Chapter 37: Double Happiness
When he returned to his apartment, Ronald noticed that his mailbox in the hallway was full, the door bulging slightly outward with letters packed inside.
"Do I have that many letters?" Ronald was a bit confused. Usually, nobody sent him letters—just bills. He'd been busy editing videos during the night shift and hadn't paid much attention to letters.
"Could it be...?"
Ronald rushed to the mailbox, took out the key, and tried to unlock it. He was so excited he fumbled twice.
He steadied his right hand with his left to calm himself down.
As he slowly unlocked it, the mailbox door couldn't withstand the pressure of the letters crammed inside, and a large pile of letters tumbled out, clattering to the floor.
Ronald quickly bent down, picked up the letters, and tapped the edges of the envelopes against the ground to organize them.
There were four extra-large envelopes in total, mixed with a few utility bills.
He stood up and examined the large envelopes. Each had a message.
"Rejected."
This one was from UCLA Los Angeles.
"Rejected."
This one was from Columbia.
Two large envelopes stamped with red rejection seals extinguished most of Ronald's hopes right away.
Feeling nervous, Ronald pulled out the third large envelope.
"Waitlisted."
It was USC!
He quickly opened the envelope and found a notice inside.
"Dear Ronald Lee,
Hello.
Your application to USC's School of Cinematic Arts this year fully meets our admission requirements. However, due to the overwhelming number of applicants this year, we have reached our maximum admission capacity. We cannot send you an admission offer at this time and can only place you on a waitlist.
Please note that a final decision on the waitlist may be delayed until late May 1979..."
In other words, he had to wait and see if previously admitted students chose to attend elsewhere, which would open a spot at USC.
There was no indication of where he was on the waitlist or how likely he was to be admitted.
What about the fourth letter?
Ronald pulled out the final large envelope...
A large "Accepted" stamped on the cover.
Hahaha...
As a Chinese soul, the happiest moment is receiving an admission offer from a prestigious university.
It was from the Tisch School of the Arts at New York University.
"Congratulations, you have been accepted to the Film and Television Department of NYU's Tisch School of the Arts...
The university is very close to home, just a ferry ride away from Staten Island.
"Please sign and return the confirmation form by April 30, along with the $200 enrollment deposit... If you'd like to apply for housing... Reporting guidelines..."
Ronald immediately called his Aunt Karen to share the news, despite it being 11 p.m. in New York.
"Ring, ring, ring..."
"Aunt Karen! It's Ronald!"
"Slam,"
"I got in! I was accepted to New York University!"
Aunt Karen cried on the other end of the line.
After years of hard work, her sister's son had finally been accepted to a prestigious university. As a single mother raising two children, Aunt Karen had endured many hardships.
Ronald reassured his aunt that he had saved enough to cover his first year's tuition and book expenses, and that the money he sent home could be used for the mortgage or put into a bank certificate of deposit.
Savings accounts in the U.S. basically had no interest. Inflation was so high now, depreciating more than 10% annually.
So, the bank provided Certificates of Deposit (CDs) for depositors to purchase, similar to China's fixed deposits. They offered a 15% annual interest rate, enough to outpace inflation and still turn a profit.
Ronald himself also bought CDs. After all, the 13% annual inflation rate was outrageous.
This exciting news seemed to cure the frustrations he'd been feeling in his daily life. Ronald wanted to share his joy with someone.
But in Los Angeles, Ronald didn't have many friends to share his happiness with. Aside from the neighbor Mrs. Weber, most of his acquaintances and friends were working at New World Productions or with the "Rock of Ages" team.
Ronald was a so-called "first-generation college student." Neither his parents, his aunt, nor his late uncle had attended college.
If he were from a typical American family, it would be a big honor to have a first-generation college student, celebrated like a big event. Last year, some of Ronald's wrestling teammates invited him to a celebration dinner where their parents gave speeches. It was quite grand.
Ronald wanted to share his joy with more people. He decided to buy some small commemorative gifts to give to others.
Early the next morning, Ronald went to McDonald's and negotiated with the store manager. He bought 100 family meal vouchers at a 20% discount and received a large coupon booklet as a gift.
Each voucher could be used for a family meal package, which also came with a small wearable badge.
Then he drove to New World Productions, handing out a set to everyone he met. Though not expensive, the vouchers allowed recipients to get small toys for their kids, and his coworkers were quite happy to receive them. Ronald got many congratulations in return.
Going up the stairs, he saw Gale there and quickly approached.
