The day after the cocktail party at the Raybould Family's home, Janette began negotiations with the Blackstone Group regarding the acquisition of equity in BlackRock.
Amidst the bustle, Thursday arrived quickly.
Blockbuster chose to list on the NASDAQ exchange. Simon and Janette woke up at seven and headed straight to Midtown. Blockbuster's Chairman and CEO Wayne Huizenga and Daenerys Entertainment's Amy, among others, had already arrived.
After a quick breakfast, they arrived at the NASDAQ exchange hall on 42nd Street, which was already crowded.
In addition to the management of Daenerys and Blockbuster, big-name filmmakers like Robert De Niro, Martin Scorsese, and Diane Keaton were invited to support the event.
If any other company wanted to do this, a hefty appearance fee would be mandatory, and they might not even get them. For Daenerys Entertainment, however, it was something that could be settled with just a few phone calls.
Because those invited were filmmakers living in New York, there wasn't even a need to pay for travel expenses.
Simon's attendance was also for support.
After making a brief appearance before the media with Janette around eight o'clock, the two temporarily ducked into a lounge upstairs in the exchange to wait for the bell-ringing ceremony.
Robert De Niro and the others also arrived one after another.
Simon also saw Kathryn Bigelow, whom he hadn't met for a while.
Since 'Blue Steel', Kathryn had spent most of her time in New York.
Simon could sense that the woman was clearly distancing herself from him, and he did not push the matter.
Kathryn had always been a very independent personality; she could never be anyone's subordinate, and Simon didn't want her to be one either.
"This is a remake project of a 1962 film called 'Cape Fear'. It's about a convicted criminal seeking revenge on the judge and lawyer who sent him to prison. Spielberg started working on the script adaptation for this project long ago, but it just never went into production. He recently asked Martin and me if we were interested in taking over. Martin read the script Steven had commissioned and thought it was terrible, so he's still hesitating".
Inside the lounge.
Simon, De Niro, and the others sat on the sofas, chatting about recent events.
While overseeing the post-production of 'Goodfellas', Martin Scorsese was already looking for his next film. De Niro was about to start filming a biographical movie called 'Awakenings', which was expected to be released by the end of the year, allowing him to maintain a productive output of two big-screen works this year.
The 'Cape Fear' they were discussing could only be considered a project for next year.
In his memory, 'Cape Fear' did very well at the box office, but since it was a project led by Spielberg, Simon didn't plan to intervene.
Of course, if 'Cape Fear' were to be produced by Universal as it was in the original timeline, and Simon could successfully take over MCA this year, the film would ultimately end up in his hands.
Amy and James had been closely monitoring MCA's movements recently. Simon's plan was to wait until Cersei Capital's M&A team was established before finding a suitable time to formally launch a takeover bid for MCA. Such a deal would be perfect for helping Cersei Capital's M&A team make a name for itself.
After chatting with De Niro and the others for a while, Simon got up and walked over to Janette and Kathryn, who were talking quietly nearby.
New York in January is at its coldest point of the year. Once inside, everyone took off their heavy coats. Kathryn wore a black turtleneck sweater, with Janette, in a white sweater, leaning affectionately against her, naturally creating a sense of chemistry between them.
It was a three-seater sofa. Kathryn was leaning against one armrest, and Janette was originally sitting in the middle.
Seeing Simon approach, Janette, who had been clinging to Kathryn, immediately moved to the other side, leaving the middle seat for Simon.
Simon sat down without hesitation. Seeing Kathryn move slightly to the side, he deliberately leaned closer to her, and naturally, she shot him a glare.
Janette leaned in with a smile, resting her head on Simon's shoulder and saying to Kathryn across him, "See? Still such a jerk".
Simon feigned dissatisfaction. "Shouldn't you avoid saying that in front of the person involved?"
Janette curled her lip. "I wanted you to hear it".
Kathryn watched them bicker with a smile. "I saw about your boxing match in Melbourne. Don't do that again; you'll get hurt".
Simon nodded and asked, "How's the preparation for your new film going? Do you need any help?"
Kathryn's new film was titled 'Point Break', essentially a police thriller.
Simon had some impression of this movie. It was one of Keanu Reeves' early works and also starred Patrick Swayze, the lead from 'Ghost'. The film's surfing and skydiving action sequences were classics. Although its anarchist views weren't popular with mainstream critics, it was commercially very successful and had a cult following.
