Spinning Gold (2023)

[bunniefuu]

One, two,
one, two, three, four.

Did you know there's
actually only one groove

on a record?

It's true.

Yeah. It looks like all these
individual circles,

but no, it's just one.

One single line,

1,500 feet of it, to be exact,

a third of a mile carving
its way round and round

in circles until...

it finally just ends.

To make a record it
takes 100 tons of pressure

applied under 1,000 degrees
of heat,

all to create
this perfect vinyl platter.

Now, what music
goes on the record,

well, that's where I come in.

I... am a record man.

♪ He taught me how ♪

♪ To watch ♪

♪ Fight and pray ♪

Hey!

-Whoo!
-♪ Fight and pray ♪

Sing it!

♪ And in rejoicing ♪

♪ Every day ♪

♪ Every day ♪

That, right there,

ah, that is why I'm here,
Mr. Hawkins.

You got call-in requests
breaking records,

lightning in a bottle,

yet no one east of here
has ever heard it.

You heard it,
as did six other labels,

-all making offers right now.
-Five other labels, Mr. Hawkins,

and you've only spoken
to the head of one of them.

Now, give me this song
and I promise you,

we will own radio.

I mean,
a gospel-pop crossover?

No one's ever done
that before!

This is why I'm here.
This is what I do,

and I promise you
right here in this church

before God,

there is just no one better.

No, no. You called me
Mr. Hawkins, not Reverend.

I'm not pretending there's not
a line.

I am just respecting when
to cross it.

♪ Oh happy day ♪

Now, do we want to talk
in height or weight?

Because that right there
is about four inches.

Mm.

Yes?

♪ Oh happy day ♪

Yes? Yes?

♪ Oh happy day ♪

Oh, come on!

Yes?

-Yes, yes.
-Yes!

We will do an awful lot
of God's work.

Oh, happy day.

Happy day.

Whoo!

♪ Oh happy day ♪

♪ Singing oh happy day ♪

♪ Oh happy day ♪

♪ Oh happy happy day ♪

♪ Oh happy day ♪

♪ Oh happy happy day ♪

♪ Oh happy day ♪

♪ Whoo ♪

♪ Oh happy day ♪

♪ Oh happy day ♪

Who told you that?

Buck? Cecil?

You talk
to Hawkins himself?

"Oh, Happy Day" sold
over seven million records.

It even won us a Grammy.
Hmm.

Alright. The choir
wasn't actually there

when I got arrived.
I didn't get up the stage

and perform the song,
but you know what?

I could have.

Hell of a lot more fun
to tell it that way, though.

You realize that that's
gonna be the problem

with all these stories, right?

Listen. I'm not... I'm not sayig
that people are gonna be lying.

It's just... Okay.

Well, some of them might be.

It's just that memories,

memories are complicated,
you know.

We remember
what we wanna remember.

And we forget
what we need to forget.

To be at the heart of something
as impossibly successful

as what we had...

Gladys Knight,
the Isley Brothers,

Bill Withers, Parliament,
the Village People, Kiss,

and Donna...

it's... How do you expect me to
tell you

how all that really happened?

Couple guys broke as we were

to making
over $100 million a year.

I mean, first, you'd have
to understand our crew,

because there was just no one
else ever like them.

Cecil was my best friend.

He was also a record executive
who loved the artists

and the music
even more than the business,

and the artists themselves...
Oh, my God.

They sure loved him...
and trusted him,

more than they ever trusted me.

Larry was a music fan

long before he ever became
an executive.

It was why he was so effective

staying out on the road
with the bands.

He was also my cousin,

and all great business
is family.

Buck had been a short-order
cook before he married Nancy.

Our PR man,
he was the connection guy

who could convince
just about anyone

to do just about anything.

And Nancy.

God. Every DJ
and radio program director

just loved Nance.

She was our secret w*apon,

getting our music on the air
and into your lives.

She was also my wife's sister.

Beth was, um...

Well, she was the first person
who ever believed

my dreams could be
more than just dreams.

She was the first one
to ever truly believe in me.

And Joyce...

You know, I may have met her
as Kiss's manager, but...

well, we'll get to Joyce.

Just... give me a little time.

Look. I know that we've been
blamed for a lot of bad things

that happened,
and I'm not saying

it's not sex, dr*gs, and rock
and roll, because it was.

It's just, it was sex before
it was deadly, you know?

And finding out who wasn't
doing dr*gs would be

a hell of a lot harder story
for you to tell.

But if what you're after
is the truth

of not just what happened
but how it happened,

then, you know, you're
just gonna have to believe

all of it, because every
single bit of it

was true.

Even the parts that weren't.

♪ Everybody everywhere ♪

Los Angeles,
February 18, 1974.

There's a hell of a lot
that comes before that night,

but the story you want
to hear,

well, this is
where it all really begins.

Having moved out to California
only two months before,

we were throwing
the biggest party Los Angeles

had ever thrown,
to launch Casablanca Records,

the biggest
independent record label

anyone had ever launched.

Absolutely I am. hit me.

And we only had one
band to do it with,

and they were... well,
they were, uh, different.

I think this was a mistake.

We should not let them go
on tonight.

-Bill, it's gonna be great.
-Yeah? For who? Him or us?

Are you really gonna
put those guys up there

wearing those stupid costumes
and that stupid makeup?

It's who they are, Joe.

Nobody knows who they are yet.

You know, I got friends
at Warner Brothers,

and people are talking.

And they're not talking
the way you want to hear.

You know what they're
not talking about, Joey? Huh?

Shit that doesn't scare them.

-Nelly, we're ready.
-Yeah. Or excite them!

Or make 'em want to dance
or laugh or f*ck or cry

or f*cking matter at all.

Thank you, because the fact
that people are talking,

that's music to my ears.

And you really spent all
the three million dollars

Warners gave you as
an advance?

Actually,
I spent four million.

Show time, Neil.

Ooh, sounds like they're
playing my song.

Yeah, well, just remember,
the house always wins,

even against you.

-You wanna bet?
-I bet they suck.

Uh-huh.

Mwah.

Hello. So, I had a thought...

on my way
over here tonight.

I thought to myself,
"What the hell am I doing

in Humphrey Bogart's
actual suit?"

Poor kid
from the Brooklyn projects,

son of a postman.

Oh, stand up, Pops. Pops.

-There he is.
-Thank you. Thank you.

-Oh, sure. Take a bow. Why not?
-Learned everything from me.

Bad stuff from his mother.

Hell of a long trip
from Brooklyn, huh?

Not so far, kid.

Dreams...

only come true for those who
believe in them.

So, tonight,
to celebrate the launch

of the biggest independent
record label in history,

we thought we'd share
some of our dreams with you.

So, you may have heard them
on the radio,

but after what you're
about to experience tonight,

you're never gonna forget
these guys.

So, put your two lips together

for the hottest band
in the world, KISS!

Yeah, yeah, yeah,
that way.

- Hello, Los Angeles!
- Ah!

- How we feeling tonight?
- Yeah, good. More.

♪ Well the night's begun ♪

♪ And you want some fun ♪

♪ Do you think
you're gonna find it? ♪

♪ Think you're gonna find it ♪

♪ You got to treat yourself
like number one ♪

♪ Do you need to be reminded? ♪

♪ Need to be reminded? ♪

♪ It doesn't matter
what you do or say ♪

♪ Just forget the things
that you've been told ♪

♪ We can't do it
any other way ♪

♪ Everybody's got
to rock and roll ♪

♪ Whoa, whoa ♪

♪ Shout it, shout it ♪

♪ Shout it out loud ♪

Yeah!

♪ Shout it, shout it ♪

♪ Shout it out loud ♪

You know, Kiss
may have been

unlike anything anyone
had ever seen,

but I could see them.

I could see it all.

Performance was great.
I just, um...

you know,
forgot about the smoke.

And the fire alarm.

And the sprinklers.

♪ Shout it, shout it ♪

♪ Shout it out loud ♪

Oh, shit!

♪ Shout it, shout it ♪

Guys, don't stop
playing.

♪ Shout it out loud ♪

♪ Shout it, shout it ♪

♪ Shout it out loud ♪

You f*cking kidding me?

Alright. Guys. Guys. Guys.

I knew they were gonna suck.

Kiss my ass.

It's not your fault, guys.

They don't understand art.

Just be careful around
the water.

-I f*cking warned you!
-Don't touch anything.

-Neil!
-Don't touch...

Don't electrocute...

- Paul, please.
- Paul. Paul, come on.

Just like that...
the night it all began...

we were finished.

You okay?

You made it rain
inside, Daddy.

Do another trick.

I'm working on it, honey.

I'll get Jill home
to Beth and the boys.

Just tell her
I'll be home soon.

But you promised
we'd dance, Daddy!

You bet I did.

Prettiest girl
in all the world.

I had worked my whole life
leading up to that night,

but KISS was dead the moment
they took that stage.

The town just hated them.

About the time
I got home to Beth,

even she had heard
what a disaster it had been.

From the day I married her,

she always knew
the truth I was hiding.

She just...
didn't always admit it.

Hey, you okay?

Your sister tell you
what happened tonight?

Yeah.

Even with everything
that had happened

along the way,

we'd still always been
better together.

They, uh, say the biggest sin
of a record man

is believing in something
because you have to,

not because you do.

But I had believed in Kiss,

and I knew
what Casablanca could be.

♪ Get yourself together ♪

But after the party, the town
was already celebrating

the death of Casablanca.

Hello, Casablanca.

Not that that was gonna
stop us.

Mark Parenteau, WABX!
Kiss just got added

to regular rotation
in Detroit.

Nance, you paid off Mark
to do that, didn't you?

Of course I did.

Mwah! Love this woman.

Mo Ostin at Warners
needs you to call him back.

-Of course he does.
-He called six times.

Of course he did.

Hey, Cec!

Hey. Bill called.

Gene and Paul
are demanding a meeting.

Oh. Just tell them
to get ready for the tour.

-You got KISS a tour?
-No, but you're gonna do it.

Just find 'em a headliner

that's not gonna be intimidated
by them as an opening act.

New artist from Giorgio.
He'll be expecting a yes.

- Scotty! You listen to this yet?
- Ah, yeah,

but they're Giorgio, you know?
They're different.

-How different?
-After last night,

too different.

Last night went exactly
as we expected,

and that includes
the sprinklers.

- All set.
- Like hell it did.

♪ I love to love you baby ♪

Her voice just...
cut right through me.

♪ You layin' so close to me ♪

♪ There's no place
I'd rather you be ♪

♪ Then with me here ♪

♪ Ooh I ♪

♪ Love to love you baby ♪

Play that again.

♪ I love to love you baby ♪

♪ I love to love you baby ♪

♪ Do it to me again and again ♪

Yeah. Get me Giorgio.

He's ready for you,
Mr. Moroder.

Sorry I missed it, your party.

I spoke to Cess-ull.

-Cee-sull.
-You have no money.

Ha-ha. Well,
there's always money, Giorgio,

if you know where to find it.

Listen. Those new songs of yours
were different.

The eighth
and the sixteenth notes,

that open hi-hat
on the down-beat.

That's new. It makes you move.

Mm-hmm.

Where did you find that voice?

An American girl.

She does the musicals in Munich.

LaDonna Gaines.

Gaines. Gaines.

Her first husband's name was
Sommer.

Everything is hotter
in summer.

An Italian from Germany
writing in English.

You know what?
Maybe we pretend she's German.

I never could figure out
his accent.

What? Neil, you can't afford
to buy my music.

I may not have been
at your party,

but I could read. Even English.

