The contract signing with the bank went very smoothly. Mike signed the document and the TV factory officially received 6 million in funds.

Mike has already made detailed plans for this money and is even looking for TV production line manufacturers, expressing cooperation intentions to several companies.

With orders worth tens of millions, it will not be easy for these manufacturers to get the business; they must meet Mike's conditions.

Mike plans to build the factory in one year and make a profit in the second year. With an annual output of 400,000 TV sets, if a profit of $30 can be guaranteed on each TV set, the profit for that year will reach $12 million, and all the investment can be recovered.

The performance at the New York Grand Opera House that evening also went smoothly.

And the effect is exceptionally good.

Because more big stars came, the advertisements at the door were changed. Judy Garland, Mouskouri, and Johnny Fontane were much more famous than Robin, attracting more people to the theater.

Also attending that night were some prominent figures in New York's upper class society, including the New York vice mayor, city council members, bank presidents, corporate CEOs, and a reporter from the New York Times.

There were more than 3,000 spectators, which was quite a spectacle.

Robin opened the show.

Originally, he was the headlining guest and should have been the closing act, but in front of entertainment industry bigwigs like Judy Garland, he was not good enough and could only serve as the opening act.

Next, the main creative staff came on stage to introduce the film, and there were also some small interactive programs during the period.

Then the guests took turns to perform on stage, bringing the evening to a climax. The last performance was by Ava Gardner, who sang Scarborough Fair.

People found that

Two big stars, Judy Garland and Elena Mousko, have already sung this song, but Ava Gardner is not inferior to them at all.

The song is beautiful.

The vocal conditions are extremely beautiful.

Her appearance is incomparable to those two.

Although Judy Garland was also a movie star, she was nicknamed "ugly duck" back then. She was not outstanding in Hollywood, where there were so many beautiful women.

The performance lasted more than an hour and ended with enthusiastic applause from the audience. After others left, Hardy and Mike came backstage to thank Judy Garland, Mouskouri and Johnny Fonteyn.

Judy Garland smiled and said, "Mr. Hardy, I heard that you also have a film company and you are a senior executive of Noah. If there is a suitable role, please consider me."

"You've won an Oscar and are an actor that Mayer values. Do you still need my help?" Hardy said with a smile.

"There's no actor who doesn't want a good role, and no singer who doesn't want a good song, like Ava's Scarborough Fair. I absolutely love this song and often play it on repeat a dozen times." said Judy Garland.

"Okay, I'll think of you first when there's a script suitable for Miss Garland in the future." Hardy agreed with a smile.

Then Hardy expressed his gratitude to Muskouli. Johnny Fonteyn was talking to Mike next to him. The relationship between the godfather's biological son and the godson was special.

Robin stood by, with a smile on his face, but he looked a little stiff, and his eyes were a little trembling.

He knew about Johnny Fontaine's situation.

Then he guessed Mike's identity.

I thought of those people last night again.

He knew who he had offended.

All right,

These people want to kill themselves, and they really don't have any scruples at all.

Now he stood here, with fear in his heart, hoping that these people would be satisfied with his performance today and let him go.

Mike introduces Johnny Fontaine to Hardy.

"Johnny Fonteyn, my father's godson."

"Jon Hardy, my partner."

Hardy and Fonteyn shook hands. Johnny Fonteyn said, "Hardy, I am asking sincerely. I really want to enter the entertainment industry and make movies. If there is a chance, please consider me. Even a supporting role is fine."

Hardy knew.

Today's scene must have been caused by the Godfather, otherwise Johnny Fontaine and Judy Garland would not have come.

Those important figures who came to watch the performance should have come for the Godfather's sake, otherwise how could they participate in a movie promotion performance for no reason.

Hardy had a deep impression of Johnny Fontaine.

In the movie The Godfather, Fang Ting asks the old godfather to help him find a movie role because he wants to develop in the film and television industry.

The old Godfather asked someone to pass a message to the boss of the film company, but who knew that the other party would make outrageous remarks, discrediting the Corrion family and saying that he had connections in Washington.

then,

He bought a horse for $600,000.

A horse's head appeared on his bed.

Hardy was deeply impressed by this scene in the movie.

"No problem. My film company will make many more films in the future. There will always be suitable roles. I will call you when the time comes," said Hardy.

As Hadi said this,

It would be better to go back and get "Singin' in the Rain" out.

Johnny Fontaine and Judy Garland were both singers, and were good at singing and dancing, and were also very famous, so it was just right for them to star in this movie.

Another movie he had seen, La La Land, was also an option.

As for the songs, just let professional arrangers write them. There are a lot of people in Hollywood who can write songs.

The next day.

The New York Daily News specifically published a news report that the crew of "A Fistful of Dollars" came to New York to promote the new movie. Judy Garland, Mouskouri, Johnny Fontane and others performed on stage. The movie will be released in the near future, which provided another wave of advertising for the new movie.

After finishing his work in New York, Hardy prepared to return to Los Angeles. Before leaving, he went to the Killer crew to say goodbye to Taylor, who was very reluctant to leave.

This time, Hardy returns to Los Angeles with a TV factory team sent by Mike, including a manager and three supervisors. They will acquire a TV manufacturing company in Los Angeles and set up the Los Angeles branch of Maybell TV.

Edward and Andy came to the airport to pick them up. Edward was in charge of the film team, and Andy was in charge of the TV team. Andy would help them acquire the TV factory.

Hardy had just returned home when he received a call from Mayer, "I heard that you are back and the promotion in New York was very effective."

Meyer heard from the publicity director what happened in New York. Robin originally wanted to control the crew, but after a phone call from Hardy, they were so scared that they apologized the next day and even invited a group of big stars to help.

