Chapter 439: Forbes Billionaires List
[Chapter 439: Forbes Billionaires List]
In early April, Forbes magazine released its latest billionaire rankings as scheduled.
In the new Global Billionaires List, Link ranked fifth with a net worth of $14.1 billion.
According to Forbes, his assets primarily included three components.
First, Glimmer Investments, which owned stocks in many companies including 4.05% of Microsoft, 3.35% of Cisco, 2.65% of Berkshire Hathaway, 37.3% of Apple, 3.2% of Disney, and 6.25% of Pixar among other publicly traded shares.
This portion was valued at about $10.5 billion.
Additionally, Glimmer Capital held stakes in 16 private companies, including 15.2% of Guess Pictures, 18% of LTD Apparel (the parent company of Victoria's Secret), 95% of Marvel Entertainment, 15% of United Talent Agency (UTA), and 3.5% of Creative Artists Agency (CAA).
This part was worth about $2.2 billion.
The total value of Glimmer Capital was approximately $12.7 billion.
Link owned 74.5% of Glimmer Capital shares, worth about $9.5 billion.
The second part was Link's overseas assets, including Kingsoft Investment and Horizon Investments, as well as other investments. Due to the extensive and diverse nature of his overseas holdings and their discreet investment methods, many assets were difficult to verify.
Forbes estimated his overseas assets at about $2.5 billion based on capital flows over recent years.
The third part was Guess Pictures.
After two rounds of funding, Link still held 33.3% of the company.
Following Pixar's IPO earlier this year, Wall Street investment firms valued Guess Pictures at $6.5 billion.
His 33.3% share was worth approximately $2.16 billion.
Added together, these three assets totaled around $14.1 billion.
...
Link ranked fifth on the billionaire list.
Bill Gates ranked first, with Microsoft's stocks soaring last year from over $60 billion to $100 billion, with a stable market cap between $90 and $100 billion.
As Microsoft's biggest shareholder, Gates's total assets were about $36.4 billion.
Warren Buffett, CEO of Berkshire Hathaway, ranked second with wealth of about $16.2 billion.
Paul Allen, co-founder of Microsoft, came in third with $15.5 billion.
Fourth was Sulaiman Al-Rajhi, Saudi banker and richest in the Middle East, with $14.6 billion.
Forbes's commentary noted that Link's highly diversified and varied investments made it difficult to calculate his true wealth, which they estimated to be between $14 and $18 billion.
...
Additionally, Forbes released a Celebrity Earners List, with Link topping it thanks to $280 million in film earnings.
NBA star Michael Jordan was second with earnings of $78.5 million from salary, investments, and endorsements.
Heavyweight boxer Evander Holyfield ranked third with $54.3 million from fight purses and sponsorships.
Tom Cruise earned $48 million from Mission: Impossible and Jerry Maguire, coming in fourth.
Boxer Oscar De La Hoya was fifth with $38 million.
Sandra Bullock earned $28 million, ranking 12th and the top female celebrity.
Michelle Pfeiffer, Jennifer Aniston, Jennifer Connelly, and Brooke Shields also appeared on the list.
After Forbes published the rankings, some media grouped Link and his girlfriends as the "Link Family," estimating their combined assets exceeded $20 billion.
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"Director Link, congratulations on doubling your fortune again," praised Jackie Chan during a break on a Hong Kong Island film set. He openly expressed admiration and envy.
"Those are just numbers on paper, nothing to brag about," Link said casually.
Jackie Chan didn't argue, smiling and continuing to say flattering things.
Link sighed. When his net worth was in the low billions, people joked with him. When it rose to over six billion, attitudes became more reserved and respectful.
Now acquaintances were even more cautious on calls or face to face, some nervous, making it hard for him to find someone to chat with properly.
After Jackie Chan finished praising, Link asked about preparations for Rush Hour 2.
Because Jackie Chan performed well and contributed significantly to the first Rush Hour, Guess Pictures hired him as producer for the sequel, overseeing production.
Jackie Chan quickly reported everything was progressing smoothly: script, casting, filming locations were ready. Filming was planned to start at the end of the month.
Link nodded.
...
After seeing Jackie Chan off, Link continued coaching Michelle Yeoh and Pierce Brosnan on their action scenes.
Michelle Yeoh, 35, was a Malaysian actress who debuted in '79 and had starred in many Hong Kong action movies, becoming a well-known Asian action star.
With genuine martial arts training and extensive fight scene experience, her filming went smoothly, except her chemistry with Pierce Brosnan was lacking romantic and humorous flair.
Link guided them with finger-pointed instructions on choreography and posture.
Under his careful coaching, they improved rapidly.
The 007 filming in Hong Kong proceeded well, completing that segment in three weeks.
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When the crew prepared to move to Tokyo, Sony Group chairman Nobuyuki Idei called, welcoming him to Japan and hoping to invite him for an authentic Japanese meal.
Link agreed.
In Tokyo, Idei rented the most luxurious Ginza Japanese restaurant to host Link and the crew.
He arranged around a dozen Japanese female celebrities to perform dance shows.
These women ranged from their twenties to forties, varying in height and figure, representing various beauties from young girls to mature women.
Among them were actresses like Rie Miyazawa, Izumi Sakai, Norika Fujiwara, Shizuka Kudo, Yasuko Sawaguchi, and Akina Nakamori.
Idei told Link the performers were gifts for him and invited him to choose freely.
Out of politeness, Link selected two women to chat with. But, seeing Idei wanted to select some as well, he simply selected all recognizable celebrities to join him.
Since this was Japan, Link kept things professional: just meals, chats, hot springs, singing and dancing engagements. His main focus remained on the film.
The Tokyo scenes were brief, mainly two street chase gunfight sequences, completed in less than a week.
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By mid-April, Link returned to the U.S. with his crew to shoot the remaining 007 scenes at Universal Studios.
Just as he arrived back in Los Angeles, Idei sent a private jet to bring Rie Miyazawa, Izumi Sakai, Norika Fujiwara, Shizuka Kudo, Yasuko Sawaguchi, and Akina Nakamori over.
He said the women missed Link desperately and hoped he would take them in.
The actresses also called Link, their voices tinged with grievance and helplessness, suggesting Idei pressured them.
Link had several hundred million dollars in cooperation with Idei, and seeing his sincerity, he did not refuse but accepted them graciously.
*****
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