章節 108: Chp 102 : How To Find A Wife Or Husband
Timeline : Early September 1986.
Enjoy!
~~~
Early September, Toronto, Orantio, Canada.
Today was a special day for Al's best friends. More likely for Ione and Keanu because today would be the day where their film would be premiered at this film festival.
Toronto Film Festival, a film festival held in Toronto, Canada from 4th September to 13th September.
One thing for sure, in every film festival there would always be a red carpet. Since the premiere of <Ferris Bueller's Day Off>, people was curious to find who was the girl that Alphonse Brandt took.
The only information they got was she would be in Toronto Film Festival to attend her first big-screen debut on this independent film she starred in.
Media also found out about him having a good relationship with her co-star, the leading role of this film. A man named Keanu Reeves and it was proven by how close they were when they were having an uncontrollable laugh together.
He came with both Ione and Keanu to the red carpet and the three of them were having a photoshoot together to commemorate their friendship.
It was the second day of this event and their film would be premiered in the main theatre hall.
Ione was currently holding into his arms due to her nervousness. He was thinking about how he would never piss Ione off because her grip was so powerful and he saw his hand turned white for a while.
'Damn, how much strength this girl had!?' Al thought.
"Just breathe slowly, and relax." He subtly told her so he won't lose his arm.
"Easy for you to say when you are not the one who runs through it. I bet you were like this too when <E.T.> first premiered, right?" She clenched her teeth and asked him back.
He opened his mouth to retort but not a word escaped his lips. Instead, he was laughing, yes he was laughing at himself, "Yes, I was nervous too that day. Sorry Ione, that was insensitive of me. But I learn not to be afraid of it, I was 12 that day, and now I'm all grown up."
"So you were okay for the rest of your film premiere? Man, I hope I can be like you." Keanu said.
"You are still nervous? You've starred in 6 films last year." Al widened his eyes.
"Of course, hell. Every film where I had a role on it, I was train wrecked. I need at least to get high to calm myself."
"Wait, you aren't smoking pot today right?"
"Of course no! Well, maybe a little, but it won't affect my soberness, I hope so." Keanu stuttered.
Al was not convinced a bit, he could see the sign of Keanu getting high from weed. So he warned him a little, "Good, but if I saw River or Ione is using it from you, I won't forgive you." His words may be a bit harsh but he also worried about Keanu too.
Keanu sighed, he knew Al knew, "Crossed my heart, this thing is only for me alone."
"Thanks, Keanu, I'm too overprotective with them somehow."
Keanu then smiled, he also cared about Al and River too. They were his genuine friend he got since he joined Hollywood.
"Al, why are you here anyway? Did Gwen knew you were here?" Ione asked.
"Shit, I forgot to tell her." He slapped his forehead. Both he and Gwen had been busy these days, whether it was from schoolwork or their career.
"Well, tell her now, or else I will be the one who tells her you have been playing with other girls when she was not with you." She threw a wicked smile at him.
"Ione! No! you won't dare!" And he let out a big tiring sigh, "We've been busy these days, I haven't met her for a week now. But after this, I will make sure I made up for her." He let out a big smile.
He had fallen hard for her. Since he has been her boyfriend, never once he was thinking about Minnie. Maybe Ione was right, Minnie was his first time and that's why he would never forget about her.
But it also led him to doubt. His date with Gwen somehow always turned into a physical relationship. Even their date in Disneyland ended up with them got home earlier and fucked each other brains out in his mansion in Beverly Hills.
He brushed it off as an act of hormonal teenagers, seeking the warmth of each other bodies and scratching the itch they suddenly had.
"Besides, don't you like your friend to support you here?"
"Of course I like it, but you don't have to come here every single day. I don't need you to babysit me here, Robin will come to accompany me tomorrow." She said.
"Aw, you hurt me there Ione." He touched his left chest, "The truth is, I will attend a talk show hosted by my acquaintance in the next few days. It's closer from here than going from LA. I hate Jet lag."
