Exciting 1979!

Chapter 408 Jurassic Park Film Copyright

After a while, Bu Suanzi ran over with a schoolbag, inside which were the things he had asked Wei Ming to bring back to China.

Wei Lingling asked, "These aren't classified documents, are they?"

“No, I still want to continue my doctoral studies here,” Bu Suanzi said. “These are all internationally leading published works in biology, especially in my field of cell biology. I bought these books with my own money. I corresponded with my classmates in China to confirm that they haven’t been introduced to China yet.”

Wei Ming readily agreed, saying that he would buy two more computers anyway, and bringing a few more books wouldn't be a problem.

"Is there anything for your dad? I heard he didn't go home for the New Year," Wei Ming asked again.

"No, I just wrote him a letter a couple of days ago." Then Bu Suanzi invited Wei Ming to have lunch at the school cafeteria.

Wei Ming waved his hand: "I have to fly back to Los Angeles, so I won't have dinner. We'll get together again next year when Xiao Hong comes here to study at university."

"Wei Hong is coming to study abroad next year?!" Bu Suanzi exclaimed in surprise.

"It should be about right. She learns very quickly on her own, so graduating a year early shouldn't be a problem." Wei Ming was very confident in his sister's abilities.

On the way to the airport, Wei Ming flipped through the books that Bu Suanzi had given him. They were all filled with professional terms that he couldn't understand. Not to mention him, even Melinda had a hard time reading them. Many professional English terms related to medicine and law were completely different from everyday English.

Melinda wasn't familiar with Bu from Tsinghua University, but she did have acquaintances in the United States.

"Ming, what do you think about us going to see Xiao Cha?" The two had been roommates for over a year.

Wei Ming opened the American map he carried with him: "She's at the University of South Carolina, right?"

"Yes, I wanted to visit her when I came to the United States before, but I was too busy and only made a quick trip."

Wei Ming: "Sure, aren't you guys going to Disney World in Orlando? It's not far from here."

Overjoyed, Melinda kissed Wei Ming passionately right in front of Wei Lingling and Gong Biyang in the car, saying, "You're so sweet."

Wei Lingling felt that if she and Gong Biyang weren't in the car, they could have parked on the side of the road and started fighting right there.

Upon arriving at San Francisco International Airport, Gong Biyang made a special promise to Melinda when saying goodbye to the three: "You must save a copy of Professor Wei's new book in traditional Chinese characters for us."

Melinda: "That's for sure."

Although Sanlian Bookstore can also publish in traditional Chinese, they cannot penetrate the Taiwanese market. Therefore, except for "The Right Path of the World is Full of Vicissitudes", Wei Ming's novels in traditional Chinese are more likely to be published in cooperation with Tangren Publishing.

Especially now that I know that Tangren is my great-aunt's family business.

Upon arriving in Los Angeles, they went directly to Wei Ming's hotel, where Li Aiguo had already rented a conference room for the negotiations.

When they returned to the hotel, the other party had not yet arrived. After waiting for about an hour, two men, one in black and one in white, walked into the conference room. They were from MGM's copyright department. Wei Ming couldn't remember their names, so he called them Little Black and Big White.

The negotiation was clearly led by the older man, Da Bai. He first glanced at the two beautiful ladies before finally fixing his gaze on Wei Ming.

They had already discussed the copyright price on the way here. Because of MGM's poor production situation, it was not Wei Ming's ideal buyer. Wei Ming said: There is no need to be humble. Our work is excellent. Ask for a price like a super bestselling author.

Perhaps because the other party thought Wei Ming was Chinese and Melinda was British, they offered an outrageous price: $50 to buy out all adaptation rights to "Jurassic Park" beyond its publication, and indefinitely.

Upon hearing this request, Wei Ming laughed, Melinda laughed too, but Wei Lingling didn't. She closed her open notebook, crossed her arms, and stared blankly at the other person.

Then Melinda said, "Jurassic Park has been on the US book market for less than half a year, topped the New York bestseller list for a month, and now its sales in the North American market have exceeded one million, while its global sales have exceeded two million. It can be said to be the most successful science fiction novel of last year and this year, without exception. To want to buy it out for 50 is simply a joke."

$50 isn't exactly cheap in Hollywood, and there aren't many writers and novels that can command that price these days. But the key point is that it's a lifetime buyout, which is a bit like taking advantage of laymen.

