不計成敗

2009-12-31 00:00:00ＢｙＭａｒｉａＢａｒｔｉｒｏｍｏ

新東方英語·中學版 2009年8期

The two wings of success are active and diligent endeavor and unrestrained manner against all odds.積極勤奮的努力和不計成敗的灑脫是成功的雙翼。

——Romain Rolland (羅曼·羅蘭)

He was just another dropout—until he got the measles1) and a goal.

Gumption2) and Guts3)

Ron Meyer was 14 when a friend gave him his first tattoo4)， a crude design done with ink and a needle. Like many of the guys he hung out with in West Los Angeles， Meyer was a high school dropout， a kid quick with his fists who seemed to get into fights somewhat regularly.

Today， Meyer is the president and COO5) of Universal Studios. As one of the most successful business leaders in Hollywood， he heads up Universal Pictures and Universal Parks Resorts. He's the guy who oversees the production of multimillion-dollar extravaganzas6) like King Kong and Cinderella Man.

Even though Meyer could easily afford it， he has no interest in getting his tattoos removed. They symbolize just how far he has come， and they remind him of the choices he made—good and bad—along the way.

Meyer's story sounds like the plot of one of his motion pictures. The son of German immigrants， he grew up in a modest home where there was little disposable7) income. It was a big deal to go to a restaurant.

At 15， he quit high school and spent his time shooting pool， boxing at a nearby gym and hanging out with the neighborhood toughs8). With little education or direction and few options， he figured he'd be drafted9). So when he heard about a boxing program in the Marine Corps10)， he signed up.

At one point， he was quarantined11) with the measles， with no TV and nothing to do. His mother sent him two books. One was The Amboy Dukes， a novel about kids in street gangs. The other was The Flesh Peddlers， now out of print， about a guy in the talent agency12) business who was living a glamorous13) life. \"I realized，\" he says， \"that I was no longer that idiot kid I had been， and I wanted to change my life.\"

Meyer knew he was up against considerable odds， but he finally had a goal: to become an agent and live the sort of lifestyle described in The Flesh Peddlers. He says he must have interviewed at all of the major talent agencies. \"Everyone said no to me. I didn't have a formal education. I came from no influence， no money. There was no obvious reason to give me a job.\"

But the gumption and guts that helped him to excel as a boxer in the Marines kicked in14). \"I was afraid to fail，\" he says. \"Also， I couldn't afford to fail. I had to make a living—I needed to make money.\"

Meyer took any job he could get. He worked as a busboy and short-order cook. He cleaned grease15) off duplicating machines16). He sold shoes. \"Once I got a job， I put all I had into it，\" says Meyer. \"When I was a busboy， I wanted to be the best busboy.\"

That attitude made an impression on people. While he was working at a clothing store， the Paul Kohner Agency called. Their messenger had quit， and they remembered the guy named Ron who was willing to take whatever job they offered. At the clothing store， he was making $35 a week. Kohner was going to pay him $75. That was on a Friday. He started the next Monday.

他曾經只是又一名輟學生——直到有一天他得了麻疹，并找到了人生的目標。

進取心和勇氣

羅恩·梅耶爾14歲那年，一個朋友用墨水和針頭為他刺了他人生中的第一個文身——一個設計粗糙的圖案。像很多和他一樣混跡在西洛杉磯的孩子們一樣，梅耶爾高中就中途輟學，是一個好斗的孩子，似乎隨時都會加入街頭混戰。

如今，梅耶爾是環球影城的總裁兼首席運營官。作為好萊塢最成功的商業領軍人物之一，他引領著環球影視公司和環球主題公園及度假區集團。他還負責投入過千萬美元的華麗大片如《金剛》和《鐵拳男人》等的監制工作。

盡管梅耶爾能輕易支付清除文身的費用，但他卻毫無興趣這么做。這些文身是他一路走過來的標志，并不斷提醒著他這一路上做過的抉擇，無論是好的還是壞的。

梅耶爾的故事聽起來就像是他制作過的某部動作電影里的情節。作為德國移民的兒子，他成長在一個收入微薄的家庭，從小家里就沒有太多可自由支配的收入，就連去餐館吃飯都是一件大事。

