Birth of an actor

Amon Goffman had "Are you kidding me?" written all over his face. He choked on a mouthful of coffee and coughed earth-shatteringly. Excited, he contributed the remaining half cup of coffee to the white and soft carpet.

Looking at the coffee stains on the carpet, the Jewish broker said bitterly: "My carpet for $[-]!"

Barbara Wilson couldn't help rolling her eyes: "Your tombstone almost read 'Amon Goffman - murdered by a cup of coffee' and you still feel bad about a rug?"

"Twenty thousand dollars! It's only been three weeks! I ordered Eric to vacuum at least twice a day! My assistant asked for a raise!"

"Let me pay you a new one." William was a little apologetic: "I shouldn't have confessed while you were drinking coffee."

Amon Goffman changed his face in an instant, and shouted at William with a livid face: "If you can take back those terrible words, I would rather destroy ten more identical carpets!"

"Desperate words" refers to William's coming out of the closet just now.

Yes, William revealed his sexuality and relationship with Lance to his agent and publicist.

He used "Brokeback Mountain" as an excuse to invite Amon Goffman and Barbara Wilson to his home. The two didn't notice anything wrong at first. A little sensitive, and the attention William is receiving with every step is too much now.But when the three were discussing whether they should take the film, Barbara Wilson suddenly asked William what he wanted her to do.Hollywood now knows that there are no more than five people that William wants to play "Brokeback Mountain", and even if the contract is signed, it will take some time before there will be public opinion feedback. Now it seems that there is no work for her as a publicist?

After hesitating and hesitating for a long time, William came out of the closet smoothly.

His confession couldn't be simpler: "Actually, I'm gay."

But the effect is no less than dropping an atomic bomb on the room.

Especially for Amon Goffman, whose expression language alternates between "This is definitely fucking playing me" "I must have heard the f-ck wrong" and "Sorry, my rug!" Every fine line on his face was a sign of his resistance to the news.

"Where do you look gay? You've had girlfriends before!"

"Uh, but I haven't been in a relationship with any girl in years? 'Hollywood male stars must be closets if they don't change girlfriends by the dozen.' That's what you said , I thought my signal was obvious enough—”

"Those closeted male stars don't switch girlfriends by the dozen, that's because they switch boyfriends by the dozen in private! And you've never been gay, right? There's no gay in Hollywood like you!"

Amon Goffman is so aggrieved, the thing he's proudest of all the time is that he doesn't know all the secrets in Hollywood, Jewish agents have sources all over the industry - he's a bit of a bitch Eric, his assistant, is a source of gossip in Hollywood - but he happened to be under the lights and was completely deceived by William.

William is the only one who can blow up his agent's big thunder on the issue of sexuality.It's not that he was too successful in pretending, or that the Jewish agent was too blind, but that he was really straight before, and after he found out that his sexual orientation had taken a 180-degree turn, he never tried to integrate into the gay social circle of Hollywood. , I have never been to a gay bar, and I am incompatible with the prevailing gay culture, so I confused my manager.

In North America, an important symbol of gay life or gay culture is the gay bar.Both homosexuals and heterosexuals need legal social places and ways to vent their desires. Heterosexuals have movie theaters, bars, hotels, motels, drive-in theaters or other dating venues with couple themes, but most of these places are Those who are not open to homosexuality, comrades dare not go in and out of these places openly, what they need is a social occasion exclusive to their own group.

Gay bars are such an occasion. They existed before the LGBT community came out of the shadows to the sun and began to seek social attention. The only legal places to go to friends and get sex - except for bars, they can only go to public toilets or truck parties. These places not only have a high risk of disease and robbery, but also often have police fishing for law enforcement. Sent in jail—even in the 50s and 60s when the American judicial system seriously discriminated against homosexuals, LGBT groups can get temporary shelter in gay bars, even if they encounter police raids, as long as they are not caught with their mouths and hands on the body of the same sex, they don’t have to Worry about going to jail.The earliest gay rights organizations were born in bars, and some historical events such as the Stonewall riots that affected the gay rights movement around the world also took place in bars.

Of course, it is no longer necessary for the LGBT community to rely on bars to make friends like themselves, but after decades of subtle influence, socializing in bars is still very important to the gay community, and many gays spend two or three days a week in bars While spending the night in the entertainment circle, many Hollywood actors are found gay by insiders because they often hang out in gay bars. Don't worry about meeting journalists, but secrets can be kept from the whole world, and people in the circle can't be kept from it, but everyone abides by the rules and doesn't break the news to the media. There are still rumors in the industry.

