Chapter 118: Hollywood Nightmare (Part 3)

[Chapter 118: Hollywood Nightmare (Part 3)]

"Extra! Extra!"

"Andy Conner caught cheating at the Hotel by his wife!"

"Conner tried to escape wrapped in a bedsheet, but it slipped off in the lobby."

"Mrs. Conner hit him in the vitals with a baseball bat; it seems it will be hard for Conner to recover."

Just two days after the Madonna incident, a new Hollywood scandal broke.

Though Andy Conner wasn't a A-list Hollywood star, his public humiliation quickly made front-page news.

...

Two days later, yet another juicy story hit the scene.

In less than a week, three major Hollywood exposes got the entire nation buzzing.

After days filled with violent news, this sensational gossip provided a welcome distraction, easing the public's rampant fear and anger, ultimately increasing praise for Ian Carr.

"Ian Carr never disappoints!"

"He's either dodging bullets or living on the edge with beautiful women!"

"I envy Ian Carr; his life is always so colorful!"

"No reporter can compare to him!"

"Ian Carr, I love you! I'll sleep with my ex-boyfriend; if you want to come shoot me, I can call my husband right away!"

"Come shoot me, Ian! I'll give you the full view!"

Of course, there were dissenting voices.

"What nonsense! That's a butterfly -- clearly a manwhore! We don't want gossip; we want hard-hitting news!"

"Ian Carr excels in shootouts, explosions, and death; don't forget your roots!"

"I hate how Hollywood puts out stories with so many filters! Damn, real news shouldn't have filters!"

"I want the unedited version of Madonna!"

"Willing to pay big for the unedited videos!"

With each scandalous reveal, Hollywood faced not just wealth but panic too!

---

At Trump Tower, in the office of the chairman of Carr Media Group.

Ian sat at his desk, laughing while on the phone.

"Harvey, it's me! I know you guys produced The Lord of the Rings. Remember I said your promotions should come to me? I get it, that's a New Line project, but your brother Bob Weinstein is the producer! His info? I can get that anytime. In Hollywood, no one's keeping it zipped; no one... Perfect, let's seal the deal. Just remember I want my cut; don't worry, I don't ask for much; I make money through my solid judgment."

"Mr. Richard, this is Ian Carr... Planet of the Apes is a good film; I have high hopes for it... I haven't seen it yet, but I have a feeling... I hope I can help promote it... No money... Just a small cut; I'm never greedy."

"Michael Baran? This is Ian Carr... Yes, I'm interested in the promotion for Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone... I think we can talk; you wouldn't want your business with Ms. Benet exposed, right? Don't worry; Carr Media's influence will be beyond your imagination. I don't mind betting on this. My partners and I are on board. Let's do a tiered deal, but I want to be involved in all future promotions for Harry Potter... This will be a win-win!"

...

As each call came in, Ian easily accomplished his goals.

He secured part of the promotional business for several upcoming films from Hollywood.

Just then, his secretary, Shani, approached him.

She stood gracefully in front of Ian, her frustration masked by her allure: "Warner Bros. called; they're excited about you volunteering to promote Ocean's Eleven and Harry Potter."

Ian nodded, "Let the ad department handle it; I've set the main direction for them -- no need for me to micromanage everything."

Shani glanced at the files in her hands and continued, "20th Century Fox, Universal Pictures, and New Line Cinema all sent messages saying they want to partner with you. But Disney, Paramount, Sony, and DreamWorks have all turned you down."

Ian raised an eyebrow, "Disney has deep pockets and media outlets; I'm not surprised they'd pass. Paramount is under Viacom; they're competing with CBS, so it makes sense they'd avoid working with me. Sony wouldn't agree because I wanted the Spider-Man rights; that's fair. But what's DreamWorks' issue?"

Shani answered, "They said your company hasn't employed any Jewish executives, and they publicly announced they wouldn't cooperate with you, even encouraging others to boycott!"

She paused, seeing Ian showed no signs of anger as she continued, "Don't accept blackmail from a criminal!"

Ian thought: Yes, it wasn't just Jews I avoided; I also didn't hire certain radical religious groups. 

[T/N: Originally, it was Indians, Koreans, Jews, Japanese, Muslims, etc. I removed the other races because I felt they do not impact the story.]

The issue with Jews wasn't about the Middle East, but about interests.

In America, they controlled the finance and media sectors the most.

If Ian wanted to expand in media and continue swallowing up competitors, he'd inevitably cross paths with Jews... One could say they were his biggest competitors in the future.

Whether it came to interests or values, Ian didn't like them, so they had to be off the table.

The rest didn't require much explanation.

What puzzled Ian was how Spielberg could be certain of this.

I never publicly stated I disliked Jews!

...

Ian frowned, "The Carr Group has just started, and we have few people. We might not have encountered the right Jewish elites yet?"

Shani replied, "There's a guy named Bernad who keeps spreading this talk. He's a journalist and got some inside info, confirming you've ordered no Jews to be hired."

Damn! That's that bastard from the Times that I fired!

Ian slammed his desk in frustration.

For a moment, he considered having Crips take care of Bernad.

But his inner conscience told him that this situation didn't warrant such extreme measures.

He remembered Gaskill's lesson: avoid using mob tactics in business competition... For the most part, Ian adhered to this, unless the stakes were really high!

While Bernad was annoying, it hadn't reached the point where he'd wish him dead -- just breaking his legs would suffice.

Sigh, perhaps I was too merciful.

Ian sighed.

But to think DreamWorks would turn against him just for this...

Clearly, my intimidation in Hollywood still wasn't strong enough!

The largest issue with media was that the big scoop journalists got often hinged on luck. Even if Ian released numerous major stories about Madonna and others, it didn't guarantee he'd continue to produce that kind of content. Besides, he could always be more cautious moving forward.

Every corrupt person believed they could escape the law!

Hollywood was no different; while some would be cautious, others would still be gambling on their luck.

As for Spielberg, even though he was a big director, Ian didn't hold him in high regard.

He pondered for a moment, then opened the drawer and pulled out a thick stack of files.

As he rifled through them, Ian pulled out two documents and handed them to Shani: "Send these two out too."

Shani took the documents and glanced at them, her expression shifting: "Francis O'Connor criticizing Adam as a tyrant? Hailey Joel Osment exceeding his shooting hours?"

Francis O'Connor was the leading lady for DreamWorks' upcoming A.I. Artificial Intelligence, and Adam was the big boss of AMC theaters.

She blasted Adam as a tyrant at a private party; this would definitely affect AMC's screening schedule for A.I. Artificial Intelligence.

Hailey Joel Osment was currently one of the biggest child stars in America, and U.S. child protection laws are very strict.

Exceeding shooting hours on set could absolutely bring the scrutiny of child protection organizations, even leading to boycotts!

These two pieces of news, if released, would create big trouble for DreamWorks' A.I. Artificial Intelligence, which hadn't even been released yet!

She looked at her boss with wide eyes.

Ian Carr, you were a nightmare for Hollywood!

Ian glared at Shani, his voice low: "Also! Not hiring Jews is an HR bias of the Carr Group, not Ian Carr's intention. Make sure they understand that!"

An excellent HR should take the heat for the boss. If they can't do that, what good are they?

Shani nodded, "You'll always be a good friend to the Jews, boss."

Ian grinned, "Of course!"

*****

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