The next morning, after waking up at 9 AM, Hugo and Joseph got ready and walked towards the Loop business district, less than two miles away.The Loop district is not only Chicago's traditional central business district but also the second-largest central business district in the United States, second only to Manhattan in New York.It holds extraordinary importance not only in the US but globally—Michigan Avenue's worldwide fame, comparable to the Champs-Élysées, owes much to the Loop.Oprah's Harpo, Inc. is located in the heart of the Loop business district.Walking along Washington Street, you can see the United Center, home of the NBA Chicago Bulls, in the distance.However, your steps can stop at the intersection of Madison Street, feeling the gentle breeze from the Chicago River behind you and looking at the drab brick building in front of you, about thirty stories high.In the eyes of the surrounding skyscrapers, it looks like an inconspicuous ugly duckling, but it was here that a talk show was born that would dominate America for over a decade.Harpo, Inc. was founded in 1986, fully owning and producing "The Oprah Winfrey Show," but at present, this is its only business; it's not considered large.However, Hugo knew that this unassuming production company, which got its start with "The Oprah Winfrey Show," transformed in 1996, later becoming a large entertainment group with multiple departments including talk shows, movies, radio, print, and the internet, a classic example of an ugly duckling transforming into a swan.Upon entering the building, Joseph and Hugo registered at the entrance, received temporary access passes, and before they even had a chance to take the elevator, someone came down to greet them.They welcomed Hugo for coming to record the show and apologized again for missing his pick-up yesterday, then led Hugo and Joseph to the studio.Judging solely from this detail, the production team clearly valued Hugo and gave him a sufficiently grand reception.Compared to the studios where Hugo had recorded shows before, "The Oprah Winfrey Show" had a severely limited budget because it controlled its own production rights, so the entire studio equipment seemed somewhat simple.The so-called studio was just a warehouse-sized space with different types of backgrounds, two large red single sofas in front, four cameras in the very center, and an overhead crane camera.The audience seating area near the door, which could only accommodate about 150 people, looked very simple, reminding one of the open-air stone step seating for watching football in high school.As soon as Hugo entered the waiting room, Oprah herself came out to greet him.The talk show queen, not yet forty this year, had a retro 1990s bouffant hairstyle, as if a conch was perched on her head.Her face was beaming with a friendly smile, and her sturdy physique was not delicate but rather a bit honest (simple and honest).Her thick lips, however, curved into a benevolent arc, making it easy for people to feel a sense of closeness."It's truly an honor to have you, and thank you so much for being willing to come to Chicago on such short notice," Oprah said, welcoming Hugo with a warm hug.A smile also bloomed on Hugo's face."Of course, of course.To receive an invitation from 'The Oprah Winfrey Show,' no matter how far, I had to come.This is a very rare opportunity.I must thank you for your invitation."Oprah released her embrace, subtly appraising the young man in front of her.At this time, Hugo was still in casual clothes, just a simple T-shirt and jeans, like any young person who had just started working.His face was beaming with a brilliant smile that could rival the sunshine outside the window, and his handsome brows were like the most exquisite brushstrokes of a painter, making people involuntarily exclaim in admiration.Before this, Oprah had already seen "A Few Good Men."On the movie screen, Hugo in his naval uniform was dashing and heroic, every frown and smile capable of captivating countless young girls' hearts, so Oprah was clearly mentally prepared for Hugo's handsomeness.But after seeing Hugo in person today, Oprah still paused for a moment.Different from the charm of Hugo in uniform, the Hugo in front of her exuded a sunny aura, that faint warmth and sunny scent, making it impossible to look away."I can't wait to start our interview with you, and I look forward to making some wonderful memories today," Oprah said, still very experienced, quickly composing herself and smiling.She and Hugo both needed to prepare for the upcoming show recording."Oh, by the way, congratulations on your two Golden Globe nominations; you deserve them."After speaking, Oprah politely left the waiting room, leaving Hugo space to prepare.Hugo sat down in front of the dressing table, waiting for "The Oprah Winfrey Show" makeup team to come and do his makeup.In Hollywood, true A-list celebrities have their own working teams.In addition to fixed members like assistants and managers, bodyguards, makeup artists, hairstylists, and stylists during promotional periods are all long-term collaborative teams.The top-tier celebrities might have exclusive teams because they can afford the long-term salaries of an