America gains both fame and fortune

Chapter 327 The surprise is coming
In the Warner TV studio, "The Helen Show" is about to begin live broadcast. Martin has completed his styling and is familiarizing himself with the script for the last time to avoid mistakes as much as possible.

Helen came over at this time, and when she saw Martin, she immediately opened her arms and hugged him, complaining deliberately: "You finally agreed to be on my show."

Martin smiled and said, "Please be merciful. I can't stand the torture."

The two had a special relationship, and Helen gave him a reassurance: "Except for the final surprise, everything else will go according to the process we communicated."

Martin asked, "What surprise have you prepared for me?"

"It's a secret." Helen blinked and said, "I'm sure it won't embarrass you."

Martin nodded.

Helen put on her earphones, listened to the director's voice, walked from the backstage to the front stage, pointed at the camera and said, "The Helen Show, see you on time every week!"

Her expression turned serious and deep: "As for me, I once suffered a terrible attack. Fortunately, I survived under the protection of Martin Davis. Please welcome my patron saint, Martin Davis!"

Martin, dressed in a jacket and jeans, looked very ordinary. He walked from the backstage to the stage like a friendly big boy next door.

Helen opened her arms and hugged Martin tightly.

Meanwhile, at Nicholson's mansion on Sunset Boulevard, the old man gathered a group of old friends for a drink and chat tonight.

Al Pacino, Robert De Niro, William Hurt and Dustin Hoffman to name a few.

They had fought when they were young, but became relatively peaceful as they got older. They can even sit together and have a few drinks from time to time, reminiscing about their time.

Nicholson took the remote control, switched to the Warner TV station, and said, "Watch a show as our side dish."

Dustin Hoffman said, "Isn't this the little brother you just met?"

Nicholson chuckled: "He's a very interesting guy."

William Hurt read an article in Empire magazine: "It's too easy for young people to become famous nowadays. We old guys are out of date."

Robert De Niro said: "Watch the show first."

On the Helen Show, the routine opening greetings were over and the show got down to business.

"In The Departed, which is currently in theaters, you played an undercover agent, a bad undercover agent, and it has been widely praised." Helen immediately turned up the show's effects to the maximum, pointing to the large screen behind the stage, on which pictures of Jolie and Aniston appeared at the same time.

She was full of gossip: "On the same day, Jolie and Aniston both praised you highly, saying that you are excellent in character creation, dedicated and hardworking. What do you think?"

How to play in private is one thing, but it is absolutely impossible to admit it publicly. Martin took out the standard wording: "I have worked with Angie and Jen in two films. They are very outstanding and dedicated actors. We became good friends at work and have continued to this day."

Helen was gossipy: "As far as I know, Jolie and Aniston are sworn enemies. Have you ever thought of mediating?"

Martin was so thick-skinned that he said, "There is a plan."

"How about this, we call them to the scene." Helen suddenly said, "You mediate on the spot?"

Martin thought, this is the surprise part of the show?
The show was effective, and Helen was full of regret: "Our program funding is limited, and we can't invite two big-name actresses."

“Can you help?” she asked.

Martin shrugged: "I'll communicate with them privately, let's give it a try."

Helen took the opportunity to change the topic: "You can now become friends with big stars like Jolie and Aniston. Have you ever thought about this before coming to Los Angeles?"

Martin shook his head: "I didn't dare to think about it. At that time, I just wanted to have a foothold in Los Angeles."

Helen asked, "Ever thought about becoming a big star?"

Martin followed up on her question and continued: "Anyone who has had an experience like mine wouldn't dare to have too many extravagant hopes for the future."

Helen asked, "The news reports said that you grew up in a slum, your family was not happy, and your life was not easy?"

"It's difficult." Martin expressed his own pain points to gain sympathy: "I grew up in an environment full of gangs, violence and traffickers. Many of my peers joined them. I was lucky because I had a talented father who taught me how to act and took me to be an extra since I was a teenager."

Helen asked, "Is he a remarkable man?"

Martin seemed to be talking about irrelevant people: "No, he took drugs, alcohol, cheated, and all the money I earned from acting was taken away by him. One day he asked me to borrow money from usury. After I borrowed it, he took it. Qian hooked up with a woman and ran away, completely disappeared from my life, I can no longer contact him, and then owed a huge debt, so I can only go to a strip club to work as a bartender to earn money to pay off the debt..."

Such exquisite products opened the eyes of the audience and sparked a lot of discussion.

Helen guided appropriately: “You gave up the performance.”