"Yeah, you sure did."
"And as my friend, both of you had my support. Remember I supported River on his film premiere right?"
"No you didn't Al, you gave made him scarred for the rest of his life! Besides, I think River and Laura are quite cute to be together."
"Yeah, they are." His face turned sour after mentioning them, "Also it seemed Muspelheim Films was interested to distribute your film, I hope they won't offer too expensive."
Their talks escalated until someone decided to interrupt them and told them that their film would soon be started. "Oh, it seemed my film will be starting soon, bye Al." She kissed his cheek and went off, "Let's go Keanu."
"You go, I want to have a bathroom break first." After she left, Keanu was looking at him with interest, "Are you sure you two did not have anything going on?"
"Geez, Keanu, I told you we are a friend."
"It doesn't look like it."He said again but chuckled, "Bye Al, enjoy the festival. But I just want to tell you, it's also my experience, that there is no such thing as a best friend between boys and girls, there's always little affection affecting your thoughts."
"Thanks, Keanu, goodbye."
What Keanu said disturbed him but he just brushed it off. He liked Ione but he said it again and again, it won't work.
Their film was a success. <River's Edge>, their film got a good recognition as a thriller crime film with a good rating on their back.
Al stayed with Mary for a few days at this film festival. Besides a few interviews he had to do, they also here for searching any film they could buy for their home videos and distribution across the globe.
After he was done here, he then said farewell to Ione, promising to attend their dance class beyond tomorrow.
~~~
"Are you ready Mr. Brandt?" The associate director said.
"Yep, more than ready." He replied.
The next day, he embarked on a plane from Toronto to Chicago to attend the first episode of the talk show of the future prestigious tv shows in the United States.
The show was called Oprah Winfrey Shows.
He watched the TV in the make-up room and saw that the host was introducing their first guess.
Margaret Kent, the writer of "How To Marry The Man Of Your Choice" and "How To Marry A Superior Woman". Both books were charged at $95 and if the reader failed to get their partners, they could refund them.
Well, the book was right about one thing, they should marry because of mind, other things could get wrinkle and age.
It was quite outstanding that this first episode without any big stars could achieve its success by relying on quick-witted and advice from Oprah.
Too bad quality deteriorated through times. Although she could be said to be a great talk show host, for life advice, she was not the person to be taken an example of.
Al knew one thing that made her like this, ego. For 25 years in the future, this show will be aired, she had become a symbol of a powerful woman in the entertainment business, and her ego inflated like a balloon.
All of the above means that it's very likely that nobody tells Oprah the "truth" and as such she simply has few, if any, reasons to moderate her behavior. This seems to manifest itself in the appearance of insincerity and quite possibly is actual insincerity. But it was far in the future.
But today, she was just a woman who struggled to start her career with her first-time talk show.
He got out from the changing room and found himself being stared at in surprise by everyone else in the studio.
He had become a mystery guest in this talk show.
A few months ago, Oprah called him through the connection she had with Steven. When Al called her back, it went to her voice mail, so he contacted her via her agent then the producer called him directly.
He told the producer that he would like to be a guest in the first episode of the Oprah Winfrey Show. He also suggested to the producer that he wanted to become a mystery guest and keep his identity confidential.
Of course, the producers accepted it in an instant, even they told him that they would give anything to him as long as he could be there in this talk show, even if it was just a few minutes role.
They were so desperate to get a famous guest star and must swallow their spit because most of the famous celebs did not want to be in the first episode of the talk show that was not guaranteed to have a second episode.
That's why they were forced to invite a non-famous author who wrote a controversial book.
Even Oprah did not know he was here, only a few executives knew.
As Oprah was saying few things to the audience, she was then called by the floor manager that a mystery guest was there. Oprah was surprised to hear that they had a mystery guest.
"Okay, everyone, I just got news from the producer that we have a mystery guess! I even don't know who it is, let's welcome our mystery guess!"