Many years later, Hollywood star Megan Fox, who became famous for 'Transformers', named her son Bodhi after the character played by Patrick Swayze in 'Point Break'.
Hearing Simon's casual inquiry, Kathryn looked at the young man beside her with a smile. "Warner has officially greenlit the project. Keanu and Patrick have also agreed to star. Filming will likely start in the second half of the year".
The budget for 'Point Break' was expected to exceed 20 million dollars, which was already a major production for Kathryn.
Hollywood's prejudice against female directors is deep-rooted. Without Simon's connection, Warner would not have agreed to invest so readily, and the original Keanu Reeves and Patrick Swayze might not have agreed to star.
Kathryn was well aware of all this.
As they chatted, it soon became 9:15. Staff came in to announce that the bell-ringing ceremony was about to begin, and everyone rose to leave the lounge.
The exchange was already packed with people.
When Simon and the others appeared on the stage, the flashes in the hall immediately began to go off frantically again.
After a speech by Wayne Huizenga, everyone gathered around the console to press the trading button together, completing the bell-ringing ceremony.
Next was the pre-market price discovery phase.
Due to strong subscription demand during the roadshow, Blockbuster's IPO price was finalized at $17, compared to the underwriters' initial suggested price of $13 to $15. 15 million new shares were issued, raising $255 million.
The $255 million was already sufficient for Blockbuster's expansion needs over the next year. Therefore, the shareholders and management unanimously rejected the underwriters' proposal to increase the offering size.
In the first round of bidding, the price jumped directly to the $17.5 to $18.5 range.
Having completed their promotional duties, Simon and his group left for the time being. There was a celebratory cocktail party at noon, and today's guests could decide whether to attend based on their own schedules.
Simon would definitely attend the noon party, but before that, there were some matters that required him to return to his residence on Fifth Avenue.
Kathryn was originally going to leave, but Janette insisted on dragging her back home with them.
Some people were already waiting there; they were staff from a genetic research institute in the UK.
The matter was simple.
After collecting blood samples from both Simon and Janette, the staff confirmed a few things with Simon again and then quickly took their leave to fly back to the UK.
Kathryn watched all this, feeling completely bewildered.
Janette leaned in and whispered a few words of explanation in her ear, and then she understood.
Then, thinking about Simon and Janette's upcoming marriage, a sense of bitterness arose in her heart.
Inside the NASDAQ exchange hall.
After three consecutive rounds of bidding lasting an hour, Blockbuster's opening price was finally confirmed at $19.5.
Subsequently, official trading began, and the stock price immediately broke through the $20 mark.
By the time the celebratory cocktail party began at noon, Blockbuster's stock price had already surpassed $23, and trading remained very active in the afternoon.
By the end of Thursday's trading day, Blockbuster's stock price finally settled at $26.5. Compared to the $17 IPO price, it had surged 56% in one day, with a total market capitalization reaching $2.199 billion.
Because they participated in the subscription for this new share issue, Daenerys Entertainment's stake in Blockbuster remained at 35%.
Combined with the initial investment, the company had spent a total of approximately $210 million.
By the close of the day, Daenerys Entertainment's $210 million investment had increased in value to $770 million, a return of over 300% in just one year.
Actually, the reason Blockbuster's stock price surged on its first day of listing was mainly due to the huge success Daenerys Entertainment had achieved with this investment.
The massive paper profits of Daenerys Entertainment stimulated investors' enthusiasm, and the market's pursuit, in turn, made Daenerys Entertainment's investment even more successful.
After a new stock is listed, major shareholders and management of the listed company enter a quiet period as is customary.
However, this would not hinder Blockbuster's normal operations.
On the second day of listing, Blockbuster announced that it would acquire Erol's Video Club, which was headquartered in Baltimore on the East Coast. Compared to Blockbuster, which already had over 1,200 stores across North America, Erol's only had 250 stores in several East Coast states like New York and Washington.
The final acquisition price agreed upon by both parties was $40 million, transacted in a mix of cash and stock, with Blockbuster also assuming Erol's debt.
Negotiations for this deal had been ongoing during Blockbuster's IPO period, and the official announcement on the second day of listing was considered positive news.
After completing this deal, the number of stores owned by Blockbuster would exceed 1,500. Although its market share was still less than 20%, it was the largest video rental chain in North America.
