Exploiting Hollywood 1980

Latest website: “Other People’s Money (OPM)” is a Wall Street term that refers to the use of leverage and the use of other people’s investment money to conduct mergers and acquisitions. It's like borrowing a chicken to lay an egg in Chinese.

If you are more accurate than others and see a speculative opportunity that is underestimated by other investors in the market, and you can borrow a large amount of OPM at a low cost, you will make enough money for a lifetime at this rally.

Of course, if you see it wrong... the enlarged lever will also give you an equal enjoyment of the enlarged sense of failure.

This script tells the story of Garfinkel, a Jew, who used OPM to acquire an American manufacturing company, and then went through a series of bankruptcy and reorganization operations to create huge wealth out of thin air in the financial market.

Jorgensen, the founder of this company that produces cables, painfully watched his father establish it and work with local workers through a series of major events such as the Great Depression, Roosevelt's New Deal, World War II, and the Vietnam War. The business ended because one of the giants in the financial market felt that the company would make more money if it went bankrupt than if it did not go bankrupt.

And the workers in those factories... have become even more miserable and have joined the ranks of the unemployed.

In short, this is a play that explores the hottest topics nowadays. Should we follow the principle of making money? How to manipulate the stock market, how to exploit legal loopholes, how to make money? Or should we return to the old-school entrepreneurial spirit of building communities with workers, where one enterprise brings employment, community, commerce, education, religion, and even the prosperity of the entire region?

On the way home from the airport, Ronald lost control and read the script in one breath to the end. It’s really a script that people can’t put down once they watch it.

"Is it a tragedy in the end?" Ronald looked at David Simkins.

At the end of the script, Jorgensen failed in the board vote, and the cable company was acquired by Garfunkel. After declaring bankruptcy and reorganization, he made a lot of money, and the shareholders went home happily with their money.

Jorgensen was unwilling to leave the company and went to work in the factory to help unemployed workers find new jobs.

The script also gives Garfunkel, the fat, ugly Jew, a happy ending. Kate, the daughter of Jorgensen's lover and secretary, a Wall Street lawyer, is invited by Jorgensen to fend off Garfunkel. In the end, he didn't agree with Jorgensen's philosophy. After the merger and acquisition case was concluded, he married Garfinkel and helped him run the merger and acquisition business together.

This ending is undoubtedly a very serious blow to the simple values ​​​​of the mainstream people, and it is a definite tragedy for Jorgensen, who has a likable character.

Ronald thought that the trouble David Simkins mentioned was because of the tragic ending, which was inconsistent with the commercial film route that Ronald had always adhered to... It is not that tragedies cannot be filmed in commercial films, but even if the protagonist dies, he must remain. His bright hopes, such as his ideas and ideals, were realized by future generations...

Although Jorgensen is not dead now and has made a lot of money from the stocks he holds, his philosophy and America's spirit since the founding of the country were killed at the end of the script. It's definitely not going to do well at the box office...

"The trouble I'm talking about includes, of course, the trouble of revising the script, but it's mainly caused by Warner Bros. When you look at this script, doesn't it look like a movie script?"

David Simkins is very professional when it comes to scripts.

"Is this a Broadway play?" Ronald understood. The play clearly conforms to the three unities of the drama. The characters and scenes are very compactly concentrated in three scenes, plus an ending that makes people think more than makes people feel comfortable. It is indeed very similar to the style of a drama.

"This is a Broadway play that was spotted by Warner Bros. before it was even staged. They bought the rights to adapt and produce the play within five years for US$325,000 and a share agreement."

"Oh..." Ronald thought, this play must also be well received in the industry. Warner Bros. bought the film even before it was released in theaters.

Generally speaking, the copyrights acquired by film companies are adaptation rights within a certain period of time. It's usually five years. If you don't invest in filming and releasing it within five years, the copyright owner can take back the rights to the film adaptation and then sell it to the next company.

With more than 300,000 plus the share agreement, the real price of this script is equivalent to close to 2 million. It is indeed a popular script that everyone is optimistic about.

Ronald's relationship with Warner was average, and there were no senior executives he knew well, so he looked at David Simkins and wondered if he had any ideas about going to Warner to negotiate the transfer of change rights.

"I made initial contact with them. Warner heard that we wanted it, and they quickly raised the price..." Simkins said a number in Ronald's ear, which Daydream could not agree to.

"Don't they want to cooperate?" Ronald was a little surprised. Generally speaking, when he hears about a movie that Ronald is interested in, shouldn't his first reaction be to talk about cooperation instead of transfer?

"Ahem..." David Simkins laughed dryly and whispered a few words in Ronald's ear.

"No way?" Ronald said in surprise.

The current president of Warner Bros. Pictures is Terry Tramel, a high-profile Brooklyn Jew. Ronald didn't have much contact with him, but he also knew that this man was a relatively traditional Jew, and he might be dissatisfied with some of his behaviors.