The party was to announce
that we're open for business,

and now, we're on the cover
of everything.

Because they say
you're finished.

That's 'cause they don't know
what starting looks like,

Giorgio. Now, I don't want
your music for our label, okay?

I want it for yours.
Oasis through Casablanca.

You let them write about that.

Giorgio, why don't we take
a look at some artwork?

Good old flash paper
trick, huh?

Oh! Nelly, Warners wants
to bleed us to death.

I snuck a tape recorder into
their little sales meeting.

They wanna k*ll KISS
to k*ll us.

Hello, Casablanca.

Neil, I think
you're overreacting.

Oh, really? So you're telling me
that Bruce here

did not tell your teams
not to push our records?

Bruce, the boys have concerns

about how we're
handling Casablanca.

Actually, Brucie,
the boys here are concerned

that you might be a spineless
little cocksucker.

-Oh, yeah. That's also true.
-Well, we don't have

any actual proof
about the cock-sucking.

But we all know, and no one
here's gonna judge you, Bruce.

-f*ck you, and f*ck you!
-You see that, Mo?

He's trying to f*ck me.
I don't blame him.

Nobody gives a shit
about KISS.

-Were you not at the party?
-This ain't got a damn thing

to do about the party, and you
know it.

Oh, you're right about that.

It's about the fact that they
can't cut a radio hit.

Their bullshit stage tricks
make them a f*cking joke,

not an act. That's why
their record's not selling.

I wanna play you
a little something

from our newest record.

You're an assh*le, Bruce.

Mo, just take a listen.
It's got a hell of a hook.

We don't promote KISS

or any Casablanca records.

We don't push 'em,
they can't sell 'em,

and that's how we end 'em.

f*ckin' bleed 'em to death.

- You f*cking recorded me?
- Don't touch me.

-My wife got me that table.
-He f*cking touched me, man.

What the f*ck?
This is f*cking Warner Brothers,

not some f*cking
New York back alley

you just crawled out of,
assholes!

You messed with our business,
Bruce, and nobody,

f*cking nobody,
messes with our business,

-not even you, Mo.
-What the hell

do you really want?

Huh? You didn't come
all the way over here

just to beat up Bruce.

-I did.
-No.

We want out.

-From our distribution?
-f*cking everything, all of it.

You're broke.

The whole town knows it.
What are you gonna do?

Go door to door
across the country,

selling your records yourselves?

You'll never survive without us.

No. We'll never survive
with you.

You're gonna remember
this f*cking meeting.

No, and... and not
with a f*cking smile.

So, bill me for your table
and have a nice f*cking day.

Hey. You do know
no one's ever done this before?

Because no one's
ever tried before.

Launching
our own distribution, we weren't

just going up against Warners.
We were waging an all-out w*r

against all the majors at once.

But if we were gonna survive,

we absolutely needed a hit,

which meant we absolutely
needed something new.

LaDonna Adrian Gaines
may have been born in Boston,

but her dreams had landed her
in Germany,

which is where her story with us
really begins.

-You're late.
-I'm as early as I could be.

He's releasing the song
in America,

and I mean right away.

What? We haven't even recorded
the real song yet.

-It's just a demo.
-When I'm done with the mix,

no one will care.

I'll care.

Uh, you gave him control
over how I look?

He creates an image, a story.
It's what he does.

Well, don't you think he should
at least meet the real me

before he decides there needs
to be a fake one created?

LaDonna, your daughter
is asleep in the hallway

instead of a bedroom
all her own, dreaming

a sweeter dream than you
could ever provide her alone.

You will never get
another chance like this.

Sign it.

They... they legally changed
my name?

He changed his, too.

He was right. I had.

And not just once.

I was actually
born Neil Bogatz,

growing up
in the Glenwood projects

of Brooklyn, New York.

Alright, Neil.
What else do you want?

All of it.

By the time
I was eight years old,

I already knew
that the life that I wanted

was far, far away from here.

Please. I swear!

You hear that, kid?

Your pops says
he swears this time!

You dropped your egg cream.

We'll get you a refill.

Are we poor, Pop?

What?

What you worried about? Huh?

Hey, money's easy.

You can always find money.

A person's got to know
what to do with it.

That's what counts.

Do you know what to do with it?

Because it's not here.

Do me a favor, boychik.

Look at all these people, huh?

Now, you got a choice. You can
live in a four-color world

or one in black and white
like all these schmucks

too terrified
to dream of a world

outside
of our four shitty blocks.

Eh, not me.

I know what to do with it.

I'm gonna get us
the hell out of here.

Hey. I promise you.

Just... need a little more tim.

That's all.

Neil, you got
all the machines going.

It saves my time,
Mrs. Finkelstein.

If I leave these with you,
you'll put them in

when you're done?

I'll give you five cents.

Ten cents.

Saves your time.

You better fold them.

- Let's go!
- Within a month,

I had 40 kids
working the neighborhood.

Here's how it's gonna go.
I'm gonna assign...

Within two, I was
bringing in more than my dad.

You know how it feels

making more money
than your father?

Exactly how you think it does.

By 1961, I had changed
my name again to Neil Scott.

I tried acting, playing
the piano, even the sax,

and while I always wanted
to be a singer,

it was as a dancer that
I finally found the beat.

My fiancée,
Erminie McNulty, everybody.

I am Neil Scott, your singer,
your dance instructor,

and anything else
you need me to be tonight.

But, uh, that's not
why I'm telling you this part.

Dance.

Is that a statement
or a question

without the inflection
at the end?

Dance with me.

We don't dance with the staff.

Our parents own the hotel.

Well, okay.
Well, then I work for you.

♪ From within
a dim light cast ♪

♪ Two silhouettes on the shade ♪

♪ Oh what a lovely couple ♪

♪ They made ♪

♪ Put his arms
around your waist ♪

♪ Held you tight ♪

♪ Kisses I could almost taste ♪

♪ In the night ♪

♪ Wondered why I'm not the guy ♪

Where did you learn to dance
like this?

♪ I couldn't hide ♪

My father.

♪ The tears in my eyes ♪

♪ Silhouettes silhouettes
silhouettes silhouettes ♪

So, you met your lawyer yet?

Your doctor?

Whoever your parents
have already set up for you?

♪ Silhouettes silhouettes ♪

They'll never be able
to compete.

With you?

With you.

All this really the life
that you want?

When you're all alone
and nobody's watching...

♪ Lost control
and rang your bell ♪

...lights are out...

♪ I was sore ♪

...just about to fall asleep..

♪ Let me in or else I'll beat ♪

♪ Down your door ♪

...what do you dream?

♪ When two strangers
who had been ♪

Dreams are for children.

♪ ...silhouettes
on the shade ♪

You don't really believe that.

♪ You're on the wrong block ♪

Someone just told you you did.

♪ Bah bah bah bah bah bah
bah bah bah bah bah bah ♪

♪ Bah bah bah bah bah bah
bah bah bah bah bah bah bah ♪

What do you dream of, Neil?

Tonight... I'm gonna dream

about how it feels
dancing with you right now.

♪ Loved you
like I never loved ♪

♪ You my sweet ♪

♪ Vowed that you and I
would be ♪

♪ Two silhouettes on the shade ♪

♪ All of our days ♪

♪ Two silhouettes on the shade ♪

♪ Silhouettes silhouettes
silhouettes silhouettes ♪

♪ Silhouettes silhouettes
ah oh ♪

♪ Two silhouettes ♪

With Beth, I finally felt
everything was possible.

All we had to decide
was which dream came next.

Yeah. No. The second verse
still needs be pop-ier,

right up into the break.

♪ Licorice ♪

And then boom! That,
that is when they will swoon.

-Who's gonna swoon?
-The girls, Mr. Darnell,

the ones actually buying
the records.

The girls buy records
after the first take, Neil.

-Trust me.
-Let's just do it again.

-I know I'm right about this.
-How?

Because I can hear it!

Can't you? Come on!

So, Murray-The-K
does a monthly competition.

He pits one new single
against another.

The one that comes out on top,

he spins it
'til the grooves wear out.

Well, okay.
So, when do we start?

Next month.
This month, it's against Elvis.

-Neil.
-What? Bill, I know the contest.

The... the call-in votes
can only be local, right?

-We can beat him!
-No, you can't.

Yes, we can!

It's against Elvis!

Presley, Neil.

The votes are in!
The game is won,

and the hot new kid
from Brooklyn

just beat Elvis Presley!

-We beat Elvis.
-We beat Elvis!

Oh, my God! Neil!

♪ My baby's kisses
taste like candy ♪

♪ Every time
that her lips touch mine ♪

♪ I don't want to stop ♪

♪ Oh we can dream ♪

♪ About our someday ♪

♪ When I see my sugar ♪

♪ Down at the candy shop ♪

♪ She's the cherry on top ♪

♪ My life was bittersweet ♪

♪ Before her ♪

♪ She's the cherry on top ♪

♪ She floats my ice cream ♪

♪ When she smiles ♪

♪ She's the cherry on top ♪

♪ I'm crazy for her lips ♪

♪ Bright red like licorice ♪

Okay. So, where do we dream
from here?

This is Murray-The-K,
WINS,

where Neil Scott is the name
you're gonna wanna remember!

♪ Uno, dos, one, two ♪

Yeah...

As Neil Scott, I'd recorded
two more songs

for Portrait Records,

but we'd made "Cherry On Top"
a hit.

It never made me one.

One-hit wonder.

Well, you know that story.

Anyway, after a short stint

as soft porn actor
Wayne Stewart,

which there's really no need
to get into now,

I'd become Wayne Roberts,

freelancing
for Fortune Employment,

you know,
getting other people jobs,

when MGM Records called

looking for someone
to run record promotions.

And well, f*ck me
if I didn't know just the guy.

His name?

You changed our names?

After Humphrey Bogart?

Here's lookin' at us, kid.

Us? Does that mean
I get a say in this?

Yeah, of course.
You get a say in everything.

We'll take a vote.

Did you really change our names?

Well, you got to write down
your vote. You know,

who do you...
who do you wanna be?

I want to be me.

Okay. Well, you got to...
You gonna vote or not?

You got to do the vote.
You got to do the vote.

-Ready?
-Mm-hmm.

Come on. Come on.
Ooh. Bogatz. Bogart. Bogart!

-I win! I get two votes!
-Why?

I get two votes,
because I voted on that, too!

Come on. Come on.

It's finally
the record business again,

for real this time.

For real this time?

Yeah. For real.

And what do we change
after our names, huh?

Huh?

Everything.

-Listen.
-Neil.

-You put this on the side.
-Neil, how many...

Put it down here. You put it up
here. You got a big,

-big, yellow sign...
-I put what I want in my window,

-Neil!
-saying, "Come look

-at my merchandise!"
-How many times

do I gotta tell you?
I put what I want in my window!

-Come on. It's a great song.
-Neil, you just keep trying,

-okay, buddy?
-It's a great song. Okay.

One week. One week.
I take it down after one week.

-Then we put a new one up.
-What are you gonna do for me?

You're asking him
to advertise your records.

No. I'm asking him to put
a couple posters up

in the window.
It's not the same thing.

It's exactly the same thing,
except you're asking him

-to do it for free.
-Well, you know, MGM won't pay

for local advertising.

Who says you have to call it
advertising?

MGM won't pay for anything.

Who says
it has to come from them, huh?

♪ Wooly bully ♪

♪ Wooly bully ♪

♪ Wooly bully, wooly bully ♪

-No.
-I already voted.

♪ Wooly bully ♪

♪ Watch it now, watch it ♪

And this is what comes next.

