Exploiting Hollywood 1980

"This person is not worth mentioning. He has just left the Donkey Party and registered as the Elephant Party. He also said that the platform of the Donkey Party is not good. The National Committee of the Donkey Party is furious now, but it really wants to deal with one person to reverse the decline."

A fat man with thinning hair and swollen facial features, who looked a bit like Donald Duck, said to Ronald, Little George and others to reassure them.

The campaign consultant who came with George was Roger Ailes, whom Barbara valued very much and hired to join her husband's campaign team.

He made great contributions in helping the current commander-in-chief be re-elected in 1984. Prior to this, Ailes was a veteran television producer in Philadelphia, and had also produced a talk show hosted by popular Hollywood star Michael Douglas.

As soon as he opened his mouth, he dismissed the competitiveness of the real estate developer Ronald saw on the Larry King Show.

"No way? I think this man's political views are quite sharp." Ronald handed Roger + Ailes the full-page advertisements he had paid for in three of America's largest newspapers. look.

It was only after seeing the complete political views that Ronald felt that this person would be the biggest primary competitor for the deputy commander, so he anxiously called George Jr. to discuss it.

"Not only did he stick to what the general had done well, he was tough on the Soviet Union, but he also raised issues such as the fiscal deficit in the past seven years, the weakness towards Japan, and the widening gap between the rich and the poor. I think it won the hearts of the people."

Ronald laid down the three newspapers. The sentences above were all reasonable, but they should not be taken lightly.

"Well, you are a film director. I see that you know nothing about television media... This person's strategy is completely wrong. Starting from political opinions, he is destined to be impossible to succeed."

Roger Ailes didn't say the sarcasm on his lips. Although he was deeply appreciated by Barbara, her eldest son seemed to have great trust in the two friends from New York State in front of him. If he'd learned anything at Philadelphia TV, it was that the boss's relatives shouldn't be looked down upon too much, even if their ideas were stupid.

"Let me ask you a question, Ronald." Ailes said with a better attitude.

"Well, please tell me." Ronald didn't feel offended at all. A capable person has the right to be proud.

"Wait a minute……"

Roger Ailes took out a handkerchief, covered his nose, and sneezed twice very carefully. "I have to be careful, there are all kinds of allergens in the fall in New York, and I have hemophilia. A heavy sneeze,

It could kill me. "

Ayers carefully folded and put away the handkerchief with red blood stains, and then continued:

“Let me ask you a question: If there were two people on a Broadway stage.

A man goes into a microphone and says, "I have a solution to the problems in the Middle East";

Another guy walks to center stage and falls straight into the orchestra pit. Who do you think is going to be on the evening news? "

"Of course this is the one who fell in the orchestra pit." Ronald had no doubt.

"What about the federal deficit and a pastor who got 3 million voters' signatures?" Roger Ailes smiled. This Ronald is okay, not very stupid. After speaking, he glanced at the giggling little George next to him.

"fxck, I understand." Ronald suddenly realized that this Ayers is indeed a TV media master who has a clear understanding of the people's psychology.

There are too many tax cuts and fiscal deficits, the Japanese do not open their markets, and the defense budget is too high. Except for those staff directly related to these things, who among the ordinary people of America will care about these?

Of course, he is still an evangelical stickman. In a short period of time, he has collected 3 million support signatures from believers across the country. It is interesting to challenge the general election.

"So this New York congressman, Jack Kemp, looks like JFK, and his campaign manager is also a fool. If he just used the 'JFK' gimmick, wouldn't it be much better than emphasizing his poor political experience?

As for the handsome Rumsfeld and former Secretary of State Haig, they both look very boring and have no gimmicks at all. Like the National Committee of the Party, they can easily be forced to retreat when the time comes.

Our main enemy is still Robertson, the magic stick. Others may be able to get a little voice, but in the long run only he can continue to attract the media's attention. "

"George, do you have any ideas?" Roger Ailes looked at George Jr. In name, he was the election manager of the New York area and the talker of the campaign team.

Roger Ailes was very happy to see the few people who were silent and could only listen to their opinions as students. If there is no other way, just rely on yourself to take action. If you can defeat Robertson in New York, your status in the campaign team will be quickly established.

"Ronald made an advertising plan." Little George remembered something and handed Roger Ailes a marketing plan that Ronald created an image of a retired veteran for his father.

"The veteran image is very good." After reading one page, Roger Ailes felt that this plan had a very orchestral effect.

A World War II veteran who was almost eaten alive by Japanese soldiers ran for the post of commander-in-chief, which was much more attractive to voters than those boring policies.

It seems that this Ronald is not that stupid, just...