The CEO and Chairman of Warner Bros. Pictures is veteran producer Robert Daly. This person moved from the position of president of CBS TV station to the film industry, and is considered a very famous boss in the industry.

David Simkins said that his sources within Warner Bros. told him that Daly personally mentioned the script this time, and someone from below came forward to buy the play before it was released.

"I don't remember that he is a Jew?" Ronald also knew that he had a normal relationship with the pro-Israel Jewish conservatives. They now own the script. According to business rules, he couldn't fault it. He would either pay ten times the price. Buy it, or shut up and say nothing about it.

"Yes, Daley has never spoken publicly about his religion or ethnicity, a habit he has maintained since his days at CBS. However, I heard his parents are Russian immigrants and were in the Israeli spy Borat During the case, he publicly campaigned to exonerate him, and he was also a member of the Holocaust Memorial Council..."

"If you quacked like a duck and walked like a duck..." Ronald said this famous saying with a smile. He had a bad reputation in the eyes of these so-called Orthodox Jews.

"Then he is just a duck..."

"What are you going to do?"

"I plan to ask Mr. Michael Gray to cooperate and create some momentum so that we can have a chance to get this script at a fair price..."

…

A few days later, Ronald and his pregnant wife, Diane, appeared at the Cineplex Odeon in Century City, Los Angeles. Steel Magnolias will host a charity screening here to raise money for the American Diabetes Association.

Diane wore a green floor-length Armani skirt. Although she was pregnant, she still looked very elegant. Ronald stayed with Diane throughout the whole process with a smile on his face, providing Diane with a way to rest at any time.

Ronald took Diane into the screening room, and several reporters gathered around him, wanting to interview him.

"Hello……"

"Mr. Li, thank you for accepting our interview..." The reporters took out a booklet and started recording.

"What do you think about the poor box office performance of some art films at this stage?" A senior reporter asked first.

"I don't know what you are referring to. In fact, I think movies are a combination of art and commerce. There is no distinction between the two..."

"Thank you. Some people are saying that in the future, Hollywood's unique artistic works like 'One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest' and 'Mozart' will gradually give way to commercially successful productions. Do you agree with this statement?"

"I can probably guess which film you were referring to in your question, but I think this is nonsense. Film is always a diverse art form. If it were the same, then there would be no art."

"Are you saying that you intend to sponsor films with strong artistic qualities?"

"Actually, I don't think it is a very correct approach to combine the simple atmosphere of movies with art and commerce. All the Oscar-winning movies have been box office hits. And many commercially successful movies also have high artistic achievements..."

"Thank you. There are rumors that you will be collecting movie scripts that meet the tastes of Oscars and critics on a large scale. What do you think of this?"

"In addition to being a film director, I am also a producer. I can only say that such rumors know very little about the producer's business operations..."

"Do you deny the rumors of acquiring the script at a high price?"

"No comment..."

"Okay, recently Hollywood has a new creed on movie box office predictions. Stage play adaptations and recently released movies with similar stories will be given heavy negative ratings. What do you think of this, Mr. Li? "

"Ha, I dare say that there are indeed people in the industry who make such assessments. But I think this is not a reliable standard. If film producers could rely on mathematical formulas to score, then there would not be so many unexpected hits. and movies that failed at the box office."

Ronald touched Diane's back, and Diane leaned over, "Darling, my feet are a little sore from standing..."

"Gentlemen, I want to accompany my wife to find a place to rest. Thank you all..."

…

The screening of "Steel Magnolias" begins. This movie is still very good, focusing on the sisterhood of Southern women. Diane plays the girl with glasses who works in a hair salon and escapes from domestic violence by her husband. Her appearance is a bit ugly at first, but later, she becomes a hidden second person who replaces Julia Roberts and continues to live. heroine.

At the end, many women in the audience couldn't help crying, and there were low sobbing in the cinema.

In the end, the mother played by Sally Field and the woman played by Diane who escaped from marriage met again at the funeral after the protagonist played by Julia Roberts died of diabetes.

The mother, played by Sally Field, smiled happily when she saw Diane's character living happily.

This Southern sisterhood has been an emotional anchor for Americans since Gone with the Wind. After the screening was completed, the audience loved it.

At the charity screening, many wealthy old ladies came. They donated generously and raised US$500,000 in donations to the Diabetes Association.

"It's really a masterpiece," Ronald went up to congratulate director Herbert Ross. "I heard from screenwriter Robert Harlin that, together with charity screenings in New York and Chicago, a total of more than 2 million donations could be raised."

"Yeah, hello, Diane. That last shot was really great..." Herbert Ross smiled and adjusted his glasses. Although things are old-fashioned, the appeal of the film is still amazing, and a lot of this is due to the successful casting...

"Where else are you going to hold a charity screening?" Her Royal Highness Princess Caroline Lee Radziwiew Ross, the second wife of director Herbert Ross and the sister of former first lady Jacqueline, wore A hat with a feather, come and ask Ronald.

