The scene before him reminded Nanaya of a line of lyrics from his previous life.
We sat next to the tall grain piles and listened to our mother talk about the past.
Very fitting, isn't it?
This old man is naturally the Stan Lee who became very famous in the future. He is the creator of a large number of heroes such as Iron Man and Spider-Man. He is also a living fossil in the American comics industry.
Nanaya always plays the game according to the size of the cards he has.
Of course, Nanaya played the Stan Lee card. You know, most of the characters in the Avengers were created by him, so it is very appropriate to use him as a connection point to the real world.
For this purpose, Nanaya and Marvel developed a complete publicity plan for the old man, pushing the old man to the forefront of publicity.
When Stan Lee received the news, he agreed without much thought.
This plan can make him more famous and also earn him a lot of money, so why not do it?
In particular, the plan is to tie him together with various Marvel characters and promote them to the world. This is a wish come true for the old man who has dreamed of becoming a celebrity since he was a child.
You know, his name has disappeared from the public for many years since the decline of the comics industry.
Although he has made cameo appearances in many Marvel movies before, it was just a cameo appearance he wanted to make.
The prices offered by Fox and Sony did not satisfy him at all.
In comparison, the invitation from the old employer Marvel this time is obviously more sincere.
Therefore, Stan Lee worked even harder in the publicity. He told various interesting stories from when he was creating the Iron Man comics in a very humorous tone, providing the reporters on the scene with extremely rich material.
Seeing this happy situation, Nanaya felt that it was the right decision for him to invite this old man back.
An old one at home is like a treasure.
That's really well said.
"Hi, Stan."
Nanaya stepped forward and fought with the other party.
"Ah, Nanaya."
The old man naturally put his arms around Nanaya's neck and said in a very enthusiastic voice: "I want to thank him. Without this producer, Tony Stark would probably still be just a comic character now."
Nanaya said modestly: "No, I have always liked this role. It is my honor to be able to participate in this movie."
"As a Japanese, that's really rare."
The old man laughed, seeming to think that Nanaya was just being polite.
[I'm not lying, I've always liked this character since my last life. ]
Nanaya shrugged his shoulders, glanced at the excited reporters in front of him, turned his head and asked the old man: "Stan, are you telling everyone the story of that year again?"
Stan Lee was not embarrassed. Instead, he said proudly: "You know, when people get old, they always like to reminisce about the past."
Nanaya winked at the old man: "Of course, with more experiences, there are more stories."
"Haha, you're absolutely right."
The old man laughed very happily. When old people get old, they like the hustle and bustle. He likes the atmosphere of being surrounded by people.
"Director Kiryu, can you answer some questions?"
Nanaya is now considered a celebrity in Hollywood. Since he appeared here, the reporters would certainly not miss this opportunity.
"Sure."
Since they had entered the interview area, Nanaya of course came for a normal interview, so he did not reject these reporters.
"I heard that you recommended Robert Downey Jr. to the crew? What made you make such a decision?"
"Because whether it's image or acting skills, Donny is the perfect choice."
When facing the interview with reporters, Nanaya certainly did not hesitate to praise Downey.
"Even if the other person is at the bottom of his career?"
Because the reporters here are all locals, they used relatively euphemistic terms when mentioning Downey's dark history.
"Of course, this is actually a challenge for him." Nanaya nodded, "Downey's best and worst moments in his life have been seen by the public. He must find an inner balance to overcome the difficulties in his career. This is the same as Tony Stark."
Nanaya then answered a few more questions and then took the old man away from the interview area.
There was nothing special about this interview, and Nanaya only spoke in PR clichés.
However, the reporters who interviewed also complied with the previous requirements and did not ask any particularly sharp questions, nor did they inquire about the news of Fate's new work.
After waiting until the reporters were out of sight, Nanaya whispered to the old man, "Thanks, Stan. I'm glad you've made it this far."
"No, I want to thank you too." Stan Lee replied with a smile, "I chose this name because I hoped my real name would make me famous all over the world, but I didn't expect this name to be even more famous."
Stan Lee is not the old man's original name, just like Jin Yong's last name is not Jin, and a certain online novel tycoon's last name is not Tang.
The old man has always wanted to be a novelist. After all, when he first entered the industry, the comics industry was not considered a very glorious industry.
So he took the first few letters of his real name Stanley Lieber and changed them to create the pen name Stan Lee.
