From Flower Vase to Film Emperor in Hollywood

Smack.

"Goodbye, Mom."

Gloria Preston closed the car door and turned to dash off, only to hear an urging shout from behind.

"Gloria, nine-thirty. I'll wait for you here. Nine-thirty!"

Gloria turned to look at her mother, waving an "OK" gesture while continuing to back away, her smile blooming radiantly in the sunlight.

Then, with a turn, Gloria had already dashed off—

Today, July 31st, Tuesday, is the day of the "Princess Diaries" premiere.

Generally, movies choose to open wide on Fridays, but for publicity, they often hold premieres a little earlier to await media reviews and audience word-of-mouth, and then carry out promotional activities accordingly.

If targeting the international market, premieres may often begin two or even three weeks in advance, unfolding in different countries and regions around the world, in coordination with corresponding release times for comprehensive publicity.

This week, two new films are being released:

"Rush Hour 2" and "The Princess Diaries."

Three years ago, Jackie Chan and Chris Tucker's collaboration in "Rush Hour" achieved great success with a small investment. With a production cost of only thirty-three million dollars, it grossed an impressive one hundred and forty million dollars in North America and two hundred and forty-four million dollars worldwide, allowing New Line Cinema to taste the sweetness of success.

Now, the same cast is starring in "Rush Hour 2," once again targeting the summer market. The production cost has soared to ninety million dollars in one go, and extensive publicity has been underway since three months ago. New Line Cinema is determined to win, undoubtedly becoming a strong contender for this week's box office champion.

As for "The Princess Diaries," it has been scaled down by two notches in every aspect. Even Disney is not prepared to confront New Line Cinema head-on.

The most direct manifestation of this is:

The time and location of the premiere.

Hollywood Boulevard, as the most prosperous and important area in all of Los Angeles, has the famous "Hollywood" sign behind it, and in front of it is the most central section of the Walk of Fame, plus Sunset Boulevard, which has nurtured countless superstars, located at the end of this road.

All aspects make Hollywood Boulevard the most important location for movie premieres, and this avenue has witnessed the glittering debut of countless classics.

Among them, the newly completed Kodak Theatre is undoubtedly the new favorite. Rumor has it that next year's Academy Awards ceremony is preparing to leave the Shrine Auditorium and be held here, but the internal renovations have not yet been fully completed and will not be ready for use until November.

Therefore, the Chinese Theatre, completed in 1923, remains the most sought-after and popular venue for premieres on Hollywood Boulevard.

Two days ago, "Rush Hour 2" held a grand premiere at the Chinese Theatre, with a constant stream of traffic and people, grandly kicking off the summer box office battle for the first week of August. The entire creative team, from top to bottom, is full of confidence in this sequel.

Although the dates of the premieres did not overlap, it was clear that the Chinese Theatre had no way to dismantle all the sets of "Rush Hour 2" and then re-arrange them within just two days. The styles and types of the two movies are completely different, so there was naturally no time to hold the premiere of "The Princess Diaries."

Therefore, Disney was forced to adjust and chose another popular venue on Hollywood Boulevard, the El Capitan Theatre.

The El Capitan Theatre is directly opposite the Kodak Theatre and diagonally opposite the Chinese Theatre, with a distance of less than one hundred meters between the two locations.

So, what's the difference?

Facilities, environment, atmosphere.

Although the locations are similar, the equipment at the El Capitan Theatre is very old, and everything from the projection equipment to the theater decoration is outdated, with a distinctly theatrical style that seems slightly cheap.

In addition, the El Capitan Theatre has another fatal flaw: space.

There is an open space in front of the Chinese Theatre, which can be used to build a red carpet or a stage, giving movie companies more room to maneuver when designing the premiere; but the front of the El Capitan Theatre is directly on the road.

It is precisely because of this that the Chinese Theatre has always been the first choice for premieres by major film companies, while the El Capitan Theatre needs to take a backseat, but now Disney has no choice.

However, for Gloria, it doesn't matter—

The point is not where the premiere is held, but that "The Princess Diaries" is about to be released.

Mrs. Preston believes that Gloria's infatuation is only a passing fancy and that she may forget Anson before long, and Gloria herself thinks so too.

In fact, it's almost the same.

After the "Friends," "GQ," and Emmy Awards triple play, Anson temporarily went into hiding without any news. In an era before social networks, this meant that Anson might have completely disappeared.

With a turn, Gloria forgot the figure that had amazed her. Anyway, without Anson, Hollywood still has a constant stream of handsome guys, and even the news of Anson starring in "Spider-Man" didn't attract her attention.

If there were no abnormalities, Gloria might never have remembered the impact that Anson's arrival had brought last summer, and would have just stuffed it into a corner of her memory.

After all, a whole year without news is indeed too long.

It wasn't until Gloria accidentally saw the third trailer for "The Princess Diaries" that Anson appeared for a second, a pitiful second.

However, it was this second that opened Pandora's box of memories.

Anson, it really is Anson, easily grabbing Gloria's attention, and the passion and enthusiasm that had been covered in dust in the corner of her memory rekindled.

Fortunately, it's summer vacation now.

Fortunately, there's no date on Tuesday.

Gloria comfortably arranged an activity for herself.

A second ago, sitting in the passenger seat, Gloria didn't feel anything special, thinking that she would just join in the fun and look at some handsome guys and be done with it.

The next second, her blood was burning, and her leisurely steps actually became faster and faster, until she was almost sprinting, plunging headlong into it.

Whirr—

What is this before her eyes?

All kinds of princess costumes filled her vision, and a sense of déjà vu of being lost in a masquerade ball rushed towards her. The rumored anime conventions were probably like this.

After inquiring, she learned that "The Princess Diaries" was holding a premiere with an afternoon tea party theme today, and there would be real Disney princesses present at the scene.

Thus, she could see guardians bringing their children dressed up in grand costumes, and she could also see adults carefully dressing themselves—as well as male companions with faces full of hopeless love. Halloween parties were probably like this.

Gloria regretted it a little. If she had known, she would have done her homework properly, and wouldn't have barged in so unprepared, looking completely like a tourist.

"Hey, what's your costume?" A enthusiastic girl looked over, asking with a smile.

Gloria looked down at her slightly monotonous T-shirt and jeans, and hesitated for a moment, "Uh, Cinderella?"