♪ You got it, you got it ♪

♪ Yeah ♪

♪ Yeah ♪

You're moving up
in the world, Neil.

I wasn't running
promotions for a year

before I was running it all.

No. I...

I'm running
MGM Records,

and I didn't even finish
high school.

♪ Matty told Hatty ♪

And there's not a single person
who ever did finish high school

that could possibly be better
at running MGM Records.

♪ Get you someone really ♪

♪ To pull the wool with you ♪

I'll teach you.

♪ Wooly bully ♪

♪ Wooly bully ♪

♪ Wooly bully ♪

I know what comes next.

♪ Wooly bully ♪

♪ Watch it now, watch it ♪

♪ Here it come ♪

♪ You got it, you got it ♪

This is what I dreamt of.

The night you asked me
when we first met?

This was my dream.

♪ Yummy yummy yummy
I got love in my tummy ♪

Buddah Records,
1650 Broadway in the Brill.

Other than what we'd create
later at Casablanca,

no more infamous address
in the music business

ever existed.

♪ Ooh love to hold you ♪

♪ Ooh love to kiss you ♪

We'd built the kind
of independent record company

that no one
had ever seen before.

The artists worked with us,
not for us.

They were family,

and that made
all the difference.

Neil.

He'll see us.

Still holding. Buck.

Hey, man.
What the f*ck you doing?

What the f*ck
it look like, black?

Trying to open the...
f*cking window.

You're the ones making
a lot of noise downstairs,

that Buddah Records. Yeah.

Big music
needs big speakers, Ron.

Big music needs big dollars,
Neil. Black dollars.

Green dollars, my man.

It's the only color that
matters.

Maybe to you.

So, Cec tells me
you recorded something new.

-I want it.
-You ain't even heard it yet.

Well, you're
the f*cking Isley Brothers.

So, if Motown is too busy
to make you a priority,

then Berry Gordy
can go to the record stores

and buy your f*cking music
like everybody else.

Plus, you know that we
move product better than anyone.

We know y'all be paying
motherfuckin' DJs

to play the records
you tell them to.

We don't get pimped out.
You dig?

Because we are
the motherfuckin' Isleys.

God damn right.

But you got to be out your mind.

You going head to head
with Berry Gordy himself.

Well, it is called
show business.

So, why don't you play me
the song that we're releasing

off of your own new label?

- Our own new label?
- Mm-hmm.

That's what you're offering us?

Well, that's your thing, right?

It's a black thing.
A black label.

Careful, m*therf*cker.

You talk a good talk,
but there's a line.

I'm sorry. I thought
you didn't believe in lines.

You played him
the m*therf*cking record,

didn't you? Because he wouldn't
even be acting like this

if he ain't heard the shit.

-I sang it for him.
-Don't be lying to me, man.

It's a hot f*cking song, Ron.
The man had to hear it.

Do me a favor. Why don't you
scoot on over, Ronnie?

Who the f*ck you calling...
This m*therf*cker

-just called me Ronnie.
-You don't know him like that.

Don't be callin' the man Ronnie.

Um, just a term
of endearment, alright?

Do I look like
a m*therf*cking Ronnie to you?

Do I look
like a m*therf*cking Ronnie

to you?

As a matter of fact,
yeah, you look

exactly like a f*ckin' Ronnie.

You're a crazy m*therf*cker.
You got some balls, man.

Let me show you a few ideas
I've been hearing in your music.

Oh, now, you got ideas
to my f*cking music.

Yeah.

Show me what you got, Neil.

That dirty guitar?

No, no.
You got to turn that shit up.

That nasty brass. Oh.

You tell me that each punch
isn't meant to cut Berry Gordy

right through the f*cking gut.

You're a dangerous man,
ain't you?

No, man. I'm just the guy
who knows that you are,

and you f*cking should be.
But knockout punches,

they gotta come clean,
be relentless,

and never stop until the body
hits the f*cking floor!

Now, that's a hit.

m*therf*cker.

-Hey.
-What's up?

What's going on, brother?

Whoo!

Ron Isley!

♪ It's your thing ♪

♪ Do what you want to do ♪

♪ I can't tell you
who to sock it to ♪

♪ Said it's your thing girl ♪

♪ Do what you want to do ♪

♪ Said I can't tell you ♪

♪ Who to sock it to ♪

♪ Oh ♪

Ron wasn't completely wrong

about us and the DJs.
Now, you may have heard of this

as something called payola,
but to us...

Mm. It was just another day
at the office.

♪ You need love now
just as bad as I do ♪

♪ Oh makes no difference now ♪

♪ Who you give your thing to ♪

♪ Oh it's your thing ♪

Frankie Crocker was
one of the most influential DJs

in the business,
which is saying a lot,

since he was
one of the only black DJs

white audiences ever accepted.

♪ Said it's your thing girl ♪

♪ Oh ♪

♪ Said it's your thing girl ♪

♪ Oh baby ♪

The thing no one ever really got
about payola

is that we never paid anyone

to play records
they didn't wanna play.

-Whoo!
-Ron, you got

my damn table pregnant.

But did we spread
a little love to get our records

a little more attention?
What do you think?

The records were spinning
as fast as we were.

The hits just kept coming.
There was nothing

that could stop us.

They bought the company?
These f*cking guys?

Viewlex. They make
film projector lenses.

Which means they know
absolutely f*cking nothing

about the music business.

♪ One toke over the line
sweet Jesus ♪

♪ One toke over the line ♪

Singing about Jesus again.
Really?

I think
you're missing the subtext.

You wanna sell this
as gospel?

It says "sweet Mary".

What the hell do you think
they're singing about?

I know exactly what they're
singing about,

-and so do you.
-Sweet Mary.

Cash and airplanes again?

Ooh! Hello, boys!

Where do you think you're
going with all that cash?

-Uh, to make more of it, Darren.
-I'm Darren. He's Damon.

- Oh, shit.
- Sorry. Did I do that?

I'm just excited
about Jesus and Mary.

It's... it's a druggie song!

Did he just call it
a druggie song?

You cannot buy this record!

I made over a million dollars
for your bosses last month.

How much did you make them?

♪ That my mama said ♪

♪ If I should choose
to make a part of me ♪

♪ Would surely strike me dead ♪

♪ And now I'm
one toke over the line ♪

Buddah Records became
one of the most successful

independent labels
there ever was.

Every single bet we'd made,

we'd been right.

But every gambler knows
you don't cash your ticket

until your horse
actually crosses the line.

- Hey, hey.
- There he is.

Why we meeting here?
You want a tip or something?

Look at that.

You see the one
called, uh, Ghost Train?

Yeah. Don't know him.

She's mine, Pop.
I just bought her.

No.

Yeah. You know,
people bet on her.

That means
they're betting on me.

Wow. Well,
you're always in a rush.

Now, you got a horse
to prove it.

Why don't you
come in with me, hmm?

We can be partners.

Partners on a horse?

Yeah, sure.

No. I... I don't know
about feeding and training

and all that bullshit
at my age.

Nah. You go ahead.

I, uh, I got my own things
going on.

-It's going great.
-You sure? 'Cause when you

-called, it was...
-No, I mean, I got...

-a cash flow situation.
-Oh.

Temporary. You know,
it's nothing.

The bookies I got, they're
saying it's, like five.

Closer to ten, you know,
but it's...

They're talking
out of their asses.

I... I'll clear it up.
It's nothing.

I'll get it back to you,
all of it.

-I just need a little time.
-I know, Pop.

Hey, I'm not worried.

Why would you?

Swinging for the trees,
right, boychik?

You got the...
you got the horse

and your singers
and... and the big time life.

Look at you.
What you got to worry about?

Hey, I got to go to work,
so, um...

Sonny, some nuts on the house,
this guy.

- Yeah. It...
- Don't spend it all.

Cookie told me
about Cecil's raise.

Must be a hell of a thing,
changing someone's whole life

-like that.
-Mm.

Your mother says
you must have helped

your father again.
He bought all new clothes.

Everybody's counting
on you, Neil,

but you still keep going up
against those guys at Viewlex,

but you do work for them.

What do you see?

I'm being serious.

No, no. This, this is

our daughter's view
of the world.

She sees the ceiling,
not the sky.

Most people grow up
in the same four blocks

that they were born into
because they can't even dare

-to dream what's beyond them.
-You're quoting your father now.

That's dangerous.

No. No. What's dangerous is...

is the day we stop dreaming
these walls away.

And if what's beyond them
still isn't enough for you?

♪ Ooh child,
things are gonna get easier ♪

♪ Ooh child
things'll get brighter ♪

♪ Ooh child
things are gonna get easier ♪

Beth wasn't wrong.

Beth.

She just didn't realize
how right she was.

♪ Someday ♪

Truth is, neither did I.

♪ And we'll get it undone ♪

I just never saw her coming.

♪ Much lighter ♪

♪ Someday yeah
we'll walk in the rays ♪

Neil, no one told me
you were here yet.

Uh, this is my partner, Bill.

Oh, uh, why don't we
talk business first?

Well, this is business first.

I'm Joyce Biawitz.

Direction Plus. Nice name.

Yeah. I'm the plus,
and Bill directs.

Oh and Joyce does pretty much
everything else.

She writes, produces.

Commercials, mostly,
but only up until now.

That's not what we invited you
down here to talk about.

Right.
Your... variety show.

No, it's not a variety show.

No. It will be unlike anything
anyone's ever tried before.

Really?

I'm sorry. What am I missing?

Everything.

We're ready for you,
Mr. Aucoin.

Uh, yeah. One sec.

So, we're here in a...

You're gonna sh**t your show
in a recording studio?

-That's right.
-Somebody's finally gonna

make a music show that actually
sounds like music.

She practice that line for me?

Yes.

I'm gonna, uh... I'm going
to go check on the crew.

-Here. Give this to them.
-Yep.

So, now that he's gone,
you're gonna close me?

I'm not here to close you.

I'm here to convince you.

You didn't become who you are
without seeing

what most people don't.

Hmm.

People love their music.

It's not just
what they listen to.

It's who they are.

It's personal.

We don't wanna
just play music on TV.

We wanna show
where it really comes from,

why the hell
it matters so much to us.

Even if just for a song.

Well, shit. You're gonna do
all that in a show?

I am sure as hell gonna try.

And who the hell are you?

-I need to, um...
-Mm-hmm.

I need to get back to this,
but I really do hope

you will consider it.
It would mean a lot.

To you?

To everyone who watches.

Every great artist has someone

who believes in them,

but every once in a while,

it's the believer

who's the most gifted artist
of all.

I had never met anyone like her.

♪ You just wait and see
how things are gonna be ♪

You know how you know
when you're about to do

something really reckless?

When you can't think
about doing anything else.

Come and work for me.

What?

Come work for me!

I'm not gonna work for you!
I work for me, with Bill.

Okay.
Well, then come work with me.

I'm... I'm...

Listen. Here's the deal.
I can't stop thinking about you.

Well, try harder.

You don't even know me, Neil.

I'm just some broke chick
from Queens.

Well, that's just about
the last thing you are.

It's small. I know.

I grew up in smaller.

Yeah, but you got out.

Yeah. I still am getting out.

♪ And when I looked at you ♪

Give me one of your artists
for my show.

I am offering you
more than that.

And I'm not buying.

What I'm selling is the show.

♪ I don't know who he is ♪

♪ But I think that you do ♪

I've done my research, Neil.

You clearly like to gamble.

I like to win.

What happens when you don't?

Then I just keep gambling
until I do.