This is so that my real name can appear in officially published novels in the future.
"This is probably what they call an accidental planting of willows that eventually lead to a good harvest."
Nanaya also let out a sigh.
The old man curled his lips and said, "You are saying something I don't understand again. What does this have to do with willow trees? Is it a Japanese idiom?"
Nanaya didn't know how to explain to the old man, so he could only change the topic to another matter: "Stan, what do you think about my previous proposal?"
"Hmm... this..."
The smile on the old man's face disappeared, and he became a little hesitant. "Japan is too far away, and I have to promote the movie..."
Some time ago, when Stan Lee was found to promote Marvel movies.
Nanaya made a suggestion to the old man. He invited Stan Lee and his wife to live in Japan and provide the best elderly care services for the two elderly people.
A series of protection measures including housing, medical care and regular babysitting.
However, the old man was a little afraid of leaving his hometown at such an old age, and was hesitant about Nanaya's proposal.
Now it seems that he has clearly refused.
Nanaya did not insist, and he changed his suggestion: "How about I let Washimine arrange a few Japanese nurses and housekeepers for you?"
"Is it necessary to do this?"
The wrinkles on Stan Lee's face deepened.
Nanaya smiled and said, "I just want you and Joan (the old man's wife) to live a more comfortable life in your later years. When it comes to the service industry, Japan is world-famous. They work hard and don't ask you for overtime pay."
"Haha, I've heard of that. They say Japanese wives are very considerate."
The old man made an expression that every man would understand, and then said regretfully: "It's a pity that I'm really old, otherwise I really want to go to Japan for fun."
Nanaya took the opportunity to say, "It's not too late now. The care provided by Washimine is specially for foreigners. Their English level is very good, so communication is not a problem at all."
"Well...but, I think..."
"You have worked for most of your life and need someone to take care of you and accompany you." Nanaya still kept a smile on his face, "This is a special benefit Marvel has for you, an old employee."
"Hmm... let me think about it."
Stan Lee's words were evasive and he seemed worried.
"Listen, Stan." Nanaya put his arm around the old man's shoulders and whispered, "I know what you are hesitating about. There are some things we can help you with."
"Let's talk later. I'll go in first."
The old man shook his head and entered the theater while greeting others.
"It seems that your idol is wary of you?"
Shion appeared from behind Nanaya, she naturally took Nanaya's arm and led him inside.
"Old people are more stubborn."
Nanaya shrugged.
Shion covered her mouth and laughed secretly, "If you are too attentive to others for no reason, you are either a traitor or a thief. Of course people will be wary of you."
"I just hope that the old man can live a more comfortable life in his later years. If that is possible, I would rather spend a little more money."
Nanaya's words were not a lie. As a Marvel fan in his previous life, he knew very well that the old man did not live a happy life in the last few years of his life.
An old man who is rich and in poor health is naturally the target of many people with ill intentions.
From lawyers to daughters to assistants to nannies, it seems that too many people want to take things from this old man that don't belong to them.
The two things that left the deepest impression on Nanaya were:
One piece of news is about the old man's excellent daughter, Joan Lee. This woman in her 60s who is still single can be said to have sucked the marrow out of her parents.
The old man has to pay at least $20,000 to $40,000 in credit card fees for his only daughter every month. Calling her a parasite on his body is already a compliment to her.
As for the story of tricking his father into giving him blood, diluting it and making it into a signature on a comic book, and then selling it as Stan Lee's autograph.
This kind of thing is basically routine for that woman.
Of course, if the old man can only explain his daughter's affairs by saying that it was due to family misfortune and failure of education, then outsiders can only say that the old man has a bad life.
Another thing is that when "MeToo" was particularly popular, the old man's lawyer, assistant and nanny accused him of harassing the female nanny.
The testimony they gave was that the old man was not wearing pants and was walking around in front of the female nanny with his lower body naked.
Nanaya felt that this description was more like saying that the old man had Alzheimer's disease. As a nanny, what she should do was to put pants on him to prevent him from catching a cold, instead of thinking that he was sexually harassing her and making a note of it in her notebook.
As I recall, the old man's asset manager Herman once described Stan Lee as "being treated like a prisoner in prison."
He said that this old man who had created countless superheroes now "needs a superhero the most".
Thinking of this, Nanaya sighed.
"Just think of it as seeking peace of mind, so that the old man can live a few more years of comfortable life."