Exciting 1979!

Chapter 309 A Big Business Worth Hundreds of Millions

When Wei Ming was working on "Jumanji," he received a 9% royalty share as a newcomer to the industry, which was shared by the original author, translator, and illustrator.

With Melinda's efforts, the percentage of "The Lion King" was adjusted to 10%.

Currently, Wei Ming receives a 15% royalty share on his works.

There are no plans to make "Jurassic Park" into a picture book, which saves the illustrator's share. The translation fee can be increased to reduce the translation fee, so it is not a problem for Wei Ming to keep more than one-tenth of the total sales of "Jurassic Park".

Wei Ming handed the new contract to Lawyer Wei for a look. His English level of listening, speaking, reading and writing was no longer a big problem, but he was not good at dealing with professional legal terms.

Everything was fine up to that point, so Wei Lingling focused on reviewing the terms of the global release.

For example, when releasing "The Lion King" in the Taiwanese market, should we translate it from the English version of "The Lion King Picture Book" into traditional Chinese characters, or translate it directly from the Chinese version of "The Lion King"? That is the question.

Wei Lingling hoped for the latter, as it would bring Wei Ming greater profits, while the publisher preferred the former, as it would avoid censorship risks.

It's not easy for mainland Chinese writers to publish their works in Taiwan, but they can get them published by transferring them through the UK.

Wei Lingling also paid close attention to the issue of the cooperation period.

The collaboration between the author's book and the publisher is time-limited, usually five to ten years. Melinda helped Wei Ming secure a five-year contract, which Wei Lingling was very satisfied with.

In other words, five years after a book is published, Macmillan no longer has the right to print and publish it. Wei Ming can choose to cooperate with other publishing companies or continue to cooperate with Macmillan.

If it's just a short-lived bestseller, it doesn't really matter. But if you want to make it a long-selling book, you need to be careful about this issue.

This is similar to artists signing management contracts; those with ambition don't want to sign contracts that are too long.

Five years from now, the Jurassic Park movie probably won't even be on the big screen yet, and the real peak sales period for this book series is still far off.

After lengthy discussions and negotiations, the contract, which Wei Ming initially thought was without fault, was revised in about ten places, making it more favorable to Wei Ming overall and ensuring his prestige as a global bestselling author.

Melinda gained a completely new understanding of her aunt's professional abilities for the first time. Even if those problems were not intentionally targeted by the company, it was always better to correct them in advance than to argue about them afterward. At the same time, Melinda also had some special thoughts about Wei Lingling for the first time.

On their fourth day in London, Melinda took Wei Ming and Wei Lingling to the New London Theatre in the West End. The collaboration with Andrew Lloyd Webber on the musical "The Lion King" was just as important to Wei Ming as the royalties from the novel "Jurassic Park".

Whether in the future or now, the ticket prices for stage art forms such as musicals and plays far exceed those for movies, since they require live performances time and time again, and there is almost zero tolerance for mistakes.

Fortunately, Wei Ming and his group had complimentary tickets, and their seats were in the front row, allowing them to experience the charm of the musical more clearly.

Britain, the birthplace of Shakespeare, already has a very strong foundation in stage plays. In addition, "Cats" has become a huge hit since its premiere last month, to the point that tickets are hard to come by. So when they entered the theater, almost all the seats were full, including many children dressed in formal attire.

"Cats" is an adaptation by Andrew Lloyd Webber of T.S. Eliot's collection of children's poems, "Old Possum's Book of Cats." The successful performance made Webber realize the influence of musicals aimed at children, or rather, family-friendly musicals.

If London's old gentlemen want to expose their children to musical theatre, even if they love Shakespeare, they have to admit that a cast of cats in "Cats" is definitely more suitable than Shakespeare's tragedies and comedies.

But what if this play is related to Shakespeare, features a cast of animals, and is suitable for children?

Webber first learned about Mr. Why because of an actress named Sarah Brightman in the movie "Cats". She played a small role in the show, but one day her song suddenly became popular, and many people bought tickets to see her in "Cats". She even became popular in North America.

This is a song in memory of John Lennon, and even without the element of honoring a celebrity, it is still a good song.

So Weber learned about this unfamiliar musician, Mr. Why, and through Sarah Brightman, he discovered that Mr. Why was also a children's author, and surprisingly, came from the far East.