♪ Something in my heart ♪

You have a family, Neil.

Yeah. I know it's complicated.

But hey, my life
outside that door is my problem.

It's not yours.

♪ Just passing by ♪

We both know that's not true.

♪ Who is he
and what is he to you? ♪

♪ Ah now when I add up ♪

- You're married.
- Yeah.

It doesn't change
the way I'm feeling right now.

It's just...

Different.

Is there anything
I should know, um,

about something going on
between you and Bill?

Bill's gay.
He plays straight to protect me.

♪ What is he to you? ♪

From people like me.

From people exactly like you.

♪ Well you tell me
men don't have much intuition ♪

It's like you remind me
of someone.

Who?

♪ Before you wreck your home ♪

Me.

♪ Who is he
and what is he to you? ♪

You don't wanna bet
on the show? Fine.

♪ Well, you tell me
men don't have ♪

Place a bet on me.

♪ Much intuition ♪

♪ But before you wreck ♪

♪ Your old home ♪

♪ Be certain of the new ♪

♪ Dadgummit girl ♪

♪ Who is he? ♪

Kiss.

♪ And what is he to you? ♪

The demo.
That demo tape over there.

Kiss, it's a good name.

♪ Who is he? ♪

You really wanna talk business
right now?

You really expect me
to climb up there?

If you want to sleep with me,
you are.

I know what you're
thinking, but I'd never met

anyone like her.

And I know I said that
about Beth, too,

but it...
it's only because it's true.

♪ Dadgummit girl ♪

♪ Who is he
and what is he to you? ♪

I was honestly in love
with both of them.

♪ Well you tell me
men don't have ♪

♪ Much intuition ♪

♪ My God ♪

Falling in love with Joyce,

for the first time in my life,
I finally felt like me.

♪ Ain't no sunshine
when she's gone ♪

♪ It's not warm
when she's away ♪

♪ Ain't no sunshine
when she's gone ♪

♪ She's always gone too long ♪

♪ Any time she goes away ♪

♪ I wonder this time
where she's gone ♪

♪ Wonder if she's gone to stay ♪

Kid works at in airplane factory
installing toilet seats,

and yet he could dig deep enough
to write this.

♪ Ain't no sunshine
when she's gone ♪

♪ She's always gone too long ♪

♪ Any time she goes away ♪

What are you thinking?

That we can make him matter.

♪ Ain't no sunshine
when she's gone ♪

♪ Only darkness every day ♪

Mr. Bill Withers.

Shit, Neil.

I see why you're bringing
the hit, huh?

Thank you, Mr. Crocker.

♪ Ain't no sunshine
when she's gone ♪

♪ She's always gone too long ♪

You know, I can remember
watching my dad as a kid,

thinking, "Here's a guy

who's taking risks
with all our lives,

just never ones big enough
to actually change our lives."

♪ And I know, I know, I know,
I know, I know, I know ♪

♪ I know, I know, I know,
I know, I know, I know ♪

♪ I know, I know, I know,
I know, I know, I know ♪

♪ I ought to leave
those young things alone ♪

♪ Ain't no sunshine
when she's gone ♪

I am gonna win...

bigger than anyone
has ever done before.

Or else I'm gonna fail.

It's ending up
lost somewhere in the middle

that I just...
I can't live with.

♪ Any time she goes away ♪

Bill Withers was born
in the small coal-mining town

of Slab Fork, West Virginia,

with a stutter.

Did not stop him from becoming

the Bill Withers
that we all remember.

Signing him
before, uh, Motown could,

changed everything for Buddah.

Shit.
Changed everything for me.

♪ Lean on me ♪

♪ When you're not strong ♪

♪ And I'll be your friend ♪

♪ I'll help you carry on ♪

♪ For it won't be long ♪

♪ 'Til I'm going to need ♪

There he is.

With money in your pocket,

you're f*cking wise,

you're f*cking handsome,

and you sing better, too.

Old Jewish proverb?

It's a new one for me.

Be careful, kid.

Oh, not in this life, Joey.

♪ That you won't let show ♪

♪ You just call on me brother ♪

♪ When you need a hand ♪

♪ We all need
somebody to lean on ♪

Big f*ckin' problem.

Oh, shit.

Manny, what the hell? Really?

Your boy's on trial,
m*therf*cker!

Hey, you're really gonna
cross this line

over us signing Bill Withers?

Withers, Hawkins,
f*cking Isley Brothers!

And you got the nerve
to come to our convention

and try to steal our music?

Manny, is this a black thing?

Buck. I'm-a k*ll you last, Buck,

so you got time
to think about it.

Andre.

Manny, just put the g*n away,
man! Come on!

-Easy, easy. Easy, easy!
-Sorry, Cec!

You backed
the wrong colored horse.

I got my orders.

Orders?

Somebody actually put out
a f*cking hit on us?

Manny, who did this?
Was it Gordy?

Let's just say you crossed

one too many f*cking lines.

Manny!

You are gonna need to make
a phone call.

True story.

Ask Big Joey.

You just called the Italian mob

to tell the black mob
not to k*ll us?

You had a better idea?

Nance, you know
you can't tell Beth about this.

Not about any of it.

I know, Nelly.

♪ If you need a friend ♪

♪ Call me ♪

Thank you.

Y'all need Jesus.

♪ Call me ♪

♪ If you need a friend ♪

♪ Call me ♪

♪ Oh just call me ♪

♪ Call me ♪

You okay?

How was Miami?

Uh, it's complicated.

Not sure which question
you just answered.

Coffee's in the kitchen.

Uh, Beth!

You can't go after Gordy
yourself, man.

The man fight dirty.

He gonna come after your life.

Now, you know 110 percent
I got your back.

Mm-hmm.

But we don't have to fight
this w*r.

There's no need.

We good.

Are you f*cking kidding me?

You're talking
about not starting a w*r,

the man who just showed
his black chest

to f*cking white America?

It's almost like
they don't realize

that the black voice
is coming from a black man.

Say, could you imagine

dreaming of something
your whole life,

finally getting on that stage,

thousands of screaming fans...

singing every single lyric
to every single song,

loving the music

but hating
the color of my skin?

What kind of dream is that, man?

I don't know, man.

I know where I come from.

Shit. I can't forget it.

I'm just trying to figure out..

how to change where we're going.

Shit. We still talking
about music?

You're always talking
about music.

That's the w*apon.

Oh, man.

You got lucky, kid.

I could've been
on the other line

when your friend
from Miami called.

-Played the odds.
-Yeah, well, Motown was gonna

sign the Withers kid,
and you knew it.

-It's just business.
-Not with Berry Gordy.

-Yeah.
-Look. A gambler's a gambler.

And you're a gambler, kid,

but you're risking everything
with those f*ckin' suits

who're just waiting
for any excuse

to bring you down.

If you're gonna bet this big,
bet on yourself,

or keep away
from the f*cking table

before too many people get hurt.

Alright. Alright.

Big Joey was right.

We'd taken Buddah Records
as far as we could go.

If we were ever gonna
really matter, we were gonna

have to raise the stakes,

higher than ever before.

Whoo!

-What have you told her?
-That you've gone insane.

We're really gonna steal

-Gladys Knight from Motown, too?
-Hey, you're the one

that told me she's pissed off
that Berry Gordy is giving

all their best stuff to Diana
and Marvin and the Temptations.

-Yeah, she is. She is.
-Alright.

So let's swing
for the fences, Cec.

One last big hit.

What do you mean,
one last big hit?

Well, you know,
I've always kind of dreamed

of owning my own record company.

Didn't you?

Neil.

"Midnight Plane to Houston"?
My people from Georgia.

They would never take
a plane to Houston.

I'm-a have to change that.

I'll... I'll let him know.

Mrs. Gladys Knight,
this is Mr. Neil...

Neil Bogart.

I have definitely heard of you.

Well, only good things, I hope.

I heard you got
something special.

Listen, Neil. If Berry finds
out about this, he...

Hey, if Motown
was treating you properly,

you wouldn't be here.

No. Y wouldn't be here.

Hmm. Do you mind?

Go ahead.

Let's see.
"Midnight Plane to Houston."

Alright. Here we go.

♪ LA ♪

Okay.

♪ Proved too much
for the man ♪

♪ So he's leaving the life ♪

Mm-hmm.

♪ He's come to know ♪

♪ Mm ♪

Oh, you love your tracks lush,
don't you?

All the time.

Ah. Well, we'll add
a full horn section,

keyboards, a Wurlitzer.

Has anyone ever told you no?

Always been a bigger fan
of yes.

I can't believe I'm singing
with Gladys Knight.

Let's keep going. Yeah?

- Yeah.
- ♪ World ♪

Ooh, I like that.
Wait, wait, wait.

♪ My world ♪

♪ His world ♪

♪ Our world
mine and his alone ♪

-♪ I've got to go ♪
-♪ His world ♪

-♪ I've got to go ♪
-♪ Her world ♪

-♪ I've got to go ♪
-♪ World ♪

♪ His and hers alone ♪

-♪ I've got to go ♪
-♪ Our world ♪

-That works!
-♪ I've got to go ♪

Let's sing the chorus.
What do you think?

Yeah, but I have to change
that line.

-It has to say Georgia because..
-Georgia.

Houston is not working for me.

Who wants to go to Houston?
Let's go to Georgia.

-Give me some peaches.
-Here we go.

How you feeling tonight?

♪ Mm, LA ♪

♪ Proved too much for the man ♪

Hey, guys.
She's making me play you.

Hey, do that A.

♪ So he's leaving a life, mm ♪

♪ He's come to know ♪

♪ Ooh mm ♪

♪ He said he's going ♪

♪ Say he's going back ♪

♪ Going back to find ♪

♪ Ooh what's left of his world ♪

♪ On that midnight train
to Georgia ♪

Ooh, I love that.

As long as it says "Georgia,"
I'm good.

- Oh, my God.
- This is good.

That's beautiful.
That's just the best.

♪ He's leaving ♪

♪ Leaving ♪

♪ On that midnight train
to Georgia ♪

♪ Leaving on a midnight train ♪

♪ Ooh Lord ♪

♪ Say he's going back ♪

♪ I've got to go,
I've got to go ♪

♪ A simpler place and time ♪

♪ Oh yes he is ♪

What does a train sound like?

-Whoo, whoo!
-Okay. The Pips can do that

- in harmony.
- Oh, yeah.

Whoo-whoo!

♪ I'd rather live in his world ♪

♪ Live in his world ♪

♪ Than live without him
in mine ♪

♪ Her world is his ♪

♪ His and hers alone ♪

You resigned from Buddah?

If we're ever gonna do
something that truly matters,

it's gonna have to be our own.

In California?

Cecil just called.

- Everyone's going?
- Okay. Not everyone.

Larry's never leaving New York,
but Cecil, yeah, Buck, Nancy.

And Beth?

And Beth.

Don't look away.

Hey.

Don't turn away.

How long
have you been planning this?

Since I was eight.

Okay. So this comes next.

You're not even gonna
look back?

Ooh, I have already seen it.

♪ I know he's leaving, yeah ♪

♪ On that midnight train
to Georgia ♪

♪ Leaving
on the midnight train ♪

♪ Hey, ooh, yah ♪

♪ Said he's going back to find ♪

♪ Going back to find ♪

♪ Ooh a simpler place and time ♪

♪ Oh yes he is ♪

♪ And I'm gonna be with him ♪

♪ I know you will ♪

♪ On that midnight train
to Georgia ♪

♪ Leaving on a midnight train ♪

-♪ Oh yeah yeah ♪
-♪ Whoo-whoo ♪

♪ I'd rather live
in his world ♪

♪ Live in his world ♪

♪ Than be without him in mine ♪

♪ Her world is his ♪

♪ His and hers alone ♪

Come on!

