thefictionvixens Page 648
Page 648
"No, I'm just being nice to you, Mr. Ferro."
After all these revelations, if he returns empty-handed, Xu Fu's trip to San Francisco will have been in vain.
He was naturally well-prepared for his arrival.
Turning his gaze away from Xu Fu's corpse, Ferro Farnsworth turned to the television prototype in the lab. A visible struggle flashed across his face, but it was quickly replaced by a resolute expression.
“I don’t mind cooperating with you. For example, Mr. Xu Fu can help me promote television.”
It's done!
Inside the laboratory, after hearing Fello-Farnsworth's words, Xu Fu realized that he had achieved his goal.
"However, one thing must be certain: I must be the actual owner of the television patent."
It is evident that Xu Fu's previous reports had a significant impact on Ferro Farnsworth, which explains his keen interest in patent issues.
"Mr. Ferro shouldn't worry too much about that; you will become the father of television in the future."
Only when he heard Xu Fu's assurance did Fello-Farnsworth smile.
...
"Go out..."
Outside Fellowes's residence, John Daly watched Xu Fu walk out of the laboratory and hurriedly took his hand out of his briefcase.
"bring it on."
After agreeing to meet with Ferro the next day, Xu Fu got into the car and nodded to John Daly in the driver's seat.
As he started the car and drove toward his booked hotel, John Daly glanced at Xu Fu in the back seat through the rearview mirror and asked, "Mr. Xu Fu, is everything going smoothly?"
"In principle, it has been confirmed."
Xu Fu nodded and replied calmly.
The partnership with FerroFarnsworth TV has been confirmed, although the company still needs time to inform investors.
When the television was first invented, several investors who saw its potential partnered with Ferro Farnsworth, and their investment was the main driving force that enabled Ferro Farnsworth to continue experimenting.
"Mr. Xu Fu, is there anything you plan to do next?"
Shifting his gaze from the people sunbathing by the roadside, Xu Fu looked at John Daly in the driver's seat and couldn't help but sigh, "...What's interesting about San Francisco?"
When Xu Fu asked him questions, John Daly, who was sitting in the driver's seat, became visibly excited.
“Speaking of interesting things, there’s the flagpole challenge. Recently, a guy in our neighborhood named Richard started a challenge to live on a flagpole. Apparently, he hasn’t left for ten days. He’s been there whether he’s eating or sleeping. Many San Francisco residents see him every day when they pass by. I wonder what he’s thinking.”
In the summer of 1930, as many as 2 people flocked to Atlantic City to watch Kelly eat, sleep, and shave atop a 225-foot flagpole for 49 days.
Later, as the economy declined, this problem began to occur less and less.
Xu Fu hadn't expected to hear about this challenger currently in San Francisco.
Glancing at the scene in the mirror and sensing that Xu Fu wasn't particularly interested, John Daly immediately changed the subject: "Of course, besides the flagpole competition, the dance marathon is also very popular in the nearby dance halls."
"A dance marathon?"
Marathon - Xu Fu knew it, but it was a bit surprising to associate it with dance.
Noticing the curiosity in Xu Fu's eyes, John Daly then offered an explanation.
Dance marathons, clearly a special form of anticipation dating back to the Great Depression, are based on principles somewhat similar to later reality TV shows.
These marathon races often last for days or weeks. A huge, chest-high table stands in the center of the dance floor where the dancers participating in the marathon eat. Every hour, participants have a 15-minute break, during which they can lie on a small bed and be cared for by nurses, or have their feet massaged to relieve pain.
Because you have to dance for 45 minutes every hour, maintaining endurance is crucial during the competition, and some marathon participants have even learned to conserve energy while dancing. However, there is a risk of being disqualified if someone's knees touch the floor while they sleep, so experienced marathon dancers often tie their wrists around each other's necks before sleeping to increase protection and prevent being eliminated due to mistakes.
Clearly, such experiments would cause physical harm, but at the height of the Great Depression, the public obviously didn't care.
According to John Daly, there are several dance marathons held in San Francisco, and the vast majority of participants are couples or lovers with financial difficulties.
They can earn food by participating in dance marathons, with the winner of the finals receiving a prize.
This was a rare opportunity for families living through the Great Depression, which is why the dance marathon took San Francisco by storm.
It is said that more than a hundred people pay to watch the challenge up close at each event.
Although John Daly described the dance marathon as quite fun.
But Xu Fu wasn't very interested. His gaze wandered over the shops scattered around the cars. Clearly, neither the flagpole competition nor the dance marathon could mask the fact that San Francisco was in economic recession. Since he arrived, the most common sight he saw on the roadside was a large army of unemployed people sunbathing.