Just then, Mr. Why's new book, The Lion King, was selling like hotcakes in the UK, and Webber bought a copy on a whim. He was immediately blown away by what he read.

Although the story does not follow the tragic route of Hamlet, the influence of Shakespeare's work can be clearly seen in this fairy tale. Moreover, the story is vivid and interesting. Compared with Cats, which only features a group of cats, The Lion King has a richer variety of animals and a more mysterious African landscape.

He felt that the story in the picture book was too abbreviated, so through Sarah's connection, he obtained a complete text translation of "The Lion King" from Melinda. After reading the entire novel, Webber was determined to make a musical version of "The Lion King" after "Cats"!
This story, written by a Chinese author, set in Africa, and featuring a British background, has immense commercial potential and is well-suited for global promotion.

After Wei Ming and his two companions took their seats, musical theatre maestro Andrew Lloyd Webber, who was standing on the side of the stage, had already peeked out at them.

"Mr. Weber, what are you looking at?" A pure voice came from behind, which Weber described as having a childlike quality.

“Sarah,” Webber said gently to the kitten behind him, “perform well, and I’ll introduce you to someone later.”

Sarah Brightman, 21, plays a cat named Jemima in "Cats." Her role is small, but due to her unexpected success in pop music, many young audience members bought tickets specifically for her.

Soon, the performance officially began. "Cats" is a two-act play, lasting 140 minutes, including a 20-minute intermission.

"Act One: The Midnight Ball Drives the Cats Wild"

Since it's a musical, there's bound to be plenty of great music. The opening song introduces the Jellicle cats' gathering through a song, and then each cat introduces itself with a song.

Rock Cat's "The Rum Tum Tugger" is a dynamic blend of jazz and rock, showcasing his rebellious and narcissistic personality. The dance is also very impressive and explosive.

"Gus - The Theatre Cat" by The Theatre Cat is a lyrical and nostalgic song, with lyrics full of vicissitudes and reminiscences of past glories.

There's also "Skimbleshanks - The Railway Cat," a tap dance track that's light and cheerful.

Of course, what Wei Ming was most looking forward to was Grizabella's "Memory". As soon as the song started, the emotions of the entire audience were stirred up, and Wei Ming was also immersed in it.

So elegant!
This is a song themed around loneliness, regret, and redemption, and it is also the core theme song of "Cats". Webber composed this song in just one night, which is truly genius.

In a short song, the life of "Glamour Cat" is told. In his youth, he was incredibly beautiful, but he was unwilling to be mediocre. So he left the cat tribe to venture out into the world, suffered many setbacks, and returned in his old age with empty bags and no longer beautiful. His tribe was also unwilling to accept this wanderer.

The actress playing the Glamorous Cat on stage at this time was Elaine Paige, the undisputed queen of the world's musical theatre stage, who collaborated with Andrew Lloyd Webber multiple times. Later, Barbra Streisand and Sarah Brightman also performed this song, and it frequently appears on Chinese singing programs as well.

This song is excellent in both lyrics and music. Its emotions can transcend language and reach the inner world of every listener. As long as the singer is skilled enough, the final ranking will usually not be too bad.

"Memory" appeared once in the first act and once in the second act. The first time, I heard regret, and the second time, I heard relief. The intensity increased layer by layer, and Elaine Paige's singing directly lifted the ceiling of the theater.

Even though the old Londoners had to maintain their gentlemanly conduct, the audience couldn't help but give a soft round of applause as a sign of respect for her performance.

In the end, Charmcat quelled the other cats' hostility towards her, and she was successfully sent to heaven by "Leader Cat".

After the performance, all the actors, including the director and Webber, went on stage to greet the audience, who finally couldn't help but burst into enthusiastic, unrestrained, and long-lasting applause.

Sarah Brightman also spotted her new friend Melinda, who was standing next to a tall, handsome Asian man. Could he be Melinda's ex-boyfriend, Mr. Why?!
Could it be that Mr. Weber wants to take me to see him?

As expected, Sarah quickly finished removing her makeup and met Melinda and the other two in a reception room behind the theater.

The introduction confirmed Mr. Why's identity, and the other Asian woman was his lawyer.

Sarah became a global sensation after singing Wei Ming's song, and Webber invited Sarah to join him in order to build a closer relationship and facilitate future cooperation negotiations.