-Ah!
-A pool?

It's a pool!

You couldn't find
a bigger house?

Just close your eyes and jump.

And dream all these walls away?

Hey, can't you see?

There are no walls here.

-Come on, Mom!
-Ah!

And we all lived
happily ever after, right?

Well... it's complicated.

I'd been betting
on what I believed in

my whole life.

I promise you.

So, where do we
dream from here?

KISS!

And every bet we'd
made back at Buddah

had paid off,

but Casablanca, KISS,
and now Donna...

Mm. So far,
we'd lost every hand.

No, no, it's dance music, right?

There is no other voice
like her.

It's worse than we thought.

What?

Donna's not selling anywhere?

No one knows
what to make of her.

R and B doesn't want her.
Pop doesn't get her.

-She's just...
-Different.

The song's dead, man.

You were wrong
about the Gaines girl.

It's Summer, okay?
It's Donna Summer.

Well, you were wrong about her,
too, man.

Hello.

By 1975, we'd done
everything we could think of

to introduce Donna to the world.

Right in my heart.

The world just... didn't care.

You said that he loved the song,

that he was so sure that it
would change everything.

The song is over, LaDonna.

I was wrong.

Just because the audience
doesn't hear it

does not mean it isn't there.

Sometimes, it just takes time.

But we were out of that, too.

-Neil, don't do this.
-Hey, you called me, Bill.

To talk about it, not so that
you could do

whatever you're gonna do.

This came from Steven Tyler
himself.

Called and said if we don't cut
the pyro and get a smaller

sound and lighting rig, we
gotta pack it up and go home.

-Well, he is the headliner, so.
-Bill, you have to trust us.

Well, I thought
we were the us.

We're their managers, Joyce,
you and me.

Neil, I'm begging you,
please don't gamble on this.

We should have parked closer.

And sometimes...

they hear it
even when they don't know it.

Hey, Mr. Aerosmith!

What kind of rock and roll p*ssy
are you?

♪ You show us
everything you've got ♪

♪ You keep on dancing
and the room gets hot ♪

♪ You drive us wild ♪

♪ We'll drive you crazy ♪

Ah!

♪ You say you want to go
for a spin ♪

♪ The party's just begun ♪

♪ We'll let you in ♪

♪ You drive us wild ♪

♪ We'll drive you crazy ♪

Come on!

♪ You keep on shouting,
you keep on shouting ♪

Come on!

♪ I want to rock and roll ♪

♪ All night ♪

♪ And party every day ♪

♪ I want to rock and roll ♪

♪ All night ♪

♪ And party every day ♪

♪ I want to rock and roll
all night ♪

♪ And party every day ♪

♪ I want to rock and roll
all night ♪

♪ And party every day ♪

They love them
when they see them.

So why the hell can't we
get them to buy their records?

♪ You drive us wild ♪

♪ We'll drive you crazy ♪

♪ You keep on shouting ♪

I just...

♪ You keep on shouting ♪

I need... I need more time.

♪ I want to rock and roll ♪

♪ All night ♪

♪ And party every day ♪

♪ I want to rock and roll
all night ♪

♪ And party every day ♪

You lost us an Aerosmith tour.

The tour was already lost, Gene.

Aerosmith doesn't want you
anywhere near them, alright?

No headliner does.
Your...

Your show
scares the hell out of everyone.

So you want us
to scale everything down,

- cut the pyro and the lights?
- No. No. No. No.

If you're gonna be a headliner,
we're gonna need to make

everything all that much bigger,
alright?

That means more explosions
and so much, so much louder.

I have this guy, alright?
He's got these risers that...

You really think that more fire
and some forklifts

are gonna be
what finally breaks us through?

No.

No. It is gonna be
the music,

and it was always gonna be
the music, but we might

just make enough noise
to... to get enough people

to actually listen to it,

to pay attention.

Why did you sign us?

Our demo was good, not great.
Even I can admit that.

You had to know
how hard this was gonna be.

Why take the risk?

Because your real name
is Chaim Witz,

and you moved here from Israel
when you were eight years old,

speaking nothing but Yiddish.

Because Paul's real name
is Stanley Eisen.

Because two kids from Queens

had dreams about being
the next gods of rock.

And little Neil Bogatz
from the Brooklyn projects

thinks he can make
everybody's dreams come true...

if he's just given
a little more time.

You know, your demo
really was that great, Gene.

Yeah. Raw and honest
rock and roll,

even without all the costumes.
But I tell you

what your real brilliance is,
and I don't even think

you know this.
It's that you write

every single one of your songs

with the same four
God damn chords.

That means that any...
any 14-year-old kid

can go out there
and buy a guitar,

and within 20 minutes,

they can be you!

And that matters, Gene.

That is who you are.

Now, why did you sign
with me, huh?

Brand-new label
with you as our only act.

You had to know you were taking
as much of a risk as we were.

Because you
never should have gotten

out of the Brooklyn projects.

And yet, here you are.

Here we are.

Two imposters.

Only if we're wrong.

I get that you like to gamble,

but what if Joey was right?

In the end, what if the house
does always win?

Well, then we raise the stakes
so high

that we become the house.

Two hundred grand more.

You're still upside down
the last hundred.

Why don't you make it
a personal loan, then?

Don't do this.
You go upside down this big,

it don't matter
how much I f*cking love you.

Hey, you ever gambled
yourself, Joey?

That thumping in your chest
right before that dealer

turns over your next card?
Anything is possible

right before that moment.

Neil, I'm telling you,

I'm not gonna be here for you
this time if you don't pay off.

Are you gonna give me
the money or not?

No.

-Two hundred?
-Two hundred.

I know it's bad.

I just wish you would be honest
and tell me how bad.

It's... it's... it's fine.

No. It's not fine
We're not fine.

None of this is fine, Neil.

We were fine when we were
on the floor of our home

in New Jersey, when I was
teaching you even how to read

those books.
And now, we are broke,

and you are giving
the guys bonuses!

Hey. No. Did you sister tell you

that Buck was the only one
that took it?

Maybe he was the only one
smart enough to.

Hey. Hey.

Come on.

Just dance with me.

Oh.

You stopped dreaming again.

You did.

You know what I dream of?

It's that you're actually here
with us, Neil,

and not in New York or Las Vegas

or wherever else
you disappear to

when you're too afraid
I'll see the truth.

What do you think the truth is?

Beth, I love you. Come on.
I'm always with you.

I'm always with you.
You, the kids,

you're all I think about.

You have to know she's going
to end up just as hurt as me.

I convinced myself for so long
that it was okay

when I knew that you were
sharing your bed, Neil,

but you are sharing your heart.

Tell me I'm wrong.

It's complicated.

No.

It's not.

It's really simple.

♪ You've got a real type
of thing going down ♪

♪ Getting down ♪

♪ There's a whole lot of rhythm
going round ♪

You want
a little bit more or you good?

What?

Yeah, yeah. You good?

I'm great.

Oh, there he is. There he is.

-Is that what you gave me?
-That's it right there. Uh-uh.

Hey, what up, Neil?
Look at the space in here...

I can't even feel
my lungs anymore.

Now it's a party.

George, George, George, George,
if we're gonna sign you,

you cannot be
your own opening act, alright?

You are Parliament and
Funkadelic. It's confusing.

Only on some planets, man.

See, that's why I need
a m*therf*cking spaceship,

so we can leave this Earth.

When the mothership gets built,

the connection
between Earth and the galaxy

is gonna be made,
and everything will be clear.

I'm trying to tell you,
it'll make sense. You'll see.

How quickly can you cut us
this new record?

How quick can you build me
a m*therf*cking spaceship?

How much?

A million
m*therf*cking dollars.

Would those be Earth dollars?

I can't even feel
my bones anymore.

He's giving me space...

I know
what you need to do, Neil.

- It's party time.
- Yeah?

It's time to fly. I'm gonna need
you to hop on this ride with me.

If Buck can handle it, so can I.

You in or you out?

I didn't start
the heavier dr*gs

because of what was going on
between Beth and Joyce.

Didn't start them
because of what was going wrong

with KISS and Donna
and Casablanca.

I just...

I did them because I like...

I liked how it made me feel.

Why don't you take
a ride with me, Neil?

Alright. Let's go, Neil.
It's on you.

Okay.

- You ready to go?
- Do it.

You ready to build us
a spaceship, Neil?

f*ck it.

You look like you
like it. I think he likes it.

Let's build you
a m*therf*cking spaceship.

That's what I'm talkin' about.

Liftoff. Let's go.

♪ We need the funk ♪

♪ We got to have that funk ♪

♪ Oh we want the funk ♪

♪ Give up the funk ♪

♪ Oh we need the funk ♪

♪ We got to have that funk ♪

♪ Oh we want the funk ♪

♪ Please, mother ♪

♪ Give up the funk ♪

♪ Oh we need the funk ♪

♪ Please mother ah ♪

♪ We got to have that funk ♪

♪ Oh we want the funk ♪

♪ Please mother ♪

♪ Give up the funk ♪

Well, alright.

Partying on the mothership.

I am the mothership connection.

♪ If you hear any noise ♪

♪ It's just me and the boys ♪

♪ Hit me ♪

Hit it, fellas.

♪ Swing down
sweet chariot ♪

♪ Stop and let me ride ♪

♪ Swing down sweet chariot ♪

♪ Stop and let me ride ♪

♪ Swing down sweet chariot ♪

♪ Stop and let me ride ♪

♪ Swing down sweet chariot ♪

♪ Stop and let me ride ♪

That million dollars
actually went a long way,

and not just for the mothership.
George bought two new tour buses

and new cars for everyone
in the band.

Everyone, 28 of them.

We had Rolls Royces,
Mercedes Benz,

Jaguars, six Sevilles.

Everybody got a car,
except for me, m*therf*cker.

I needed a spaceship,
because I don't drive.

♪ Let me ride ♪

♪ Swing down
sweet chariot ♪

They pioneered
almost every genre

that came after them.

They just spent more money
than they ever made,

and the money just...
kept bleeding.

That's really beautiful.
I love that.

Thanks.
They've been making fun of me.

They don't think
it sounds like KISS.

Oh, no. Hey.
Hey. Not those.

Those are the empty shells,
right?

- Hide them somewhere the back.
- Wait, wait. Empty?

-Yeah.
-Those are empty?

Yeah. They might just make you
look as big as you sound.

You know, now you're beginning
to sound just like him.

Bill, is he...
is he serious?

Guys, uh, give us five.

-It's a bullshit trick.
-Bill.

Okay? It's a mirage.

And it sure as hell
isn't rock and roll, and...

and...

and I wish any of that
mattered right now,

but it just doesn't.

Nobody's buying our records.
No one's coming to see us play.

And if an empty speaker cabinet
tricks people into thinking

that we sound better
because we sound louder...

If this is what it finally takes

so that everybody else
feels the way we do...

what I think is,

we do what we have to
to survive.

It's just another part
of the show,

like the costumes,
the... the make-up.

No.

It's not.

It's a lie.

About the music.

We've never lied
about the music.

Hey, uh,
why don't you, uh...

why don't you sing that song?

The one that you said
you liked it.

You said you liked it, right?
Sing it. Sing it for him.

He thinks he's got
our next single.

