"Well, I'm very idle anyway, so it doesn't hurt to wait a little longer." Harris said.

Hey.

Tang Bao smiled and said nothing, very leisurely...... How can it be? There are a few Goldman Sachs partners who don't work hard, and the end result of being idle is to be overtaken by others and eliminated. He naturally knew that Harris was just polite when he said that he was not busy, or that he didn't dare to show it even if he was dissatisfied with Tang Bao's delay in showing up.

He sat down on the sofa opposite Harris, took a sip of tea, and said with a smile: "What kind of candidate did you find this time?" ”

Previously, Harris had only mentioned it briefly on the phone, but did not go into details.

"You won't be disappointed." Harris said confidently.

Then.

Harris said directly, "I picked out three suitable candidates, each of whom is a Hollywood leader, and all of them have saved the stormy Hollywood studios, so to speak, they all have the super ability to turn the tide." And the most interesting thing is that the three of them used to be superiors and subordinates, and they all worked hard in the same company. ”

"Oh?"

Tang Bao was slightly surprised.

Seeing that Tang Bao was interested, Harris did not sell it, and continued: "The first choice, Fox CEO Barry. Diller; The second choice, Disney's animation division CEO Jeffrey . Katzenberg; The third choice, Disney Chairman and CEO Michael Brown. Eisner! ”

"Let's start with Barry. Diller's case. Barry began his career as assistant to the president of ABC; At the age of 32, he took over Paramount Pictures, which was on the verge of bankruptcy, and single-handedly propelled Paramount Pictures to the pinnacle of Hollywood. Barry, who came from the television industry, has always dreamed of building a new television network, but Paramount's owner, Davis, has no intention of taking risks, and with various other disagreements, the relationship between the two sides has deteriorated; Barry resigned in '84 and took over the crumbling Fox, which soon led Fox to rise to become one of Hollywood's top three studios and to achieve his dreams. Successfully established the fourth largest television network in the United States, the Fox Television Network! ”

"Hmm."

Tang Bao couldn't help but nod secretly, Paramount and Fawkes were both under his leadership, getting out of the predicament and returning to the peak, this ability really has nothing to say.

"Well, Jeffrey. Katzenberg dropped out of school and only had a secondary school education. For serving as John. Lindsay's volunteer campaign for mayor of New York allowed her to work in John's office. With this connection, he met Barry, who was in charge of Paramount at the time, and was invited to serve as Barry's assistant. It can be said that Barry was his guide and mentor to enter the Hollywood film and television industry. After Barry's resignation. Katzenberg also left Paramount to join Disney and was appointed head of the then-declining animation department. Under his leadership, the animation department soon achieved gratifying results, successfully launching high-quality animated films such as "Who Framed Roger Rabbit" and "The Little Mermaid", which revived Disney's animation department in one fell swoop. ”

Like Barry and Katzenberg, Eisner came from Paramount Pictures and was Barry's most effective deputy at Paramount. After Barry left Paramount, Eisner's relationship with Paramount boss Davis also became strained. At this time, Disney, which was in a serious crisis, poached him. Appointing him as the chairman and CEO of Disney, he lived up to expectations and made Disney grow from the tail of the crane of the seven major films and television to the boss in only four years. The annual revenue rose from $1.7 billion when it took over to $25.5 billion, and the profit skyrocketed from a net loss to $4 billion! ”

"Paramount Pictures after the departure of these three people. Soon fell from the peak to the clouds, although it did not come to the point of exhaustion, but it has long since lost its former glory. On the other hand, it took only four years for Disney, which got Eisner and Katzenberg, to go from decline to revitalization. Go to the top. And Barry's Fox is not bad, even if it is difficult to reach the height of Disney, it has surpassed its old club Paramount early! Harris said.

……

Call.

After introducing the situation of the three people in detail in one go. Harris couldn't help but exhale, and then smiled confidently, "Don, it's very good." ”

"Hmm."

Tang Bao smiled and nodded in acknowledgement.

After being silent for a while, Tang Bao said: "They are all rare talents. I found out that you introduced Disney CEO Eisner after his subordinate Katzenberg, does that mean you are more inclined to choose Katzenberg? ”

"That's right. But it's not entirely true. These three people are all powerful figures in Hollywood, and their careers are also at their peak, and they can't be dug up if they like them, and they have to consider whether the other party has the willingness to change jobs. Based on the information gathered, I carefully analyzed it, and the most likely to convince Barry to leave Fox was Eisner. Still, I think you'll probably end up with Katzenberg! ”

"Oh?"

Tang Bao wondered, Harris's words were a bit contradictory, since he was most sure to persuade Barry to leave, and Barry was a more capable and leading the way for Katzenberg, then why did he conclude that he would choose Katzenberg.