After Melinda finished speaking, Wei Lingling also introduced her mentor in fluent English. Her professor at Stanford University is considered a leading figure in the American legal community, and she hoped that the other party would not mistake them for clueless fools.

Big White and Little Black exchanged a glance. Although they had been exposed, they were not embarrassed. Then they humbly asked, "What conditions do you want?"

Wei Lingling stated directly: "Firstly, the option fee is $10 per year. If the script can be completed and filming can start smoothly within a year, the final purchase price is $100 million. This is the adaptation fee for one film. If Mr. Why is hired as the screenwriter, that will be a different price."

The option fee means that the production company pays a small fee to obtain the development rights to an original work for a certain period of time. If the production does not proceed, the copyright reverts to the author.

Furthermore, if the production company is unable to complete the pre-production work within the specified period, the deadline can be extended.

Xiao Hei said, "We will hire screenwriters from the Writers Guild ourselves, thank you." Moreover, the option fee of $100,000 per year was unacceptable to them.

Wei Ming shrugged. Joining that association wouldn't be difficult for him, but it didn't matter anyway; he felt it would be difficult for them to succeed anyway.

Wei Lingling continued, "Okay, there's no screenwriting fee. Then there's the box office revenue sharing and global merchandise rights. We can accept profit sharing, but our legal team needs to oversee the film's costs and output. As for global merchandise rights..."

Hearing such outrageous conditions, DaBai was furious. They even demanded a legal team to oversee the process. Did they think such a large company like ours would falsify accounts? And they even went so far as to demand global derivative rights!
Even if Mark Twain were alive, this would be a bit much!

“Ms. Wei, you are being far too insincere. Hollywood has never offered such terms for a novel before, let alone Mr. Why from Red China. Don’t you think $100 million is too much for him?”

Wei Ming laughed and said, "I have a million, it's not like it's a hot potato. Our country isn't as vicious as you think. Now we're allowing some people to get rich first."

Wei Lingling: "We have conducted research on the proportion of the total cost of Hollywood script development. If Jurassic Park were to be made into a movie, it would definitely be an amazing big production. This copyright fee is very reasonable. I even think I have set the price too low. If you are not even willing to spend this much money, then we seriously doubt your determination to perfectly present Jurassic Park."

Melinda laughed and said, "You should really think about it. If the movie is made and becomes a global hit, the giant dinosaur props from the movie can be displayed at the MGM Hotel. Your boss, Kerkorian, will definitely be very happy."

Big White's heart skipped a beat. This deal was orchestrated by the big boss, whose main purpose was to place a giant dinosaur model in the hotel. But what's the point of an ordinary model? It would be much more meaningful if it were a prop from a globally blockbuster movie.

However, the three people's exorbitant demands did cross the line for these two Hollywood filmmakers; they were too demanding and simply couldn't compete.

According to them, if the movie becomes a huge hit, even if it's not as big as Star Wars, but even as big as Jaws, Wei Ming could earn tens of millions of dollars, comparable to Hollywood superstar Clint Eastwood!

Big White and Little Black went outside to discuss it, while the three people inside whispered in Chinese.

Melinda: "They won't really be scared away, will they? We're asking for an exorbitant price, but they can haggle down to the bottom."

What was just presented was their highest expectation, the ideal contract, and Wei Ming's estimate of the copyright value after predicting that the first Jurassic Park film would gross $900 million worldwide.

However, it's definitely impossible to reach that record. Right now, nobody in Hollywood thinks any movie can surpass Star Wars' global box office record. If there is one, it's Star Wars Episode III.

A short while later, Da Bai and Xiao Hei came in, saying they needed to go back to the company to consult their superiors.

Wei Ming didn't know if this was a pretext for refusing to cooperate, but he also appeared quite magnanimous.

"Of course, no problem. But we're going to the East Coast of the United States next. If you have any news, you can leave a message for this hotel. I will return to Los Angeles before leaving the United States. I hope you can make up your mind by then. I believe other Hollywood film companies can also see the value of Jurassic Park."

Upon hearing that Wei Ming was leaving Los Angeles, the two men exchanged a glance, and the remark that other companies could also see the value of the book made them uneasy.

Li Aiguo appeared right after he saw the two people off.

"Armin, I have great news for you! Elton John has come to visit you in Los Angeles!"