15歲那年，他從高中輟學，把時間花在打臺球或到附近的健身館打拳擊上，要不然就是和街道混混一起四處晃蕩。他沒受過什么教育，也沒有目標，更沒有太多選擇，他覺得參軍會是一條出路，于是當他聽說海軍陸戰隊有一個拳擊項目的時候，他就報名入伍了。

期間有一次，他因患了麻疹被隔離，沒有電視看，什么事情都做不了。他的母親給他送來兩本書，一本是小說《安博公爵》，講的是街頭幫派里的孩子們的故事;另一本是如今已經絕版的《人肉販子》，講的是一個人的星探事業和他的光彩一生。梅耶爾說:“我突然意識到，我再也不是從前那個愚蠢的孩子了，我要改變我的生活。”

梅耶爾意識到他面臨很多值得考慮的機會，但是最終他找到了自己的目標:成為一名經紀人，過上《人肉販子》里面所描述的那種生活。他說他可能去過所有的知名星探事務所面試，“所有人都說我不行，我沒有受過正規教育，沒有任何背景，沒有錢，他們沒有任何理由給我一份工作。”

然而，曾幫助他在海軍陸戰隊成為一名出色拳擊手的進取心和勇氣在這個時候派上了用場。梅耶爾說:“我害怕失敗，我更承受不起失敗，因為我必須為了生計而奔波，我得掙錢。”

梅耶爾什么樣的工作都做。他做過餐館小工，也做過臨時廚師，他給復印機做過油污清潔，也賣過鞋。“只要有工作，我就全力投入其中。我做餐館小工，就要做最好的餐館小工。”

他的這種態度給人留下了很深的印象。他在服裝店工作的時候，保羅·科納經紀公司給他打來了電話，那邊跑腿送信的人辭職了，他們正好想起這個名叫羅恩的小伙子愿意干任何工作。在服裝店，他每周掙35美元，而科納愿意付給他75美元。那是一個星期五，接下來的周一他就開始上班了。

運氣和求勝的態度

梅耶爾作為跑腿送信人的工作包括給保羅·科納開車——他是一名知名的經紀人，他經手的明星包括約翰·休斯頓、比利·懷爾德、查爾斯·布朗森和拉納·特納。梅耶爾開車時眼睛專注于路面，耳朵卻留意著車后座的談話。“保羅會在車里開會，而且會討論細節，從中我學習到這行的很多東西，也了解了很多人。”

能有這么一個好老板，梅耶爾是幸運的，而且他很聰明，充分利用了這段經歷。在給科納開車近六年的時間里，梅耶爾成了他的得力助手。到那個時候，盡管梅耶爾已經了解了這一行，但是他仍然需要學習很多過程中的相關內容。

他把自己假扮成一名經紀人，并在威廉·莫里斯經紀公司的電視人才部得到了一份工作。每天晚上等所有人都離開之后，他就開始分析他師父的生意，弄清楚他是怎么做的。

到了20世紀70年代，梅耶爾在這一行已經建立起了大量的人際關系。他的客戶包括薩莉·斯特拉瑟斯和羅布·賴納。毫無疑問，梅耶爾已經開始在他的行業中成為一名領軍人物了。

梅耶爾在威廉·莫里斯經紀公司干了五年多，他也很樂意就這樣開心地待下去，但就在這時候他的師父被解雇，梅耶爾的命運隨之出現了轉機，他也終于有機會開創自己的事業——創新精英文化經紀有限公司(CAA)。1975年剛成立的時候，CAA只有和他一起從威廉·莫里斯經紀公司出來的四位同事，卻一舉成名，經手的好萊塢傳奇人物有芭芭拉·史翠珊、雪兒、麥當娜、湯姆·漢克斯和湯姆·克魯斯。盡管如此，剛起步的時候，公司的五位員工忙得昏天暗地，每天工作18個小時，一周七天。剛開始的兩年內，他們并沒有從公司拿一分錢。

但是梅耶爾有他的優勢:沒有誰像他一樣如此了解這一行，也沒有誰像他一樣會和人打交道。他依靠一個又一個的客戶建立起了CAA。他總是不停地建立人際關系，盡可能出席一切他受邀出席的場合——派對、宴會、電影放映和錄音現場。