That was a cue for him. He went up to the stages and at that moment, everyone in the studio and the home were screaming loud.
It was Alphonse Brandt! Oprah had her mouth hanging to her knees after seeing his entrance.
Al hugged Oprah and the author of the book whose name was Margaret Kent.
Oprah then let him sit in one of the chairs that used to belong to a couple who went to the stages to testify about this book.
"Oh my God, Alphonse Brandt is here in person. What did I do to get such treatment?"
"Well, you did help my godfather in making a great film. With that only, you have earned my respect in playing that character."
"Sure, but what I did was not that remarkable."
"Don't sell yourself so low Ms. Winfrey. You are a great actor." He said.
That made Oprah let out an embarrassed laugh. This kid could make her feels like 10 years younger with his slick tongue.
"Okay, okay, enough question about me. This one talk show is about you. Just call me Oprah, Al. Can I call you Al like everyone else?" He nodded at her.
"Please, I'm not that great. Look, even I'm not too good at being a talk show host." Oprah told him.
"Really? I thought you have done it very remarkably. I was intrigued by your talk with Mrs. Kent about finding a partner you know."
Oprah then interjected him, "So, are you interested to get a wife too?"
His subtle smile and light nod made everyone screamed in madness. Oprah turned to the audience and said. "Look everyone, Mr. Brandt is interested in looking for a bride! Raise your hand for those who are interested in being his bride!"
Her words made every woman raised their hands so high. "Look at that Mr. Brandt, I think everyone wants to become your wife and some husbands who want to choke the life out of you."
That earned laugh from the audience. Al also laughed and said, "Thank you everyone, but too bad I already had a girlfriend." He said in not so regret.
The audience was disappointed at him or his availability.
"Okay, Mr. Brandt, I want to talk about your life first if that's okay, maybe the girlfriend topic later. Anyway because your arrival here was uninvited, I didn't have any single question prepared for you." The audience laughed again, "Just tell me when my question was out of bounds."
"It's okay, I won't go throwing tantrums if it hurts, maybe I'll just cry in the corner for a while." Everyone laughed again.
"Okay, I heard that this must be your first TV interview, is that right?"
"Absolutely."
"I'm so glad to receive this honor, Al. Can I know why you didn't do any TV interview?"
"Let's just say, I'm too lazy." He joked and the audience booed at him, "Okay, fine, I'm trying to keep a low profile as I could and let myself had a nice childhood without interference from any media."
"Did you still live in the boarding house with the other foster orphans?"
"Yes, although I can't say the name because the matron and I must keep it confidential."
"Yes, even the media trying so hard to find it and until this day, nobody can. I bet your matron is an important person if she could do that." She joked.
"Maaaaybe." Al gave her a subtle hint. Al also didn't know who Mrs. K's identity was. To run an orphanage that still running in a traditional system such as a boarding house behind the trending foster care system was giving him a hint that Mrs. K in the past was such an important person.
Oprah was asking the basic information such as his birthday, where he lived. She also asked about his parents who he only gave the clue that his father was a native of German and his mother was a native Jew from Israel.
Then Al retold his story from he was writing his fantasy stories to the LA Times, his first audition, the first time he met with Drew, His duet with Madonna in Live Aid Concert until he became one of the actors in the war-theme film with Stanley Kubrick and became his assistant director.
Everyone was intrigued by his life story. They couldn't believe that he had such adventurous life since he was 10 years old and the most amazing thing was he started from nothing, he was just an orphan who wanted to bring his imagination to the real world and he had succeeded in bringing that up.
The rating of this show who only below 4 million suddenly rose twice or even more since Alphonse Brandt made his debut in the TV interview.
The producer was laughing loudly seeing the ratings and he was very happy that this show had succeeded.
"So, let's talk about the thing everyone curious about. So Al, can you tell me about your girlfriend?"