Wei Ming didn't think his Grammy Award would make this British superstar make a special trip to his door; he probably just had enough of New York and felt the music scene was better in Los Angeles.

Elton John booked a room at the hotel. Since the meeting room appointment hadn't expired yet, Wei Ming asked him to invite the man over so they could continue their conversation.

Elton John's style was somewhat flamboyant. He came out as gay in 76, when American society was still relatively conservative. His behavior was considered quite fashionable, and some radio stations even organized events to burn his records.

He's actually much more low-key now, and has started calling himself bisexual in an attempt to salvage his severely declining career.

Of course, the most important thing is the work itself. He was very enthusiastic when he learned that Mr. Why, who made Sarah Brightman famous, had a new song.

He was enthusiastic, and Wei Ming had great faith in his abilities. After reviewing the sheet music for "Wake Me Up" and listening to Wei Ming explain the style the song wanted to convey, Elton John exclaimed that Wei Ming was a genius, and a collaboration agreement was quickly reached. Elton John even suggested renting an electronic instrument room so he could bring his equipment and practice, let Wei Ming hear his performance, and also receive some guidance from Wei Ming.

Wei Ming: "Sorry, John, we're heading to Chicago tomorrow, and then to New York. You can practice in Los Angeles for now, and we'll sign the formal contract when we get back."

“If I’d known you were going to New York, I wouldn’t have come back,” Elton John said resentfully. “You won’t change your mind, will you?”

He was somewhat worried, as there were some very talented musicians in New York as well.

Wei Ming smiled and said, "There are some old Chinese sayings: A gentleman's word is as good as his bond."

Then Wei Ming looked at Melinda and asked her to translate.

"I admire the character of the Chinese people and wish us a pleasant cooperation."

Since Elton had already arrived in Los Angeles, Li Aiguo no longer needed to go to New York with them, so Wei Ming asked him to help keep in touch with MGM.

The next day, Wei Ming, Lin Zhengyi, and two women boarded a plane to Chicago.

After personally escorting Lin Zhengyi to the University of Chicago, Wei Ming and the other two even helped with the enrollment process, which deeply moved Lin Zhengyi. He even mentioned this new friend in a letter to his wife.

~
By this time, Jackie Chan had already returned to Hong Kong and was enthusiastically promoting the fact that his friend Wei Ming had won the top prize at the American Grammy Awards.

Media outlets such as Ming Pao, Wen Wei Po, and Ta Kung Pao reported on him a day later.

However, Zhou Huimin bought all these newspapers, and even those right-leaning newspapers couldn't deny Amin's status and popularity in the world music scene.

However, they felt that this was entirely due to Amin's own abilities and had nothing to do with the political system, while left-wing newspapers habitually believed that Amin's success was inseparable from the support of his country.

Regardless, riding this wave of popularity, the charity album "Tomorrow Will Be Better" became a hit again after the Top Ten Chinese Gold Songs Awards, pushing the record for the highest-grossing album in Hong Kong a little higher.

Amin has only one feeling right now: I'm proud!
Then she hoped he could come to Hong Kong to see her soon.

The newly established Hong Kong Film Awards also had the same idea, hoping that Wei Ming could come and visit them.

Besides sending Wei Ming's invitation to Madman Comics, they also sent invitations to all the famous celebrities and directors in Hong Kong, though of course they didn't expect them to actually come.

To everyone's surprise, Jackie Chan not only agreed to attend, but also went to the offices of "Film Biweekly" in advance to provide guidance.

"What? There's no nomination list yet, and you guys just decided on the awards? That's so unprofessional. I've seen that the Grammys and Oscars have nominees."

“We’re also worried that if we have a candidate, other celebrities who aren’t candidates won’t be willing to come,” Shu Qi said sincerely.

Cheng Long: "Even with all this, nobody wants to come. If you want more people to come, you can increase the number of awards. There are only a few awards, and they're all given out in a few minutes. What's the point? If it were my senior brother Hong Jinbao, he definitely wouldn't bother to move."

Shu Qi and her colleagues exchanged glances: "Besides acting, directing, and film awards, how else can we increase our chances?"

"Can't you even copy homework? Just follow the Oscars! Besides the leading actor awards, there are supporting actor awards; besides the director awards, there are screenwriting awards, cinematography awards, editing awards, and also awards for original music, songs, and lifetime achievement awards. Oh, right, we can even add a best action choreography award, after all, Hong Kong action films are very glorious and are our trademark."