Not to mention going to gay bars, William probably doesn't even know the name of the most famous gay bar in Hollywood, and he never hangs out in gay social circles, so it's naturally difficult for others to guess his true sexual orientation.

However, William always felt that there was something wrong with what the manager said: "Ami, you have inquired into my private life so clearly, but you have never talked to me about it. Do you have something to hide from me?"

"No! Haha, how could there be!"

"Your curiosity and suspicion are almost as good as those of the National Enquirer reporter, I don't believe it. And, don't you notice that your expression is extremely guilty now?"

"Well, this—actually, I thought you were frigid."

"Frigidity or impotence?" William glanced at the agent speechlessly and asked directly.It is not only Amon Goffman who has known him as a partner but also a friend over the years. William also knows his agent very well. Once he saw the other party's expression, he knew that something was going to happen.

After being seen through, Amon Goffman no longer covered up. He shrugged and said, "Well, I wondered if there was such a possibility—" He stretched out his finger and gestured a very small distance, " Just a little bit, is there something wrong with your body? But it turned out that I was completely paranoid, and you were healthy in all the checks!"

It was only then that William understood why he had been required to undergo a full-body health checkup twice a year and have regular stress-relieving talks with a psychological counselor since two years ago. It turned out that it was not simply because of work needs.He almost laughed out of anger, no man would be happy to be so suspicious.

"Thank you for your concern. My body has always been in good health." William said sarcastically: "And now my sex life is also very regular and normal, so you don't have to worry about it anymore."

"???" The Jewish agent said hysterically, "I knew you came out suddenly, there must be a reason! Who is that man? I want a name!"

Amon Goffman ignored William's mocking tone. He didn't want to know more about William's sex life, as long as he knew that he was not suppressed by a psychopath, but he had to know who William was dating now. A real time bomb.

But even if it is a bomb, Amon Goffman is not afraid. What things in Hollywood have he not seen or experienced?To deal with time bombs, as long as the detonator is drawn out or the power supply is cut off, it will not explode.

I don't know who William is dating now, could it be an actor he met on the set before?Or an assistant?model?The Jewish agent quickly calculated in his mind the crews that William had joined in the past year and the people who might interact with them. Once he knew who, he would immediately present a non-disclosure agreement, as well as a film contract and a chance to become famous that the other party would never refuse. Let the other party obediently be William's underground boyfriend until they break up. Of course, at the same time, there is also a threat. If you dare to play tricks, you must be prepared to disappear from Hollywood forever, and never get ready to earn a living from this industry. ...

……

However, when Amon Goffman was thinking about getting a name no matter whether he asked directly or insinuated, Barbara Wilson first asked the question she had wanted to know for a long time: "Are you because of directing Barbara? La Streisand will be in the role, so you decided to shoot "Meet the Father-in-Law 2"?"

William felt a little baffled: "What does this have to do with her? If you really want to compare, partnering with Dustin Hoffman is even more attractive to me."

After hearing William's answer, Barbara Wilson's expression was wonderful. She looked at William as if she was looking at an alien creature: "Do you know how high she is in California, no, in the hearts of gays all over the United States? Okay Well, you don't know - do you like Cher, Madonna, Cindy Lauper or even Britney Spears?"

Amon Goffman also immediately looked at William, wanting to know his answer.

William shook his head honestly.

Barbara Wilson rolled her eyes, raised her finger painted with bright red nail polish and patted her chest, showing a big smile, although that smile seemed to be joking: "Amon, I don't think we need to Will is too worried." She turned her head to look at the Jewish agent, "His secret is safe, even if the most sensitive comrades of GAY are standing beside him, I'm afraid they won't smell anything of the same kind."

Amon Goffman seldom agreed with Barbara Wilson's idea without raising an argument, but this time he directly nodded in agreement, and even let out a long breath with a relaxed smile on his face.

"The expressions of the two of you seem to have discovered that the 500 million dollars lost at home have reappeared in the safe." William raised his hand: "Can anyone explain what happened?"

"Reading comprehension is perfect, Will, you are the $500 million." Barbara was in the mood to take out the mirror to touch up her makeup, and said while doing it: "It's about other things, especially the gay circle you have joined. Know too little."

Then Hollywood's veteran gay friend, Barbara Wilson, calls herself, set out to unravel the confusion.

Every era has iconic star idols, just like people in the 70s are crazy about Bob Dylan and the Beatles, people in the 90s are crazy about Madonna and Michael Jackson, and gay groups will also like these Superstars who are popular all over the world, but they prefer other stars with unique temperament and personality. This kind of star singers who are especially popular with LGBT people are collectively called gay icons (GayIcon).

