Chapter 126: Chapter 126 The Grand Theater Performance

At this point, the publicity director was obviously excited."One of them is Miss Judy Garland. She happens to be in New York and will sing 'Over the Rainbow,' the theme song from 'The Wizard of Oz,' at the event."

Ava's mouth dropped open in surprise. "Really? Judy Garland is coming?!"

"Another is Julie London, the singer of the theme song from 'Gone with the Wind.' She will also perform the theme song tonight."

"Oh my God!" Ava was in shock. Julie London was her idol—her true idol.

"And one more, Johnny Fontane, the famous singer. He will also come to perform."

Ava was so astonished that she didn't know what to say. "Why are so many stars suddenly coming? Did MGM invite them? This lineup is incredible!"

The publicity manager glanced at Hardy. "No, it wasn't MGM who invited them. Miss Ava, perhaps you should ask Mr. Hardy."

Hardy shrugged. "I'm not sure either. I made a call to a friend yesterday, but I don't know how he arranged it."

The publicity manager looked at Hardy, internally marveling at the power of his phone call. He remembered how humble Robin had sounded on the phone this morning, constantly apologizing for yesterday. He couldn't imagine what Robin had gone through.

The fact that stars like Judy Garland, Julie London, and Johnny Fontane would willingly perform as guest artists was beyond the capability of ordinary people. The publicity manager had heard rumors of Hardy's immense influence but had never truly believed them. This situation had transformed his perception completely.

"I have business to attend to during the day. I'll come to watch your performance in the evening," Hardy said, kissing Ava before leaving.

Ava waved with a smile.

The publicity manager watched Hardy disappear and then looked at Ava, thinking to himself how lucky she was to be with such a man.

The publicity team arrived at the New York Grand Theater. With the evening's performance ahead, they needed to intensify rehearsals during the day, especially since several big stars were added as guest performers, increasing the number of songs and tasks.

Ava entered the hall. Sёarch* The NôvelFire(.)net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

Robin spotted her immediately. Yesterday, seeing Ava had caused a surge of hormones and male dominance in him. Today, seeing her, he felt only one thing: fear.

The events of the previous night were vivid in his mind, leaving a deep impression. He did not want to die. That was his simplest and most pressing thought.

Robin approached Ava, wearing what he believed was his most gentle smile. "Miss Ava, I apologize for yesterday. I promise to rehearse well today and ensure everything goes smoothly."

"Was there an issue yesterday?" Ava asked.

"Ah...?"

"Oh, nothing, nothing. I'll go to rehearsal now," Robin quickly retreated, relieved that everything seemed fine. As long as she didn't pursue the matter, he wouldn't have to worry about dying in a car accident, ending up in the hospital with missing body parts, drowning, choking, or any other unforeseen disaster.

Later, Michael drove up to pick up Hardy. Hardy got in and patted Michael's shoulder in gratitude. Michael looked at Hardy and asked, "How did things go?"

"You don't know?" Hardy looked at Michael, puzzled.

"I don't know. I only made one call yesterday," Michael said.

Damn, this guy was even better at pretending than he was. He had been out classed completely.

"Let's go. You said there was a lot to do today. Let's get it done quickly so we can go watch the performance tonight," Hardy said.

The contract with the bank went very smoothly. Michael signed the documents, and the TV factory officially received $6 million in funding.

Michael already had detailed plans for this money. He had even been looking for TV production line manufacturers and had expressed his cooperation intentions to several companies.

With orders worth tens of millions, these manufacturers wouldn't find it easy to secure such a lucrative business. They had to meet Michael's conditions.

Michael planned to build the factory in a year, and it would start making profits in the second year. With an annual output of 400,000 units and a guaranteed $30 profit per TV, the annual profit would reach $12 million, enough to recoup all investments.

...

The performance at the New York Grand Theater in the evening went smoothly as well, and the results were exceptionally good.

Because a few big stars came, the advertisements at the entrance were changed. The fame of Judy Garland, Julie London, and Johnny Fontane was much greater than Robin's, attracting more people to the theater.

Moreover, that evening, some prominent figures from New York's high society came too— the Deputy Mayor of New York, city councilors, bank presidents, business executives, and even media reporters from the New York Times.

There were over three thousand people in the audience, which was quite spectacular.

Robin opened the performance.

Originally, he was supposed to be the main guest singer and should have been the finale. But in front of these entertainment big shots like Judy Garland, he didn't seem prominent enough and could only perform as the opening act.

Then the creators came on stage to introduce the movie's situation, with some small interactive programs in between.

After that, the guests came on stage one by one to perform, pushing the event to its climax. The final performance was by Ava Gardner, singing "Scarborough fair."

People noticed that, although Judy Garland and Julie London had sung earlier, Ava Gardner was no less impressive.

The song was beautiful and captivating. Her voice was exceptionally beautiful, and her looks were even better than those of the other two.

The performance lasted for over an hour, ending amid the enthusiastic applause of the audience. After everyone else left, Hardy and Michael went backstage to thank Judy Garland, Julie London, and Johnny Fontane.

Judy Garland smiled and said, "Mr. Hardy, I heard you also have a film company and are a top executive at Noah's Ark. If there's a suitable role, please consider me."

"You've won an Oscar, and you're an actor valued by Meyer. Do you really need my help?" Hardy replied with a smile.

"No actor doesn't want good roles, and no singer doesn't want a good song. Like Ava's 'Scarborough fair' I absolutely love that song. I often listen to it repeatedly for more than a dozen times."

"Alright, if there's a suitable script for Miss Garland in the future, I'll think of you first." Hardy promised with a smile.