♪ Beth I hear you calling ♪

♪ But I can't come home
right now ♪

♪ Me and the boys are playing ♪

♪ And we just can't find ♪

♪ The sound ♪

♪ Just a few more hours ♪

♪ And I'll be right home
to you ♪

♪ I think I hear them calling ♪

♪ Oh Beth what can I do? ♪

♪ Beth what can I do? ♪

What's... what's the matter?

It's not... not the radio hit
you were hoping for?

Paul!

I will drop you right off
on that f*cking street corner

in Queens.

You can't.

We're all you got.

The song was not supposed
to be Beth, okay?

Peter wrote it for his wife.
He'll change it back.

- We'll change it, Neil.
- Mm...

-Mm... no, we won't.
-No. No.

"Beth" just has a better...
I don't know.

It's just got
a better ring to it.

-Don't you think?
-Okay.

I think I finally got the
lights the way you want 'em.

What'd I miss?

You know...

you guys are just a couple
of f*cking children

playing dress-up.

Aw, where you going? Come on.

He bet everything on you!

No, no, no, no.
He bet everything on him!

We just happen to be
the cards he was dealt!

♪ You say you feel so empty ♪

♪ That our house
just ain't a home ♪

♪ I'm always somewhere else ♪

♪ And you're always
there alone ♪

♪ Just a few more hours ♪

♪ And I'll be right home
to you ♪

♪ I think I hear them calling ♪

♪ Oh Beth what can I do? ♪

♪ Beth what can I do? ♪

♪ Beth I know you're lonely ♪

♪ I know I'll be alright ♪

♪ 'Cause me and the boys
will be playing ♪

♪ All night ♪

- Hey.
- Hey.

You look like shit.

You get in okay?

Limo was waiting?

Yeah, yeah. Like movie stars.

Your mother loved it.

Okay. How much you need
this time?

You got to talk to me
like that? I'm your father.

You think that's why we

flew in? I wanted to see
how my son's doing,

if he's okay.

What do you need, Pop?

It's for your mother, okay?
For the foster home.

She's going nuts.
I don't know.

Like, ten or something.

You make it harder than getting
money from loan sharks.

It's just f*cking money.

What is it you always say?

Uh, you just got to know
where to find it.

Like at the card tables?

I heard things, Neil.

What are you doing, huh?

Oh, you know,
just still trying to escape

-those four God damn blocks!
-What the f*ck's

-the matter with you?
-Hey! f*ck!

Huh? I raised you to be smart!

How you gonna be smart
shoving that shit up your nose?

Come on! I'm talking to you!

How you gonna know
when you're hot,

when to bet big, when to fold?

You can't even decide who you
want in your f*cking bed!

I have everything under control.

Doesn't look that way.

You've lost the music, kiddo.

Hey. You understand?

Is there anything else you need?

Hey, you don't think
you could have made it

using your real name?

Bogart is my real name.

Sure.

Tell me what I'm supposed to do.

Just keep dancing, Neil.

Always was the one thing
you were best at.

I did always love
the way you moved.

No. Just... I'm...
I'm asking you.

Just tell me
what I'm supposed to do.

Go and say goodbye to your kids.

That's what you're
supposed to do.

You're breaking my heart.

Hurts like hell, doesn't it?

She won't even put them
on the phone.

My kids.

My kids.

I don't know how to stand up.

I'm just... I'm sitting here,

and I don't...
I don't know how to get up.

Hey, you can almost see
Brooklyn from here.

This is bullshit.

There isn't a thing that you
have ever asked for

that I haven't given you,

and you know
exactly how expensive it is

to keep you on tour
and in the studio!

Let's seriously talk about
releasing "Beth," okay...

No. No, no, no! We're not
releasing that shit. No.

...cross us over
into mainstream radio.

-It's not who we are.
-Nobody knows who you are,

which is why you're not making
any f*cking money!

Isn't that your job? Huh?
To get them to know? And yours?

Or is that not the kinda pillow
talk you two like to talk?

- Jesus, Paul.
- What?

I'm just saying what everyone's
f*cking thinking, man.

- No. Let him say it.
- It's just the truth.

You're our manager,

and you are f*cking
the president

of our record company.

You're right. That is the truth,

which you didn't seem to mind
when you asked me

to give him your demo.
You didn't mind either, Bill,

when you begged me
to convince Neil to sign us

even though Warner Brothers
begged him not to.

Or when you asked me
to get us on tour, Paul,

and keep us on tour.

You were all just fine asking me
to roll over on my pillow

and talk to the president
of your record company then.

Yes.

I am your manager,

and you know just how lucky
you are that I am,

because if I wasn't, you'd
still be trying to figure out

how to wear your mom's makeup,
'cause I taught you

how to do that, too.

Who I love is my business.

Your business is to make
the damn music.

-That's your job!
-No, no, no.

-Start doing it.
-No.

It doesn't matter how we got
here. This is real.

This is happening. This is
happening right f*cking now.

-Tell them, Bill.
-You really want us to be

the hottest band in the world?

He better start paying us
like we already are.

There he is.

There he is, folks,

Chaim Witz,

the demon
of rock and roll. Oh!

You want some
real money, Gene?

You want some real money?

Well, then you go out there

and you write
us a f*cking song

that will actually
make us some!

- No, no, no.
- Wow!

-No, no, no, no, no.
-f*ck you.

You don't make it about them.
Not this time.

- Bill.
- Uh-uh. I am sorry.

We are renegotiating right
now, or we're leaving.

Bill.

Okay. Okay.

How much?

A million dollars an album.

And another million
in tour support.

You want
two million dollars an album

for a band that can't sell
a... a f*cking single?

I want two million dollars an
album for KISS.

Bill.

Okay. f*cking fine. Deal.

We finished?

It's just business.

It's nothing personal.

Of course it is,
and you f*cking know it.

It's okay.

And now, ladies
and gentlemen,

here's Johnny!

Here he is, Lenny Bruce!

Maybe you should slow down
a little.

Maybe you should speed up
a lot.

Hey! I love Lenny Bruce.

Did you know that he was 40
when he died?

You think it was worth it,
dying so young

but then having
all that success?

No. I think dying old
and having all that success

would be worth it.

You promised our distributors
a sure thing

so they'll keep letting us ride
on everything else.

Well, it's Johnny Carson.

It is a sure thing.

Besides, a bet is only a bet
if it matters.

It's a wedding night,

and you're both virgins.
It's disgusting.

Abe, Abe...

You don't mean that.
No, because it's me, Abe,

because you've always trusted..

-Talk to me.
-They're not waiting for Carson.

-What?
-They're returning

all the unsold KISS albums
and Donna and Parliament.

-Everything.
-That's

-too many f*cking records, man.
-No shit, Buck.

-What do we do?
-We take 'em back,

but you tell
every single f*cking one of them

if they do,
they don't get Carson!

Neil. Neil!

What?

What if we're wrong
about Carson?

I mean,
we're shipping gold. More.

Over 750,000 copies already.

And with the money
we're spending

on... on commercials
and... and print ads...

-It's Johnny f*cking Carson!
-And nobody understands

why the hell
we're even doing it!

Then ship more!

Spend more! Do you job
and make them understand!

This is gonna be
the biggest f*cking album

of the year, okay, folks?

You've lost your mind.

Did you not hear
what they said on the phone?

And they're on our f*cking side!

-Nobody is on our f*cking side.
-Because nobody understands

what the f*ck
you're doing anymore!

Not even me!

We were wrong
about KISS, Neil,

and we were wrong about Donna.

Even George
and his f*cking spaceship.

We were just wrong!

And here we are, still betting
money we don't even have

on them!

I can't even pay my...

If we're wrong about Carson...

We are not f*cking wrong, Cec,

not about any of them.

We just haven't figured out

a way to finally be right!

-What the hell's happening?

I dared question the postman's
son from Brooklyn,

and he didn't like
what he heard.

Oh, is that right, Cec?

Is that the same postman's son
been carrying your ass

from nowhere to somewhere
your whole f*cking career?

-Excuse me?
-Tell me this.

Did you believe
we would make it this far?

Now, be honest.
Do you believe that we could

actually go further?
So, you do your f*cking job,

and I will go get
the f*cking money!

Uh...

He didn't mean that.

Cec. Shit.

And now, ladies and gentlemen,

here's Johnny!

The Carson album's
still considered

one of the biggest disasters
ever conceived

in the record business.

The joke was that we'd shipped
gold but returned platinum.

Just... wasn't a joke.

We'd given away
so many promo copies

that when the stores started
returning them to get

their money back, we were
on the line for every last one,

and it was k*lling us,

k*lling us, because I was wrong.

Biggest sin of a record man...

believing in something
because you have to...

not because you do.

I f*cking begged you
to pay back that money, Neil.

You kept sayin',
"Waiting for Carson."

And I convinced them to wait,

because this is me and you,

but they're done waiting.

I'm sorry.

It's okay, Joe. Just tell them

not the arm
I sign contracts with.

I remembered my dad,

remembered my promise

to never become
anything like him.

I just... can't remember
the exact moment when I did.

Egg cream?

Just get us
the f*cking money, Neil.

I f*cking hate LA.

- Jesus.
- Neil!

Jesus.

It's not that he was a postman.
It's just...

I knew that he knew
that's all he was ever gonna be.

-Here.
-I'm scared.

-Come on. Shh.
-I'm scared.

Shh. Just our little secret,
brother.

Can we get something
to clean him up?

-You want a cigarette?
-You're alright.

It's okay.

Okay. Come on.

Get him up. Walk it off.
Walk it off.

Oh, f*ck.

-Come on.
-f*ck.

If we can't sell enough KISS
records on our own,

then folks,
we are gonna need an army.

-It's merchandise, Nelly.
-It's a movement, Nance.

I love KISS, but how the f*ck
are we gonna get people

to buy shit about the album
and we can't even get them

to buy the f*cking album?

Because KISS has always been
about the experience,

Buck, and that is where
we have failed.

If you're not in
the KISS Army, oh,

then you are not
in the KISS Army!

You don't get
the limited edition posters,

the signed T-shirts,
the comic books!

-So we have comic books now?
-Yes, created specifically

for the KISS Army,

and the only way to get
into the KISS Army...

- Is to buy their albums.
- Thank you.

Now, we have one very important
question to answer:

What color do we paint
the building?

Hundred bucks to whoever gets
the... the best color.

Okay. Can we just, um...
Can we just get a minute?

Thank you. Thank you so much.

What about black?
Can you imagine

the whole f*cking block
was painted f*cking black?

-No, I can't.
-Oh.

Neil, you are my brother,

and if you want me to go
off this cliff with you,

I'll even be the first to jump,

but you have got to help me
understand why.

-We are broke.
-Yes. Yes. That is exactly

what all of these f*ckers
are saying.

So, by tomorrow,
I want an entire crew...

no, two crews outside,
painting the entire block,

and I want you to pay them extra
to do it slowly.

The longer
they're out there working, oh,

the longer people are just
gonna drive by and see 'em.

-See 'em doing what?
-Painting the building.

We're gonna place one
final bet.

On who?

On us.

It started with a makeover
of the building,

but to the town, we were
building our own makeover.

I mean, every day,
we'd announce a new promotion,

but in real life, we were
just swapping titles around

like the paint colors
of the building.

We called everyone we owed,
hyped every plan we had,

making most of it up
as we went along.

-We made them root for us...
-Mo.

...not against us.

Where the f*ck
is all the money coming from?

Nowhere. There was none.
We... we just made everyone

believe there was.
We bet everything we had

on everyone
we already believed in.

♪ She's a stone-cold stunner ♪

We'd gone as far as we could go
as fast as we could go.