After his gaze swept past the newsstands at the intersection, Xu Fu suddenly turned to John Daly, who was sitting in the driver's seat, and asked.
"How are the newspapers in San Francisco?"
Chapter 763 Buying a Newspaper
"newspaper?"
As John Daly steered the car around pedestrians scorching in the sun, he glanced at Xu Fu in the back seat and mused, "The San Francisco Examiner is supposedly the newspaper with the largest circulation in San Francisco. I've heard that many people in counties outside of San Francisco can even buy the San Francisco Examiner."
Xu Fu: "And then?"
John Daly: "Besides *The Observer*, there's only *The San Francisco Chronicle* left. It's now the second-largest newspaper in San Francisco in terms of circulation. Other newspapers, such as *The San Francisco Independent* or *The San Francisco Weekly*, while also having good sales, clearly can't compare to *The Observer* and *The Chronicle* in terms of circulation..."
Xu Fu: "What is the relationship between The Observer and The Chronicle?"
In the driver's seat, upon hearing Xu Fu's question, John Daly tried to recall for a moment, then said in a somewhat uncertain tone, "I don't think the situation is very good. The Observer has consistently held the top spot in circulation; the Chronicle seems quite unhappy about it; I've heard that the two newspapers have even launched a page-by-page offensive in the competition. But such competition has been less frequent in recent years, probably due to the impact of the Great Depression; newspaper sales haven't been too good overall..."
After all, it's no surprise that newspapers sell well in the long run when you open them and only see bad news.
In the back seat of the car, Xu Fu listened thoughtfully as John Daly described the situation to the San Francisco newspaper.
He came to San Francisco not only for the television collaboration patents, but also to open up a newspaper market.
From New York to San Francisco, a distance of more than 4000 kilometers, these are two completely different markets.
Most people here participate in dance marathons, read the San Francisco Chronicle, and many have never even heard of the Messenger.
They may know of Superman's existence, but they clearly don't have the same enthusiasm and following as they did in New York.
Without the support of comic books, the weekly CBS radio drama "The Adventures of Superman" seems insufficient to spread Superman's influence.
Xu Fu was also informed during his conversation with John Daly.
Currently, the most popular radio drama in San Francisco is "The Lone Ranger," which portrays a tough guy from the West and is popular with San Francisco listeners. It is said that more than half of the listeners in San Francisco are loyal listeners of this show, including John Daly.
From John Daly's introduction alone, Xu Fu could more or less hear the shadow of Superman from "The Lone Ranger".
It's clear that this series is meant to be a hardcore Western, but it also offers some profound insights into the nature of Superman.
However, the Lone Ranger radio drama intertwined with Superman was more popular in San Francisco than the original Superman, which was clearly not a good fit for Xu Fu.
This feeling became somewhat intense, especially when he thought about the diminishing [faith] he had gathered because of the Lone Ranger.
“We have arrived, Mr. Xu Fu.”
During the conversation, John Daly drove Xu Fu to the hotel he had booked.
As he got out of the car, John Daly glanced at the briefcase in Xu Fu's hand, then turned to look at the hotel in front of him, a slight look of envy on his face.
The Fairmont Hotel is now one of the most unique hotels in all of San Francisco.
When will he be able to stay in such a luxurious hotel?
"Mr. Xu Fu, what time tomorrow?"
Xu Fu considered for a moment in front of the Fairmont Hotel.
One o'clock in the afternoon.
After saying this, he reached into his pocket, pulled out a $10 bill, and handed it to John Daly, who was standing in front of him.
"This is a reward for all your hard work."
John Daly took the note from Xu Fu's hand, his smile widening.
"That will be my job, sir, so see you tomorrow."
"See you tomorrow."
After saying goodbye, Xu Fu turned and entered the hotel.
John Daly's gaze lingered on the briefcase in his hand for a moment before he looked away and carefully placed the banknotes away.
...
"...farmers lost the land they depended on for survival and were forced to leave their homes."
“I grew up on this farm, played here, got married here, and had my children here. I thought my life would end here, but the Great Depression happened, we went bankrupt, and the banks foreclosed on our land…”
· ·Request flowers 0 ·········
Early morning at the Fairmont Hotel's buffet restaurant.
Xu Fu read a story in the San Francisco Chronicle about farmers going bankrupt and fleeing the country during the Great Depression.
Unlike a big city like New York, San Francisco has a well-developed suburban agriculture, which is quite good.
However, the Great Depression occurred, and it destroyed everything.
Large numbers of farmers went bankrupt due to the Great Depression and were forced to leave the land they depended on for survival, compelling them to migrate westward. According to news reports, more than 10,000 farmers left their farms and vast tracts of land, eventually settling in California.
.. 0 0