Chapter 103: Paramount
2023-05-02 Author: Yue Shang Xintou
As the saying goes, the speaker may have no particular intention, but the listener reads between the lines.
When he heard Roy speak of the current situation of Hollywood studios, a glint flashed in Colin's eyes, and he immediately asked.
"So, you're saying Paramount's situation isn't good right now?"
"Not good? That's an understatement. It's absolutely terrible."
Paramount's success was influenced by the Great Depression; two years ago, it had merged with the Publix Company, which owned numerous theaters, gradually becoming one of Hollywood's major film studios. However, for that very reason, the studio's leadership became chaotic and factional. This situation proved especially fatal during the Great Depression.
"It's said that in Paramount's high-level meetings, the top executives have long since lost interest in filmmaking, and the internal conflicts have all come to the surface..."
In fact, Paramount had been in decline ever since the merger with the Publix Company.
Just last year alone, the film studio's profits dropped by two-thirds, and starting this year, it has been operating at a direct loss.
Hearing Roy's description, Colin nodded, a thoughtful expression on his face.
"Colin, are you thinking...?"
Roy, on the other hand, noticed the change in his expression and quickly reacted, saying.
"I have a few ideas."
Colin didn't deny his thoughts about Paramount.
Faced with such a golden opportunity, it would be a lie to say he wasn't tempted.
Especially since, once he had control of a film studio, the possibility of producing a live-action Superman film seemed within reach.
If all else failed, a musical version of "Superman" wouldn't be out of the question.
However, despite his burgeoning ambitions, Colin was well aware of the massive gap between his current resources and Paramount.
Acquiring a major film studio that had lost over 10 million dollars in less than six months was no simple task. At the very least, it was a huge problem for the current Messenger Newspaper; he simply didn't have that kind of capital on hand to buy a film studio.
Wait a minute... the Reconstruction Finance Act?!
However, just as Colin thought he would have to watch this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity slip away, in the Main World, a memory from his weakened [Super Intellect] suddenly flashed: the news report he had seen on the train about Hoover signing the Reconstruction Finance Act.
Perhaps this was a solution.
If he remembered correctly, the so-called Reconstruction Finance Act did have some effect later on. In the first three years after the Reconstruction Finance Corporation was established, it issued nearly $2 billion in loans annually. Although this sum wasn't enough to pull the country out of its economic predicament, it did provide liquidity to the financial system.
Of course, this wasn't to praise the merits or demerits of Hoover's policy.
Rather, it was because Colin knew that the loan distribution of the Reconstruction Finance Act was, in fact, riddled with improprieties. The agency's initial plan was to help save small banks in rural America that couldn't normally get loans from the Federal Reserve. The reality, however, was that railroads controlled by some of the wealthiest families and corporations received $264 million in loans.
Later on, it was eventually shut down in 1957 due to corruption.
Regardless of the ultimate outcome of the Reconstruction Finance Act, for now, it was an excellent target.
Once Colin could persuade the Reconstruction Finance Corporation to grant him a loan, the problem of acquiring Paramount would be easily solved.
Of course, Colin wouldn't pin all his hopes on the Reconstruction Finance Corporation alone.
From what Roy said, although Paramount was already deep in the mire, it still had some time before it would truly go bankrupt.
If he could raise enough funds during this period, he might not need to rely on Hoover's act to solve his problem.
For an ordinary person, this would be impossible.
But for Colin, it was not entirely without hope.
After all, he held "Superman" in his hands.
"If you can, Roy, I'd like you to help me keep an eye on any news about Paramount."
"No problem."
Disney Studios was located right in Hollywood, so Roy didn't refuse Colin's request.
Although, he wasn't very optimistic about the idea of him acquiring Paramount.
But that didn't stop him from doing Colin a favor. After all, Disney and Colin were currently in a harmonious phase of cooperation.
Their respective works were set to make cameo appearances in each other's comics and animations in the near future.
...
After confirming the news about Paramount, Colin didn't stay in Los Angeles any longer.
He took a train and returned to New York.
Soon, the "Superman and Mickey" crossover comic was published in the new serialized story of The Messenger Newspaper.
In this era, a crossover comic was still a novel concept.
When readers saw Mickey Mouse appear in the Superman comic, they naturally reacted with curiosity and excitement.
In this issue's story, Pluto discovers a mysterious tunnel entrance in a basement. Through this entrance, Mickey arrives in Metropolis, the city where Superman resides. Through a bizarre twist of fate, he gets kidnapped by a group of criminals in Metropolis, but at the critical moment, Superman appears and saves Mickey.
Superman senses Mickey's uniqueness and warmly welcomes the guest from the Fairy Tale World. He then enthusiastically gives Mickey Mouse a tour of Metropolis, the city he protects.
During this tour, Mr. Mxyzptlk, who had been forced back to the Fifth Dimension after losing a bet with Superman, reappears. He uses his powers to transform all of Metropolis into a Mickey-style Fairy Tale World, where all the trees and buildings seem to come to life.
It's worth mentioning that this fairy-tale-themed comic was penned by Walt Disney himself. He also created the fairy-tale version of Superman under Mr. Mxyzptlk's influence, filling that panel of the comic with a distinct Disney fairy tale style.
Of course, by the end of the comic, Superman once again succeeds in tricking Mr. Mxyzptlk into saying his own name backward.
Superman: "Knock, knock! (Makes a knocking motion)"
Mr. Mxyzptlk: "A joke? I love jokes! Who's there? (Excited)"
Superman: "Klt-pzy-xm..."
Mr. Mxyzptlk: "Klt-pzy-xm who? Oh, no! (Annoyed)"
In the comic, because Mr. Mxyzptlk says his name backward, he is forced to return to his home dimension. Metropolis, which had been transformed into a Disney style under his power's influence, returns to normal. Mickey, remembering Pluto back home, says goodbye to Superman and returns to his own Fairy Tale World.
(end of chapter)