"Our biggest competitor, Pat Robertson, has made himself a Korean veteran. Although George Sr.'s image of a World War II veteran is more positive, in TV media, people often can only remember one symbol. Live with a person's name.

He was one step ahead of us and occupied the category of retired veterans first. We have to think of another image. "

"Robertson, those self-proclaimed battle experiences are all lies." Little George interjected. He finally found the marketing plan that Ronald came up with, but was rejected by Roger Ailes. But I don't want to be like this. In the eyes of my mother Barbara, I am just a person with mixed qualifications.

"Really?" Roger Ailes turned back and stared at Ronald fiercely. If this thing is true, then George Sr.'s campaign plan can start from exposing Robertson's false experience. And then take this image of a retired veteran, which has been tested by the market and is very useful, as your own.

"Why do you say that? Do you know his true experience?"

"I've seen too many people like this in Hollywood, bragging about one point of experience. You can check his resume. His eyes are wandering and unfocused, and he is making things up at a glance. I It’s so familiar, Michael Cimino, the director of The Deer Hunter, is almost cut from the same mold as him.”

Ronald thought back to Robertson's close-ups on television, and it was immediately obvious that he was relying on acting skills rather than actual recollections of the past. Well, it's still a relatively poor kind of acting.

"You fucking have a point." Roger Ailes unexpectedly came to New York and had an unexpected inspiration. He immediately called Barbara.

"We have a new plan, and we need to use some of old George's old connections... yes, find the colleagues he claimed to have served in North Korea."

"Are you sure? George has been away from CIA for a long time. If you are sure, I will use it again..."

"Well, I'm sure. Your son George Jr. came up with a great idea. His friend Ronald is very experienced in Hollywood. He has a good way of reading people and said Robertson is probably lying. He But great directors know the quality of acting very well."

"Okay, let's do it. Is Ronald here? Let me have a word with him." Barbara was very direct on the phone.

"Barbara, hello. Yes, it was George Jr. who was the inspiration. He had a great instinct for the campaign. We young people in New York all like him."

Hearing Ronald praising himself in front of his mother, little George blushed with excitement. I am rarely valued by Barbara. It seems that coming to New York to cooperate with Ronald this time is indeed a wise choice. My mother likes Ronald very much.

"Good job!" Roger Ailes gave Ronald a thumbs up. This man is a bit good, and it's not all about luck.

"It's a pleasure working with you." Ronald stepped forward to shake hands with Ayers. Although this man was a bit arrogant, the "Orchestral Law" he mentioned was indeed very inspiring. You have to study it carefully and see how it can be used in the marketing of movies.

"Will you shoot commercials for my father? Ronald?" Little George looked at Ronald, eagerly wanting him to continue to create an image for his father and gain points for himself in front of his mother, Barbara.

Ronald thought that for such a simple commercial, there was no need to do it himself. But the other party is a layman and doesn't understand this. He must think that he is the best. If Ronald doesn't agree, maybe this young man will have other ideas.

But Ronald was already prepared, "I have a better candidate, George. This image advertisement is similar to a personal documentary. I found an Oscar-winning documentary director to shoot for your father."

"Oh? Who is it? Can you invite an Oscar winner?" Sure enough, little George's eyes shone with light. Ronald was really awesome. He was an Oscar winner. Isn't it? Old George's military experience is very legendary. This personal advertisement is actually similar to a super short documentary.

"His name is Emile Adolino, and he is the first contracted director besides me from Daydream Company. His documentary won an Oscar in 1983."

Ronald pushed out Emile, who had been his assistant in "Dirty Dancing," to be in charge of shooting this campaign ad.

"That is a very powerful talent." Of course Roger Ailes knew about Ronald's tricks, but he would not be stupid enough to expose it. "The Oscar for Best Documentary is a very rare honor, and it is different from ordinary movies. The awards for director, screenwriter, and editing are different. There is only one person for the best documentary, and that is the director. This person is an all-rounder."

"I don't know how to thank you, Ronald." After hearing Ailes's compliment, little George really thought that this Emile Adolino was some great big shot. Come up quickly to thank you.

"After you have shot the commercial, just wait for the news from me. Once we get the evidence that Robertson lied, we will attack with all our strength." Roger Ailes put the bloody handkerchief into his pocket and said goodbye to everyone. .

…

"How are you going to photograph our deputy commander?" Ronald asked Emile Adolino in the room. He came to New York, and after discussing with Ronald, he planned to go to Washington, DC, to shoot a documentary-style campaign advertisement for the deputy commander.

"I planned to shoot him with the same lighting that Hollywood used to shoot Gary Cooper. The two men have similar facial lines and heights."

