Chapter 636: Chapter 637: Charlie''s True Identity


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    [Chapter 637: Charlie''s True Identity]


    "Charlie''s Angels delivered a pink explosion of visual delight for movie fans while also leaving us with a plethora of entertaining hidden details. We could see a character and world setup that was entirely different from the TV series. One could imagine that this was an ambitious hint from the producers for a sequel.


    As fans of the 007 series eagerly discussed whether the ck figure escaping in a propeller ne during the film''s post-credits scene was to be the next James Bond, gossip magazines debated whether Penelope Cruz''s character, Lucienne Baker, had an Oedipalplex. Meanwhile, geeky young folks pored over the film''sst segment, analyzing the realistic yetplex exhaustive algorithm. Amidst this, many likely overlooked a very discreet detail. In the first three minutes of the film, Morgan Freeman''s character, John, seemingly offhandedly told Lucienne, ''You have thirty minutes to drive the car to Malibu 10880, or I''ll turn you and these photos over to the cops.'' After that, we never saw any mention of Malibu 10880 again, nor did the film exin why John wanted Lucienne to drive the Buick to that location. Investigating further, it appeared there was no such address in Malibu. This abrupt dialogue initially seemed like apletely pointless redundancy.


    But is that really the case? Everyone knows that the plot of Charlie''s Angels was meticulously constructed. The producers paid great attention to details. Even the program code typed by the genius girl Gill Monroe in the final scenes was reportedly written by Steve Mitnick, the Chief Technology Officer of Yahoo. Thus, in the film''s critical opening segment, a meaningless dialogue could not possibly ur.


    After extensive investigation by our magazine''s reporters, we finally uncovered the ''true identity'' of Malibu 10880. Many readers might have already noticed the prominent photo of a shell-shaped vi in our illustrations and spected about it. Indeed, the so-called Malibu 10880 refers to Eric Williams'' luxurious private estate in Malibu. ording to several insiders, while the actual upant number of the estate is not 10880, Eric Williams has referred to it as 10880 on multiple asions. Moreover, we found the most straightforward evidence. A project document from the architectural design firm responsible for the estatebeled the ''Liberty City'' vi project with the codename 10880.


    For now, let''s not delve into why Kate Beckinsale''s character, Selina Gattler, immersed herself in the brutal underground fighting scenes or what kind of turmoil she and her former partner encountered. These behind-the-scenes stories will likely appear in either a prequel or spin-off. Back to the film, after the formation of the new angel trio, their first task was, of course, to meet with their elusive boss. Although this mysterious BOSS never revealed their true identity, ording to this logic, John''s instruction for Lucienne to drive to the ''fictional'' 10880 received an exnation. At the very least, in this film, the identity of the master of 10880 undoubtedly hinted at the undercover boss of the detective agency, Charlie Townsend, who never appeared throughout the movie. Based on the real-world existence of ''10880'', it''s clear that Charlie Townsend was Eric Williams'' persona in Charlie''s Angels.


    Perhaps as the screenwriter for the film adaptation of Charlie''s Angels, Eric Williams set up this little detail on a whim. But when we shift our focus to today''s Hollywood, many would be surprised to find that the youthful boy who gained fame from Home Alone six years ago had now be an omnipresent figure in Hollywood, much like Charlie Townsend in Charlie''s Angels. This influence was even more pronounced in this summer''s film lineup.


    Starting from the end of May, all the films that had been released -- Saving Private Ryan, True Lies, The Lion King, Charlie''s Angels -- achieved remarkable box office sess, regardless of whether they were produced or released by Firefly Group. Each film bore traces of Eric Williams'' personal touch. Uing summer blockbusters like Dumb and Dumber 2 and Men in ck were also works of Eric Williams. This new Hollywood mogul''s influence extended across four out of the seven major studio chains, including Firefly, MGM, Columbia, and Fox. Such overwhelming influence nearly surpassed that of any film tycoon in Hollywood''s century-long history. Given that this miraculous young mogul was still under twenty-five, one could specte that someday, Eric Williams might unify Hollywood and be the true king of the industry."


    ...


    Eric ced the article that had been reprinted by several newspapers in just two days down on his desk and chuckled as he continued reading other materials.


    After a week in theaters, Charlie''s Angels hadfortably grossed over $49 million. Although this figure couldn''tpete with the opening weeks of previous films like The Mummy or Saving Private Ryan, the buzz surrounding this female action blockbuster far exceeded that ofst month''s hits.


    The reason for Charlie''s Angels'' lower ticket sales wasn''t due to the summer rush ending or factors like screening frequency or film quality. Just like Buffett mentioned at the premiere about not understanding certain plot elements, the movie contained numerous high-techponents that might leave older audiences and children in the dark. Charlie''s Angels thus failed to attract viewership from all age demographics. However, the same high-tech elements generated extraordinary appeal among viewers aged 14 to 28, creating an immense impact within that group.


    Moreover, due to its ster reputation and massive buzz, Charlie''s Angels managed to maintain box office revenue in its second week, unlike any film in the summer of 1994, where increases were absolutely unheard of. Box office forecasting agencies predicted that Charlie''s Angels'' second-week earnings might even exceed $50 million, making a total of over $100 million within two weeks nearly assured.


