American History 1988-Chapter 164 - 158: It’s Her

"Dean, is it? I like you!" The talk show host with a broad chin and gap teeth enthusiastically shook hands with Dean as he entered the room.

"Hello, Letterman~" Dean politely stood up to greet him. 𝕗𝕣𝐞𝐞𝘄𝐞𝚋𝚗𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗹.𝚌𝕠𝚖

"I really sympathize with what your company’s been through, make sure to keep your powder dry for later~" David Letterman grinned at Dean, then turned and slapped Brad’s shoulder. "Hey~ Brad, I’ll take good care of your little buddy here~"

"Yeah~ That’s exactly what I was going to say." Brad whispered, draping an arm over his shoulder. "You know, David, Byte Company might go public."

"Oh~" An exaggerated expression crossed David Letterman’s face. "Great~"

"Mhm~" Brad nodded affirmatively.

"Let me just confirm once more," David Letterman pondered with a pinched chin, "what you just said, is it true?"

"I asked my Silicon Valley pals, and they said yes." Brad quietly shared a piece of information with David.

"OK~" David switched to a new expression. "Hey~ Dean, don’t hold back later, I’ve got your back!"

After saying this, the talk show host glanced at his wrist. "Sorry, I’ve got to go now~"

David Letterman smiled at the few people in the room with a curve of his lips, then left the lounge, escorted by the crew.

From the moment he entered to his departure, the whole visit lasted no more than two minutes.

Brad shrugged helplessly at the others, "That’s Hollywood for you, everyone’s hustling for fame and fortune."

"Bunch of losers!" Valentine scoffed disdainfully, those people meant nothing to him.

"Come on~ Don, you should know..."

"OK, I get it, the rules of the game~" Valentine mockingly shrugged, mimicking Brad.

"Alright~" Brad, at a loss for words, folded his arms and plunked down onto the sofa.

"Hey~" Dean nudged him with his elbow, then gestured with his mouth, "Rocket man, you know~"

"Ha~" Brad couldn’t help but laugh. The comparison was too apt. Valentine’s temper was so easily ignited.

"What are you laughing about?!" Valentine, already irked, was displeased with their full-faced grins.

"We were just saying..." Dean spread his hands innocently, "the guy who just came in could fit a football through the gap in his teeth."

"Ha~ Ha~!" Valentine laughed heartily, pointing at Dean with his finger, "Buddy, we think alike! That guy’s teeth could be used to plow the fields on a Texas farm."

Ha ha ha~! With that, Valentine continued to laugh unabashedly, as if he had already watched the whole talk show.

Dean and Brad exchanged glances and then shrugged in unison, that was the Valentine they knew.

"That guy just now," Brad referred to David Letterman, "ten years ago he was making $20,000 a week, $1 million a year! That was ten years ago, pal~"

"Wow~" Dean nodded in understanding, no wonder he had such an attitude. By today’s standards, many moderately famous actors wouldn’t even earn that much.

"By this year, his salary had multiplied by seven, but David wasn’t satisfied yet.

He’s said to be negotiating a more favorable profit-sharing contract with NBC and also wants to move his show to the 11:30 prime time slot.

But you know, that time slot belongs to Carson. And Carson was Letterman’s mentor when he entered the industry. So?" Brad shrugged with a spectator’s interest.

True to the nature of fame and fortune, the struggle is everywhere, huh~

Thump thump~ While Brad and Dean were chatting about Hollywood gossip, a staff member came in and knocked on the door, "The show’s about to start."

"OK" Brad nodded to the door, then patted Dean on the shoulder, "It’s time for us to get ready, buddy."

"Brad, take good care of our Hollywood newcomer." Valentine folded his arms and winked at them, "Let Los Angeles get a taste of the impact from Silicon Valley!"

"Watch out~" Brad made a hippie gesture and then led Dean out of the lounge, heading toward Studio 11.

"It’s not our turn to go on yet, so don’t be nervous." Seeing Dean fussing with his clothes, Brad couldn’t help but chuckle and reminded him.

"Really?" Dean was still a bit uncomfortable with the situation.

"The first part of the Late Show is David’s one-man show. His own jokes, self-mockery, punchlines, interaction with the audience, and current events coverage.

You know what I mean, it lasts a few minutes. Then the guests come on, and after two or three people, the show is almost over."

This show had been running since ’82. Over eight years and more than two thousand episodes, Brad was already familiar with the routine.

"We’ll head to the backstage of the studio first to wait, and when the staff comes to notify us, we’ll go on stage, OK?"

"OK!" Dean nodded solemnly like he was attending another hearing.

"Come on~ I’ve already given the heads-up." Brad laughed again and patted Dean’s shoulder before leading into a small room set aside behind the studio.

This room was located right next to the stage setup area, with direct access to the edge of the talk show host’s stage.

Dean followed Brad, crouching to enter the room, which wasn’t very large.

Besides two or three sofas, there was almost nothing else, if you ignored the TV in the corner.

When they arrived, several figures were already there, seemingly another guest.

But before Dean could take a closer look, a staff member hurried over with a list in hand.