Emile Adolino knew what he was doing. Ronald gave him a chance this time. If this campaign advertisement satisfies everyone, he would then be allowed to choose a script and start shooting his own movie.

"Hahaha, that's right." Ronald smiled happily. This kind of shooting method, coupled with the deputy commander's legendary escape experience under the brutality of the Japanese army and being protected by God, must not let female voters watch it like this. Like Gary Cooper's movies, word of mouth spread?

"Before you shoot the deputy commander's commercial, help me shoot a few 'moonlight sultry' celebrity marketing videos. I happen to need a documentary talent here. They happen to be in New York, which is only half a day's work."

Ronald accepted the advice of film marketing expert, Michael Gray. Several main actors of "Moonlight", Cher, Nicolas Cage, Olympia Dukakis and others, all filmed a comment on the movie.

Then it was cut into a videotape along with a three-minute trailer and some behind-the-scenes footage. At that time, this videotape will be distributed in large quantities to members of the Directors Guild, film critics, and small movie theater owners, persuading them to increase screening channels and give Ronald some support in the Oscar nomination.

"No problem", Emil Adolino put the materials into the bag and began to plan Ronald's marketing plan. He will be able to make his own movie next year, and now he is full of fighting spirit.

"These are some plot shots I drew." Emil Adolino handed several drawings he had drawn to Ronald and asked him to review them.

"Very good." Ronald looked at a few pictures and knew that the other party had made good preparations. He was not prepared to look at the rest because he believed in his ability.

"My method will definitely succeed. Using this kind of electronic marketing package with a combination of video and poster to compete with other movies' paper promotional materials and a few photos is simply an adult bullying a child." Also from Los Angeles. Michael Gray, who came over, was extremely happy to see that his innovative ideas were fully adopted by Ronald.

Many Hollywood film companies do not trust this innovative approach. A large number of marketers who only copy old materials do not want his innovative methods to really set off reforms in Hollywood. Otherwise, many of them, who do not know new skills, can only work hard to learn new knowledge, otherwise they will retire early or be fired.

If Ronald's "Moonlight" can achieve a breakthrough with the support of his new marketing methods, Michael Gray feels that his new company will continue to do business.

"That's right. Confucius once said that we have already won before the enemy enters the battlefield." Ronald also had great hopes for this method.

However, after listening to the "Orchestra Theory" of veteran television and campaign expert Roger Ailes, Ronald wanted to add some elements to this marketing plan so that the audience who saw the advertisement would also be interested in the movie. Strong interest.

"You think, in my movie 'Moonlight', the gossip about the actor will arouse the audience's enthusiasm?"

Ronald thought about the cast of "Moonlight", and then looked at the few people present. In addition to director Emil and marketing consultant Gray, there is also Ronald's agent Richard, and general manager Eddie who specializes in preparing "moonlight sultry" marketing food.

"Cher. No one else has enough name recognition except her." Richard was very aware of the stardom of these people in Hollywood. Nicolas Cage is known to some audiences, but he doesn't have many fans.

As for the Broadway Gang headed by Olympia Dukaski, their fame is limited to a small theater circle in New York. They appear on TV news and need to be introduced with background information to get to know them.

Only Cher, although she only received one Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actress as a film actress, she is much more famous as a singer, and many people have grown up listening to her songs.

"I'm a little worried about whether Cher still has many fans now? Her new album doesn't seem to be selling well. Her most popular songs were all duets with her ex-husband Sonny Bono in the 1960s and 1970s. .

"Well, if you have doubts about Xueer's popularity, you might as well try the new business launched by the company." Eddie remembered something.

"What new business?"

"It is to measure a star's status in the minds of passers-by. They will randomly sample audiences in various places across the country, ask them to recall the star's masterpieces, and then ask them whether they will go see the star's movie because he or she appears in it." Richard rushed to answer.

"What, is this business famous?" Ronald seemed to have never heard of this new business before coming to New York.

"Infamously, the stars of CAA hated this evaluation." Richard laughed at this explanation.

This evaluation is relatively objective and asks very definite questions, such as whether you will go see a new movie of a certain star because of that star.

It is completely different from the traditional Q-scoring system that has been used in the marketing industry for twenty years. Q-score is a subjective score to evaluate the popularity of a star. Investigators asked passers-by to rate a celebrity in five categories, from very famous to very unknown.

Such a sample survey can easily make the audience's ratings move significantly in the direction the company wants under the influence of designed questions or investigators.

The new scoring system asks clear questions, with only two options: yes or no. In comparison, the possibility of manipulation is much smaller.

So celebrities hate the new evaluation system. There are only a few people who can get high scores in this evaluation system. This kind of reputation is very detrimental to their pay.

