by Ed Nelson
“Agreed, when can we talk to these men?”
“I will have my secretary see if they are available for a lunch meeting.”
We had an hour before lunch. The Chancellor spent it trying to recruit me as a student. He knew my history and wasn’t a fan of Oxford since his school had a historic association with Cambridge.
He also let me know that he thought Oxford was frivolous in their actions, I should be going to a serious school like LSE.
I made noises as if I would consider it. No reason to alienate this man, but I had no intention of returning to school at this time.
At lunch, the answer proved to be simple as the Professor explained.
“A hard currency is one in which other nations have faith. The simplest method for the Chinese to create a hard currency is to withdraw all notes in circulation and replace them with ones that are payable to other countries in gold.”
“What would that mean for their economy?”
“It would immediately give them a currency that would trade anywhere in the world at a fixed value with other hard currencies, such as the American dollar.”
“Do we have any idea of how much gold the Chinese may have on hand?”
“The best estimates say about 9,000 metric tons.”
“At that rate how many dollars of the currency could they issue?”
The professor took his pen and made some calculations on a notepad.
“At thirty-five dollars an ounce, I would say about ten billion dollars. If that were infused into the Chinese economy, it would cause rampant inflation.”
“For example, right now the US has about 17,000 metric tons of gold backing thirty-two billion dollars in the economy.”
However, they would only pay out in gold to other nations who want to redeem their dollars.”
“There are many details that would have to be addressed like the Breton Woods accords and joining the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund. Plus, shipping thousands of tons of gold to a neutral central bank to keep in their vaults. But those are just that, details, they can be worked out.”
The Don continued, “From that example, I would think that if careful the Chinese could have a hard currency. The problem is that politicians and central banks do not like hard currencies, because they are difficult, at the least, to manipulate.”
At that, the student Lee Kuan Yew spoke up,
“A strong leader would have to enforce the policy. The Asian people are generally in favor of a strong leader who keeps peace and order in their lives. They need to be guided like the children they are.”
I wondered what sort of leader he would make when he returned to Singapore.
We talked on for a while but there were no other ideas presented that would quickly give China a hard currency.
I was flying out of Heathrow in the morning so stayed the night at the Plaza. It was only 2:00 pm in London which would make it 10:00 pm in Beijing. I decided to try a call.
I was lucky in that a night aide recognized my name and put me through to Chairman Deng, who had left orders that my calls were to be forwarded to him.
“Mr. Chairman, I apologize for calling so late your time. I had an interesting meeting at the London School of Economics today. They feel China can have a hard currency if you are willing to go to a gold standard.”
“We have reached the same conclusion.”
“The professor we talked to used a baseline of 10,000 metric tons at thirty-five dollars an ounce. He thought you would have to regulate how much was to go into the economy, if dumped overnight China would end up with rampant inflation.”
“Again, we agree. Who was the professor you talked with?
“A Mr. John Hicks.”
“I think we will contact him directly, as usual, Rick you have helped China. We thank you.”
“My pleasure. If you think about it, I’m protecting my investment.”
“A wise move, young man. I hope you make a wise move in your personal life, don’t let a disappointment cause you to give up.”
Is the whole world spying on me?
The first thing in the morning I was on the 707 back to LA. I had a movie commitment there, and I wanted out of Europe.
The flight seemed quick. The three flight hostesses only had me to look out for on this flight, so it was an easy duty for them. We ended up debating such important questions as who would name their daughter Rama Lama Ding Dong and why would they do that.
Some of the conjecture was out of this world and some downright lurid. After that, we tried to figure out what was behind the green door. One of the girls had been behind the green door in Dallas, Texas. You needed a card to get in and there was almost always a piano playing while people had a good time. It sounded like a speakeasy to me.
The one that tied us up was “Who put the Bomp in the Bomp, Bomp, Bomp.” We couldn’t come up with a reasonable explanation. Not that any of ours on the flight was reasonable.
It did make the flight time go fast, and most importantly took my mind off Nina, if only for a few hours.
Once in LA, I was taken to Jackson House where my family waited. I had been dreading this ever since we landed. I didn’t want pity. I just wanted them to ignore me and let me suffer in silence.
It wasn’t to be. Mum and Dad were waiting for me to tell them what had transpired. I also figured they knew exactly what happened. If they knew in China, they would know in the US. It probably was in all the tabloids.
I was wrong about the tabloids; they didn’t make the headlines until the next day.
Mary opened the subject with, “I fired her and her friends.”
I replied with an intelligent, “What?”
“I had a telegram sent to Nina telling her that the clothing company no longer required her or her friends' services. She can tell them they are all out of a job.”
I didn’t know what to say to that, on one hand, I was glad to see Nina getting punished: On the other hand, well, there wasn’t another. I was glad to see Nina getting punished.
“Thank you, Mary.”
“You’re welcome, Rick, we have to stick together.”
