Dazzle The Complete Unabridged Trilogy (87 page)

'Yes,' Louis said. 'When do we start filming?'

'Two weeks from tomorrow. In the meantime, I want work
to proceed around the clock. And as far as Tamara's next
movie after
Anna
is concerned, I like her idea of a witty, stylish
comedy of manners. I don't want her typecast, and this is a
good way to avoid that. Richard, get in to'uch with Somerset Maugham and see if he's interested in writing the screenplay.'
Skolnik tapped the contents of his briar pipe into a heavy
crystal ashtray. 'One last warning,' he said sternly. 'I want you
all to bear in mind that we'll be dealing with Tolstoy, and not
some local hack. Treat this project with some respect, eh? I
don't want to see him butchered.'

Tamara smiled inwardly. There was little fear of that. Louis
was too good a director, and besides, she liked this project.
Something about it just seemed to sit right. If problems mani
fested themselves during the filming, which they always did,
well, she'd fight tooth and nail for whatever improvements she
or Louis could come up with.

'That should about wrap it up for now,' Skolnik said. 'We
might as well call it a night. It's late, and I know Tamara has
an early wake-up call. Carol, rouse my chauffeur and tell him
to drive Tamara home and then to come back for me. Louie,
I want you and Bruce to stay awhile longer. There's some
other business I want to discuss with both of you.' Skolnik tapped his pipe against the ashtray and the crystal rang out
true and clear. 'This meeting is adjourned.'

Because of the ungodly working hours required of a star,
Tamara had recently become proficient at grabbing whatever
rest she could. Normally she dozed while being driven to and
from work; now, however, this recently developed talent
deserted her. As Skolnik's three-year-old white-topped Mer
cedes-Benz Model K convertible slid smoothly through the
dark, empty streets of Hollywood, she was too wound up to
close her eyes. The meeting in Skolnik's office had been more
productive than she would have dreamed, and her energy level
was running at an all-time high. She hoped she would be able to sleep once she got home, but she sincerely doubted it. She'd
probably have to take a sleeping pill, maybe even two.

Smiling to herself in the cushioned leather seat, she was
oblivious of the chauffeur as she hummed the theme song of
The Flappers
to herself. She could feel adrenaline still pumping mightily. She was so swept up by
Anna Karenina
that she
felt like she'd been drugged.
Now I know what it feels like to
be at the top of the world,
she thought.

Even now, several miles from the studio, she could some
how
feel
things gaining more and more momentum. And half
a year from now when the picture would be completed, her
performance captured for posterity, and the reels of film
fanned out to the network of IA theatres, the public would sit
enthralled. She was sure of it.

How lucky she felt, having been able to sit in on the film's
humble conception.

What a shame that she had to finish
Marie Antoinette
first.

Anna Karenina
was more than a role. The very idea made
something stir deep inside her bones. It was as if she were
going to be transported back to her childhood, but as a
woman.

Chapter 13

'Either of you care for a drink?' Skolnik asked after the others
had left.

'I'll take one,' Bruce Slesin said immediately.

Skolnik looked questioningly at Ziolko.

'Why not?' Louis said, blinking the blur away from in front
of his eyes, it's been a hell of a long day.'

It had been, too. He and Tamara had awakened at four-
thirty in the morning, been on the set by six, worked thirteen
and a half hours straight through with only a forty-five-minute
lunch break in the commissary, attended the meeting, and it
was now well past nine o'clock. Unless it was a Saturday night,
he and Tamara were usually asleep by eight-thirty. In any
case, he had little choice but to have a drink—Skolnik hadn't
asked them to stay for nothing.

'Let's go into my office,' Skolnik suggested, leading the way
from the conference room to his adjoining office. He headed
straight for the bar. Before she'd left, his secretary had seen to it that the sterling bucket was filled with ice and the cut-
crystal tumblers stood in readiness. Using tongs, he plopped
two cubes into each of the glasses, added a generous splash of
Chivas Regal from a decanter, and handed them out. 'Let's
go sit.'