"All evaluations are completely confidential and are only open to the production company." Eddie added.

"Okay, give them a call and we'll do a survey on Xue'er's popularity."

After a busy day, Ronald returned to the hotel.

The apartment on Fifth Avenue still needs to be transferred by a lawyer, evaluated by a designer, and finally renovated before it can be moved in...

Thinking of properties on Fifth Avenue, news about that developer appeared on TV.

"I think his political views are more like those of the Donkey Party." A politician wearing a blue tie was commenting on him on TV.

"Pfft," Ronald burst out laughing after seeing clearly the subtitles under the guest.

Roger Ailes's prediction skills are really great. Mr. Chairman of the National Committee of the Donkey Party, after learning that this gentleman scolded the Donkey Party in the media, left the Elephant Party, and wanted to run for the leadership, he immediately took action. TV gave him a stab in the back.

The chairman of the National Committee analyzed his political opinions point by point in the interview, all of which were borrowed from the greatest leader of the Donkey Party, Franklin Jr.

"I have received a report and will launch an investigation into the tax issues regarding the sale valuation of apartments above the 30th floor of the Fifth Avenue building." New York Mayor Ed Koch, who also belongs to the Donkey Party, also began to fight back in the media.

"May I ask, Mr. Mayor, are you targeting him specifically? He repaired the ice rink that you had not repaired for six years in less than six months, and only used one-twentieth of your budget." The New York reporter's question was very strange.

"No, no, this has nothing to do with him fixing the Wollman Ice Rink and publicly humiliating me on TV. What he calls low cost is actually the result of the city government having spent a lot of money to build the foundation. . And we suspect that the price was fraudulent. In order to evade taxes, both parties deliberately lowered the project price, and then gave the contractor several free billboards on the side of the site to make up for the contractor's losses from advertising costs."

"I never said I would run for leadership..."

Ronald looked at his embarrassed appearance during the interview on TV. The real estate businessman's dream of entering politics, which he had not yet started, seemed to be coming to an end. "

Ronald admired Roger Ailes's judgment very much. As expected, there was no need to take action against the boss of the Donkey Party. The Donkey Party was prepared to kill such a traitor who broke away in a high-profile manner.

Since the defeat in the 1980 presidential election, the economy has developed rapidly under the leadership, the stock market has risen rapidly, and the battle for hegemony has gradually given America the upper hand.

The cohesion of the Donkey Party is very problematic. If they allow such a high-profile traitor to make false claims in the media and say that the Elephant Party is the future of America, I am afraid that the Donkey Party will never be able to elect a leader in the future.

Soon, the time entered into the night. Ronald saw his old friend David Letterman's late night show begin to play.

“A female singer who holds the record for being the oldest person to have a number one single on the charts, let’s welcome Grace Slick, frontwoman of Starship!”

“Dongdongdongdong…

looking into your eyes,

I saw heaven..."

To the sound of a live band, Grace Slick, singer of the theme song to the movie Ronald produced, "Beautiful," waved hello to the audience as she appeared on The Late Show with David Letterman.

The two talked a lot about Grace's mental journey. On the eve of the disbandment of Starship, Grace achieved her best results in recent years. And her failed marriage and the impact on her children. Her daughter's name is A, and she is also a TV host.

"How old is your daughter A?" Laitman asked.

"16 now."

"Oh, you didn't tell me that I didn't even notice how old you are. Your daughter is already 16?"

"You have to be 16 to be a host," Grace Slick pretended to be unhappy and hit David Laitman.

Ronald saw that the two must have agreed upon it. The old tree blooms new flowers, and the singer in his 40s regains the top spot on the singles chart. This is a typical American dream story. How gossipy is it? How contagious.

"Um?"

Ronald suddenly thought of a broadcast incident. Didn't Cher, the heroine of his upcoming new film "Moonlight", call him an axxhole on Laitman's late-night talk show last year?

Isn't this more topical? More gossip?

Ronald immediately picked up the phone, found his agent Richard, and asked him to get through to Laitman's live broadcast room no matter what.

After the live broadcast, David Letterman called as scheduled, "Ronald, what, have you figured it out and want to be a guest on my talk show?"

"Hahaha, I'm afraid you'll dislike me for lowering the ratings of your show." Ronald laughed, "No, I thought of someone who can make your ratings increase significantly.

"I'm Listening," David Letterman's show now has stable ratings, consistently about half those of his master Johnny Carson.

"What do you think, let Xueer appear on your show again and reconcile with you? Is there any gimmick?"

"dxmn it! Of course that's good, will you take care of Xue'er?"

"I'll call you if I know what to do."