The audience leans their body forward from their seats. Finding out who was the lover of this teenage idol, who didn't want to know. Celebs had a special privilege to entertain their fans, even if common people deny they didn't interested in celebs life, they would somehow at least show some curiosity about them.
Al smiled in acceptance, "I want to tell you all it's a secret but I feel you will be pestering me about it if I don't tell you that." He smiled.
"Okay, so we met in Homecoming Dance, but I did not take her to dance."
"What? Did someone ditched you and your current girlfriend in Homecoming Dance?" Oprah pushed.
"Yes she did, she's such an ass, but the best kind of friend I could ask for."
"She's your best friend? Did you have feelings for her?"
"Yes and no, look, we only been a friend when we were in high school but somehow, we found ourselves clicked." He snapped his finger "That's just it. We both like to prank each other."
"Then, how about your girl you have been dated?"
"Well, actually, she's not the girl from our school, she was from the band our school hired to fill the event. She and the two of her band members were having food poisoning and as a good samaritan and some kick from my best friend and teacher, I volunteered to fill the event."
The audience whether in the studio and home were laughing.
"Then what happened?"
"I sang."
"You just sang?"
"Until the band recovered and we were having a duo, and I flirted with her."
"What kind of flirting, I think I'm interested about how you flirted, it could set an example to all boys in the United States?" She joked.
"You know, how the boys flirted, we say random things about comic books and games."
"You flirted by telling her about a comic book!? That was some ridiculous things that could happen if you are Alphonse Brandt." Oprah joked and laughter sounded again.
"I know right! I should've read the book that Mrs. Kent write and swear that thing never happened again." Al joked. "But it brought us closer, I mean, I told her about spider-man and she read that comic for me. Sometimes I don't know if I regret turning her into a nerd like me or not."
"So you sing a duet with her, then you feel this girl is the one?"
"No, not like that. I was singing with her and felt enchanted while she was singing with me. When she is singing, I felt that she was the most beautiful thing I ever saw. There was a 'baduum' sound in my chest and that special butterflies, but that's it. I didn't know she would enter my life like that."
"So as Mrs. Kent had said about men, they had a pattern of 'I like her, what is my risk of rejection.' thing?"
"Yeah, just like that. Now I'm feeling intrigued about that book Mrs. Kent, you knew how men's minds worked, should I be scared now?"
Margaret Kent who sat beside him was laughing hard. "You read the book, Al?"
"Both of them. When the producer told me about inviting you and would discuss your book, I'm also interested to read them. And I felt you knew about the psychological workings of men and women, it's got a more practical approach than other books that were about philosophical thinking. Now I knew how girls thought about us and what they didn't know about us. Also explaining what the things we boys didn't know about girls."
Everyone was giving applause at them, then Al added, "But believe me, I'm not promoting this book, just giving an honest review." That earned him another laugh.
"Well, at least you get the girl right?" Oprah continued.
"I did but I wasn't sure about myself first. I took her on the first date at the roller rink, and we've some misunderstanding that maybe put me on her bad lights. But that's what I thought first. Then I knew she was having a crush on me, not to sound narcissist by the way."
"You did just now Al," Oprah added. Everyone also smiled at him.
Al chuckled and said, "Well, I also had a crush on her and this other friend, convinced me to get her, so I confessed to her about my feelings and she's my girlfriend now."
"Awww..." The audience said in unison.
"Is that the end of story Al?"
"No, there were some scenes left but better not to be told because I want to keep this show on PG-13." Laughter broke again from the studio. They all thought Al was so great with words and they've been struggling not to laugh when he joked.
"Then do you have any advice to the audience about how to find a partner, for your fellow brothers maybe?"
"Well, for my fellow armies, I just want you to need to be confident and found a perfect prey for you all. But my advice here actually for girls.
Okay, how many of you girls, whether in studios or home; found that if that man is not confident enough to talk to you, they were not worthy of your attention?"
The answer was not shocking to every woman in here who was raising their hands.