The United States is a country where Christians make up the majority of the population. In the 90s, the highest proportion of religious believers accounted for 90.00% of the total population, while the proportion of Christians in developed European countries has dropped to about half in recent years, so when dealing with non-heterosexuals In terms of social tolerance, the United States is far behind Europe.Among the states in the United States, the environment in California and New York is better. The central and southern states are the hardest hit areas for homophobia. The vast majority of homosexuals in this country grew up in a conservative environment, and they dare not come out in their daily lives. You have to suppress your nature, conceal your identity anytime and anywhere, and severely restrain yourself. Those who come out bravely have to fight against discrimination from all directions, and suffer more mental pressure and even harm than ordinary people.

Because most gays are not free enough to live their own lives, the stars they like and pursue must be able to resonate with them deep in their hearts, or they have distinctive personalities, are maverick and very chic, and they are the people they yearn to be. , or those who have been hit by twists and turns of fate but are still fighting tenaciously, reminding them of themselves and being inspired by courage, or directly dare to speak out for the gay community when the social environment is generally conservative, and even participate in the struggle for gay rights .

Gay idols rarely have insiders. Most of them are female stars with normal sexual orientation, and there are also a few male stars. Gay fans - from Judy Garland and Rita Hayworth to Bette Davis and Marilyn Monroe to Barbra Streisand, Cher and Madonna, pretty much everyone in their own right The most distinctive and unique star among the Hollywood stars of the era is also the most popular gay icon.

Many gay fans are not just loyal to their idols. Some people even regard each other as their life lighthouse or spiritual sustenance, just like the most iconic Stonewall incident in modern history, which happened in Zhuhai. Di Garland's funeral night - Judy Garland died of an overdose of sleeping pills in June 1969. On the night of her funeral, a large number of fans gathered in grief at a bar called Stonewall in Greenwich Village. Consolation, it just so happens that the police decided to raid gay hangouts across the city on the same night.It was an era when sodomy laws still existed in many state laws, and there were countless similar actions before. A large number of police officers would suddenly break into gay bars and nightclubs, intimidate and even beat customers. There is no other way.Until this night, some grieving fans were angered by police brutality and began to fight back. This emotion spread to others, and eventually evolved into a violent demonstration between gays and police. For the first time in the world, homosexuals staged a large-scale resistance against government persecution, which ignited the prelude to the worldwide affirmative action movement

William is not gay, there is no chaotic same-sex relationship, and even Barbra Streisand and Cher don't like it. Barbara Wilson and Amon Goffman can't think of any gay in Hollywood who can compare to William They acted more straight, and all their previous worries flew away, or at least 90.00% of them flew away, leaving only a little——

"So, who's that mysterious man? He'd have to be hot to win you over, which no woman in America can do! Come on, Will, tell us his name?" Barb La Wilson asked curiously.

Amon Goffman also looked over, he wanted to know the answer to this question more than Barbara.

"Uh, in fact, you are not unfamiliar with him." Thinking of Lance, William smiled softly: "It may be a little surprised, after all, we have been friends for so long—"

Amon Goffman's expression changed immediately: "Leonardo DiCaprio?!"

Barbara Wilson was so frightened that her face turned pale, and she directly broke one of the nails she had just made this morning.

It can be seen from the expressions of these two people that this is such a horrifying guess—whoever asks William and Leonardo to go out to buy a book or go to the gym, the photos can be posted directly. As for the popularity of the cover of the entertainment magazine, the two appeared together, and the news effect was even more square.For example, if William's coming out is a nuclear-bomb-level news, then with Leonardo coming out together, all the media on the earth can directly explode.

"What would happen if it was Leo?" William was aroused to joke by the reaction of the two.

"I want to resign! I really can't handle this level—" Barbara Wilson first bounced off the sofa, and then sat back heavily, "—wait! You said what if? You said If!" Barbara rubbed her chest and took two dramatic and exaggerated deep breaths, and threw William a big white eyeball: "Damn Will, I'm about to be scared to death by you."

The Jewish agent who shared the same feeling as the blond publicist, at the moment William made a joke, Amon Goffman did not immediately have the urge to resign, but his vision went dark, as if he saw himself witnessing the growth of a top A coffee in front of his own eyes. Walking the tightrope on the cliff, the thrilling scene where the precarious scene may fall into the abyss at any time.And when I knew it was just a joke, that moment felt like returning to heaven from hell.

Amon Goffman and Barbara Wilson hadn't recovered from the self-shock just now, when they heard: "I'm with Lance."

Lance?Which Lance?There is only one Lance that will appear in William's mouth-the heir of the Roderick family and his old friend for almost 20 years.

