Exploiting Hollywood 1980

Ronald was a little confused when the flight landed at JFK Airport. It was his first time to take a plane, and now he didn't know how to get home from the airport. He couldn't find the airport express to Manhattan.

He asked the airport information desk and found that if he wanted to go to Manhattan, there were only two options: taxi and car rental. New Yorkers have been calling for an airport express like the one in Los Angeles for a long time, but it has not been built yet because of the city government's financial constraints.

In fact, most passengers are picked up by someone.

After taking his first plane, it seems that he will have to take his first taxi. He will go to Manhattan and take the ferry home.

He found a pay phone and called Aunt Karen to inform her that he was back from the plane. Aunt Karen was surprised and smiled and said that she would make him something delicious in the evening.

There was no one to maintain order at the taxi stop at the airport exit. As soon as an empty car came, all the people waiting for the car rushed up. Some people were waving 10-dollar bills in their hands.

Ronald saw this situation for the first time and didn't know how to fight with others for a taxi. He looked around and found that there was a taxi parked in front of him and no one was disturbing him.

He hurried forward: "Excuse me, sir?"

The driver was a middle-aged man with a big forehead and neatly combed hair. He was reading a newspaper, a daily variety that few people in New York read.

Perhaps his train of thought about reading gossip was interrupted, and he pointed upward impatiently.

Ronald followed his gesture, and on the yellow taxi, two words were lit on both sides of the roof light, "off" and "duty"

Off duty, it means out of service, right? Ronald was a little embarrassed and didn't know what to say. No wonder this taxi was parked here and no one came to disturb it.

"Sorry, sir."

The big-headed driver put down the daily variety and glanced at Ronald: he was actually a young man, who looked like he was only a high school graduate.

"Where are your parents? Why didn't they come to the airport to pick you up?"

"Sir, are you talking to me? My parents,... they can't come to pick me up, they unfortunately passed away a few years ago." Ronald replied.

"Oh, poor kid." The driver with a big forehead felt a little sympathetic. "I would have taken you home on normal days, kid, but not today. I'm here to pick up my daughter, who just came back from London."

"It's nothing. Thank you for your kindness." Ronald said, "It's just my first time taking a taxi. I don't know how to get one. Should I call the taxi company to make an appointment?"

"Actually, there's no need. Three flights have just arrived, and there are many people who want a taxi now. If you're not in a hurry, wait for more than 10 minutes and there will be an empty car. Otherwise, you can take out $10 and signal the driver to increase the price, and they will also park next to you."

"Then I'll wait a while." Although he wanted to go home early, $10 was still $10, so Ronald shook his head.

"Kid, what are you doing in New York?" The driver with a big forehead read the newspaper over and over again, but couldn't find any new news, so he talked to Ronald and tried to chat.

"To put it simply, I was admitted to New York University and came here to study."

"There are still several months before the fall semester. Why are you here so early?"

"Actually, my aunt's house is on Staten Island. I went to Los Angeles to earn tuition. I will come back when I earn enough."

The big-headed driver became interested and continued to ask:

"Earning tuition in Los Angeles? What kind of job do you do? How many months can you earn enough tuition for a year of private university?"

"I am a portrait photographer. I work in a small production crew in Hollywood and take some audition photos for new actors."

"Wow, it's rare to see such a young photographer. Which crew did you work for?"

"It's a small production, Roger Corman's "Rock and Roll High School"

"Aha, I know, I know. Roger Corman, the "Intruder" he shot more than ten years ago was very good. We all like that movie in the New York film circle." The big-headed driver said.

"So he is a senior movie fan? Seeing that he doesn't read the New York Star, he should know by watching the Daily Variety." Ronald thought to himself.

"Hey, don't look at me as a taxi driver, I'm also an insider." Seeing that Ronald was a little unconvinced, the driver simply turned around and took out a bag with his business card and some group photos.

"I'm actually an acting coach. I opened an actor training class with John Cassavetes back then, specializing in teaching method acting."

"This is a group photo of me and my students in the training class. Look how many of them you know. They later became famous actors."

"Uh, I really don't know any of them..." Ronald was a little embarrassed.

Fortunately, the big-headed driver didn't dwell on this point, "If you want to be famous in this industry, you must study acting. To study acting, you have to watch more classic movies. Have you watched any movies recently?"

"I watched 'Love at Sunset Bridge' yesterday."

"Oh, then what did you see? How about the heroine's acting?" The big-headed driver put on a posture that I want to test you.

"Very good, Sir Laurence Olivier even praised her as the new Grace Kelly."

The big forehead smiled happily, "No, I'm asking you what you think, of course I know Laurence's evaluation."

"I think she acted very naturally, a teenage girl should be like that." Ronald was thinking of his cousin Donna, the heroine in the movie played the character of his cousin.

"Forget it, I don't think you have any acting talent." Seeing that Ronald couldn't analyze his acting skills, the big-headed man was a little disappointed and stopped communicating with him about film art.