他的第一批大客戶中包括《查理的天使》中法拉赫·福西特和凱特·杰克遜，但是他事業的巨大突破始于他在西爾維斯特·史泰龍出演《洛奇》和《第一滴血》期間簽下了史泰龍。梅耶爾說:“誰都想簽下史泰龍，能成為他的經紀人真是很了不起。這是一個‘入門儀式’，那之后我就開始為邁克爾·道格拉斯、戈爾迪·霍恩和杰茜卡·蘭格這樣的大人物作經紀人了。’

20年之后，梅耶爾被指定去運營環球影城，這個職位已經遠遠超越了他年輕時候的夢想。但是，他只要看到成功的可能，就感覺有一股力量迫使他去努力實現。盡管如此，對于他來說，被他人信任和尊敬很重要。每當回顧過去，梅耶爾坦承他從不曾忘記自己最初那段卑微的時光。

今天，同事們一致把梅耶爾和他們的成就歸功于梅耶爾的謙虛和堅持。這樣的成就需要某些堅韌不拔的性格、某種良好的人格和某種程度上的聰明才智才能取得，不管這些品質來自于你大學里受到的教育或是你在街頭混跡的經歷。

做選擇需要勇氣——而堅持下去則需要進取心。

Luck and a Winning Attitude

Meyer's messenger job included chauffeuring17) Paul Kohner， a successful agent who represented stars like John Huston， Billy Wilder， Charles Bronson and Lana Turner. Meyer kept his eyes on the road—and his ears on the conversations in the backseat. \"Paul would have meetings in his car and talk about deals. I learned the business， and got to know a lot of people.\"

Meyer was lucky to work with a good boss—and he had the brains to make the most of that experience. In nearly six years of driving for Kohner， Meyer became his right-hand man. By that time， though he knew the business， he still had to learn a lot about the process.

He pretended he was an agent and landed a job at William Morris agency in the TV talent department. After everyone left at night， he would analyze his mentor's deals and figure out how to do them.

By the 1970s， Meyer had built a lot of relationships in the business. His clients included Sally Struthers and Rob Reiner. Clearly， Meyer was becoming a leader in his industry.

He stayed at William Morris for over five years and would happily have stayed longer， but fate intervened when his mentor was fired. That presented an opportunity to start his own operation， Creative Artists Agency. Founded in 1975 with four colleagues from William Morris， CAA became a huge success， representing

Hollywood legends like Barbra Streisand， Cher， Madonna， Tom Hanks and Tom Cruise. In the beginning， though， the staff of five struggled—18-hour days， seven days a week. They didn't draw any money out of the company for the first two years.

But Meyer had an advantage: Few people knew the business as well as he did， and few were as good with people. He built CAA client by client. He was always networking， attending anything he could get invited to—parties， dinners， screenings， tapings.

His first major clients included Charlie's Angels Farrah Fawcett and Kate Jackson. But his big break came when he signed Sylvester Stallone during his Rocky and Rambo years. \"Everyone wanted Syl，\" says Meyer. \"It was a big deal to be his agent. That became my entree18) to representing people like Michael Douglas， Goldie Hawn and Jessica Lange.\"

Twenty years later， Meyer was tapped19) to run Universal Studios， a position far beyond his youthful dream. But once he saw success was possible， he was driven to achieve it. It was important to him， though， that he was trusted and well-thought-of. In looking back， Meyer allows that he's never forgotten his humble beginnings.

Today， colleagues regularly attribute20) his success—and theirs—to his humility and perseverance21). It's a level of success that takes a certain tenacity22)， a certain personality， a certain kind of intelligence， whether it comes from a college education or from the street.

It takes guts to make a choice—and gumption to stick with it.

Vocabulary

1.measles [5mi:zlz] n. [用作單或復]【醫】麻疹;麻疹斑

2.gumption [5^QmpFEn] n. 事業心，進取心

3.gut [^Qt] n. [~s] <口>勇氣，膽量;毅力;意志

4.tattoo [tE5tu:， tA5tu:] n. 文身;刺花

5.COO: 即Chief Operating Officer，首席運營官。

6.extravaganza

[Ik7strAvE5^AnzE] n. 鋪張華麗的演出(或比賽項目等)

7.disposable [dIs5pEuzEbl] adj. 可(任意)處理(或處置)的;可自由支配的

8.tough [tQf] n. <美>粗暴的人;暴徒，流氓

9.draft [drB:ft] vt. <美>征募，征召……入伍，使服役