entire team, but most artists regularly work with one team, and this team also serves other artists.The industry's top makeup artists, hairstylists, and stylists also have their own studios or agents, and it's a subdivided industry, no different from professional workers.Therefore, if an artist wants to collaborate with a fixed team but cannot have an exclusive team, they must rely on their agent's public relations skills and also book appointments in advance.Simply put, A-list artists usually have their own team of professionals who tailor their look for every appearance.A top-tier show like "The Oprah Winfrey Show" naturally has its own exclusive team, because they record shows weekly, so this team is exclusive to the show—it's also possible for one team to work on two or three shows, but they primarily serve television programs.The professionalism of such a work team is relatively weaker, partly because the show's guests are mainly ordinary people, and artists have their own teams, so the technical requirements for them are not as high.On the other hand, the team doesn't have enough time to tailor makeup and styling for each guest, so the scope for creativity is very limited.So, it's not that TV show production teams aren't excellent, it's just that there's still a gap compared to high-level professionals.After the excellent performance of "A Few Good Men," Hollywood generally treated Hugo as an A-list actor, but what defines an A-list actor?Hollywood has many standards of measurement.The most basic one, first, is salary.In the early 1990s, a salary of eight million was considered an A-list actor, and ten million was another threshold.As for a fifteen-million-dollar salary, currently, only a handful of people in all of Hollywood can command that.The second is the entire work team.People once joked that the larger the work team, the bigger the star the artist was.This is, of course, just a joke, but indeed, a small number of top stars have such a hobby, hoping to use this method to reflect their status—for example, Mariah Carey had a work team of over twenty people around 2000, and every outing was a grand affair.But undeniably, a complete work team is essential for top-tier artists.Although everyone now believes Hugo can be considered an A-list actor, this is only an estimation based on box office and popularity.Some believe Hugo can command an eight-million-dollar salary, acknowledging his capability, but until a film company actually offers Hugo that price, he cannot be considered a true A-lister.Currently, Hugo's promising projects are "The Firm," for which he hasn't auditioned, and "Sleepless in Seattle," which currently has no news.If it's "The Firm," an eight-million-dollar salary isn't a dream, but it still depends on the audition.As for "Sleepless in Seattle," eight million would probably be more difficult.So, for Hugo to truly earn the title of "A-list actor," he will likely have to wait a bit longer.As for Hugo's work team, it's even more pathetic, with only Joseph holding the fort.This is why Joseph recently reminded Hugo that he should look for an assistant and a manager, not because Hugo is already "A-list," but because the current massive workload requires a team to support it; Joseph alone cannot do it all.However, forming a team is not that simple; there hasn't been enough time recently because everything happened too quickly, so he can only slowly build a team after this busy period is over.So, currently, Hugo's reputation is that of an A-lister, but in terms of actual supporting facilities, he's still just an actor struggling in the second tier.Coming to "The Oprah Winfrey Show" without any preparation, he could only rely on the show's makeup artists and hairstylists to get him ready.Fortunately, it's much easier for Hugo to find clothing support now, especially when coming to record a top-tier show like "The Oprah Winfrey Show," with clothing brands eagerly offering sponsorships.Fortunately, Hugo's makeup didn't require much work, and his hairstyle wasn't difficult, so relying solely on the show's team was not a problem.Once Hugo was fully prepared and had changed into his on-stage outfit, a staff member from the show came over and briefly explained the recording procedure to Hugo.Normally, "The Oprah Winfrey Show" is divided into two parts: the first half discusses recent hot topics, and the second half invites guests for interviews and conversations.However, today, to show respect for Hugo, and after obtaining Joseph's consent, both the first and second halves of the show would focus on a comprehensive exclusive interview with Hugo.This was partly a sign of the show's Pay attention to (high regard) for Hugo, and partly an opportunity to thoroughly explore all aspects of his life.It could be said that this was the highest-profile program in the past two months.Thinking of this, Hugo couldn't help but feel a little worried.He still didn't know enough about his past self, and he only hoped that Oprah wouldn't ask him into a speechless state, which would be terrible.However, since he was here, he would make the best of it.Hugo took a deep breath, calming his scattered emotions, and prepared for the show's recording.
