America gains both fame and fortune

Chapter 82 Vanity Fair (Subscription Request)
The Los Angeles Dome Theatre was built in the 1970s when grindhouse films were booming, and is a holy place in the minds of countless B-movie fans.

The fan and media meeting for "Zombie Gigolo" was held here.

A movie is being shown in the small theater.

In the lounge next door, Blake, the publicity director from Lionsgate, once again stressed the precautions to Martin, Catherine and Benjamin: "You can say less, but you must not say anything nonsense. When you encounter sensitive or difficult questions, don't rush to answer. We have people among the reporters and fans who will help you out."

He looked at Martin and said directly: "Your role is the most outstanding. The questions from fans and reporters will be focused on you. Can you face the camera and them calmly?"

Martin was ready when he arrived: "No problem."

Benjamin chimed in: "Our leading man is Atlanta's top gigolo. He's seen everything."

Blake gave Martin confidence: "Don't be afraid of entertainment reporters and those online entertainment bloggers. They rely on us for their livelihood."

Catherine, who was ignored, felt a little complicated.

Blake called his assistant and asked, "Have you been notified?"

The assistant said, "The focus will be on the male lead."

When the screening in the theater ended, Blake clapped his hands and said to Martin and the other two, "Follow me."

Four people entered through the side door of the theater and went onto the small stage together.

Except for the media reporters and entertainment bloggers invited by Lionsgate, all those who came today are ardent fans of B-movies.

When we saw the three main creators come out, we applauded enthusiastically.

The theater was not big, with just over a hundred seats in total, so the interactions among fans were close, with many viewers flocking to the front of the stage.

Benjamin and Catherine had never experienced this before, and before they could react, Martin took the initiative to walk forward, came to the side of the stage, sat on the edge of the stage, and said with a smile: "Everyone, don't push, we have plenty of time, let's chat slowly."

Most of the audience gathered on his side.

Martin was sure to control the pace and initiative, and asked, "Guys, is the movie good?"

The man with glasses at the front laughed: "The plot is as bad as shit, shoddy." He suddenly changed the subject: "But it is the most impressive B-grade movie I have seen this year."

Martin couldn't help but take another look at this man. He highly suspected that this was an undercover agent planted by Lionsgate among the movie fans, who was going to complain about the biggest points in advance so that the people who came after him would have nothing to complain about.

He did his homework and said, "There is no way we can do this without money. We have tried to be innovative in this film and come up with some new ideas and new tricks. A B-level film is like us going on a cheap trip on a car. It sounds impressive and looks interesting, but in fact we are all poor."

This made everyone laugh. A woman in her mid-twenties said, "You acted very well. Your name is..."

Martin responded very quickly and said, "I'm Martin Davis, you call me Martin."

The woman said, "Martin, those scenes of yours were so good, they will become classics in B-movies!"

Another woman wearing glasses agreed: "This movie has a lot of thunder but little rain, but you are like lightning in a rainy day, lighting up the entire night sky."

Martin danced with joy: "Thank you! Thank you!" He waved to the Lionsgate staff behind him, and when they came over, he said: "Can you find me a notebook and a pen? I want to write down all these words of encouragement."

Even though the staff were experienced, they had never encountered such a request. Fortunately, they reacted quickly and brought out notebooks and pens.

Martin took it, thanked them, and handed it to the two ladies: "Can you do me a favor? Write those words of encouragement to me. I had no confidence when I was filming this movie. I almost couldn't stick to many scenes. Sometimes I even doubted whether anyone would watch the role and the play I played? Anyone likes it? Is my work meaningful?"

Most movie fans are ordinary people who have encountered countless similar situations in their work and life, and can resonate with the stories to some extent.

It doesn't take much, just a little bit to infect each other.

The woman with glasses took the notebook and pen from Martin first and quickly wrote down what she had just said.

Martin was originally sitting on the stage, but he simply jumped down and asked, "Can you leave your name? When I see it, I can know who is encouraging me."

The woman smiled and said, "My name is Rachel! Martin, you did an excellent job, really an excellent job. I really liked your zombie machine gun dance and your trapeze act. I will buy tickets to see it again and I will recommend it to my friends. There is a great protagonist in this lousy movie."

Martin said: "Thank you, Rachel, I will always remember this day."

The middle-aged bald man next to him took the pen and notebook and said as he wrote: "Martin, you performed a lot of fantastic ideas in this movie. It reminds me of the glory of B-level movies 20 years ago. Don't doubt yourself, you have to have confidence, you are a good actor!"

Martin asked his name: "Rick, if I succeed one day, it will definitely be due to your encouragement today."

Reporters around were taking pictures, and there were also bloggers using cameras to record what had just happened.

Compared to the liveliness around Martin, it was a little quiet around Benjamin and Catherine.

