Chapter 159: The Unexpected Little Golden Man

Simon was kissed by Sandra for a while, and after leaving the backstage, they arrived at the corridor beside the hall. Simon stopped in his tracks and turned to Sandra to confirm, "Is it really all cleaned up?"

Sandra glanced at Simon with dissatisfaction and said, "Of course, do you think I really want to be caught by Jenny with a scratched face?"

Simon always felt there was something mischievous in Sandra's eyes. He wiped the corner of his mouth again before stepping out of the corridor.

The award ceremony was unknowingly halfway through, and the Best Original Score was currently being presented on stage.

After Simon returned to his seat, Jenny was about to say something to him with a smile. She blinked and then reached out her hand without hesitation, pinching his waist.

Simon took a sharp breath, noticed Sandra's schadenfreude expression, and sighed in his heart.

The most poisonous woman's heart.

He was still schemed against in the end.

After Jenny pinched him, she still looked unsatisfied and glanced at Sandra across Simon, before pulling out a tissue and a small mirror from her purse and tossing them over.

Simon looked at himself in the small mirror and saw a deliberately left lipstick mark on his chin. Although it was not big, someone sitting as close as Jenny could easily recognize it.

Sandra came over again as if nothing had happened and said, "Simon, Douglas got the Best Actor, huh."

On stage, Mary Martin, the previous year's Best Actress winner, announced Michael Douglas's name with a stiff tone. This middle-aged actor from a Hollywood dynasty won the Best Actor for his role as Gordon Gekko, the tycoon in "Wall Street."

Simon knew why Sandra specifically reminded him but still pretended to be annoyed and responded lightly, "Hmm?"

Sandra didn't care about Simon's feigned attitude, as if she had completely forgotten what just happened, and analyzed seriously, "'Wall Street' only got Douglas nominated for Best Actor, just like 'Run Lola Run.'"

Simon kept his 'I'm still angry' stance and just nodded slightly, "Hmm."

Seeing Simon like this, Sandra glanced around, making sure none of the live broadcast cameras were pointing their way, then leaned closer. Simon, realizing Sandra was about to kiss him publicly, was startled and quickly raised his hand to stop her, "Stop, or I'll have Jenny sit over here."

Hearing Simon's 'threat,' Sandra finally calmed down.

Simon was just saying it. Under the current circumstances, he really didn't dare to swap places with Jenny.

This is the Oscars, after all.

Considering Jenny's temper, anything could happen if provoked.

However, noticing Simon and Sandra's 'interaction,' Jenny didn't let him off and reached out to pinch his waist again, though much lighter this time.

Once the two women calmed down, Simon turned his attention back to the stage, his mind inadvertently reflecting on Sandra's words. Michael Douglas winning Best Actor not only highlighted his impeccable performance in "Wall Street" but also the Douglas family's deep connections in Hollywood.

As for "Run Lola Run," Simon hadn't taken it too seriously after the nomination announcement. Orion and Warner, disappointed with the nominations, didn't spend much on public relations, accepting this nomination as a subtle rebuke to Simon.

Lost in thought, the award ceremony was nearing its end.

Perhaps intentionally or not, the Best Editing award was scheduled after Best Director. When Bernardo Bertolucci, who won Best Director for "The Last Emperor," left the stage, Chevy Chase introduced Kevin Costner and Daryl Hannah to present the Best Editing award.

Jenny and Sandra, now more attentive, made Simon sit up straighter too.

On stage, Kevin Costner, wearing black-rimmed glasses, joked with Daryl Hannah before getting to the point, "They are the most creative and indispensable members of a film crew. After a movie wraps up, they select the right shots from tens of thousands of feet of film and combine them with their miraculous hands into a perfect movie."

"Now, it's their time to be rewarded," Daryl Hannah continued, "The nominees for Best Editing are:"

"Gabriella Cristiani for 'The Last Emperor'."

"Richard Marks for 'Broadcast News'."

"Michael Kahn for 'Empire of the Sun'."

"Peter Bering for 'Fatal Attraction'."

"Simon West for 'Run Lola Run'."

After announcing the nominees, Daryl Hannah slowly tore open the envelope and took out the card with the winner's name, her face showing clear surprise. She even looked directly at Simon.

Noticing Daryl Hannah's pause, Kevin Costner, curious, also looked at the winner's name, equally surprised.

Their reactions, along with Daryl Hannah's glance toward Simon, made everyone realize something. After a brief moment of surprise, Kevin Costner and Daryl Hannah exchanged looks and smiled as they loudly announced, "The winner is, Simon West, 'Run Lola Run'."

Many guests, who thought a young man was merely making up numbers, were quite surprised by the result. It wasn't until applause filled the hall that the core group of people below the stage remembered to start clapping.

Amidst the increasingly warm applause, Simon stood up from his seat, Jenny and Sandra also stood up, hugging him one after the other.

After hugging Jenny, Simon turned to Sandra, who had worriedly left another lipstick mark on his face, but she just whispered congratulations in his ear and let go.

Walking swiftly to the stage, Simon received the little golden man from Kevin Costner, shook hands with both presenters, and then turned to the podium.

With the little golden man beside the microphone, Simon waited for the applause to die down before looking at the statue and smiling, "Although it feels a bit strange, it really is a surprise."

Even if just considering his roles in film as a director, screenwriter, composer, or producer, Simon's fame far exceeded that of an editor. Yet, he was standing on the Oscars stage as an editor.