"Check this out, see if everything’s fine; David’s going to focus the conversation on this during the show."

Asking if everything was fine, the staff member didn’t wait for a response.

After handing the list to Dean, the staff member hurried off to another corner of the room.

Brad shrugged at Dean, that’s Hollywood for you; after all, this was their turf.

Dean nodded, not saying a word, his attention on the paper in his hands.

There were some signs of correction, but most of the content focused on business.

The lawsuit between Byte Company and Bell, the establishment of the company, personal growth, and so on seemed to have no problems.

It was only after Dean put down the paper that he realized Brad had no intention of looking at it. "Not going to take a look?" he fluttered the paper in his hand.

"No!" Brad shook his head confidently, "David will definitely not follow the questions listed here."

"What?!" Dean looked at the list in his hand, what’s the point of the staff giving these?

"Haha~" Brad laughed gleefully, "Don’t expect talk show hosts to play by the rules."

Their laughter might have been a bit loud; several people on the other side of the room all lifted their eyes to look over.

"Sorry~" Dean smiled and nodded to them as an apology.

After the slightly older woman glanced at them disapprovingly, she continued to bend down and explain to the girl in the light-colored long dress beside her.

Wait a minute! Why does that girl look familiar? Dean frowned as he tried to remember.

"Hey, you’re being quite offensive." The woman in an OL suit, seeing Dean staring at the girl beside her, became even more displeased.

"I think that’s a misunderstanding~" Brad, who had been hiding in the shadows, finally straightened up and exposed himself to the light.

"Oh, is that Mr. Gray?" another middle-aged person beside the girl intervened, stopping the suited woman from further reproach.

"I’m Brian Loud from RMS Company." The middle-aged man walked up warmly extending his business card and, of course, he didn’t forget the innocent-looking Dean beside him.

"Loud," Brad Gray took the card and nodded, "I’ve heard of your company."

"Yeah~" Brian Loud said, beaming nearly from ear to ear, "Jennifer just finished filming a movie, her performance was so stunning it drove people mad!"

"Great!" Brad Gray nodded perfunctorily, "Let’s get in touch when there’s a chance."

"Of course, I’m free anytime." After exchanging greetings, Brian Loud tactfully stepped back.

"That girl’s name is Jennifer?" Once the guy had left, Dean quietly turned to Brad to inquire.

"Of course, Jennifer Connelly. Buddy, don’t tell me you don’t know her." Brad looked at him incredulously.

"No, of course I know her." Dean should have thought of this; in "America’s Past," she was like an angel fallen to earth, beyond compare.

But even now she wasn’t bad, just look at that face. Thin black eyebrows, delicate features, tender and pretty, and long hair that half concealed her beautiful face.

No one could refuse her, including Dean himself.

"Dean, you’re definitely thinking about getting it on with her right now." Brad’s crude voice sounded in Dean’s ear.

"What?" Dean was nearly thrown off by Brad’s words. Buddy, didn’t you realize she’s sitting not far from us?

"Don’t be shy" Brad nudged Dean’s shoulder; he was a man of experience, "Young guys all like her."

"I admit she’s pretty, but you can’t just start with..." Dean gestured with his hand, not quite sure how to say it.

"OK, let me tell you some intel about her." Since they were idle anyway, Brad prepared to give Dean some advice.

"That woman beside her should be her mother, reportedly a Jewish woman. She has been with Jennifer since she started acting, mainly to handle issues related to modesty.

That man..." Brad gestured with his chin, "her agent, whom you just met. RMS is a small company; from that, you can tell."

"Exactly," Brad didn’t beat around the bush, "Jennifer began her career quite early, but she hasn’t had any big hit movies. The only thing that made her somewhat famous is her body and looks."

At this point, Brad suddenly started laughing, "Dean, you better be ready."

Dean shrugged, what does that have to do with me?

"Her last lead role was in ’86, and then she went into a kind of retirement, reportedly attending Yale all this time.

In that respect, you guys could be quite compatible. Stanford, Yale, hmm~"

"Yale girls are indeed great~" Dean thought of Miranda.

"Yeah~ that’s the kind!" Brad was glad to see Dean finally showed a spark of interest, "But, unfortunately, because she has been away from the entertainment industry for so long,

she now needs to come back with something outstanding, which means a sacrifice, in other words."

"Sacrifice?" Dean was a bit perplexed.

"That’s right," Brad glanced at him sympathetically, "If I’m not wrong, she’s here today to promote her new movie.

And according to the information I got, the movie is quite provocative."

"So?" Dean looked at him quizzically.

"Hmm~" Brad affirmed his guess.

Well, most Hollywood actresses can’t escape this fate.

But this is America, where most people don’t care.

Dean was beginning to understand why there had been a bit of a dispute over there just a moment ago.

If he wasn’t wrong, it was probably about the modesty issues for the talk show that had caused some disagreement.

And that agent flattering Brad was probably hoping to get some resources from Bristane Entertainment.

"So, do you still stand by your initial impression of her?" Brad asked with interest.

Before Dean could reply, a burst of music came from outside.

The people in the room subconsciously stopped their conversations as "The Late Show with David Letterman" began.