Her lengthy title was inherited from her second marriage to a Polish nobleman. Although the Roman Catholic Church did not recognize her marriage as legal, she still used it and continued to use it after marrying Ross.

"Next week I will go to screenwriter Robert Harlin's hometown and his alma mater, the University of Louisiana, and then I will go to London early next year..."

"Royal premiere?" Her Royal Highness Princess Caroline Lee Radziwiel Ross's eyes immediately shone, "I am also a noble, and I can talk to Her Majesty the Queen about the past glorious era..."

"Uh..." Ronald didn't know what to say to this person, so he nodded quickly, then held Diane's hand and left the banquet.

…

"Director Ronald Lee announced at the screening of his new film that he will buy a large number of artistically produced film scripts..."

"Ronald Lee denounced the ridiculous judging criteria of Hollywood studios. Whether it is a stage play adaptation has nothing to do with the movie's box office..."

"The wizard of commercial films has failed to resist the temptation of the Oscar for Best Director. Will Ronald Lee transform into an art film director?"

The next day, Ronald's interview was published in many Hollywood newspapers. Although the title is very exaggerated, the content is quite objective. There are two main points:

First, Ronald does not believe that whether the stage play is adapted or whether there are recent movies with similar stories that have tired the audience is the key reason for box office success or failure. No matter how Hollywood and Wall Street judge it now, he still insists that good stories and good performances are the key factors in box office success. The cliché that is the key reason for success or failure.

Second, Ronald is indeed spending money to collect some artistically produced movie scripts. However, he does not admit that this is to compete for the Oscar for Best Director, but because the current film industry needs to give some space to art films and independent films, and Ronald is willing to do this work to give back to Hollywood.

"Do you think I'm tall..." Ronald smiled at Diane, who was also reading the report.

"Yes, yes... get me a glass of water, my dear, and bring me two of those oranges from Ehime Prefecture..."

Diane gave orders to Ronald when he had the opportunity, and the two enjoyed themselves happily.

…

"Did it work?" Ronald saw David Simkins who came to report at home. asked him.

"There is no news yet, but my source said that your remarks have been compiled into a summary, and both CEO Daley and President Temer will read it.

Ronald nodded. This was a strategy he had discussed with Simkins and Michael Gray, the public relations consultant.

He deliberately released some news that was false and true, and then hoped to influence the attitude of Warner Bros. executives. After all, these news are not all false. It is not a secret within Hollywood that Ronald hopes to win the Oscar for Best Director.

Often, opponents will be fooled by information that is eight percent true and two percent false.

The so-called stage play adaptations are not doing well at the box office, and other scripts with similar stories that have been released recently are not doing well at the box office. This is a newly popular box office prediction formula in Hollywood and Wall Street. There are also large studios that hire programmers and create an evaluation model to score each script, casting, and director in an attempt to predict the box office prospects of the project.

Warner Bros. bought the script because of a word from CEO Robert Daley. As an invisible Jew, he is a little worried about the growing resentment among American society against Jews on Wall Street and in the media who break the rules.

This "Other People's Money" script also serves, in a sense, to clear the reputation of Jewish bankers. After all, the name of the banker Garfinkel sounded Jewish, while the name of the factory owner Jorgensen was more in line with the name of an old-school entrepreneur.

However, it is not certain whether the other party will really take this kind of influence seriously and whether they will take the bait.

"There is indeed a trend in Hollywood to use mathematics to quantify box office..." Michael Gray added next to it. Consulting companies like his, which use common sense and experience to do movie marketing, have recently received a lot of competition. Young people can compete with him for big projects just by relying on a computer. If Ronald hadn't been cooperating with him for a long time, there would really be pressure on the business.

"They don't understand movies, they don't understand Hollywood..." Ronald didn't believe this. Today's computers are still far from the future computers that are smarter than humans in Hollywood science fiction dramas. His Ghost movie has been delayed by the post-production of special effects and will not be initially completed until next year.

"Really, many producers who have stockpiled best-selling adaptation scripts are now selling scripts." Simkins added with a smile.

"Really, I heard the news before I came here that Steve, the youngest son of the Tisch family in New York, also began to seek to sell the Forrest Gump script. When he bought it from the original author Winston Groom It’s too expensive to sell now…”

"Ah?" Ronald jumped up from the sofa when he heard the news, "Why are you selling it? Really?"

"Well, because Steve Tisch Jr. said that they always make movies with an idiot male protagonist. If they make another movie, they will be like Valmont. Even if it is better than the previous movie Dangerous Liaison, it will fail at the box office.

What's more, last year's Rain Man won many Oscars and did very well at the box office. "Michael Gray told Ronald all the gossip he had heard.

"He knows a lot..." Ronald was so excited that he cursed. "Let's make a serious plan and win the rights to adapt Forrest Gump!"