Continuing to rise

After the nominations for the 50th Golden Globe Awards were announced, it immediately sparked heated discussions. Looking at the achievements of the two works, "Scent of a Woman" and "A Few Good Men", it was not difficult to understand the explosive media debates. Hugo's remarkable performance in 1992, from beginning to end, left people in awe.

Starting with winning the Razzie Awards at the beginning of the year and receiving dual nominations for the Golden Globe Awards at the end of the year, replicating this feat in the future would undoubtedly be extremely difficult. All news media outlets were participants and even instigators in this magical journey, which made journalists sigh in admiration. Not only the Los Angeles Times but almost all media outlets were discussing the Golden Globe nominations, even leading to discussions about the Oscar nominations.

Hugo's performance in "A Few Good Men" was indeed commendable. However, the competition for Best Actor was particularly fierce. This time, Hugo was only nominated in the Best Actor - Drama category. If the categories were combined, especially considering Hugo's age of only twenty-five and his history with the Razzie Awards, the future would become uncertain.

As for Hugo's performance as a supporting role in "Scent of a Woman", although the Golden Globe Awards do not distinguish between supporting and lead roles, Hugo's performance in the film was not competitive enough. Everyone knew that Al Pacino was the absolute lead in this movie. This brought to mind the situation with "Dead Poets Society", which also achieved success for Robin Williams but left Hugo, who delivered a brilliant performance, without any nominations. Therefore, the prospects for the Oscars remained unpredictable.

Although that was what people say, it was an indisputable fact that Hugo received dual nominations for the Golden Globe Awards. Regardless of the future prospects for the Oscars, Hugo had rejuvenated his career as an actor, achieving a significant breakthrough in his ten-year acting journey. This was worthy of extensive coverage by the media.

The Golden Globe nominations were announced in the morning, and in the afternoon, Joseph received an important invitation. This was also the most significant program invitation Hugo had received to date, coming from The Oprah Winfrey Show!

As a special form of program, the origins of talk shows can be traced back to the 1930s. At that time, talk shows not only featured hosts but also involved audience participation, focusing on highly regarded social issues. This solidified the talk show format. After decades of development, talk shows rose to prominence in the 1980s and became a vital component of American television programs.

Including the late-night shows Hugo had appeared on, there were currently more than a dozen different formats of talk shows on major U.S. television networks, indicating the prosperity of this program format. Hugo had appeared on talk shows multiple times during the promotional period for his two films, using this concise and relaxed format to promote the movies.

During the rapid rise of talk shows in the 1980s, The Oprah Winfrey Show held a particularly special position. Although it may not have been the first show to popularize talk shows to the public, Johnny Carson was probably closer to that honor. However, The Oprah Winfrey Show took this type of program to a whole new level.

Oprah Winfrey, a 38-year-old African-American woman, took over the ABC television program AM Chicago in February 1984. She carried out significant reforms to the show, removing all frivolous and trivial topics and replacing them with socially relevant and controversial subjects. She was not interested in things that others found intriguing; on the contrary, she dared to try things that no one else dared to do. Unlike most talk shows today that seek to attract viewers by exposing scandal, showcasing chaos, and humiliating failures, Oprah approached these individuals in distress from a friend's standpoint and with feminine qualities, soothing and helping them regain positive energy.

Within just a month, The Oprah Winfrey Show soared from being a third-rate talk show to becoming a program on par with the top talk show host at the time, Phil Donahue, and within three months, it surpassed Phil to become the number one rated show. This overnight success made Oprah the spokesperson for talk shows.

In 1985, The Oprah Winfrey Show officially changed its name and was broadcast simultaneously in 120 cities across the United States. By the end of 1985, faced with Oprah's tremendous success in the same city, Phil left Chicago for New York in disappointment, marking a revolutionary change in the landscape of American talk shows.

The Oprah Winfrey Show became the most successful talk show in the United States and even worldwide, attracting an average of over 10 million viewers daily. It consistently held the top spot in the ratings for years and continuously broke its own records. The high ratings affirmed by the viewers and the numerous Emmy Awards it received from the professional field made it beloved by audiences worldwide, ushering in a new era of talk shows.

