[Chapter 288: This is Both an Endpoint and a New Beginning in Life's Journey]
A successful commercial film brought in substantial financial rewards, providing visible profits to both industry professionals involved and the film companies.
On the other hand, an excellent art film, especially one that shook the awards season, adorned the throne with a metaphysical, dazzling jewel, captivating the audience with its brilliance, and inspiring genuine reverence.
Wealth brought power, and glory forged the scepter!
Muscular strength molded authority, while elaborate and splendid attire and crowns sanctified it all, making it seem untouchable to those who came after.
The resounding victory of Chicago was widely reported the next morning by mainstream publications such as The Hollywood Reporter, Variety, and the Chicago Tribune.
Moreover, one of the most authoritative financial newspapers in the U.S., The Wall Street Journal, published an extensive op-ed in its domestic economic section titled "The Rise of Hollywood's Emerging Force Lion Corleone and the Future Development of American Entertainment Industry."
The article was authored by their professional financial commentator Edward Douglas. It also referenced interviews with Theodore Pierce from the Fairbanks Film Research Center of the American Film Academy, and Penn Lloyd, Senior Vice President of Government Relations at IMB.
The article provided a detailed introduction to Lion Corleone's evolution from Corleone Studios.
It traced back to the Jazz Age and the era of traveling carnivals, analyzing and concluding that the government's loosening of media restrictions laid the market foundation for emerging forces like Lion Corleone to rise.
But that was only the appetizer. The most envied and even resented part among ordinary people was that "Mr. Charlie Corleone, a high school-educated genius in media and entertainment, became a global billionaire in less than four years, rising from nothing.
His personal wealth is now estimated to exceed one billion dollars, rivaling the booming internet wealth creation stories.
Interestingly, we found that Charlie Corleone's entertainment empire also extends into the internet field. He serves as a board member of Amazon, one of the hottest internet companies today.
Charlie's innovative creation of a new online channel for entertainment products in the information age is truly inspiring!"
Setting aside ordinary folks' admiration for Charlie Corleone's billions, the article went on to highly praise the partnership between Amazon and Lion Corleone, which truly resonated with the Wall Street Journal's readership.
Its readership includes high-level figures in American politics, economics, and other fields.
Once published, this article drew even more attention to the entertainment and media industry and Amazon among these elites.
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The pre-IPO buzz quickly brought Lion Corleone into many people's spotlight.
Banks like Bank of America were busy handling Amazon's shares and using financial maneuvers to make money, while simultaneously sending staff to meet with Joe Bell, president of Pillow Health Trust, and Lion Corleone CEO Michael Ovitz to negotiate deals across advertising, film financing, and other fields.
Frank Giustra took over the international distribution cooperation responsibilities previously handled by Michael.
After his Wall Street Journal interview, Charlie arranged work for Kevin and Lawrence Bender and then hurried back to New Zealand to continue supervising the Lord of the Rings film.
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In early May, after intermittent negotiations lasting about a year, Lion Corleone shifted from a passive to an active position.
They finally reached cooperation agreements with Disney, Fox, and United International Pictures.
They would co-produce Pirates of the Caribbean with Disney, X-Men with Fox, and Spider-Man with MGM, jointly establishing international distribution companies for these films.
Lion Corleone took charge of the Asia-Pacific and European international distribution divisions, while other regions would be handled in cooperation with Disney and others for five years -- essentially sharing distribution markets for Lion Corleone films.
The involvement of Disney, Fox, and others helped further dissolve United International Pictures, led to the breakdown of collaboration between Universal and Paramount, with both parties eager to loosen ties.
In early June, Charlie Corleone and several major Hollywood studios held a grand signing ceremony at the Corleone Theater.
With the final piece -- international distribution -- settled, Lion Corleone quickly released films like The Sixth Sense, Saw II, and Austin Powers 3.
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Before October 1999 ended, Pillow Health Trust partners sold off all internet company assets, netting nearly $300 million.
Some Lion Corleone board members used the proceeds to acquire IMAX Dolby, while others partnered with Hallmark to buy Odyssey Television Network, formerly a standalone religious nonprofit channel.
These acquisitions further strengthened Lion Corleone, turning it into a vast conglomerate owning film, TV, animation, sales channels, novel publishing, and internet media platforms.
With asset arrangements complete by the end of 1999 and early 2000, Lion Corleone began final IPO accounting audits and corporate restructuring with underwriters such as Bank of America.
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Finally, on June 1, 2000, Lion Corleone rang the bell at the New York Stock Exchange!
The stock surged to $55 at one point but fell back to $46 due to internet bubble concerns around Amazon, marking a market cap of $3.6 billion.
Mid-June saw the release of Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring.
At the same time, Lion Corleone CEO Kevin Feige revealed collaboration details with Hollywood giants including the X-Men project.
In summary, a flood of good news pushed Lion Corleone's stock ever higher.
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By early 2001, Lion Corleone board members led by Charlie Corleone had used much of the IPO proceeds to acquire Marvel Entertainment, Valve Corporation, Netflix, and others.
Notably, Valve is the creator of the classic FPS game Half-Life.
Lion Corleone thus became a true giant, combining film and TV production, product sales online and offline, theater and TV network equipment, and international operations.
Fourth-quarter financial reports showed Lion Corleone's total revenue reaching $1.6 billion.
The huge and comprehensive conglomerate fueled strong sales of Lord of the Rings merchandise and the burgeoning horror-themed park.
Of course, none of this would have been possible without Amazon's strong platform.
Sadly, many internet companies were sinking, with former stars' stocks dropping to $1-$10.
Fortunately, Amazon's diverse products and robust assets sustained its growth.
But at this moment, none of this bubbling internet turmoil affected the triumphant Charlie Corleone.
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At the 73rd Academy Awards, Michael Douglas presented Best Picture to Gladiator.
As a credited producer and one of Hollywood's top powerful figures, Charlie Corleone smiled calmly amidst cheers, held the mic and trophy, and said, "Thank you, I'm truly grateful for everything! So much happened last year. I suddenly became the captain of a multi-billion-dollar conglomerate. For a moment, I wasn't sure if you were applauding me or this film."
Laughter erupted.
"Well, I admit I'm still getting used to billionaire life. As a film producer, standing on the Oscar stage again is truly thrilling. Thanks to all Gladiator cast and crew, and the Academy.
I want to use this trophy and stage to ask...
Dear Annabelle Joseph, will you marry me? Oh sorry, I can't hear you, but I know you just like you know me. Thank you, my wife!
This was both an endpoint and a start!
We will walk hand in hand to the next journey of life!"
The crowd cheered, and viewers at home applauded as Charlie and his tearful fiancee embraced and left the stage.
The curtain fell!
-- END --
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