With the addition of three little ones, breakfast time at the Shell Villa was lively and bustling. It was Monday, May 16th.
The dining room seated seven: Simon and his wife, Veronica next to Melbourne, the female assistant with little Nick, and Janet keeping Seattle close by her side. Janet was enthusiastically teaching the exceptionally precocious little girl to name the various foods and utensils on the table, occasionally rewarding her with a taste, making little Nick, seated in his custom baby seat, drool. Both little ones were only six months old, just there for the fun, as they couldn't eat anything other than milk yet.
Seattle tasted a bit of dragon fruit, then obediently spat it back into the spoon. Janet praised her, noticing her son across the table staring wide-eyed at her. She teasingly reached out with the spoon, coaxing, "Call me 'Mommy,' and I'll give you a taste."
Little Nick, of course, couldn't manage to say it, only babbling and opening his mouth expectantly. Janet promptly put the spoon back in her mouth, enjoying herself. The little one, tricked by his own mother, finally couldn't hold back and burst into tears.
The female assistant rolled her eyes at Janet, picked Nick up from his seat, gently soothing him, and then lifted her shirt to nurse him, stopping his cries.
Janet eyed the female assistant nursing the baby and then glanced at her man, finally turning to Seattle with a wolfish grin, "Does Syl want some too?"
Seattle nodded her little head, her voice still soft but clear, "Yeah."
Janet immediately showed a triumphant smile, shaking her head regretfully, "No more."
Feeling the strange looks from across the table, even from her eldest son, Simon pretended not to notice.
Janet, still mischievous, whispered something into Seattle's ear and then placed the little girl on the spacious table, cheerfully saying, "Go ahead."
The female assistant, seeing her daughter crawling on the table, sighed, "Janet, don't make trouble. I can't feed two kids."
Janet, with a sly smile, gently nudged the hesitant little girl. Seattle, with her beautiful eyes, looked around the table and then crawled towards Veronica.
Seeing Veronica's face turn from surprise to embarrassment, Janet laughed and lightly patted the table.
Since it was no longer a secret, the matter of Simon's heritage was no longer hidden from the female assistant. Worried about Veronica's awkwardness, the assistant wanted to take her daughter back but was preoccupied with nursing the other baby.
Thankfully, before Seattle reached her 'destination,' Simon stood up and scooped her up, handing her back to the gleeful Janet.
Janet, holding the little girl, praised, "Syl is so smart."
Sensing the odd atmosphere in the dining room, the female assistant changed the topic to something more formal, asking Simon, "Hillary is coming over for lunch. Are you really not going to meet her?"
Hillary, of course, meant Hillary Clinton.
The First Lady was visiting as a mediator for the Hearst Group. Washington couldn't ignore the plight of the Hearst Group's over 20,000 employees and their union power, which translated to votes. Last Friday, several major newspaper unions submitted a petition to the White House, asking for intervention in the Hearst Group's crisis. After brief communication with Los Angeles, President Clinton dispatched Hillary to negotiate.
Simon had no intention of letting the Hearst family off the hook.
The one-dollar settlement condition was both to strip the Hearst family of any chance to rise again and to prevent them from choosing mutual destruction. Desperate people can be dangerous.
The Hearst family's hesitation after Simon's offer was expected.
Knowing the assistant's thoughts, Simon said, "Since the First Lady is coming, you should host her. I'll stay out of it."
Both Clintons were smart.
Simon's absence would make it clear to them that he wouldn't be easily swayed.
The Westeros system's relationship with the Clintons was not so close that they would support each other unconditionally. Their cooperation was based on mutual benefit. Simon wouldn't fully back Clinton, nor would the White House blindly follow the Westeros system.
Both sides understood each other's importance. While not completely allied, neither would easily abandon such a powerful ally.
Since the Doris Fetcher murder scandal broke, the Hearst Group's situation had become untenable without Simon's intervention.
Simon's stance was crucial to the entire situation.
The public outcry over the Doris Fetcher murder had a shelf life. Just like the phone hacking scandal of News Corporation, it would eventually die down. Without the Westeros system's interference, the Hearst Group could have survived the storm, just like it did after encouraging the assassination of a president, which only led to the closure of one newspaper.
Currently, however, the Hearst Group faced both the murder scandal and the Westeros system's comprehensive blockade and lawsuits. The combination was fatal. The murder scandal acted as a catalyst, accelerating the collapse of the Hearst Group.
If Simon agreed to lift the blockade and settle the lawsuits quickly, the Hearst Group could catch a breath and handle the fallout from the scandal more easily.
From early March to now, the Westeros system had been embroiled in this for over two months, all due to the Hearst family's manipulation of the London Girl scandal and their subsequent attacks on Simon.
Given the absolute advantage Simon now had, letting the Hearst family off would be unforgivable to himself.
Even if he couldn't make the deeply entrenched Hearst family instantly poor, Simon intended to eliminate them from the media industry. Without their vast media empire, the Hearst family's hidden power would crumble, and they would lose their influence in the country.
Wealth and power always go hand in hand.
Without power, it would be easier to strip away the Hearst family's remaining wealth.