Undoubtedly, The Oprah Winfrey Show is an unparalleled milestone in the history of American television programs and has become a symbol of popular culture. Oprah herself is one of the most legendary African-American women in the United States and the world. She transformed from a poor and unattractive girl into a globally renowned talk show queen. She was not only the first African-American billionaire in the United States but also the most influential African-American woman.

On The Oprah Winfrey Show, the guests ranged from ordinary people to experts, and there were also numerous world-class celebrities who had the opportunity to showcase themselves in front of over 10 million American viewers. Hugo's appearances on The Tonight Show had achieved remarkable results, with 4.8 million viewers for the first appearance and 5.3 million viewers for the second appearance, both being the highest-rated programs of the month in the same time slot and genre. Especially the second appearance, which promoted "Scent of a Woman," had viewership that ranked among the top five for the entire year of 1992. It cannot be said that it was not successful, but compared to The Oprah Winfrey Show, the viewership gap was significant.

If Hugo remembered correctly, The Oprah Winfrey Show not only had the highest ratings in the history of talk shows in the United States but also had the longest running daytime talk show in American history. It also set a record for the highest single-episode ratings in American television history, thanks to an episode featuring Michael Jackson in 1993. The interview attracted an audience of 62 million, which was almost a record-breaking number.

Therefore, being able to appear on such a profoundly influential talk show, especially with an invitation directly from The Oprah Winfrey Show, was undoubtedly the best affirmation for Hugo in 1992.

Joseph didn't hesitate and readily accepted the invitation from the show's team. Without much time to spare, the next day, the two of them boarded a flight to Chicago, heading to the Windy City.

The United States is vast in territory, ranking fourth in land area globally. On this land, several huge metropolitan areas can be found. Undoubtedly, New York is the largest metropolitan area, followed by Los Angeles. The greater Chicago area, composed of Chicago and its surrounding suburbs, is the third-largest metropolitan area in the United States.

Although Hugo had been in the United States for almost a year, he had visited only a few cities. This was his first time in Chicago, and he was filled with curiosity about this place known as the Windy City.

Chicago, the Windy City, is situated along the curved shoreline of Lake Michigan. It is surrounded like a "pocket" from three directions - southeast, west, and northwest - by the lake. The cold winds blowing from Canada to the north directly rush into this pocket. Additionally, with the spacious streets and waterways in the city, the cold wind easily reaches most areas of the city. This is how the nickname Windy City originated, and the locals even self-deprecatingly say, "One wind per year, from spring to winter."

Chicago is also known as the City of Broad Shoulders, a nickname derived from a poem titled "Chicago" by Carl Sandburg, a renowned poet from Chicago and a two-time Pulitzer Prize winner. In his 1916 poem, he wrote, "Hog Butcher for the World...City of the Big Shoulders..." Since then, the Windy City has had this interesting nickname.

In fact, the nickname City of Broad Shoulders is not without reason. Chicago is the birthplace of skyscrapers. After the first high-rise building was constructed in 1885, it marked the beginning of a new era in architecture, and Chicago became a gathering place for tall buildings. It is the city with the most skyscrapers in the United States. Therefore, the City of Broad Shoulders can be seen as a metaphor for standing on the shoulders of giants.

Hugo had no knowledge or research about skyscrapers. In his eyes, the various types of buildings were nothing more than a forest of steel. He couldn't see the difference between Chicago and New York. At least, he couldn't tell by standing at the airport entrance. But after stepping out of O'Hare International Airport in Chicago, Hugo immediately had a firsthand experience of the Windy City. Although Hugo had suspected on the plane that the biting cold wind might prevent the plane from landing, it was only after reaching the ground that he truly understood what bone-chilling cold meant.

"Oh, my God..." Hugo couldn't even open his mouth. As soon as he tried to speak, a gust of cold wind from Lake Michigan blew directly into his mouth, causing him to cough.

Joseph, standing beside him, couldn't help but smirk at Hugo's plight. When Hugo looked up, he saw Joseph had completely zipped up his coat, covering his mouth. It was evident that Joseph had come prepared. This caused Hugo's mouth to twitch involuntarily. But now, there was no time to pay attention to Joseph. Hugo quickly pulled up the collar of his own coat, attempting to block the aimless gusts of cold wind.

December in Chicago gave Hugo a rude awakening and made him realize that the Windy City was definitely not as simple as it seemed.