While John was looking for the Army Air Corps Film Group office in the fourth-floor office area, Jack Warner and a bunch of Hollywood filmmakers were fretting about not being able to meet their deadlines. www.biquge.info Poor weather conditions last week delayed their filming schedule considerably due to poor weather conditions last week, and less than 70% of the shoot was completed when the deadline was approaching.

"Capra, it looks like we're going to have to go with the second plan, are all the props on the studio ready?" Although Jack Warner has not been in the film industry as long as his three older brothers (Harry, Albert, and Sam were still in school when the three of them started their film projection business), his talent in filmmaking is undoubtedly the highest of the four Warner brothers.

Before the age of 40, he had already worked on more than 60 films, making Warner Bros. one of Hollywood's leading studios. Especially after Sam Warner's untimely death, he was equivalent to a single person who dominated the entire film production business of Warner Bros., and he single-handedly discovered and cultivated the famous Hollywood top producers and directors such as Delo Sanuk, Ernst Liu Bieqian, and Frank Capra.

"It's all arranged, and it's ready to start shooting. But what about those aerial shots? We don't have enough material in our library. In the face of Jack Warner's question, Frank Capra, who has won the Oscar for Best Director three times ("One Night" in 1934, "Rich and Floating Clouds" in 1836, "Floating Dreams" in 1938), did not dare to slack off, he has now founded his own film production company, and he still has to rely on giants like Warner Bros. to eat.

"Find as much as you can, and I'll ask Hughes again. When he filmed "Hell's Angel", he had tens of thousands of feet of air combat material that was useless, maybe there was something we needed. "The thought of Hughes, the loser who came to Hollywood to stir up trouble, makes Jack Warner have a toothache. In his opinion, Hughes's way of making films at every turn regardless of cost is too wasteful.

"However, "Hell's Angel" is a movie from more than 10 years ago, and the models of those planes are a little too old. Will the Army Air Corps be satisfied? William Wheeler, the great director who had been smoking a cigarette on the sidelines, interjected.

"So it's best to organize a live-action shoot as soon as possible, and using studio props and old footage is only a last resort......" Jack Warner was saying when there was a knock on the door.

"Please come in!" As soon as he finished speaking, John pushed the door open and walked in. As soon as he entered, he was almost choked by the choking smell of smoke in his office.

"Ahem, ahem. Is Mr. Warner here? John asked, coughing.

"I am." Jack Warner looked curiously at the Army officer, who had just been in Vandenberg's office, "Is there anything wrong with you, Colonel?" ”

"Hello, Mr. Warner." John introduced himself: "I'm John Vanderbilt. We met at Hughes's cocktail party. ”

"Ah, you're the John of the Vanderbilt family, the one who runs the airplane company with Hughes." Jack Warner finally remembered who John was, and hurriedly smiled and said, "I don't even recognize it in this uniform." ”

He then enthusiastically introduced John to the other members of the "film group". It's a pity that all the people here today are behind the scenes, Clark Gable, William Horton, James Stewart, Ronald Reagan and other Hollywood stars are not there.

After a period of greetings, John took the initiative to express his intention: "I just heard Hoyt say that you need some planes to cooperate with the shooting, right?" ”

"yes, we're working on a promo film for the Air Force to recruit bomber crews, starring Clark Gable. But you also know that it has been raining for the last week, and aerial footage can't be filmed at all. We're worried. Frank Capra, as the director of this promotional film, answered John's question on behalf of the "film team."

"If you guys need a B-24 bomber (the military number of the D2 bomber. Historically, this belonged to the United Aircraft Corporation "Liberator", but the United Aircraft was merged by Hughes Aircraft, and the author simply let the D2 inherit this number), I think I can help a little. Today, the Hughes Aircraft B-24 and Boeing's B-17 are the latest workhorses of the Army Air Corps' bomber force.

"Really? That's great! Frank Capra was overjoyed and said, "It doesn't matter what model it is, as long as it's an active bomber." ”

"That's going to be easy." John continued: "I think you probably know that the B-24 bomber is a product of our Hughes Aircraft Company. If needed, I can borrow a few planes for free to accompany you in the shoot. And our company has its own test flight team and airport, you just need to send a film crew. ”

"Thank you, Colonel, for your generosity." The problem that had been causing everyone's headache for days was solved so easily by John, and Frank Capra couldn't have been overjoyed.

Unlike Capra, Jack Warner, as a producer, has a much more complicated way to think about things. He knew that there was no such thing as a free lunch, and a big boss like John would not help them for nothing, even if he was now a member of the U.S. Army like himself. "Colonel Vanderbilt, do you have any other requirements?"

"Mr. Warner, my request is simple." John said with a smile: "It is to let Hughes Aircraft Company and your "film group" form a long-term cooperation. As you know, our company supplies not only B-24 bombers to the Army Air Corps, but also a variety of fighter jets and other aircraft. I hope that in the future, all the films you shoot for the air force will try to use only our company's products. You can rest assured that Hughes Aircraft is always available for as long as you need it, at no charge. ”

What better way to promote products and brands these days than with the help of the military and the state propaganda machine for free advertising? John remembers that Capra's seven-episode documentary series "Why We Fight", which was commissioned by Marshall, was watched by hundreds of millions of viewers. These films were not only watched by soldiers and civilians in Britain and the United States, but even Stalin ordered the screening of "The Russian Campaign" throughout the Soviet Union.

John's idea was to seize the propaganda position before Boeing and other competitors reacted. Come to think of it, in all the films produced by the military in the next few years, the Army Air Corps will fly Hughes Aircraft Company planes, which will be a huge help to increase the company's visibility and expand its influence.

Jack Warner thought about it, and John's request wasn't too much. For them, it doesn't matter what plane they shoot from. Still, he kept an eye on it: "Colonel Vanderbilt, we are very pleased to have a long-term cooperation with Hughes Aircraft Company. However, I can't guarantee that other companies' planes won't be featured in the film, especially in the documentary. And, I suppose, this agreement still needs to be approved by the air corps. ”

"No problem, Mr. Warner." John readily agreed, "Can you borrow a phone, I'll notify the company right now to cooperate with you to complete this shooting." As for the long-term cooperation in the future, we will arrange for someone to communicate with the Army Air Corps. "Anyway, isn't Vandenberg in charge of this now? John believes that with their friendship, as long as Jack Warner and their "film team" have no opinion, the Army Air Corps will definitely not object.

On the phone, John told Hughes what he thought, and the other party immediately understood what he meant. After a brief discussion, the two decided to arrange for Tom Jr. to be solely responsible for the cooperation with the "Army Air Corps Film Group".

At this point, apart from taking time to say hello to Vandenberg in the evening, John didn't have to worry about the rest. After giving Jack Warner Tom's contact information, he got up and said goodbye to the thank you of the Hollywood filmmakers.

After going out, John's heart has been secretly refreshed. Thanks to the fact that the Hollywood business model is not yet developed, the concept of product placement is not yet popular. If it is left to the next generation, those people still don't know how much sponsorship money they want to ask him. It's like now, and in turn, I have to thank him for a thousand kindnesses. John felt that he had made a lot of money by making this cheap.