The first step was for everyone to get to know each other. It was only then that Weber realized that Wei Ming was not a Chinese from Europe or America, but a native of mainland China. Yet he could speak fluent English and even compose music.

"Are there Lennon fans in mainland China too?" The two asked with curiosity and curiosity.

"Yes, but not many. It's because I work at a university and have many international student friends, as well as some people with overseas connections who can listen to the most popular music from Europe and America."

Webber asked curiously, "If we brought 'Cats' to China for a performance, would it be a market?"

This guy hasn't even conquered Broadway yet, and he's already trying to squeeze money out of developing countries.

Wei Ming shook his head regretfully: "It may take a few more years. At this time, the level of English proficiency in China will not be enough to cultivate so many viewers, and the spending power will not be sufficient, but Hong Kong can give it a try."

Weber nodded. He thought of the Chinese Drama Troupe's visit to Europe with "Teahouse" a while ago. He had also gone to see it. Although the stage design was great, he really couldn't understand it. Most of the audience was Chinese.

After discussing some minor details, Webber brought up the topic of "The Lion King".

He offered a price that he believed Wei Ming couldn't refuse from the start.

They bought out the stage adaptation rights to "The Lion King" for one million pounds.

This price is quite high for a novel that hasn't actually sold a million copies yet. Even though "Cats" is so popular now, its total box office hasn't reached a million pounds yet, and it hasn't even turned a profit. A million pounds is a significant investment for a truly good company.

Melinda and Wei Lingling, who hadn’t yet truly grasped the future value of “The Lion King”, were quite surprised by the price: one million pounds, which is roughly equivalent to ten million Hong Kong dollars!

Especially Wei Lingling, she began to re-examine her eldest nephew, who had managed to snatch the musical rights to a novel from a Hong Kong toy factory.

If we include other copyrights, wouldn't his financial resources be comparable to his uncle's if he wrote a few more works like this?

How could a writer compete with a family that has been involved in officialdom and business for decades in terms of wealth?
Unbelievable!

Weber said, "The reason for the direct buyout is also because Mr. Why, you are Chinese, and it would be inconvenient for you to participate in the performance revenue sharing."

It's easy to say how much the box office will be, but the cost and profit are things that can be manipulated quite a bit, so it's better to just make a one-off deal.

You're in China, how kind of person do I have to be to refrain from cheating you?

However, Wei Ming said, "I'm not afraid of inconvenience."

The implication is that I really do want to participate in the profit sharing.

Wei Lingling was the first to realize, "That's right, if it really has potential, even if it only has half the popularity of 'Cats,' the revenue sharing might be more profitable than the buyout."

In reality, The Lion King musical's total box office was about four times that of Cats! And its run was also more than a decade shorter!

Even if Wei Ming can only get one or two percent of the box office revenue, it's still a huge business worth billions!
In the world of musicals, as long as a work is successful, a show can continue to be performed. Similarly, before Wei Ming's rebirth, the play "Teahouse" still had a very high box office appeal on the stage, and tickets were hard to come by for every performance.

If Shakespeare were alive, he could easily become the richest writer based solely on the revenue from stage performances of his works.

Weber's main intention was to make things easier for Wei Ming. Buying him out for one million would put a lot of pressure on his company. Since Wei Ming insisted, he didn't refuse.

So Wei Lingling directly suggested: "Someone trusted by Mr. Why can set up a copyright company overseas, and the copyright company can directly cooperate with Mr. Webber to develop the musical of 'The Lion King'. The copyright company will collect a share and pay Mr. Why royalties."

Ideally, this company should be an American or British company, as it facilitates reconciliation.

Weber had no objection to this, so the question is, who should hold the shares on behalf of Wei Ming in this company that actually belongs to him?

Wei Ming looked at Melinda, the Englishman, then at Wei Lingling, the American, and finally his gaze settled on Melinda: "Melinda, if I let you start this company, will it affect your main job?"

Wei Lingling looked dejected, while Melinda said happily, "It won't affect anything, since we don't usually have much business anyway."

Wei Ming: "Alright, then you two can start this company together. One of you will be in charge of the European region, and the other will be in charge of the North American region. Not only will the musical rights of 'The Lion King' be handled by this company, but the overseas rights of all my other works will also be handled by this company in the future."

It can be a functional shell, but when the time is right, Wei Ming may well use it as a foundation to expand overseas business and achieve a global hegemony in the entertainment industry!

(End of this chapter)