The remark Simon made to Lydia Hearst during their lunch last week was no joke.
After breakfast, Veronica flew to New York. Janet would have gone too, as BlackRock Asset Management's acquisition of State Street Bank's asset management department was at a critical stage. However, due to the First Lady's visit, she postponed her trip until the next day. Simon didn't mind, but Hillary might feel slighted if only the assistant hosted her.
Simon headed to Daenerys Studios to start his day.
To avoid clashing with the massive June 3rd release of "The Dark Knight Rises," the 1994 summer blockbuster season officially began last Friday.
On May 13th, three new films were released in North America: Michael Bay's "Stargate," Columbia Pictures' "Jungle Fever" by famous Black director Spike Lee, and Disney's "When a Man Loves a Woman" starring Meg Ryan.
The most anticipated was undoubtedly "Stargate."
Since being announced as the director of "Jurassic Park 2" in early April and being linked to the first Victoria's Secret fashion show, Michael Bay's directorial debut had become a hot topic in the media.
With favorable internal reviews, Daenerys Entertainment invested $20 million in marketing.
Including the $30 million production cost, "Stargate" had a total budget of $50 million, making it a significant release.
The new "Stargate" was indeed better than the original.
Michael Bay used his budget to its fullest, incorporating his trademark action-adventure style, delivering a fast-paced, seamless narrative.
The film focused on a high-concept story of humans leading alien natives against evil extraterrestrials, avoiding the androgynous alien character from the original.
Following the typical American blockbuster formula, the cast included a righteous hero, a witty sidekick, and an attractive leading lady.
The original "Stargate" had an unknown actress as the female lead. This time, Simon personally chose Hollywood star Catherine Zeta-Jones, whose slightly darker complexion perfectly suited the role of an alien native girl.
"Stargate" opened on May 13th with 2,296 screens and received a media rating of 8.2.
Given the intense scrutiny from the media since his involvement in "Jurassic Park 2," Michael Bay's debut receiving an 8.2 rating was a perfect score.
The box office results were also impressive.
From May 13th to May 15th, "Stargate" grossed $25.63 million, achieving a high per-screen average in just three days. The first-week forecast was around $36 million. This performance far surpassed Daneris Entertainment's other successful films of 1994, "Four Weddings and a Funeral" and "Ace Ventura: Pet Detective," making a $100 million gross almost certain.
With a $100 million domestic gross, "Stargate" would recoup its entire cost from North American theaters alone, entering the profit phase in other channels.
By May 12th, "Four Weddings and a Funeral," released 13 weeks earlier, had grossed $104.55 million, becoming Daneris Entertainment's first domestic $100 million film of 1994.
Last weekend, it earned another $680,000, bringing its total to $105.23 million, with the full week's earnings expected to be around $1 million.
Despite its artistic nature, "Four Weddings and a Funeral" still had 563 screens. Though its weekly gross was about to drop below $1 million, its strong reviews and long-run potential suggested it could add another $5 million, reaching around $110 million domestically.
Moreover, the film's international box office was even more impressive, reaching $153 million by last week, likely to surpass $200 million, for a global total of $300 million.
With a $5 million production cost and $300 million in box office returns, "Four Weddings and a Funeral" was poised to be 1994's highest return-on-investment film.
As for the
Jim Carrey comedy "Ace Ventura: Pet Detective," it had grossed $77.26 million in five weeks by May 12th.
However, last weekend, under pressure from new releases like "Stargate," its box office dropped 31%, earning only $4.13 million, with the full week's earnings expected to be around $6 million.
With the official start of the summer blockbuster season, the film's box office decline would continue under pressure from new releases. The film, which had grossed $81.39 million by last weekend, was likely to surpass $90 million domestically but breaking $100 million seemed unlikely.
Additionally, due to its distinctly American lowbrow humor, "Ace Ventura: Pet Detective" hadn't performed well internationally, grossing only $33 million by last week, with a final international total expected around $50 million.
A global total of $140 million was a big win compared to its $25 million total investment, but Simon knew Jim Carrey's full box office potential hadn't been realized. They'd have to wait for "The Mask" later that year.
Simon wasn't disappointed that "Ace Ventura: Pet Detective" wouldn't break $100 million domestically.
A total of over $90 million versus crossing the $100 million mark was more symbolic, particularly for newly famous actors like Jim Carrey.
Moreover, given Carrey's attempt to renegotiate his contract after his sudden rise to fame, $90 million was a suitable stopping point. Simon wasn't stingy. If Carrey had behaved, he would have received a big bonus after the success of "Ace Ventura: Pet Detective" and "The Mask."
But since the comedian was causing trouble so soon after his rise, Simon regrettably wouldn't give him anything.
With "The Mask" already in post-production, if Carrey continued his antics, Simon wouldn't hesitate to shelf him for a few years. Unlike other studios that might cater to a bankable star, Daneris Entertainment had more projects than it could handle. No one was indispensable.
_________________________
[Check out my Patreon for +200 additional chapters in all my fanfics! $5 for all!!]
[w w w . p a t r e o n .com / INNIT]
[+50 PowerStones = +1 Chapter]