Is this the gay version of Friends coming true? Did the story of "When Harry Met Sally" happen in reality?

Although not as frightening as Leonardo DiCaprio, the two were equally shocked by this answer and were speechless for a long time.

Barbara Wilson calmed down earlier. The turn of William and Lance Roderick from friends to lovers was indeed jaw-dropping, and even made her thinking ability stop for a while, but compared to William and Leonardo falling in love. This kind of event will make all public relations have suicidal impulses. Although William and Roderick are also like a nightmare for public relations, the nightmare is at least possible to resolve.

In particular, the public is equally curious about the private lives of actors and celebrities and celebrities, but paparazzi reporters dare to stalk, peep and harass celebrities, catch wind and even fabricate false news, but they never provoke celebrities and rich people too much.Just like Bill Gates didn't want his family life to be disturbed, so no newspaper or magazine has ever published a recent photo of Gates' children. Among the few children, the relationship between the late media tycoon and his ambitious young wife, as well as the relationship between the young and powerful children is not always smooth, but the outside world's understanding of the internal disputes of News Corporation depends on speculation, and no media will do it for We report this to attract attention.

Rupert Murdoch is still an Australian. Bill Gates was only from the middle class before he founded Microsoft. Roderick is different. For more than a hundred years, the fortune and prosperity of the Roderick family are closely related to the political history of the United States. Well, everything about this surname is the same as the surnames of Rockefeller, DuPont, and Macmillan. It is always shrouded in a layer of tulle, so that outsiders can never see clearly.

Barbara thought of Lance Roderick. Except for the kidnapping case that caused a sensation in the United States 20 years ago, the adolescence of this "heir to a hundred billion dollars" was almost invisible to the public. As William became famous, he was photographed by the media The number of times has increased, but most of them are just some street photos taken when going out for dinner with William. Even in the upper east side, the number of appearances in the coffee circle is pitifully small, and the public only knows about his few career trends. — Thankfully, the more low-key Roderick is, the safer his secret relationship with William will be.

Amon Goffman thinks farther ahead than Barbara Wilson, and he's even a little thankful after the psychological shock of William's coming out.

'It's a good thing it's Lance Roderick and no one else. 'The Jewish broker really thought so.It’s not that he hopes that Roderick and William will be together. If he can choose, he certainly wants his actor to become straight. It’s best to live the standard American dream life of a wife, a house, two children and two dogs in the next ten years. But if homosexuality was unavoidable, it was better to be with Roderick than any other man.

There used to be many closet superstars in Hollywood. They had to act all the time inside and outside the camera, and they lived like two-faced people all their lives. They couldn’t get the happiness that normal people should get—physiological needs were often in a state of depression, and they were bought with money. Relief actually accounted for a large part, and there were also those who specifically used their fame to lure newcomers to the industry, and some even asked managers to act as intermediaries to help pimp them.In addition, you can’t tell the truth to your friends in the circle, and you rarely have a normal romantic relationship. Even if you do, it won’t last long. All kinds of factors accumulate. Over time, almost everyone will frequent the psychiatrist’s clinic.But psychological counselors are not omnipotent. They can temporarily heal a person's emotions, but they can't save his life. Therefore, the lives of those superstars in the closet seem to be glamorous, but in fact very few are happy.

Lance Roderick's identity, status, and ability all show that not only will he not bring William trouble, but he will also solve William's troubles. Moreover, his friendship with William's childhood playmate and childhood sweetheart is what they are now. The natural blindfold of the relationship, unless they come out or are out in front of the media, otherwise, even if the media suspects, they will not put the homosexual hat on them.

After all, there are more straight male stars in Hollywood who show friendship more gay than them, like Ben Affleck and Matt Damon, Leonardo DiCaprio and Tobey Maguire , Matthew Buyconner and Lance Armstrong——William can at least last until he is old enough, and when the whole Hollywood is wondering why he doesn’t get married, there is a risk of sexual exposure. Rooney, that's at least a dozen or 20 years later.

……

"I know quite a few celebrities who say they are hiding in a closet. In fact, most of their bodies have been exposed outside. Even the media knows it well. At best, they can only deceive those naive movie fans who know nothing about Hollywood—— It's not you, Will, you did it flawlessly, and if neither I nor Amon can discover your secret, neither will anyone else in Hollywood." Barbara Wilson nodded to William, then looked at Amon Goffman: "But we'd better make some plans. In case of emergencies in the future, we can be prepared. I know some girls who are pretty well-behaved, and they are easy to be bribed. Do you think it is a preparation? For a few scandals, it’s better to hype them up every once in a while, or to find an actress who is also hidden in the closet, have a fake relationship or simply get married?”