Maybe.

Harris realized the doubts in Tang Bao's heart, so he explained with a smile: "Don, when Barry ran away from Paramount, it was because of a falling out with the boss of Paramount. Now he is the CEO of Fox, with a lot of authority and is also valued by media mogul Murdoch, and the two sides have a good relationship. Without coming up with a strong leverage, do you think Barry will be stupid enough to give up Fox and switch to Universal Pictures, where the future is unknown? ”

"This chip is heavy?" Tang Bao asked.

"It's heavy, it's heavy, it's so heavy that you need to think about it......" Harris said solemnly. He doesn't want to be just an employee, he wants to be a boss. In other words, only a significant stake in Universal Pictures can attract this Hollywood powerhouse. ”

"As far as I know, Barry has already mentioned the idea to Murdoch about buying a stake in Fox. However, Murdoch refused his request with Fox's only one owner, and although the two sides did not get into trouble because of this, I think there must be some estrangement, as long as you are willing to sell part of the equity, there is a great hope of digging Barry. A minority stake is useless, and I estimate that in order to satisfy the other party's desire to be the boss, at least 20% or more of the equity is needed. Harris said.

20% equity!

Tang Bao couldn't help but become cautious, although it was not a gift but a resale of the equity to Barry, but Barry holds more than 20% of the equity, and is directly in charge of the company as a shareholder, and it doesn't hurt when the relationship between the two sides is harmonious, but in case there is a conflict between the two sides, it will become an unpredictable disaster.

And it's a real hypothesis that could well come true......

Tang Bao's acquisition of Universal Pictures is not just a simple step into the film and television industry, but a part of the layout of the entire pan-entertainment industry chain.

Like what.

One of Universal Pictures' copyright resources has the potential to adapt the game, and Tang Bao will definitely license the copyright to a future affiliated game company, and this affiliated game company is owned by Tang Bao and has nothing to do with Barry. At that time, as a shareholder, did Barry tolerate the sale of Universal's copyright resources to Tang Bao's affiliates for free or at a low price?

Definitely not!

When one's own interests are damaged, it is only a matter of time before contradictions erupt.

"There's a good chance of poaching Barry, but you can't afford that much to pay. On the other hand, Eisner, no matter how big the chips you pay, it is basically impossible for him to change jobs. Through a series of drastic reforms to Disney, he quickly brought Disney to the top, and at the same time became the de facto ruler of Disney. The Disney Company does not have a board of supervisors, he holds the positions of chairman and CEO, and the members of the Disney family trust him unusually much, and the voices of other small shareholders are insignificant...... Don, you should be able to imagine how powerful Eisner is. He even went so far as to say, 'He's the Walter of today. Disney'. His huge ambition is evident! ”

"Uh."

Tang Bao was surprised, he admitted that even if he delegated power, it would be impossible to let it go to this extent. It's no wonder that Harris would say that no matter how big the chips are, it will be difficult to attract Eisner to jump ship. The other party is an absolute king at Disney, not bound by anything, can there be a more comfortable position than this?

……

"I am the Walter I am today. Disney, Eisner said it, and Katzenberg, who also leads Disney's animation department, said it. But after all, Katzenberg is not as good as Eisner to please the Disney family, and some of his usual styles of behavior are not liked by the Disney family, and saying such arrogant words has deepened the Disney family's disgust with him. Disney's animation department has done well, but it is difficult to increase the salary accordingly. In addition to his poor relationship with the Disney family, many other directors also did not like his style. ”

"Heh, the most important thing is that Katzenberg is not a CEO, and as long as Eisner is around, he will never be the CEO of Disney. Dare to say, 'I am the Walter of today. Disney's words, you can count on him to be unambitious. I'm afraid Eisner will be wary of such ambitions as well. Harris laughed.

Well.

Tang Bao nodded with a smile and said, "If you don't have ambition, you don't have the corresponding ability, as long as the strength is enough, it will definitely breed ambition." ”

Having said this, in fact, Tang Bao had already made a choice in his heart.

"Are you sure you'll be able to dig up Katzenberg?" Tang Bao looked up at Harris and asked calmly.

"Hmm."

Harris replied.

"Okay, then you can go and talk to Katzenberg and tell him that Disney doesn't have a place where he can display his talents with peace of mind, and Universal Pictures can support him unreservedly." Tang Baodao.

He still knows a little about Katzenberg, the famous filmmaker and future CEO of DreamWorks. However, he is also curious in his heart, he poached Katzenberg in advance, and Spielberg did not leave Universal Pictures, so will there be DreamWorks in the future.

"Ugh."

Harris was stunned, he didn't expect Tang Bao to be so decisive. (To be continued......)