I looked at Mum, as I knew the source of Mary’s actions. She just said a mysterious, “Hot chocolate.”
I think I knew what she was referring to.
Denny spoke up, “What's the big deal? I have a new girlfriend almost every week.”
I ignored him. There wasn’t an answer that wouldn’t get me in trouble.
Eddie gave the best response of all, “Nina probably has girl cooties and that is why she is acting crazy.”
That made sense to me.
Chapter 25
I practiced golf with a vengeance on Wednesday morning. I was rushing my putts. The harder I tried the worse I got. John finally told me, “Rick, give it a rest, something is bothering you and it is ruining your game, stop before you ingrain bad habits.”
That brought me up short and I did stop. Frustrated, angry about Nina, whatever you want to call it, I’m not totally stupid.
I thanked John and went for a long ride on George. He is a very patient listener and I certainly gave him an earful on the trails in the park.
I had to go to the studio which I had been dreading. I hoped against hope that Nina’s dad wouldn’t be there. I didn’t get my hope. The guard flagged me down at the entrance and told me Mr. Monroe wanted to see me in his office.
His new receptionist escorted me in immediately. The guard had called so they knew I was on my way.
I entered to a stern-faced Mr. Monroe. I had never seen this side of him before. I wondered if I was going to get thrown out of the movie and escorted from the studio.
“Rick, this is difficult for both of us. I have had a long talk with my daughter. She has messed up big time. What I need to know is whether this going to affect our movie-going forward.”
“I hope not. I would like to continue.”
“Good, I say good as a businessman and as a father, my daughte
r has made a mess of it and I would hate to see it affect you to the point you couldn’t work with the studio.”
I had to ask the question that had been running through my mind like a runaway racehorse, “Why did she do it, two-timing me, letting him use my car, taking him on my airplane. It was as though she wanted to burn me down, salt the earth and plow me under.”
His eyes got a little wide at that.
“I have forgotten how serious these things are at your age. Funny how we forget as we grow older. I have no idea what she was thinking. I’m not certain she does either.”
“I feel betrayed by someone I loved.”
“And now she is paying for that betrayal. She got a telegram from your sister's company telling her that she and her friends' services are no longer needed. She was riding high with the Ferrari, use of a 707, getting to choose who would model and who wouldn’t. On top of that, she had a titled boyfriend who is extremely rich.”
“Now she has lost it all. She is having to tell her friends they are no longer models. Unfortunately, that was what upset her the most.”
“I see, I think, she is not upset about losing me, but the things I provided. I think I have got off lucky.”
Why didn’t I feel lucky?
“Rick, try not to get too cynical.”
“I can’t help it. I have been learning that people want to use me for what I have. I considered Nina my safe haven. She knew me before I had all of this. I thought she liked me for me, but now I know better.”
At that Mr. Monroe told me that I had better get to the set as they were waiting on me.
The set proved to be a blessing, at least for me. I was able to submerge myself into my role. For a while, I was a single foot-loose fancy-free cowboy roaming the range.
Today's scene had been storyboarded out well, so it was easy to see what our Director wanted. Miss Molly and I had got off on the wrong foot, and now we had to make up a little. A bad hombre thought he could have his way with her, or at least steal a kiss; it was never made clear.
No matter what, I saved the young lady from a fate worse than death, or a stolen kiss. She thanked me half-heartedly. I think it is called mixed emotions, Miss Molly wanted no part of the bad hombre, Miss Fields the actress made eyes at him.
The result was a grudging thank you from me after I threw the lout to the ground then kicked him in the rear as he slunk away. We didn’t see him anymore in the movie. Maybe the cows ate him.
Miss Molly and I had started a relationship that would grow stronger as we faced the adversities of the cattle drive.
There was one pleasant surprise. Chief Redfoot had arrived. He applauded me for giving the lout the boot. We only had to do that scene six times before I got it right. The first time I went to kick him in the rear I missed completely and ended up in the dust on my back.
When I did it, I glared at everyone to dare them to laugh. They didn’t. On the next take when the lout turned to run off someone had attached a kick me sign to his rear. That is when they all laughed.
I’m ashamed to admit I laughed harder than anyone.
Chief Redfoot had been hired to inject some realistic Indian scenes into the movie. After he and I greeted each other and agreed to meet for dinner, he was talking to the writers while waving a copy of the script. I don’t think he was complimenting them.
The day’s shooting continued in the usual fashion. We would do a scene over and over until we got it right. The most frustrating part was that a good deal of it would end up on the cutting room floor. We just didn’t know which part.
Chief Redfoot came to our house for dinner. He hadn’t seen any of the family for a while. Everyone updated him on their busy lives. When asked about his he answered that the sun rose and then set every day, so it was all good.
That is a different take on life, especially with what I was facing. The good part of my day was that when I was involved on the set I never once thought of Nina. Do you know how little time an actor is involved on the set?
It seemed I was truly an actor; I could become someone else while performing and forget Richard Jackson.