It's just we were now
seven million dollars in debt.

Well... until that night.

♪ She's a stone-cold stunner ♪

♪ With a body too ♪

♪ So watch out ♪

♪ Huh! ♪

♪ She's a stone-cold stunner ♪

Hey, come here.

Do you wanna dance with me?

♪ I love to love you baby ♪

♪ I love to love you baby ♪

Hey, play that song again.

Play that again.

Yeah. Play that again.

♪ When you're laying
so close to me ♪

♪ There's no place
I'd rather you be ♪

♪ Than with me, here ♪

♪ I love to love you baby ♪

♪ I love to love you baby ♪

♪ Lay your head down
real close to me ♪

♪ Ease my mind
and set me free ♪

♪ Set me free ♪

♪ Oh love to love you babe ♪

♪ Oh love to love you babe ♪

♪ Oh love to love you babe ♪

- Put it back on.
- Play it again.

Somebody
put the music back.

Don't stop now.

The song is too short to have
sex to.

Do you wanna dance
with me?

Play it again.
We're dancing.

-Hey! Play it again!

The answer had been
there all along.

I just never imagined she'd be
hiding 7,000 miles away.

♪ Oh love to love you babe ♪

Not that she was happy
to see me.

LaDonna, please wait.

Giorgio said
you'd be coming through.

So, I hope that you enjoyed
the show.

Have a nice flight back.

My real name's not Bogart.

I changed it, actually,
a couple times.

Was, uh, Neil Scott
when I was a singer,

Neil Stewart when I worked
for a modeling agency,

uh, Wayne Roberts
when I did a soft porn film.

You made pornography?

Well, to afford
my wife's engagement ring.

Okay.
So, you did a dirty film

so that you could ask
your wife to marry you?

The point of the... Yes.
The point of the story

is that we can be
whoever we want to be.

Hmm. Well, that may be the point
of your story, but not mine.

It's the point
of everyone's story, LaDonna,

especially yours.

Why didn't people like the song?

-I liked it.
-No. I mean, why didn't...

No. I... I know
what you meant. I...

And the answer
is that they didn't get it,

because I failed to get them to.

So, then why are you here?
Giorgio told me

that he wanted me to cut
the same song again.

-I don't understand.
-You don't have to, okay?

You just have to trust
that I do.

I don't even know you.

But I know you,

LaDonna... Adrian... Gaines.

Grew up singing in a choir.

Raised by your mom in Boston.

You heard your voice
raising all the way up

to the top
of those stained glass windows,

and you let yourself believe
that you could be more

than just that girl in a church.

And now, here you are,

performing
halfway across the world,

getting further and further away
from that stained glass.

And every night...

you close your eyes,

dreaming that maybe someone
will come along...

and give you one last chance.

Now, you tell me I'm wrong,

and I'm on the next plane.

Why me?

Because I have never heard

a voice like yours.

I will make you a star.

♪ I love to love you baby ♪

♪ I love to love you baby ♪

You... you know what?
I wanna do this again.

I just...
Go back from the top.

It's impossible!

Repeat the same eight measures
over and over again?

It's just one lyric, Neil!

Yeah, which is going sound
like something new

each time she sings it,

when she sings it right.

This music is about the music,

not the f*cking vocal!

Her f*cking vocal
is the music, Giorgio!

Her voice is the thing that's
gonna make people wanna dance,

and nobody wants to dance for
three minutes, alright?

People wanna to dance forever!
And when they're making love,

they wanna love forever!

Nobody could make a f*cking
half-hour song, Neil!

Not even you!

Neil could make
a half-hour song.

-Hey, you okay?
-I don't know. You just got

Giorgio to leave his own studio.
You tell me.

Let's, uh, just try it
one more time.

♪ I love to love you baby ♪

♪ I love to love you baby ♪

♪ I ♪

What? What's wrong?

You're just singing...
You're just singing the lyrics.

I'm a singer. That's what I do.

No. I just... Give me one secon.

One.

I... I don't understand
what you want from me.

To escape, Donna. That is
what everyone wants, alright?

In the discos,
on the dance floors,

they want
to f*cking escape, alright?

And you, you will be
the one to take them there.

You have to be their fantasy!

Do you know
what my mother will think?

Yeah. I do.

♪ Mm love to love you baby ♪

♪ I love to love you baby ♪

-More.
-♪ I love to love you baby ♪

♪ When you're laying
so close to me ♪

-Feel it.
-♪ There's no place ♪

♪ I'd rather you be
than with me ♪

That's it.

-♪ Love to love you baby ♪
-Even sexier.

-♪ I love to love you baby ♪
-Louder!

-Harder!
-♪ I love to love you baby ♪

♪ When you're laying
so close to me ♪

♪ There's no place
I'd rather you be ♪

♪ Than with me ♪

♪ I love to love you baby ♪

♪ I love to love you baby ♪

Just you.

-No one else is here.
-♪ I love to love you baby ♪

♪ Oh I love to love you baby ♪

You and the music.

♪ I love to love you baby ♪

♪ Oh love to love you baby ♪

It's just you.

♪ Oh I love to
love you, baby ♪

♪ Oh love to love you baby ♪

Use your whole body, Donna.

♪ When you're laying
so close to me ♪

♪ There's no place
I'd rather you be ♪

Arch your back.

It's impossible, Neil.

It's absolutely impossible.

When... when am I supposed
to play the commercials?

Frankie Crocker,
you cranky fucker.

f*ck the commercials!

f*ck the commercials, man.
It's a test. It's science.

Let's test it out on the... Whas
your name again?

-Shari.
-Shari. That's my mother's name.

Come on. Come on. This is
something new, Frankie, right?

She's expl*sive.
She's... she's dangerous,

and you, my friend, can be
the one to introduce her

-to the world.
-We already introduced

this f*cking single,
and it didn't move shit.

No, we did not introduce her
to the world.

That was
a different f*cking record.

That was not this record.
This is different.

This is... this is new.

I mean, we were right
about this girl.

-She's amazing.
-You listen to the man, Frank.

And what does that mean?
I'm right about a lot of shit

I don't put on the radio.

This may be Casablanca's
last f*cking chance, Frankie.

Neil, it's 17 minutes long,
alright? I can't...

How do I explain that?

Handcuffs.

Frankie.... I brought mine.

Now, you ain't had those
last night.

-I didn't need them last night.
-Hey, how about you take

a bathroom break, Frankie?
We'll take over from here.

-Come on.
-Whoo!

I gotta be
out of my f*cking mind.

-You're in your mind.
-You're about to be

out your pants.

You m*therf*ckers
gonna owe me one.

Looks like you got two,
m*therf*cker.

Sixteen minutes and 50 seconds.

With the record
glued to the turntable,

it played all night long
with Frankie still locked

in the bathroom.
Lawyers were calling

even before we landed
back in LA,

swearing they'd never play
a Casablanca record again,

except... something happened,

something that never had before.

Not just in New York.
Stations all across the country

are calling. Everybody's trying
to find a way to play her.

-Tell them I'll buy them all.
-Buy what all?

-The whole half-hour block.
-On every station.

-Every city.
-The ad campaign:

Tune in at midnight
for a half-hour of love,

brought to you by Casablanca.

-Call Giorgio.
-And then?

Call everybody else!

♪ Love to love you baby ♪

♪ Do it to me again and again ♪

We released our version of
"Love To Love You" in 1976,

and when we did,

it was like nothing else
there ever was.

Branded too graphic
by some critics,

it was even banned
by some stations,

which only helps us
to sell more records.

♪ Oh love to love you baby ♪

Time magazine reported
22 simulated orgasms

in the song, and the more people
talked about it,

the more they wanted more.
I mean, we were riding

the biggest single we ever had

with the biggest artist
we ever had,

and we were literally making her
up as we went along.

♪ Oh love to love you babe ♪

Is this make-believe, Mama?

No, sweetheart. This is real.

I need makeup in here.

We brought in everything...

designers, hair, make-up.

In the end, we went with wigs,

in every picture
you've ever seen.

We invented every detail.

But the truth
was that the First Lady Of Love,

the superstar
we were selling her as,

was as far
from who Donna really was

as she could be.

I want to know this woman.

You raised my vocal
in the song.

Your vocal is the song.

♪ Bad girls ♪

♪ Talking about the sad girls ♪

♪ Sad girls ♪

♪ Talking about bad girls ♪

♪ Yeah ♪

♪ See them out on the street
at night ♪

♪ Picking up
all kinds of strangers ♪

♪ If the price is right ♪

♪ And you can score
if your pocket's tight ♪

♪ Plus you want a good time ♪

♪ You ask yourself ♪

♪ Who they are ♪

♪ Like everybody else ♪

♪ They come from near and far ♪

She's gonna be great. I know it.

I love you.

You got it, Donna. Nailed it.

LaDonna?

So, what happens next?

You do.

♪ Dim all the lights
sweet darling ♪

♪ 'Cause tonight
it's all the way ♪

♪ Turn up the old Victrola ♪

♪ Gonna dance the night away ♪

♪ Love just don't come easy ♪

♪ No it seldom does ♪

♪ When you find
the perfect love ♪

♪ Let it fill you up ♪

♪ Dim all the lights
sweet darling ♪

♪ 'Cause tonight
it's all the way ♪

♪ Hey baby ♪

♪ Turn up the old Victrola ♪

♪ Gonna dance the night away ♪

Donna was
every one of our dreams

wrapped up
in a once-in-a-lifetime voice

that didn't just rise up
to those stained glass windows.

She smashed right through them.

Now, when people
who remember Casablanca

actually remember Casablanca,

this is what they remember,

Donna on top of the world,

as if this was the moment
that began it all.

♪ Up ♪

♪ Hey baby ♪

♪ Dim all the lights
sweet honey ♪

Having spent my entire life
inventing my life,

I'd now invented hers.

That voice, the way Donna
would just flow inside you,

that came from something
far more inventive than me,

but the First Lady Of Love?

The Queen of Disco?

That was as much of a fairy tale
as I was.

Let's replace Gladys with Donna.

And suddenly,
for the first time,

it wasn't just breaking one hit,
because once Donna broke,

the hits
just never stopped coming.

I knew what else
we'd did wrong, too.

Recording a live album
of greatest hits

from a band
who doesn't even have one?

-That's new, Neil, even for us.
-Hey, they've always had hits.

We just failed to record them
in the way

they needed to be heard.

By recording KISS live,

we finally captured
the experience of KISS live...

which is what we'd really been
chasing from the very beginning.

Turned out, we'd been right
about them, too.

We sold
over nine million records.

Every bet we'd made,

we were right about all of them.

We just... needed enough time

for all of you
to catch up to us.

What is this?
What are you doing?

Oh, my God. Al.

Welcome home, Ma.

Nelly, I already have a house.

-Yeah, well, this one's bigger.
-Love you!

Are you nuts?
What are you doing here?

Al, look.

We don't need this. Come on.

What?

No. No. That is too much.

I can only do all this
because you taught me.

Who taught you?
I taught you nothing.

-Taught you how to lose.
-No, you taught me how to win.

You taught me
to swing for the trees,

to bet big to win big.
You remember?

You taught me how to dream!

Maybe a little bit.

No. Maybe a lot.

And you know, maybe you were
just a little unlucky.

Right? Well, I got your luck.

Ah. Nah.

You made your own luck.

You're a genius.
You're a f*cking Jewish genius.

Ah, come on.

Hey.

You're a good son, bubbeleh.

Four-color world, Pop.

I'm in heaven.

Jesus Christ.
You know what? If you can't

keep the beat,
let's just f*cking spell, okay?