The Action Design Award is indeed a unique award of the Hong Kong Film Awards. This award caught Shu Qi's eye, as it meant that people like Hung Chin-po and Lau Kar-leung might be able to participate, making the event much more interesting.

"Brother Long, did you really come up with this idea?" Shu Qi asked with some skepticism.

“Of course,” Cheng Long said firmly, then added after a moment, “but it was also inspired by Wei Ming.”

That day, while we were having fun at the bar, he mentioned that there was a so-called Hong Kong Film Awards that he wanted to present. Then Wei Ming talked about how the Hong Kong Film Awards needed to be set up, and specifically mentioned the Best Action Choreography award.

Shu Qi suddenly realized, "I knew it! I didn't think Jackie Chan was that smart."

However, there are only two weeks left before the awards ceremony. With so many new awards added and so many professional functions involved, can they really handle it?
~
"Done! We're done!"

After a long day of filming, Gong Xue met Zhu Lin on set. Some of the interior scenes for "Middle Age" were filmed in a studio at Shanghai Film Studio, so the two saw each other all the time, even in bed at home.

Upon returning to their old house on Huating Road, the two men simultaneously pulled out the same newspaper, both of which featured reports of Wei Ming winning the highest honor at the Grammy Awards in the United States.

The report also included a photo of Wei Ming holding the gold phonograph trophy, looking very handsome.

The report devoted considerable space to introducing the history and status of the award, and also mentioned the honors received by Sarah Brightman.

Today, the most well-known Hong Kong and Taiwan singer in mainland China is Teresa Teng, and the most well-known foreign singer is Sarah Brightman, with countless fans.

Gong Xue told Zhu Lin, "I'll be able to finish filming at the beginning of next month. What about you?"

“I might be in the middle of next month. Don’t let the fact that it’s a contemporary subject fool you; the director has very high standards for every shot,” Zhu Lin sighed. “Then you should go back and keep him company. Just let him get it in; I promise I won’t be jealous.”

Gong Xue immediately threw a small punch at him: "Aren't you ashamed? Aren't you ashamed?"

Zhu Lin said frankly, "What's there to be ashamed of now? Just you wait, sooner or later the three of us will go crazy together."

Gong Xue pulled the blanket up: "Don't say anything. You can't agree to him. I'm very firm. I'm just afraid you'll spoil him."

Zhu Lin immediately retorted: "How did it become that I spoiled him? I don't know who spoiled him more between the two of us."

Then the two began a debate on this issue.

~
South Carolina is a state in the southeastern United States. When Cha Jianying saw Wei Ming and Melinda on the campus of the University of South Carolina, she was so excited that she almost screamed. Then she took a running start and accurately threw herself into Melinda's arms, and then hugged Wei Ming as well.

This kind of hug would have been absolutely impossible at Peking University; things are different when you go abroad.

"Melinda, you've finally decided to come see me!"

"Professor Wei, I saw you on TV! You're amazing! You bring honor to Peking University and boost the morale of us Chinese in America!"

"Who is this lady? She's so pretty!"

Cha Jianying began speaking fluently in Chinese, so much so that Wei Ming and the others couldn't find a way to interject.

It wasn't until she said she was tired that Wei Ming introduced his aunt.

Cha Jianying then took Melinda's hand and said, "Come on, let's go sit down in the cafeteria and talk!"

The sudden arrival of two old friends from China during her lonely study abroad experience kept Cha Jianying in a state of excitement until Wei Ming and the others left, at which point sadness replaced her emotions.

She even sang "Wishing You a Safe Journey". Although she had already gone abroad at that time, her friends in China sent her graduation photos and two new songs by Teacher Wei, "Wishing You a Safe Journey" and "The Strong Rose".

Wei Ming and his group came from New York. At Marvel Studios in New York, they met Stan Lee, who gave Wei Ming a comic book featuring Optimus Prime and Spider-Man together.

Next, Wei Ming will take two people to Orlando Disney for a short vacation.

After two days and three nights of fun, they took a plane back to sunny Los Angeles early in the morning.

Then Li Aiguo told him, "The people from MGM have called several times, asking when we can talk."

Wei Ming smiled and said, "No rush, come with me to buy a PC first."

……

(Yesterday's guaranteed minimum)
(End of this chapter)