all times to attract him.

So she found a hairstylist, a costume designer, and a manicure person. After a busy afternoon, she finally dressed up properly, with long dyed pink-gold hair, a low-cut dress, a sapphire necklace, and diamond earrings. The person is even more seductive than Vivian from "Pretty Woman."

She stretched out her velvet-gloved arm and raised her index finger towards Ronald, looking like a classic Hollywood blonde beauty.

"Oh..." Ronald felt like one of his countless fantasies had been realized. Step forward and taste the beautiful red lips.

"Ring, ring, ring..." the phone rang.

"Well..." Diane was a little regretful...

"Ignore him..." Ronald didn't want to worry about the phone call anymore.

"Ring, ring, ring..." The bell stopped after ringing for half a minute, and then started ringing again, as if it would never stop.

"Well... something must have happened..." Diane struggled to get out.

"Okay..." Ronald quickly answered the phone, "I'm Ronald, who is it?"

"This is the White House, the Commander-in-Chief of the United States. He wants to speak to you, Mr. Lee."

"Uh..." Ronald had no choice but to remove his hands from Diane's waist, stood up straight and cleared his throat.

"Your Majesty the Commander-in-Chief."

"Ronald? How about you come to the White House to play your movie Dances with Wolves? The congressmen on Capitol Hill keep mentioning it in front of me..."

"Huh?" Ronald thought, isn't this luck again? The Commander-in-Chief personally recommended Dances with Wolves to the audience. The last time he received such treatment was when he took up the post of Commander-in-Chief.

"I'll take the copy to play tomorrow. When will the leading students in T&T be free?"

"I'll have someone pick you up, so don't worry about it. We'll have dinner with little George then, and you can come. By the way, what do you want to eat? Pizza?"

"Pizza bar, by the way, can my wife Diane go? She likes sushi..." Ronald didn't know why, maybe it was because the commander-in-chief spoke enthusiastically, so he said this inexplicably.

"Let's come together. There's also Lieutenant Dunbar in the movie. Barbara wants to meet him. Pizza and sushi, right? See you tomorrow." Old George hung up the phone.

Ronald stood stunned for a long time and said to Diane, who was also looking incredulously next to him:

"Did I order food just now from His Majesty the Commander-in-Chief?"

"Well, it seems like, Ronnie, you mistook him for the restaurant operator."