That's right. We created
the Village People, too.

"YMCA" became

one of the all-time
biggest selling singles,

more than ten million copies,

though other than the cop,

none of the others even sang,
not on the records,

not at the concerts, not ever.

Again. Let's go again.

You don't trust me? Look it up!

We went from living
on the brink of bankruptcy

to earning five million dollars
in one month,

six the next.

♪ Beth I hear you calling ♪

I finally even let Kiss
release "Beth"

on the Destroyer album.

It would hurt
every single time I heard it,

but it was the smash
we'd been chasing

since it all began.

Now, this is a love story.

You're the best fake boyfriend
I ever had.

♪ Just a few more hours ♪

♪ And I'll be right home
to you ♪

♪ I think I hear them calling ♪

♪ Oh Beth what can I do? ♪

♪ Beth what can I do? ♪

♪ Beth I know you're lonely ♪

♪ And I hope
you'll be alright ♪

♪ 'Cause me and the boys
will be playing ♪

♪ All night ♪

As for Donna,

even with all her success,

I don't really believe
LaDonna Adrian Gaines

ever really became Donna Summer.

We just made you all think
that she had.

So, truth is, none of us

were still who we'd been
when it all began.

Casablanca had become
something else.

I had become something else.

Okay, Neil.
What's this all about?

We sold half the company
to Polygram.

Forty-nine percent.
We still keep control.

We've lived an awful lotta
years pretending to be rich.

You wanna see
what it feels like

when we finally actually are?

Nelly!

Jesus Christ.

Um, I'm sorry. I'm sorry.
I never use the Lord's name

in vain, but...

Fifty million dollars
for just half the company,

made out to Neil Bogart,

a name and a life
I'd made up along the way.

Even paid Mo back every penny.

Not because I had to,
but because I could.

My dad had been right.

Most were all still there

on the same four blocks
of their lives.

For those of you who don't know,

I left Casablanca finally
on February 8, 1980.

It was a Friday.

It was five days
after my 37th birthday.

Now, disco had officially died
the year before when a local DJ

set a bunch of records on fire
to the roar of a crowd

as if that was
a f*cking concert.

Yeah. It was a good bet
most of those were ours.

Now, all of you remember,
I'm sure,

Donna and KISS and George,

Village People, Gladys,

the Isleys, Bill Withers,

all the others.

But I bet each of you $100...

that not one of you
has ever even heard of my name.

And that's okay. It's not like
I had the talent that they did,

because I didn't, you know,

or that I... or that I mattered
like they did,

because, uh... I... I couldn'.

But I sure as hell
made you dance.

I sold over
200 million records,

and all that music
that I helped made possible...

became the soundtrack
of your lives.

And we... we were in the
business of making dreams come
true.s

Didn't we do that?

And if we did,
didn't... didn't that matter?

Didn't I?

Even if... even if only a song?

I died...

May eighth, just two years
later, from cancer.

I was only 39 years old.

I... I wouldn't change
a f*cking thing.

I just wish I had more time.

♪ I need you ♪

♪ By me ♪

♪ Beside me ♪

♪ To guide me ♪

♪ To hold me ♪

♪ To scold me ♪

♪ 'Cause when I'm bad ♪

♪ I'm so so bad ♪

♪ So let's dance ♪

♪ The last dance ♪

♪ Let's dance ♪

♪ The last dance ♪

♪ Let's dance ♪

♪ The last dance ♪

♪ Tonight ♪

♪ Last dance ♪

♪ Last chance for love ♪

♪ Yes it's my last chance ♪

♪ For romance tonight ♪

♪ Oh I need you ♪

♪ By me ♪

♪ Beside me ♪

♪ To guide me ♪

♪ Oh to hold me ♪

♪ To scold me ♪

♪ 'Cause when I'm bad ♪

♪ I'm so so bad ♪

♪ So let's dance ♪

♪ The last dance ♪

♪ Let's dance ♪

♪ The last dance ♪

♪ Let's dance ♪

♪ The last dance ♪

♪ Tonight ♪

♪ Oh oh oh ♪

♪ Yeah ♪

♪ Hey hey ♪

♪ Mm ♪

♪ Whoa I need you ♪

♪ By me ♪

♪ Beside me ♪

♪ To guide me ♪

♪ To hold me ♪

♪ To scold me ♪

♪ Because when I'm bad ♪

♪ I'm so so bad ♪

♪ So come on baby ♪

♪ Dance that dance ♪

♪ Come on baby ♪

♪ Dance that dance ♪

♪ Come on baby ♪

♪ Let's dance tonight ♪

♪ It was the greatest time ♪

♪ Of my life ♪

♪ Yeah the greatest time ♪

♪ Of my entire life ♪

♪ Always made sure
I took a road ♪

♪ Less traveled
'til the curtain closed ♪

♪ Living for my story
to be told ♪

♪ 'Cause we all have a story
to be told ♪

♪ It was the greatest time
of our lives ♪

♪ It was the way we felt the
love on hot summer nights ♪

♪ We never thought
about getting old ♪

♪ And every day
was rock and roll ♪

♪ Living for our stories
to be told ♪

♪ So we dreamed so big ♪

♪ They were destined
to explode ♪

♪ We knew one day
that we'd be spinning gold ♪

♪ We bet it all
to never fall ♪

♪ We'd rather die than fold ♪

♪ We just want our story
to be told ♪

♪ It was the greatest time
of our lives ♪

♪ When it was over
all we know ♪

♪ Is that we got it right ♪

♪ With every heartbeat
and every note ♪

♪ Let's dim the lights
and start the show ♪

♪ Ready for our stories
to be told ♪

♪ Call on me brother
when you need a hand ♪

♪ So we dreamed so big they
were destined to explode ♪

♪ We all need
somebody to lean on ♪

♪ We knew one day
that we'd be spinning gold ♪

-♪ We bet it all to never fall ♪
-♪ Ooh child ♪

♪ Things are gonna get easier ♪

♪ I've got to go,
I've got to go ♪

♪ No matter how high or fast
we went ♪

♪ We never looked back
or lived life no regrets ♪

♪ Wanted to leave this world
a better place ♪

♪ Whenever I left
and give you something ♪

♪ That you'd never forget ♪

♪ Oh let's dance ♪

♪ The last dance ♪

♪ Let's dance ♪

♪ The last dance ♪

♪ Let's dance ♪

♪ The last dance ♪

♪ Tonight ♪

♪ Dreams so big they were
destined to explode ♪

♪ We knew one day
that we'd be spinning gold ♪

♪ We bet it all to never fall ♪

♪ We'd rather die than fold ♪

♪ We just want our story
to be told ♪

♪ And so we dreamed so big they
were destined to explode ♪

Well, alright. Star child.

♪ That we'd be spinning gold ♪

♪ ...Taste like candy ♪

♪ I'd rather live
in his world ♪

♪ Than live without him
in mine ♪

♪ Want to rock and roll
all night ♪

-♪ We knew one day that ♪
-♪ And party every day ♪

♪ We'd be spinning gold ♪

♪ I want to rock and roll ♪

♪ All night ♪

♪ And party every day ♪

♪ Oh we were destined
to explode ♪

♪ 'Cause we knew
that we'd be spinning gold ♪

♪ And we said
we'd rather die than fold ♪

♪ We want our stories
to be told ♪

-♪ Nah nah nah nah nah nah nah ♪
-♪ Just a few more hours ♪

♪ And I'll be right home
to you ♪

♪ Nah nah nah nah
nah nah nah ♪

♪ Let's dance the last dance ♪

-♪ Tonight ♪
-♪ We just want our story ♪

♪ To be told ♪

You had a lot of resilience.

You have been up and down,
and you've made a lot of money.

And you've been
flat on your bum.

- It's nicer being up.
- Yes.

If that was the question.

Why your resiliency?
Where does it come from?

Where's that drive come from?

Probably, it originally comes
from Brooklyn.

- Brooklyn.
- You know, all people

that are born in Brooklyn seem
to be able to bounce back,

because you have to
if you come from there.

You have to have the desire
to succeed and be a gambler,

and I both have the desire
and am a gambler.

So, you were poor?

- Yes.
- Mm-hmm

I came from Brooklyn,

and I used to sing on
the street corners and stuff.

Do you think... I mean, what
does it take to be a greaser?

-I mean...
-You got what it takes.

You probably got what it takes.

What do you think is
the biggest misunderstanding

about Neil Bogart?

There are quite a few
misunderstandings

about Neil Bogart.

If you feel like rocking
the Hollywood Bowl,

it feels like being rocked.

How'd you get
so down and out, Neil?

I came out to California

after having a company
called Buddah Records

in New York City,

which was very successful,
and I went into partnership

with Warners Brothers Records.

Inside of eight months,

the partnership
had just about dissolved,

and I lost the quickest
three million dollars

anybody ever put up
for anybody else.

What does it feel like
to lose

a couple of million dollars?

Well, the strange thing is,

I really didn't have it,
you know?

Of course.

I don't think if I had it,
I could have taken the risk.

You know,
it was a kind of situation

where I just kept going and
really didn't stop to think

of how I was going
to pay it back.

And fortunately, success
was around the corner,

and I was able to pay it back
and come from behind.

You did it by giving,
first of all,

one of the largest parties
ever given in this town,

-didn't you?
-Yes, it was.

He laughs about it.

And you couldn't leave
a tip, right?

At the end, I couldn't.

The party was fabulous.

The reception was fabulous.

The welcome to California
was exciting,

and from there,
everything went downhill.

About eight months later,

I realized that um,
it wasn't going to happen.

I had just finished

probably the most expensive
album ever done

in the record industry,
which was

Here's Johnny: Magic Moments
From The Tonight Show,

- and we opened...
- Oh, you did that.

Yeah. That was our record.

You all bought that,
didn't you?

Yeah.

We over-advertised,
and we over-promoted.

And we did everything
you could possibly do wrong.

And I went to Acapulco,

and while I was there,
scuba diving,

I thought that, "You owe
three million dollars.

You don't have any money
left in the bank."

- Yeah.
- "You might have payroll

for about two
or three weeks left."

And I was down there,
and I took the mouthpiece out

and said, "It could be over."

I mean, that could be it.
You don't have to come back

to the problems.
You don't have to come back

to face the failure.

And, um... the last record
I released at Buddah Records

was a thing
by Gladys Knight and the Pips,

that when LA seemed
too much for the man,

he couldn't make it,
so he's leaving

the life he's come to know.

He's leaving on a midnight
train to Georgia.

And I just realized
that wasn't me.

I had to win, or I had to fail.

I couldn't cop out,

and I put
the mouthpiece back in.

I swam and found Joyce.

I said, "Come on back.
We're going upstairs.

We're gonna go back,
and we're gonna do it.

We're going to win,
or we're gonna fail."

And in the back of my head,
I always had the thought

that I can always go
back to Brooklyn and open

- a candy store.
- Yeah,

except there are a lot of those
there, aren't there?

Yeah, but you know,
growing up there, I mean,

that was always
a kind of comforting thing

that I could always go
back to that,

and that was a great life.

Hi.

What does a tiger say?

That was the Bogarts,
the fabulous Bogarts!

Well, I want to thank you all.

Jill, Timothy, Bradley,
come on. Come on.

Say goodbye to the audience.

We'll see you again!

-Bye!
-Bye, everybody!

- Bye!
- Bye!

Do you have one more word you'd
like to say to everybody?

Goodbye. Cheerio.

What was that?

...from the fabulous Bogarts!

See you next week!

Yeah!