Hollywood: titanic director

No doubt about it—Steve Jobs is a legend of this era! 

Compared to contemporaries like Oracle, Microsoft, or Dell, it's Jobs' Apple that truly revolutionized how people live—a game-changer on a global scale. 

But in the summer of 2000, Jobs is still a long way from that legendary status. 

Even standing face-to-face with this guy twenty-something years his junior, he can't muster any sense of superiority. 

Wealth? Dunn's net worth is pushing $7 billion, landing him in the top 60 of Forbes' global rich list. Jobs? His entire fortune's barely scraping $1 billion—not even enough to crack the top 60 in North America, let alone the world. 

Status? The gap's even wider. Sure, Jobs founded Apple, but he holds a tiny slice of its stock. Dunn's the biggest shareholder. 

Influence? There's no comparison. 

Dunn's reach is global. Forget his capital ventures—just his movies alone shape a generation. Jobs, meanwhile, has some clout in Silicon Valley, but step outside LA, and no one knows this plain-looking middle-aged dude. 

To keep a low profile, Dunn's dressed down—casual clothes, a baseball cap, looking more like a high school kid. 

Even so, Jobs isn't taking any chances. 

He might spend most of his time in Silicon Valley, but he's half a Hollywood insider himself. 

Jobs is the chairman and CEO of Pixar, and of his $1 billion net worth, over $800 million comes from his Pixar stock. 

So he's in the loop on Hollywood's juiciest secrets. 

Jobs and Disney's Michael Eisner? They don't get along. Both are control freaks—power-hungry types who want everything their way. 

Back when Pixar teamed up with Disney, the talks went smooth. They signed a deal: Pixar would make five animated films, and Disney would distribute them. 

But after the ink dried, Jobs and Eisner clashed hard. 

Eisner trashed Pixar's animated characters as pitiful—soulless, bloodless computer creations. Jobs fired back, slamming Disney's endless stream of sequels as stale, bloated, and boring. 

Even with the bad blood, Pixar's still stuck working with Disney. 

In Hollywood, Jobs' tough-guy act doesn't stand a chance against Eisner—he's a tiger forced to play nice. 

So Jobs knows Eisner well. The guy's stubborn, ruthless, and doesn't care who he steps on. In Hollywood, no one wants to cross him. 

And yet, here's this young Hollywood upstart, Dunn Walker, boldly throwing down the gauntlet against Disney! 

Not just challenging them—he's winning! 

This summer's box office? *Spider-Man* crushed *Gone in 60 Seconds*. It's been all over the entertainment news. 

Jobs is an artist at heart—he loves film, and with his Pixar ties, he keeps a close eye on Hollywood. Dunn Walker? Jobs genuinely admires and respects the guy! 

At 21, Jobs started Apple, but his youth, lack of experience, and limited connections got him booted from his own company fast. He gets how brutal it is for young people to make it. 

Take Google, the hot new tech company all three major rating agencies are raving about. Just as it's picking up steam, founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin—both young guns—get their power slashed by investors. They bring in Eric Schmidt, a seasoned ex-Apple board member, to steer the ship. 

Dunn didn't vote against it, but he didn't back Page and Brin either—tacitly agreeing that Schmidt's experience trumps youth. 

Age bias often hides real doubts about ability. 

But there are exceptions! 

Dunn Walker, just 22 this year, doesn't have that problem. Dunn Capital and Dunn Films are his private empires. And his string of successes has cemented an ironclad authority within his companies. 

It's evening in LA, the sky streaked with fiery red clouds. Dunn and Jobs stroll side by side across the Golden Gate Bridge, the sound of car horns and crashing waves below blending into a vibe all its own. 

Jobs breaks the silence first, nodding at the two bodyguards trailing them. "They always tag along like this?" 

Dunn sighs. "The stock crash is still rolling. Some people… you've got to take precautions." 

Jobs smirks. "Fair. In the last three months, 17 people jumped off this bridge." 

"Cough!" 

Dunn shivers, his face twisting awkwardly. 

Jobs glances at him. "Band-aids won't fix it. If you could save this dot-com mess, you wouldn't need bodyguards—the feds would have agents on you 24/7." 

Dunn gives a wry smile. "Save the bubble? Steve, I can handle movies, but finance? I'm clueless." 

"Clueless?" Jobs shoots him a half-smile, half-skeptical look. "Your Dunn Capital's been on a hot streak lately." 

Dunn shakes his head, shameless as ever. "Nah, my investments—if you dig into them, you'll see they're all tied to movies." 

"Tied to movies?" Doubt flickers in Jobs' eyes. "I get Hasbro—that's a strategic play. But Google? How's that about movies?" 

Dunn grins. "Google's a search company! I'm bullish on the internet's future. Picture this: someday, Dunn Films' movies become top search terms online. That kind of buzz? It's worth tens of millions in marketing—free." 

Jobs' face stays neutral—he's not buying it. "What about that other one? That's movie-related too?" 

"Totally!" Dunn says, unfazed. "It's an online payment company. I'm telling you, the internet's where it's at. Fans lining up at theaters to buy tickets? That's a mess. The future's online transactions—cuts out all that waiting." 

Jobs stares at him, genuinely shocked. 

This kid—no wonder he keeps winning, no wonder Wall Street's singing his praises. His vision's sharp! 

Right now, the only big internet player in movies is Amazon's IMDb. Smaller sites like Rotten Tomatoes are just niche review hubs. 

Dunn's already spotting the trend toward online ticket sales. That alone makes him a legit Silicon Valley investor. 

Jobs gestures for Dunn to go on, then leans against the bridge railing, staring out at the vast ocean below. He takes a deep breath and asks, "What about Apple? I'm the chairman—sorry, but I don't see how Apple ties into movies right now." 

Dunn leans on the railing too, turning to him with a sly smile. "Apple itself? No connection. But I've been buying up all this Apple stock… and yeah, it's for movies." 

"Spill it!" 

"Apple's not linked to films, but its chairman and CEO is, right?" 

Dunn faces the salty breeze, his grin teasing but calm—way too poised for his age. 

Jobs freezes, a mix of shock and panic flashing across his face. He blurts out, "You're after Pixar!"

read more inpatreon

belamy20