Chief Redfoot told us that the little boys on the reservation had a new game. They all wanted to be Lord Blackhoof.
He also updated us on the programs that I and my parents were funding. We had donated money to improve the schools and endowed a health care clinic for the young and the elderly. My Dad was interested in endowing a scholarship program for any that wanted to go to college.
Chief Redfoot thought that a wonderful idea but did think Dad was being a little extreme in wanting to give extra credit for white Republican scalps. With Dad, you never can be certain. Now if Mum had brought it up, I would know she was dead serious. Except with her, it would be Democrats.
I told them they were all wet; it should be lawyers. This got more laughter than it deserved.
In the middle of the meal, there was a phone call. It was for me. It was Empress Ping of China.
“Rick, I apologize for the interruption. I have been asked to appear before the United Nations and need a safe way to get there. China doesn’t have any aircraft capable of making the trip safely. Could I borrow your airplane?”
“Most certainly, your Imperial Highness.”
“Rick, how many times must I tell you a simple Lady Ping will do?”
“At least you only tell me; Queen Elizabeth threatens to have my head.”
“What a wonderful idea! I think I’m going to like her; we can compare notes on how to bedevil Lord Blackhouse.”
Now, I know she knows my title, so she was trying to get a rise. She got one.
“I know you will, Daughter of Heaven and Virtuous Lady.”
“Cut it out or I will tell Chairman Deng you called him Chairman Dung.”
“Ouch, you win. When do you need the plane?”
“I need to fly to New York arriving by Thursday week.”
“That works out well.”
“I was afraid your girlfriend could have it scheduled. That even made it in the newspapers over here. The people are interested in the one who has saved China from starvation.”
“Two things: It is you that saved your people, and second, Nina and I are no longer together.”
“From the way you talked of her, I don’t think you are the one that caused the parting.”
“No, you will be able to read about it in the papers.”
“Foolish girl! I don’t think she knows what she has lost.”
“She knows she has lost all the worldly benefits of being my girlfriend.”
“She doesn’t know it yet, but she has lost much more than that. A good person is hard to find.”
“Thank you for that thought. Who should be contacted about your schedule?”
She proceeded to give me the name of her secretary and how to contact them.
When I returned to the table there were raised eyebrows all around.
Mum asked, “Was that Empress Ping?”
“Yeah, she wants to borrow my airplane.”
Chief Redfoot spoke up, “You certainly lead a different life, Rick.”
“Yes, I do, here I am having dinner with a real Indian Chief.”
This broke the ice that had formed on the table conversation. We all enjoyed our meal.
Chapter 26
Before I could get out of the house the next morning, I had a phone call from an old contact from Variety. They had caught wind of my breakup with Nina and wanted my side of it.
I told them what had transpired. They seemed to know more than I did. It seemed Nina had met the Prince at a school dance. No one was sure how he got there. It was like he came with the express purpose of meeting her.
He was the heir to a little principality that now only existed on paper. It had been absorbed into Germany in 1876. He is poor and lives off his girlfriend. He has been known to steal from them. The lowest of the low Eurotrash.
After talking to the reporter, I was depressed with events.
&nbs
p; Well, he had certainly taken Nina in. She must have been flattered that a ‘real’ Prince was paying attention to her. Not much to say to that. Yeah, he came on to her, but she went to him, and from what I saw actively went to him.
I can see now why the rich must be so careful. There is no one they can trust.
Then I started thinking of all the wonderful people I had supporting me, from John Jacobs to Todd Pearson to Jim Williamson, and then there were my drinking buddies at Oxford.
That’s it, I thought. I need to go see my friends in Oxford and tie one on. No, that way led to danger; I wasn’t going to end up an alcoholic like many in my family.
Instead of doing anything crazy, I saddled George and rode over to practice golf. I was looking to get into a contest with professional sharks. There could be no such thing as too much preparation.
While riding over to the Forestry station I had a thought and turned back to the house. It was a good time to call China.
I got through to the Empress’s Ping’s secretary. I told him that I had forgotten to offer the use of my suite in the Waldorf Astoria. He was most appreciative as he was trying to arrange rooms for her party today.
My suite was the largest they had, with three bedrooms, a dining room, full kitchen, living room, and study. Each bedroom had a full bath and there was a half bath for guest use.
They would still need more rooms, but we were both certain that the Waldorf would find other rooms for the rest of the party. I even told him about track 61 and how it could be used for discreet comings and goings.
He liked that idea because the reporters were already inundating them with requests.
We talked for a few minutes about their schedule. I was surprised to hear that there was no meeting scheduled with President Kennedy. I wondered what was behind that reasoning.
He was surprised when I told him that former President Hoover and General of the Army MacArthur lived there. The Empress would be most interested in meeting both, MacArthur as a hero from World War II still having immense popularity in the Orient.
President Hoover could be a possible backdoor to the US government. I didn’t say anything to that. I was in too deep as it was.