It was also heard that Hardy had set up a business with others in New York and invested tens of millions of dollars. Mayer had not expected Hardy to develop to this extent in such a short time.

"Not bad. We invited a few people to help, and the newspapers promoted it as well." Hardy said with a smile.

"The promotion is over, the movie is about to be released, the film has been printed and shipped to various places, when do you plan to start?" Mayer asked.

"This is a big deal, it's best to check the almanac?" said Hardy.

"What's the almanac?" Meyer didn't understand what Hardy meant by the term.

Hardy was at a loss for words. “Oh, it’s a bit like astrology.”

"Do you still believe this?"

"Believe in what is useful, and don't believe in what is useless." Hardy adheres to the unique Chinese way of thinking, and all gods, demons and monsters can be used by me.

"Okay, I'll wait for your news."

After hanging up the phone, Hardy drove to the auction company. Mr. Yuan, the Chinese antique appraiser at the auction company, must know about the almanac, so he could just ask him.

Han Ye-jin was a little surprised to see Hardy coming in, "You're back from New York?"

"Did you miss me?" Hardy asked with a smile.

Han Ye-jin rolled her eyes at Hardy and ignored the man's teasing. "Why, are you here to see what antiques you received? We only received a few dozen pieces of Chinese porcelain these days, but we contacted a Frenchman who claimed that he had a group of artworks that were taken away from his family by the Germans and later returned. He wanted to find a big buyer to sell them all at once."

"He said the artworks include hundreds of paintings, including paintings by masters such as Monet, Van Gogh and Picasso, as well as a large number of other artworks. If this goes through, we can acquire a large collection."

From Europe.

A large collection of artwork?

Inherit the family legacy.

"Yejin, be careful when dealing with people like this. You might run into scammers. Remember to verify the authenticity of the items before paying," Hadi instructed.

"I will." Han Ye-jin replied.

"Is Master Yuan here?" Hardy asked again.

"Yes, do you have anything to do with Master Yuan?"

"Ask him to check the almanac."

Master Yuan really knows the almanac. He did a simple calculation and said, "The 30th is the 21st day of the lunar calendar. It is a good day to open a business, collect money, break ground, offer sacrifices, and pray for blessings. Everything will go smoothly. In addition, the 30th is Saturday, a day of rest. People have time to go out and watch a movie."

"But there are only three days left until today. I wonder if you can make it in time?" Old Yuan said to Hardy.

“Pah~!”

Hardy clapped his hands.

"Everything else is ready, just waiting for the release. Three days is just the right time," Hardy said with a smile.

He was very satisfied with the day the old man chose.

Hardy called Mayer at the auction and told him the time to choose. Mayer also thought number 30 was good, and finally decided to do so.

Hardy chatted with Han Ye-jin for a while, looked at the newly collected porcelain in the warehouse, and said before leaving: "The first movie I invested in is coming out. I'd like to invite you to watch it then?"

Han Ye-jin hesitated for a moment.

She is not as open-minded as Western girls. She always thinks that going to the movies together is something that couples do. She is afraid that the other party will misunderstand her if she agrees to go to the movies with him.

But thinking that this movie was invested by Hardy, the meaning was different. "Okay, I will go to the cinema to support your movie then."

Hardy excused himself and left.

Three days passed in a flash.

In the past three days, more than 300 theaters across the United States have put up posters in preparation for the screening of "Wilderness". Due to the sufficient publicity before, many people are looking forward to the release of the movie.

Los Angeles Chinatown Cinema.

Ava was wearing a simple women's dress and had a gauze scarf wrapped around her face. She walked into the cinema holding Hardy's arm.

Today is the first game of Red Dead Redemption.

The theater was already packed. Seeing the good sales of movie tickets, Ava smiled and said to Hardy, "I believe our movie will be a big hit!"

Hardy nodded, "I have confidence in it, too."

The movie opens.

The opening animation is two huge letters "HD", which almost take up half of the screen, like two towering mountains, which is very shocking.

The movie officially begins, and a melodious whistle sounds...

Overall, this film is well-made, with a rich story and constant conflicts, and many viewers are very satisfied with it.

When the last credits rolled, Ava appeared and sang Scarborough Fair. Everyone who was about to leave sat down again to enjoy the song, and when the song was over, the audience applauded.

There were five screenings on the first day and according to statistics the attendance rate was around 90%. On the second and third days the average attendance rate was 80%, which is already a very high attendance rate.

Meyer happily called Hardy.

"Congratulations, Hardy. Your movie is a success. Do you know how much the box office sales were in the past three days?"

"How many."

"1.32 million dollars is a very high number. According to past experience, in a one-month screening period, as long as there is no unexpected drop, the box office is expected to reach 6.5 million to 7 million. Last year, Ingrid Bowman starred in "Beyond the Curse", which grossed 7.5 million dollars and was the box office champion last year. Your "A Fistful of Dollars" is also expected to become the box office champion this year."

Hardy knew that Red Dead Redemption cost $200,000 to make and eventually grossed $14.5 million. Now it's only $7 million, which is half as much. However, considering the 20-year difference and half the price of the movie ticket, Hardy could accept a box office of $7 million.

He did some mental arithmetic.

Excluding the share of the theater and the publicity and promotion costs, the profit is probably around 2 million.

In fact, in Hardy's opinion, the film industry is not a very good industry.

The capital is huge, the cycle is long, the future is uncertain, and the failure rate is higher than the success rate. Based on his memory of future generations, he can make money faster by starting any industry than by making movies.

The reason why he entered the film industry

Hmm~

It's definitely not because of women.