Spinning Gold (2023) - full transcript

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 weapon,

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, drugs, 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 drugs 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 fuck or cry

or fucking 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 fucking 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 fucking 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 kill KISS

to kill 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.

-Fuck you, and fuck you!

-You see that, Mo?

He's trying to fuck 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 fucking 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 asshole, 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.

Fuckin' bleed 'em to death.

- You fucking recorded me?

- Don't touch me.

-My wife got me that table.

-He fucking touched me, man.

What the fuck?

This is fucking Warner Brothers,

not some fucking

New York back alley

you just crawled out of,

assholes!

You messed with our business,

Bruce, and nobody,

fucking 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?

-Fucking 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 fucking meeting.

No, and... and not

with a fucking smile.

So, bill me for your table

and have a nice fucking 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 war

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, fuck 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 fuck you doing?

What the fuck

it look like, black?

Trying to open the...

fucking 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 fucking 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 fucking 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, motherfucker.

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 motherfucking 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 fucking song, Ron.

The man had to hear it.

Do me a favor. Why don't you

scoot on over, Ronnie?

Who the fuck you calling...

This motherfucker

-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 motherfucking Ronnie to you?

Do I look

like a motherfucking Ronnie

to you?

As a matter of fact,

yeah, you look

exactly like a fuckin' Ronnie.

You're a crazy motherfucker.

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 fucking 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 fucking gut.

You're a dangerous man,

ain't you?

No, man. I'm just the guy

who knows that you are,

and you fucking should be.

But knockout punches,

they gotta come clean,

be relentless,

and never stop until the body

hits the fucking floor!

Now, that's a hit.

Motherfucker.

-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 fucking guys?

Viewlex. They make

film projector lenses.

Which means they know

absolutely fucking 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 shoot 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 fucking wise,

you're fucking 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 fuckin' problem.

Oh, shit.

Manny, what the hell? Really?

Your boy's on trial,

motherfucker!

Hey, you're really gonna

cross this line

over us signing Bill Withers?

Withers, Hawkins,

fucking 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 kill you last, Buck,

so you got time

to think about it.

Andre.

Manny, just put the gun 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 fucking hit on us?

Manny, who did this?

Was it Gordy?

Let's just say you crossed

one too many fucking 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 kill 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 war.

There's no need.

We good.

Are you fucking kidding me?

You're talking

about not starting a war,

the man who just showed

his black chest

to fucking 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 weapon.

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 fuckin' 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 fucking 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 pussy

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 fucking 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 motherfucking 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 motherfucking spaceship?

How much?

A million

motherfucking 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 drugs

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?

Fuck it.

You look like you

like it. I think he likes it.

Let's build you

a motherfucking 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, motherfucker.

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 fucking 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 fucking 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 fucking 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 fuck's

-the matter with you?

-Hey! Fuck!

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 fucking 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 fucking 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

fucking thinking, man.

- No. Let him say it.

- It's just the truth.

You're our manager,

and you are fucking

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 fucking 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 fucking song

that will actually

make us some!

- No, no, no.

- Wow!

-No, no, no, no, no.

-Fuck 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 fucking single?

I want two million dollars an

album for KISS.

Bill.

Okay. Fucking fine. Deal.

We finished?

It's just business.

It's nothing personal.

Of course it is,

and you fucking 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 fucking records, man.

-No shit, Buck.

-What do we do?

-We take 'em back,

but you tell

every single fucking 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 fucking 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 fucking 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 fucking side!

-Nobody is on our fucking side.

-Because nobody understands

what the fuck

you're doing anymore!

Not even me!

We were wrong

about KISS, Neil,

and we were wrong about Donna.

Even George

and his fucking 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 fucking 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 fucking 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 fucking job,

and I will go get

the fucking 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 killing us,

killing us, because I was wrong.

Biggest sin of a record man...

believing in something

because you have to...

not because you do.

I fucking 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 fucking money, Neil.

I fucking 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, fuck.

-Come on.

-Fuck.

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 fuck

are we gonna get people

to buy shit about the album

and we can't even get them

to buy the fucking 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 fucking block

was painted fucking 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 fuckers

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 fuck

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 fucking vocal!

Her fucking 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 fucking

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 fucking 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.

Fuck the commercials!

Fuck 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 explosive.

She's... she's dangerous,

and you, my friend, can be

the one to introduce her

-to the world.

-We already introduced

this fucking single,

and it didn't move shit.

No, we did not introduce her

to the world.

That was

a different fucking 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 fucking 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 fucking mind.

-You're in your mind.

-You're about to be

out your pants.

You motherfuckers

gonna owe me one.

Looks like you got two,

motherfucker.

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 fucking 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 fucking 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 fucking 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 fucking 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!