American Fame and Fortune

Chapter 60 Expansion Screw

 Under the Great Smoky Mountains, the crescent moon was reflected on the lake. In the yard of the lakeside vacation house, Elena lit a bonfire.

 Martin set up the barbecue and skillfully spread sauce on the skewers.

 The fragrance immediately wafted up.

Opposite, Lily was holding a large kettle, biting the drop-shaped straw, and sucked hard.

Elena came over and punched her on the head: "Idiot, don't use this."

Hall took a shovel and dug a hole by the campfire, buried the potatoes that Martin had wrapped, and muttered: "A bunch of idiots."

 Harris sat on a rock: "I should call the Cole sisters and call them. One hundred percent they will come."

Lily was depressed after being suppressed by her elder sister, and said, "I'm going to go to the lake and catch a black bear."

Martin said deliberately: "Vacation camps like this are the scene of horrific incidents. There is a perverted murderer living in the Great Smoky Mountains, hunting down the mountains in the dark, and catching beautiful girls."

Elena said: "Idiot, don't scare people." She looked at Lily: "Let's go to the lake for dinner. You can swim here."

This is a mature resort area, certainly not what Martin said.

 After dinner, Lily and Elena put on their swimsuits, wrapped themselves in long blankets, and came to the lake.

Tourists in twos and threes, separated by some distance, took a night swim in the lake.

Elena followed Martin into the water. The bottom of the lake here was entirely made of artificial sand. It was relatively flat and the water was not too deep.

The two of them had a tacit understanding. They swam to a deserted place, climbed into a small boat, and lay down.

 Martin has been having a shadow recently: "Is there someone watching over here?"

“You can’t see clearly even from a distance.” Elena has always been simple and direct in this regard: “You idiot, I’m not afraid of you, so what are you afraid of?”

Martin said: "I'm afraid the ship will sink."

The water was rippling, the waves were rising and falling, and the boat was rocking violently.

 …

 The resort is very safe and no terrorist incidents have occurred.

 Early the next morning, Martin had breakfast and rushed to the crew at the Automobile Production Center to make his presence felt in front of director Michel Gondry.

While having lunch with Louise Meyer, I struck up a conversation with producer Steve Gowling.

  In a producer-centered Hollywood, Steve Golin is undoubtedly the most powerful person in the entire crew.

 Martin was not sure about Steve Gowling for the time being, so he just said a few polite greetings.

 Getting off the dining car, Martin met the leader of the Marietta Troupe.

The two of them came under the awning. Jerome said: "I kicked Rosa out of the troupe and spread the news in the Atlanta extras circle. She reported her fellow cast members and she will not be able to mix in this circle in the future."

He explained simply: "There are too many drug users in this industry, and no one wants to have a time bomb around them."

 Martin said: "Captain, you have taken the trouble."

Jerome is very powerful as a group leader: "If you bully my group members, you have to pay the price!"

 Martin knew that Jerome went to great lengths to do this because he could get something in return from him. He looked very concerned: "Is there any problem with the crew?"

"The cooperation is very good." Jerome sees a bright future: "After the first cooperation with the Hollywood crew, there will be a second time, and the first time is the most difficult."

He fears being forgotten: “Martin, Robert Patrick said, will always be a member of the Marietta Theater Company.”

 Martin said solemnly: "Me too."

Jerome took out a card from his pocket and handed it to Martin: "This is Robert Patrick's contact information in Los Angeles. If you go to Los Angeles for development, it will be somewhat helpful." Martin took it excitedly: "Captain!"

"If you really want to leave Atlanta one day, tell me and I will call him and explain your situation." Jerome made a pun: "People in the Marietta Theater Company should help each other."

  Martin agrees: “Everywhere I went, I was a member of the Marietta Troupe.”

Jerome pointed to the office next to the studio: "I'm going to have a chat with Andrew."

As the people gradually walked away, Martin lowered his head and looked at the words on the card. There were only names and a series of numbers.

 Obviously, private contact information that is not available to the general public.

Robert came over with his brain dangling at this time and said: "The leader came to me this morning and said that he would no longer charge me dues."

 He asked: "Did you speak for me?"

 Martin pointed to his head: "The leader has a lot of ideas, I don't need to say more."

Robert is not stupid: "I should say thank you. $300 a month is not a small number for me."

Instead, Martin said: "You are my lucky star, Robert. If one day I can really develop in Hollywood and compete with others for important roles, I will definitely invite you over."

 It does nothing else but is used to control Feng Shui.

 He ​​imitated Harris’s way of speaking: “With you here, my winning rate can increase by 60%!”

Robert was not polite to Martin: "When the time comes, help me find a role with dialogues, and yes, there must also be frontal shots. Don't be like you in this play, where you have a lot of lines and few frontal shots."

Martin said: "Don't worry, as long as there is a chance, I will definitely find you a role with dialogues."

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In the evening, Martin invited director Michel Gondry to have a meal full of Atlanta-style food at a high-end restaurant in Peachtree Center.

The crew has been filming for more than a month. The part in Atlanta is about to be completed and they will return to Los Angeles soon.

 Because the two have many common topics regarding their stance on the British, Michel Gondry has a good impression of Martin.

 Personal relationships are built up bit by bit.

Maybe it’s not useful now, but maybe it will be useful in the future.

 Two days later, Louise Meyer was also leaving Atlanta.

 The night before she left, Martin came to the hotel where she was staying and specially prepared a cup of expansion screws modified from slow-speed screws for her.

Countless bubbles burst in the mouth of the wine, and Louise Meyer said: "Martin Davis, how many new cocktails do you know? You bastard, you are playing with the heart of an alcoholic!"

Martin looked aggrieved: "It seems like you are playing tricks on me, right? You are a superior producer, I am just a small actor, let me think about which word is appropriate, yes, you are unspoken rules for me!"

Louis didn’t want to talk to this trash, and was silent for a while before speaking: “And Kelly, the bastard, no one knows me better than her, so she specially prepared you, bastard, and you are a couple!”

Martin seemed not to have heard, and said: "The expansion screw is my parting gift to you. I have given you the recipe. Louise's expansion screw will definitely leave a mark in the history of cocktails!"

When the room finally became quiet, Martin asked: "Are you going to Morocco?"

 Louise nodded: "Take a week off in Los Angeles and go to Morocco. There is a crew there. You don't have to think about it. I won't use you. You haven't passed the accent test yet."

 Martin knew better than to rush: "I have to get rid of the zombie gigolo first."

 Louise said: "Use all your means to win the first leading role in your life. Compared to Hollywood, this is just a small game."

 (End of this chapter)