"Here's a gift for you, Gail."
"Congratulations, Ronald." Gale congratulated him immediately.
"You already know?" Ronald asked, curious.
"Do you know already?" Gale asked at the same time.
"Who told you?" they both asked simultaneously.
"I got an offer from New York University," said Ronald, handing her a McDonald's gift voucher. "Thanks, Gail. Is Mr. Coleman here? I'd like to thank him personally."
Gale laughed, pulled an envelope from a drawer, and handed it to him. "So, you got into college, and here's another surprise for you."
Ronald took the envelope and saw it was from the American Directors Guild: "My membership application?"
Gale nodded.
"Wow! Today really is my lucky day." Ronald's eyes stung slightly.
"Come here, Ronald." Gale gave him a big hug.
"Who's out there?" asked Roger Coleman from inside.
"It's Ronald."
"Oh, Ronald, please come in," Roger Coleman said cheerfully.
"Mr. Coleman, thank you for your help." Ronald entered the office and respectfully presented a set of five McDonald's kids' meals and branded gift certificates with Disney. He had chosen this set especially, knowing Roger Corman had three children.
"I received an admission notice from NYU's Film and Television Department, and I wanted to thank you for the recommendation letter," he said.
"And Gale just mentioned the Directors Guild application. Thank you very much, Mr. Coleman."
Roger took the gift certificates and nodded.
"Congratulations, Ronald." He stood up and shook his hand.
Roger then gave a few congratulatory words and shared some advice on college life.
Ronald noticed the many documents still on his boss's desk, thanked him again, and prepared to leave.
"By the way, Ronald, I teach film at NYU. Martin Scorsese also made a film for me. Have you seen his 'Taxi Driver'? If you get the chance, say hello for me."
Ronald agreed and left the office.
"What's 'Taxi Driver' about?" he asked Gale.
"Oh, it's directed by Martin Scorsese," Gale replied.
"1976 film," Gale made a finger gun gesture, "You talkin' to me?"
Ronald shrugged, saying he hadn't seen it.
"What about 'Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore' from '74?" Gale was slightly disappointed at Ronald's lack of Hollywood knowledge.
"I saw that one," Ronald recalled, having gone to a theater on Staten Island with Aunt Karen and his cousin Donna. The theater often showed old movies.
The movie tells the story of a single mother working as a hotel waitress, supporting her son while pursuing her dreams of a singing career and finding love. Aunt Karen had been moved to tears and spent days praising the film.
"Ellen Burstyn, who played the single mother, even won the Oscar for Best Actress."
It seemed that this talented director had been quite productive. Ronald thought he should try to get acquainted with him and maybe even join his team.
Gale handed him the Directors Guild application and said, "You can fill it out here." She passed him a pen.
Ronald had never seen a pen like this before. It was black, and he couldn't tell what material it was made of. The clip on the cap was metal. He tried twisting the cap.
"You pull it off, not twist," Gale reminded.
"Thanks."
Ronald pulled off the cap and started filling out the form. The pen wrote smoothly as he completed his name, date of birth, contact address, and application level.
"By the way, the Directors Guild people said the name Ronald Lee is already used by five or six actors and producers. They suggest you add your middle name or adopt a stage name," Gale added.
"Alright," he wrote "Ronald V. Lee" clearly in the registered name field.
Americans often sign only with their middle initials, and Ronald's driver's license and checks were signed this way.
"You'll still need endorsements from three Directors Guild members. You can get that, right?" Gale asked.
"I think so. Thanks," Ronald thanked her again, took the Directors Guild application materials, and went downstairs.
He found the editing room and knocked. Inside, Director Alan Arkush and Joe Dante were reviewing the mixed demos for "Rock of Ages." Ronald asked them to sign a certification letter and gave each a McDonald's gift certificate to share the good news of being a first-generation college student.
He received a few more congratulations and hugs.
Allen and Joe also told Ronald that the mixing of the entire "Rock of Ages" movie will be completed soon.Once sent to the MGM lab, multiple copies can be made and a test will be conducted in Los Angeles in April. You must come see him then.
In April, it seems that I will come to the company more frequently to inform myself about news.
After receiving two letters of recommendation, Ronald got into the car and drove to the specialist company. Cameron is also a certified member and the third certification letter fell to him.
Thanks to readers for pointing out plot inconsistencies in this chapter, which has been revised. However, after the modification, the original comment was automatically deleted and I would like to express my gratitude
End of this chapter