    Charlie''s Angels also performed admirably in several overseas markets that screened simultaneously with North America, particrly in Japan, a country famous for itsic culture. The character of Selina, a cartoonish bandaged girl, incited a frenzy among Japanese manga enthusiasts, with the film''s first week in Japan nearing North America''s, reaching $46 million. Following this, the rted merchandise of Charlie''s Angels, including several action figures of Selina, faced consecutive sellouts within just a week. The once-unknown Kate skyrocketed to be the most popr Western female star in Japan, leading to a flurry of coborations and endorsement offers flooding into ICM.


    Thanks to the sess of Charlie''s Angels, MGM finally pulled itself back from the brink of bankruptcy. European investors anticipating substantial returns were equally jubnt. After the first-week box office results of Charlie''s Angels were released, both sides eagerly contacted Eric to initiate preparations for a sequel.


    Simultaneously, two otherpaniespletely unrted to the film industry also unexpectedly benefited.


    ...


    After a week of release, due to the movie''s powerful advertising effect, Yahoo''s online mailbox users increased by 1.1 million within seven days, most of whom were highly valuable new Inte users. The daily traffic on Yahoo''s portal site also experienced a significant uptrend in a short period.


    On July 1, Yahoo officiallyunched its instant messaging software, YCR, which saw explosive growth spurred by Charlie''s Angels. Within a week, this chic and avant-garde remote chatting software surpassed 10 million users. Despite thorough advance estimations and preparations, Yahoo still struggled with the massive data influx caused by the surge in YCR users, temporarily causing server outages on the evening of July 5. Although they faced teasing from other high-tech giantspeting for the title of ''the world''srgest data processing center,'' user enthusiasm remained unfazed.


    ...


    The other benefittingpany was undoubtedly Buick.


    The previously business-focused Buick sedans, which were not especially favored by the youth market, experienced a sales surge of more than double within the week following the release of Charlie''s Angels. In addition to the repeated disys of the Buick LeSabre in the movie, sales for several other models from Buick also saw a significant increase. Thanks to the influence from Charlie''s Angels, Buick not only opened doors to the young consumer market that had previously eluded them but was also set to increase its car sales by at least 30% in thetter half of 1994.


    It''s worth mentioning that because the film included the line, ''Don''t you think Buick''s "tri- shield" logo is cool?'' Buick was initially reluctant but still managed to muster up a $5 million cement budget. After the movie''s release, Buick''s president promptly contacted MGM, which handled the film''s distribution, expressing willingness to invest an additional $20 million for joint promotion -- a kind of deal that previously only the 007 series could afford. Subsequently, Buick''spetitors, including Ford, Chevrolet, and even Japanese brands like Toyota and Honda, hurriedly reached out to the production team, vying for exclusive product cement rights in the sequel of Charlie''s Angels.


    ...


    The knock at the office door pulled Eric from his engrossed reading. Responding, the door gently opened, revealing his assistant in a professional outfit stepping inside. Eric smiled and waved the copy of The Hollywood Reporter he had just read, asking, "Kelly, do you think I can


    unify Hollywood?"


    "From an antitrust perspective, that''s impossible," Kelly said, carrying a stack of documents as she sat across from Eric. "Yet from the perspective of miracles, that may not be the case."


    Eric replied, "I can tell you''replimenting me and not using me as a scapegoat like this


    article, right?"


    Kelly smiled with a knowledgeable and feminine grace, "Yes, but this article also did Firefly a


    big favor. ording to the finance department''s forecasts, the financial report for the first half of the year needs to be postponed until next month due to the merger with ABC. This article''s release has boosted morale as much as a positive financial report would. The impacts of the animation department''s restructuring are now negligible, and we expect toplete the sale of all long-term bonds by the end of the month."


    Eric inquired, "Speaking of that, any updates from Peter Schneider and Roy Disney?"


    "I came to tell you just that," Kelly handed Eric one of the documents. "These are their


    proposed conditions."


    Eric opened the document and briefly skimmed it. Aside from significantly increasing sries and budgets for the animation department -- a series of expected demands -- Peter Schneider and Roy Disney also requested the construction of a Disney animation studioparable to Pixar, along with autonomy simr to that of Pixar.


    Closing the document, Eric wore a faintly sarcastic expression. "They opened with a demand to double the employee sries; it''s clear they have no intention of resolving this matter


    quickly." Kelly responded, "Since they chose to team up with Ron Perelman, Ron needs enough time to rally the creditors on his end as well."


    "Good, we also need enough time toy our ns," Eric suddenlyughed and remarked, "In that regard, they''re contributing theirst help to Firefly."n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Kelly couldn''t help but feel pity for both Peter Schneider and Roy Disney, particrly for Peter. This executive from the animation department was quite capable. If he followed Eric''s n for reforming the department, he might still have a chance at a higher position within the Firefly system in the future. Yet now, even if the animation department found a new owner, his current act of betrayal would surely expose him, and Firefly absolutely had no obligation to keep this matter a secret from the new owners.


    *****


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