With a hint of self-mockery in his words, laughter followed by applause erupted again.

Simon waited a moment before continuing, "Looking back, the past year feels like a dream, fortunately with not a bad outcome. Along the way, so many people have helped me. Here, I want to thank Bob, Brian, and David, the executive producers of 'Run Lola Run,' my agent Jonathan, my girlfriend Jenny, my good friend Sandra, and many others like Katherine, Ron, Keanu, and so on, thank you all."

Unlike major awards like Best Picture or Best Director, where acceptance speeches can be longer, the Oscars have a thirty-second limit for technical award speeches. Although Simon knew he wouldn't be rushed off stage even if he exceeded the time, and ABC might even prefer him to stay longer, he didn't deliberately prolong his speech and quickly left the stage.

As soon as he arrived backstage, Jenny and Sandra, who had slipped away from their seats, came up to him for another hug, then Pat Kingsley and Neil Bennett appeared, each holding a mobile phone.

Pat Kingsley gestured for Simon to follow a staff member to attach a nameplate to the little golden man, saying, "Simon, Mike Medavoy called to congratulate you and hopes you'll attend Orion's party at the Hilton. Terry Semel also called with a similar message. Jonathan has left home; he asked where you'll be later and will come over."

While Pat Kingsley spoke, her mobile phone rang again. She stepped aside to answer, and Neil Bennett handed his phone to Simon, whispering, "Ms. Bigelow is on the line."

Simon and Jenny disliked the bulky mobile phones of the era, only equipping Neil Bennett and Ken Dixon, their bodyguards, with one. Neil Bennett, who drove them to the venue tonight, had stayed backstage.

Taking the mobile phone from Neil Bennett, Simon whispered, "Katherine?"

"Yes," the other side quickly responded, paused, then added, "I just saw you win on TV and wanted to congratulate you."

"Thank you," Simon smiled, asking, "How have you been?"

"You know, preparing for a movie, and also helping you and Jenny with the house renovations, very busy."

Katherine's tone carried a hint of weariness. She was a woman of regular habits, accustomed to early nights and early mornings. It was nearly midnight in New York; she would have been asleep if not waiting for Simon's only nomination result.

Listening to her voice, Simon suggested, "Why don't you come back to LA tomorrow?"

"No," Katherine immediately refused, her tone slightly panicked, before adding, "Later, I, in any case, you definitely shouldn't mess around like that night again."

Simon immediately nodded, "I promise."

"Brat," Katherine lightly scolded, not quite believing him, then said, "You must be busy there, right? I'll hang up now, goodbye."

"Good night, get some sleep."

After hanging up, Simon casually handed the mobile phone back to Neil, took the little golden man with the nameplate attached from the staff, and headed to the media area surrounded by the group.

After completing the media interviews, the front-stage award ceremony officially concluded. "The Last Emperor" unsurprisingly won the Best Picture award.

Although it was already after midnight on the East Coast, it was still nine o'clock on the West Coast, the start of many people's nightlife.

In the '80s, the post-Oscars party scene wasn't as prominent as it would become, and after the ceremony, people typically moved to parties hosted by various film companies. Since it was already arranged, Simon and his group headed to the Sunset Tower Hotel in Beverly Hills to attend Warner's party.

Twenty minutes later, as Simon just got out of the car in the Sunset Tower Hotel parking lot, Jonathan Friedman came up to greet him.

After warmly congratulating him again, Jonathan greeted Jenny and the others before whispering to Simon, "Coincidentally, Simon, Steve Ross is here tonight, and he was hoping to have a chat with you."

Steve Ross, the chairman and CEO of Warner Brothers, was a figure Simon had always been interested in, known for his mafia background.

Steve Ross made his fortune in New York through funeral homes and parking lots. Anyone paying attention knew that in big cities like New York, industries like parking, funerals, construction, and garbage disposal were often infiltrated by the underworld.

In "Once Upon a Time in America," the characters run a funeral home, which is no coincidence or metaphor; it reflects reality. The IRS has a hard time assessing how much a funeral home can make from a funeral. You could claim $10,000 or $1 million, and as long as you pay taxes diligently, everyone turns a blind eye to where the extra money comes from. The same goes for parking lots.

Interestingly, the film industry has even more leeway.

Simon and his group entered the Sunset Tower Hotel's grand banquet hall, welcomed by Warner Brothers' CEO Terry Semel, with Mel Gibson, who had also attended the awards ceremony, by his side.

"Simon, congratulations," Semel said warmly after congratulating Simon again. "Mr. Ross had to step out for a bit but will be back soon. He's very keen on talking to you. Also, this is Mel, you guys should officially meet."

Simon extended his hand to Mel Gibson, saying, "Hello, Mr. Gibson."

"Simon, call me Mel," Mel Gibson shook hands with Simon, then gently shook hands with Jenny, complimenting, "You look beautiful tonight, Miss Johnston."

"Thank you, Mel. You can call me Jenny. I really like 'Mad Max.'"

"Oh, then you can talk to George later; he's here too. We're planning the fourth sequel."

Simon noticed the natural familiarity between Jenny and Mel Gibson as they chatted. It wasn't surprising. Both Jenny and Gibson were from Australia.

Hollywood's Australian gang has always been a tightly-knit group. In the original timeline, Mel Gibson's career plummeted due to scandals involving domestic violence, alcohol abuse, and racism. But at this moment, he was definitely a leading figure among the Australians in Hollywood.

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