Benjamin is a director. These days he has one foot behind the screen, so he has to maintain a certain style.

Before coming to Los Angeles, Katherine was just an ordinary late-night drama actor. Apart from the temporary training at Lionsgate, no one had ever systematically taught her how to face her fans.

Seeing that Martin stole all the limelight, Catherine became anxious. The more anxious she became, the less she could handle the situation calmly.

On the side of the stage, Blake was staring at Martin.

The staff member who delivered the notebook and pen came to Blake and whispered, "Boss, Martin Davis is asking fans to sign his autograph." Blake said, "I see, this little actor has something in his head." He felt that he had learned something: "I didn't expect that the fans' emotions could be mobilized through reverse signing."

The staff member suddenly realized: "When a leading actor on screen asks fans for autographs and blessings, the fans will have a better impression of the leading actor and the film. The person we invited today is a fan of B-grade movies."

Blake said, "Go and observe carefully, and then go back and prepare a report for me."

The staff member was stunned and thought, isn't this just asking for trouble?
Martin controlled the rhythm easily and communicated with the fans smoothly. Although the reverse signing was a little trick, it was concealed under the inspiring words and there was not much obstacle for the fans to accept it.

So, Martin said, "Guys, if this movie I starred in is still acceptable to everyone, please recommend it to your friends around you."

There were chaotic responses all around.

"no problem."

"I am the moderator of the B-movie forum and will make key recommendations."

Compared with Benjamin who maintained his style and Catherine who seemed a little flustered, Martin attracted the most reporters and bloggers.

Blake personally came out and had a brief exchange with the invited reporters and bloggers, and most of them turned to Martin's side.

Martin invited the fans: "Everyone come on stage, let's take a photo together."

Many fans surrounded Martin and he went on stage.

Martin did not forget Benjamin and Catherine, and waved to them: "Come here, together."

Benjamin strode over and bumped fists with Martin.

Catherine, the rookie actress, was mentally unbalanced. She didn't want to serve as a foil and stood there stubbornly.

The trio, who had a harmonious relationship when they first arrived, had just touched the very edge of Hollywood's fame and fortune world, and cracks had already appeared.

Fans gathered behind and on both sides of Martin and Benjamin, taking photos facing the cameras of media reporters.

Next there was an interview session with reporters and bloggers. When Blake came over, Martin whispered something to him. Blake looked at the atmosphere and nodded in agreement.

Martin was in full control of the scene. He picked up the microphone and said, "Guys, media friends and blogger friends want to communicate with us. Everyone is tired of standing for so long. Let's sit down and talk slowly."

No need for a chair, he sat directly on the stage.

Benjamin also wanted to have dinner at Gray's company, so he hesitated for a moment and sat down as well.

All the fans around sat down and gathered around Martin, as if they were his die-hard brothers.

The reporters and bloggers, who were supposed to be facing many to one, or many to three, found that something was not right. How did it become a dozen facing more than a hundred?
Blake never intervened, as he felt that today's publicity effect far exceeded his expectations.

Catherine came over shyly and sat next to Martin.

From fans to journalists to bloggers, the existence of the heroine was almost ignored.

The leading actor is a show-off in the movie, and even more so outside of the movie.

The reporters started asking questions, and it was Lionsgate's usual routine. The first reporter asked the biggest complaint: "Is this film too rough? It feels like you used a big framework but told a small story that happened in a small club."

Benjamin was prepared. He said, “If we set up a big battle between the church and the blood-sucking demon, it wouldn’t be a B-grade movie.”

Another reporter asked: "The film uses some new concepts and novel designs, such as the flying battle between the male protagonist and the female supporting role, and the life-and-death struggle between the male and female protagonists. How did you come up with these?"

Benjamin pointed at Martin and said, “These ideas originated from Martin.”

At this moment, he remembered what Martin often said and put it into practice: "He is the most versatile actor in all of Atlanta."

A female blogger asked loudly: "Martin, have you ever experienced actual combat in this area, so you can design those action scenes?"

Martin spread his hands and smiled: "I dare not use such a difficult move. Only Spider-Man can do such a difficult move. Is it possible for Batman too?"

All the questions were focused on Martin. Another female reporter asked, "Did the zombie machine gun dance use special effects?"

Benjamin shook his head: "No, it's completely real."

There were exclamations all around.

The female blogger suggested: "Martin, can you perform a live performance?"

Martin stood up, took off his coat and handed it to Jessica who was wearing glasses. He stretched his body briefly and asked her to make some space: "Let me make it clear first, you can't take off your clothes."

He snapped his fingers and said to the Lionsgate people, "Let's play some music."

When the explosive dance music started, everyone was stunned. It was truly amazing.

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(End of this chapter)