Skolnik sank into the chair nearest the fireplace, placed his
glass on the fender, and busied himself with the ritual of
stuffing a meerschaum pipe with an English-blended tobacco
while Ziolko and Slesin took the chairs facing his.

As soon as the pipe was drawing, Skolnik wasted no further
time telling them what was on his mind. 'The Academy
Awards are becoming more and more important with every
passing year. You've only got to look at the winners of 1930-31
to figure that out. Lionel Barrymore for
A Free Soul,
Marie
Dressier for
Min and Bill.
And RKO for
Cimarron?
His
cheeks tightened angrily. 'As soon as those pictures were
nominated, they enjoyed a new life. The public went in droves
to see what was so special about them. And when they won . . . well, need I say more?'

'Why harp on the awards?' Slesin said curiously. 'With
The
Flappers
we've had the largest six-month box-office receipts
in the history of this business.'

'That's beside the point,' Skolnik said darkly. 'What I'm getting at is that the Academy Awards have captured the
public's attention.'

'Which means you want to get an award for
Anna Karenina,
I take it?' Louis asked. 'That's what this conversation is lead
ing up to?'

Skolnik sucked thoughtfully on his pipe. 'Of course.
Anna
Karenina
is our best chance at next year's award,' he agreed,
nodding. 'And I want it badly.' He paused, took the pipe out
of his mouth, and when he spoke again his voice was hushed. 'But what I want isn't just one award. I want the whole pack
age. The Best Actor award. The Best Actress award. The Best
Picture award. I want IA to come out a triple winner.'

Louis let out a whistle. 'You don't want much! Just the
whole shebang! It hasn't happened so far. Not even two of
them. What makes you think we can take all three awards for
one picture?'

'With you as director, Tamara as actress, and Miles as
actor—any way you look at it, that makes for one damn fine
team. And don't forget,
Anna Karenina
is one of the best
stories ever written.'

'Still, what you're after is a little unrealistic,' Louis warned.

'Not from my perspective, it's not,' Skolnik growled. 'I
think the awards are political, and they'll only get more so as
the years go by.'

'The awards are based on merit, and you damn well know
it!' Louis said hotly. 'This year's movie and performances
deserved to win. So did last year's. And the year before that.'

'Calm down,' Slesin intervened pacifically. 'O.T.'s not out to ruffle our feathers.' He added softly, 'I think he may have
a point.'

'I do at that.' Oscar Skolnik gestured with his pipe as he
spoke. 'Since the first Academy Awards were given out for
the 1927-28 season, studios have started keeping them in mind when making pictures, and who can blame them? Everybody
likes to get an award. I sure as hell would.' Skolnik sighed. 'It
takes a class act.'

'And with
Anna Karenina
you think we have one?'

'I know we do. I want to make it into the best movie this
studio, or any other, has ever produced. If we do that, and the
performances are up to par, chances are we just might be able
to swing all three awards. It's just a matter of time before
one picture is so outstanding it'll grab all the awards. Why
shouldn't it be us?'

'Because this is a small community out here, and all of us
have friends at other studios. People like to spread their votes around. That way all the studios have a winner.' Louis took a
long sip of his Scotch.

Skolnik shook his head. 'I don't really think so,' he said
slowly. 'But even if that's what they like to do, we can
influence their voting to the contrary.'

'What!' Louis nearly choked on his drink. 'You're not think
ing of tampering with the votes or blackmailing anybody, are
you?'

'Of course not!' Skolnik said irritably. 'What do you take
me for, anyway? I'm trying to suggest something simple: we manipulate the voters by influencing them, not by tampering
with the ballots or their personal lives.'

Slesin's interest was piqued. 'How do you propose we do
that?'

'By campaigning for the votes. By lobbying for them.'

'You mean . . . blatantly?' Louis stared at him. 'Surely
you're not going to
ask
people for their votes.'

'Not in so many words, no. It'll be done discreetly . . .
through the power of suggestion. Needless to say, everything depends on the picture. So it'll have to be outstanding. There
are lots of fine pictures released every year. Now, how do they
qualify for the award?' He looked at Louis.