"No, I didn't." Martin completely immersed himself in the past events designed in combination with facts, and established a hard-working character: "I don't want to join the gang, and I don't want to be a peddler. I want to change my destiny! But for someone like me, it's too difficult to struggle out of that quagmire, especially when I'm in huge debt." His voice was sonorous and powerful: "I only have one way to go, the only way is acting. I met noble people, Captain Jerome, Ms. Kelly Gray..."

Martin mentioned the names of those who helped him, and continued to talk about his own experience: "After getting the key role, I was trying to figure out the role every day, studying how to shape it, and asking everyone around me for advice. I made great efforts for this because I had no way to retreat. If I retreated, I would only fall into the quagmire and could never get out. I saw with my own eyes a childhood playmate who was shot in the chest and abdomen by a shotgun in a gang fight!"

Helen exclaimed in a small voice: "How terrible!"

"In order to avoid these tragedies, I bought a gun to protect myself and the neighbor family who had helped me since I was a child." Martin continued: "Fortunately, God protected me, and the late-night movie was a success. I paid off my debts, but I didn't relax. Instead, I worked harder because I knew there was a place called Hollywood, which is the temple of film art."

He talked about his experience from Atlanta to Los Angeles, emphasizing: "Later, I met many artists, and they made me understand one thing: performing arts is never a sprint, it is a protracted battle, it is a marathon, you can't stop halfway, you have to persist, you have to work hard, to make yourself better and touch the real performing arts."

Helen said: "Many directors who have worked with you, including Martin Scorsese, have praised you highly and thought you were a talented actor."

Martin is humble when he should be: "Some people are the darlings of Hollywood and performing arts, I never think I belong to this category, I am more like a dedicated blue-collar worker, willing to work several times harder for the role and the job, I know very well that I have no way out."

He knew how to please the old man, and he always talked about hard work: "I have touched the threshold of performing arts. In this marathon that is like life, I have never thought of relaxing or giving up. From the wax museum to Wanted, from The Departed to The Reader, I have been working hard. The support of my predecessors has allowed me to achieve some success. The more successful I am, the more motivated I am to work harder."

While the show was going on, several rounds of drinking had already been had in the Nicholson family's living room.

Dustin Hoffman watched the show and laughed: "Very interesting young man, much smarter than Tom Cruise when he worked with me in Rain Man."

William Hurt had a rough time when he was young, and he resonated with Martin's experience to some extent, and his perception changed: "It turns out that it was not easy for him to become famous."

Robert De Niro said: "He has little experience, but someone who works so hard deserves a chance."

Nicholson was much more direct: "Old guys, among the younger generation, can you find anyone more pleasing to your eyes than him? Look at today's young actors, those who come from middle-class or higher families, or are child stars from wealthy families, or are second-generation stars, or are the godsons of some big shots. There are fewer and fewer who have climbed out of poverty like us bastards."

Most of them back then were poor people who became actors.

As the leader of the three bastards, Nicholson simply canvassed for votes on the spot: "That little bastard is my brother. Give him the nomination votes you have and the votes you can influence."

"I knew your free drinks weren't good," Al Pacino said. "I admire Martin, but he's too young."

William Hurt echoed: "This year, many friends with senior qualifications want to compete for the best supporting actor." He seemed to be saying to himself: "It is impossible for them to win the best actor in this lifetime."

Dustin said: "I promised to vote for Alan Arkin first."

William Hurt said: "Me too."

Nicholson filled the glasses for the old friends one by one: "It's just a nomination."

Hearing this, William Hutt nodded: "I'm fine."

Others also said they would give Martin a nomination vote, even if not the first place, at least the second place on the ballot.

After a quick chat, everyone's attention returned to the talk show.

The stage background switched to pictures of reports related to the American rumors.

"I looked on the Internet and saw a lot of people discussing this." Helen asked, "Is what's posted there true?"

Martin said, "It's true."

The audience was in an uproar.

Martin added: "But they selectively reported the incident and ignored the causes and consequences. In fact, gang members from southern Atlanta seized my community and wanted to develop white businesses. The community was in turmoil. The friend I just mentioned died in the fight. We were in a slum area and didn't have that many police officers. At the time, I and several other neighbors formed a community defense alliance."

This is very common in the United States and the audience can understand it.

Helen cooperated and asked, "Did the Defense League have a conflict with gang members?"

"Four gangsters were about to break into my house and I discovered them in advance..." Martin did not exaggerate and told the truth about what happened that night.

"So, you protected the four good friends from your neighborhood?" Helen saw Martin nod and said, "Here's a surprise. One of them is here on the show."

Martin was quite surprised to hear this. Who of those four idiots came to the show?

Elena? That's impossible.

Hall can only defeat the Earth.

Harris would have surely told him beforehand.

It can only be Lily, the idiot!
(End of this chapter)