Ronald thanked the big-headed man, then walked to the taxi stand with his bag. The crowd had gradually become less and less, so he could call a taxi.

"If you can take audition photos, you can try the casting studio on East 31st Street. They have a lot of actor files that need to be updated every year. Maybe they can give you a business opportunity."

The big-headed man's driver shouted to him from behind.

"Casting studio on East 31st Street." Ronald turned around and took out his notebook to write it down. "What is the name of this casting studio?"

"Are there any other casting studios in New York worth recommending?" The big-headed man waved his hand, somewhat disdaining Ronald's lack of knowledge of the industry, which was not as good as his own.

"Thank you, sir."

Ronald still thanked him, then waved and called a yellow taxi.

Maybe he should try this casting studio. If he has a long-term partner, he will have a fixed income.

"Go to the Whitehall Ferry Station at the southern end of Manhattan." Ronald said to the driver.

After pressing the meter, the yellow taxi drove forward.

When passing by his forehead, he saw a long-haired girl shouting "Dad, Dad..." and threw herself into his arms.

Ronald smiled, and he was going home to see his family soon.

At the Whitehall Pier at the southernmost tip of Manhattan Island, Ronald threw a 25-cent coin into the ticket box and boarded the large yellow ferry.

There were many female secretaries working on Wall Street on the boat, most of whom were old smokers. They couldn't afford to rent a house in Manhattan, so they had to settle down in Staten Island and go to work by ferry every day.

When they arrived at Staten Island, they changed to the railway at St. George Pier and took the train to the southernmost terminal, Totville. It was already dark.

Ronald carried his luggage and walked back to his community. He saw from a distance that only a dim light was on, which was his own hallway.

Ronald stood on the steps and smelled the familiar smell of wooden railings and acrylic mats again. He raised his hand and knocked on the door three times.

The door opened immediately, and a 13-year-old girl rushed to him with a smile, hooking her arms around his neck: "Ronnie, Ronnie, you're back! I knew it was you when I heard the knock on the door."

It was his cousin Donna. Ronald happily hugged Donna and turned around twice. After putting her down, he looked at the woman behind him. Wearing a hand-knitted sweater, jeans, short hair, and smiling happily, it was Aunt Karen.

"Come here, kid, give your aunt a hug." Aunt Karen hugged him warmly. After not seeing her for a year, Aunt Karen looked a little tired again, but fortunately she was in good spirits.

Aunt Karen prepared black pepper cheese macaroni, fried pork chops, and scrambled eggs. After Ronald had a feast, his aunt asked Donna to bring him some black tea, and talked about Ronald's experience of the year.

After a long time of separation, Aunt Karen and Donna were amazed when they talked about their experiences in Los Angeles. Hearing that Ronald had joined the film crew, Donna even said she wanted to go see the movie he made.

An hour passed quickly, Donna went to the back bedroom to sleep, and Ronald continued to chat with his aunt in the front living room.

"This is what I earned from auditioning in Los Angeles." Ronald took out a $2,000 promissory note and handed it to Aunt Karen. "The interest rate is high now, so it's just right to pay off the mortgage."

Aunt Karen stared at the two thousand dollars for a while, and looked at Ronald with some disbelief.

"Including the last time I sent you, I only gave you one-fifth, because I need to rent an apartment for school, and there are some expenses. I plan to continue my portrait photography business in New York. If the business is good, I can pay off the mortgage loan in about two years."

This house was bought by Aunt Karen using the pension benefits of Uncle Steve. The Veterans Department has a complete set of plans to help veterans' widows buy their own houses and pay for their children's education.

However, since the former president abandoned the dollar's peg to gold in 1971, inflation has begun to erode the assets of the middle class and the poor in America. The previously relaxed payment plan became increasingly tight, as the increase in tips received by my aunt in the restaurant always lagged behind the increase in inflation.

Coupled with Ronald's arrival, Aunt Karen's financial situation was immediately stretched. She had already applied for two mortgage loan deferred payments.

The $2,000 Ronald took out could help ease the difficulties.

Aunt Karen hugged Ronald again and breathed a sigh of relief. Then she asked about the sudden change of plan and flying home. Aunt Karen listened for a while and urged Ronald to take a shower and go to bed.

This house is an old building called a shotgun house, because the whole house is a long strip, like a shotgun, so it is named.

The front door opens to the living room and bathroom, and the living room is connected to two bedrooms, one small and one large, and the kitchen is at the back. To enter the back room, you must pass through the front room.

Ronald occupies the first smaller bedroom, and the large bedroom at the back is Aunt Karen and Donna's.

Some people also said that it was called the shotgun room because if you fired a shot at the front door, the bullet would go through all the doors and out of the kitchen door. Ronald thought this was more interesting and more true.

After taking a shower and changing clothes, Ronald entered the small bedroom. He saw the big bedroom behind, and there was a light under the door.

It was Aunt Karen, mending the hole in the luggage bag.