Following the announcement of the Erol's acquisition, Blockbuster's stock price rose slightly again on Friday as expected, breaking through $28 by the close of Friday.
Having successfully completed its IPO, Blockbuster would also begin its expansion into overseas markets.
Meanwhile, the Blackstone Group received a takeover bid from Cersei Capital for BlackRock, led by Laurence Fink, and initially rejected it outright.
Although there was friction between Blackstone Group CEO Steve Schwarzman and Laurence Fink, Blackstone Financial Management's performance since its inception had been outstanding, and the Blackstone Group was reluctant to let go of this subsidiary that was in a rapid growth phase.
It wasn't until Laurence Fink threatened to lead the entire team in a mass departure that Schwarzman reluctantly compromised, though he still made a bold demand for a price of $200 million.
Blackstone Financial Management's revenue last year was $33 million, with a pre-tax net income attributable to shareholders of approximately $7 million.
Due to the debt crisis in the second half of last year, even for most listed financial companies on Wall Street, recent P/E ratios were only in the teens. The Blackstone Group's $200 million quote for Blackstone Financial Management was equivalent to a P/E ratio of nearly 30, which Cersei Capital naturally could not accept.
After finishing up with Blockbuster, Janette stayed in New York to continue negotiations with the Blackstone Group for the acquisition and to prepare other departments of Cersei Capital, while Simon returned to Los Angeles over the weekend with Amy and the others.
At Daenerys Entertainment, from January 12th to January 18th, the box office for 'Batman Begins' saw a 31% drop, taking in another $41.06 million. However, after four weeks of release, the film's cumulative box office quickly surged to $271.75 million.
At the same time, on January 19th, Daenerys Entertainment's first new release of 1990 also officially hit theatres, titled 'I Want To Go Home'.
This was a film Ira Deutchman had bought from the Venice Film Festival last year. At the time, he had picked three films, but only this one was successfully negotiated.
'I Want To Go Home' stars the famous French actor Gérard Depardieu, who has more than 10 César Award nominations and wins. It tells the story of an eccentric American cartoonist taking his wife on a trip to Paris and the various funny things that happen. Much like 'A Fish Called Wanda', which poked fun at the cultural differences between Britain and America, 'I Want To Go Home' teases the cultural differences between America and France.
However, since it was placed in January, Highgate Film clearly didn't have high expectations for the film's box office. It opened on only 523 screens, serving as a filler for the release schedule.
Daenerys Entertainment's recent marketing focus remains on 'Pretty Woman' in February.
The film's confirmed release date is February 9th, during Valentine's week.
Management was not very optimistic about this project, which was adapted from a dark drama into a love story between a call girl and a financier, but the final result of the film was outstanding. If Daenerys Entertainment's full-year release schedule hadn't already been set, they might have even considered moving it to a more popular slot.
Speaking of which, Daenerys Entertainment's confirmed release slate for the entire year of 1990 has reached 12 films. According to their release dates, they are 'I Want To Go Home', 'Pretty Woman', 'Meet the Feebles', 'Children Of The Corn 2', 'Ghost', 'Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles', 'Hellraiser 3', 'Everybody's Fine', 'An Angel At My Table', 'Dances With Wolves;, 'Short Cuts', and 'Home Alone'.
In addition to this batch of films released directly by the company, there are also four works from last year's 10-film plan: 'Sleeping With The Enemy' in cooperation with Fox, 'The Hand That Rocks The Cradle' in cooperation with Disney, 'Misery' in cooperation with Universal Pictures, and 'A League Of Their Own' in cooperation with Columbia Pictures.
A total of 16 films, equivalent in scale to the past year's releases.
Simon's main task upon returning to Los Angeles is to review these sixteen films in various stages of production and distribution, while also confirming some projects for 1991 in advance.
According to the plan, Pixar will launch its first 3D animated film, 'Toy Story', at the end of 1991. The final instalment of the Scream series, 'Scream 3', is also scheduled for next year. Additionally, there is a Madonna music documentary and collaborative films like 'The Fugitive' and 'Terminator 2'.
But these are clearly not enough.
Fortunately, as Daenerys Entertainment continues to expand, the company, like other Hollywood studios, has a batch of projects under consideration that can be greenlit at any time. Many independent Hollywood producers are also eager to collaborate with Daenerys Entertainment, and the pool of projects held by these people is even richer.