"Well this is how it works, we boys consist of, well myself included but I covered it with my mischievousness side, ARE almost 80% consisted of a shy person."
The girls widened their eyes while the boys, almost all of them nodded their heads.
"You won't know that but it's true. Like Mrs. Kent book's says, we made a pattern in our behavior to make ourselves thinking about the risk of our rejection. That 20% of men, consist of THAT guy, the guys you thought were bad, the bad man that you are thinking that every man is same as them. The boastful guys, the noisy guys, the overconfident guys."
The studios fell silent for a while because he was right.
"You girls won't know maybe that one of the shy guys from the 80%, is the ONE. What you always get will be that 20% who roamed the world. Maybe, 40% from 80% would break the shackle and asked you out, but maybe what if the ONE is on the 60% of the 80%?
What I asked of you is simple, give my fellow brothers a license, a privilege to flirt with you.
Like, hey I found the cute guy over there, his height below my standard but what the hell, I kinda like him, then smile at him, a subtle hint for him, a license to flirt with you. As for boys, don't tell them your weird hobby during flirting like myself telling my girl a spider-man comic. Save it when you know her better, knew her hobbies and what she likes or dislikes.
Well, that's my thoughts on relationship, it works in two ways, it takes two people to tango."
Al sat down and the audience was all stood uo and gave him applause. Men and Women, included and none of them felt offended when they were told by a boy half of their ages about the relationship.
It was all because what he said was happening to all of them. Most women in here who are still single felt they always had a streak of bad boyfriends because the one who was approaching them was all an asshole.
While single men felt that they were afraid to approach a girl because they were afraid that they would disturb them or they were thinking their risk of being rejected. Now they felt they should buy that $95 overpriced book, or at least they could share the price with their single friends.
"Wow, that was amazing. I'm glad you came uninvited Al."
"Oh, next time, I'm sure to call you first before going unannounced like this."
"As much as I don't want this to end, I'm sorry to you all that we must close the show for today but before that, Al I had a question for you." Oprah turned her head in his direction again. "Is it true you write a song for a duet with Madonna all by yourself?"
"Yes." He said and started to worry. He guessed he knew where this conversation would be going.
"Could you sing us a song, for the closing up, please? We want to hear you singing, but not the one you had ever sung before nor the famous song."
"That producer planned this doesn't he?" He raised his eyebrows.
"Yes, he does," Oprah replied.
"Well, I can compose a song now. Just give me a suitable theme and a few minutes and I will let out any song I had on my 'mind library'." He smirked.
"Love, how about a love?" Oprah suggested.
"Can I get a more specific theme? It's a wide theme I got."
"How about endless love?" Margaret Kent cut in.
Al fell silent, he wrecked his brain to find a good song that easy to play. A few minutes passed and the light bulb appeared on his head.
He stood upon the stand where the prop assistant already prepared a place for him to sing. A stand mike, a guitar, and a sound mixer.
They really prepared for him today, damn it was his time to get pranked today, not passing through this talk show.
He prepared everything by checking out the guitar and everything. After he has done with his preparation, he started to sing.
Every time he plucked the strings, a beautiful melody calmed the mind of the people in the studio and home. When he opened his mouth, it struck harder and gave them critical damage to their weak hearts.
"I met you in the dark, you lit me up, You made me feel as though I was enough." The songs continued and feom the first lyrics they heard, weaken their heart.
The more he sang, the deeper they were brought into oblivion called bittersweet feelings. It was so sad yet it so mellifluous. It was so bitter yet so heartful.
"So I wrote this song for you, now everybody knows, That it's just you and me 'til we're grey and old--
"Just say you won't let go, Just say you won't let go..." One more strum and the song finally over. Some cried, some had a subtle expression, some smiled in remission.
But one thing for sure, this boy is a fucking genius and they all appreciate him by giving him a standing applause.
Oprah also standing and crying, not only because of the bittersweet song but also because her first show was a success and she had undying gratitude for him, now and forever.
To Be Continued...
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