The Jewish manager looked at William subconsciously, and he had an intuition that William would not like these ideas.

Sure enough, just after hearing Barbara's words, William's face sank.

Barbara Wilson looked at William's face and felt a little uneasy. She didn't know what she said wrong. Obviously this is the safest way to deal with it. From the golden age to the present, all the closeted male stars in Hollywood are did so.She thought so, and explained it that way.

Amon Goffman tried to smooth things over: "Cary Grant was married five times and still couldn't get rid of the gay scandal, and Rock Hudson's marriage was self-defeating and ruined half of his career, so these methods are not necessarily safe, because It will definitely involve other actors and agents, and sign a lot of non-disclosure agreements. Secrets, even if there are non-disclosure agreements, the more people know, the less safe it will be."

Because he lived with his male friend Randolph Scott for ten years, even though he had been married five times, Cary Grant's life was surrounded by bisexual scandals, and the rumored close friends of the same sex even included Howard Hughes.

And Rock Hudson is a superstar with a tougher screen image than Grant, and he was later confirmed to be gay. At the peak of his career, in order to maintain his image, he faked marriage with the other party’s secretary under the arrangement of his agent, and negotiated before marriage. However, Rock Hudson is different from Cary Grant. He is a homosexual through and through. Of course, he cannot be a real couple with the secretary, so the transaction marriage is three years later. It ended in divorce. At that time, the secretary had already hated Rock Hudson because of love, and later published a book to fully disclose Hudson's sexuality and his private life with other men.

Barbara Wilson changed the method: "There is also a method that does not require signing a non-disclosure agreement and does not involve other people. It only requires you to go to church a few times, and we can publicize that you are religious, but the media will not Associating religious people with being gay. The only problem is that this kind of use of religion may make you a little bit morally uncomfortable."

"Too many lies. Barbara, I think you understand. Every time you tell a lie, you have to use countless lies to describe it. Too many lies will not make our life better. On the contrary, it will only Put heavy shackles on us." The proposal of the two, William was not unimpressed, he even thought about it a little bit, but after thinking about it, he still made his own choice: "I have always understood what I am fighting for , I used to do it for money, for honor, and later to make myself stronger and stand taller, but the purpose of all this is just to want greater freedom and a happier life. If I put myself in shackles , how can there be happiness?"

After Barbara Wilson's complexion changed several times, she asked cautiously: "Will, you don't mean to be, do you want to come out?"

"Maybe I will become the first Oscar winner who is openly gay." William said: "Anyway, I already have a statuette in my hand, which is much better than Montgomery. It doesn't matter if the academy doesn't give me a second one from now on."

Montgomery Clift was a superstar in Hollywood's golden age, with outstanding acting skills, and he was also gay.Unlike other comrades of his time, he hid himself tightly in a closet. He was loyal to himself and frank, and did not bother to hide his orientation. Because of his semi-public sexuality, he suffered a lot in Hollywood. Oscar gave him four Nominations, but none of them won him an award, and if it weren't for friends such as Elizabeth Taylor, Marlon Brando and Katharine Hepburn who helped him when he was in trouble, and made films with him to tide over the difficulties, the big producers of that era The factory has already blacklisted him completely.

If you look at it this way, the society is still developing and improving. Although the overall environment in Hollywood is still conservative, the studios will turn a blind eye to actors who do not hide their sexuality as long as part of their body is still hidden in the cabinet. Close your eyes, if you hide well, the Academy will also generously give trophies, such as Kevin Spacey and Jodie Foster.And those actors who have completely come out of the closet will definitely not be able to be the protagonists of commercial films anymore, but they will not be reduced to the point where they have no films to shoot.

When William really said that, Barbara Wilson laughed dryly a few times, trying to take it as a joke, but her stiff smile revealed her true inner emotions—it was not apprehension or fear, But she didn't expect that William would really say something like coming out, which simply overturned her cognition of her entire career.

"Seriously? Will, I really hope you know what kind of decision you're making." Barbara Wilson said sincerely: "Yes, I thought of my own career first, and I was afraid it would play End. But it's not just for me, Amon and other people whose careers are tied to yours, but also for yourself - have you considered how much trouble coming out of the closet will come to you? Of course, you are not afraid of not having a film contract. Even if the big studios unite and don’t ask you to make a movie, Willlott still has the confidence to form a team with an investment of hundreds of millions of dollars, and you have bought so many film and television adaptation copyrights, many of which have potential It’s a good script. I’m talking about the troubles outside of the movie. What Ellen DeGeneres encountered after coming out of the closet is incomparable to yours. Your troubles will only be on the order of the square, no, the cube of the square.”