It was still dark when the plane landed in Los Angeles. Hagen checked into his
Hotel, showered and shaved, and watched dawn come over the city. He ordered
Breakfast and newspapers to be sent up to his room and relaxed until it was time
For his ten A.M. appointment with Jack Woltz. The appointment had been
Surprisingly easy to make.
The day before, Hagen had called the most powerful man in the movie labor
Unions, a man named Billy Goff. Acting on instructions from Don Corleone,
Hagen had told Goff to arrange an appointment on the next day for Hagen to call
On Jack Woltz, that he should hint to Woltz that if Hagen was not made happy by
The results of the interview, there could be a labor strike at the movie studio. An
Hour later Hagen received a call from Goff. The appointment would be at ten A.M.
Woltz had gotten the message about the possible labor strike but hadn't seemed
too impressed, Goff said. He added, "If it really comes down to that, I gotta talk to
the Don myself."
3 "If it comes to that he'll talk to you," Hagen said. By saying this he avoided
Making any promises. He was not surprised that Goff was so agreeable to the
Don's wishes. The family empire, technically, did not extend beyond the New York
Area but Don Corleone had first become strong by helping labor leaders. Many of
Them still owed him debts of friendship.
But the ten A.M. appointment was a bad sign. It meant that he would be first on
The appointment list, that he would not be invited to lunch. It meant that Woltz
Held him in small worth. Goff had not been threatening enough, probably because
Woltz had him on his graft payroll. And sometimes the Don's success in keeping
Himself out of the limelight worked to the disadvantage of the family business, in
That his name did not mean anything to outside circles.
His analysis proved correct. Woltz kept him waiting for a half hour past the
Appointed time. Hagen didn't mind. The reception room was very plush, very
Comfortable, and on a plum-colored couch opposite him sat the most beautiful
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Child Hagen had ever seen. She was no more than eleven or twelve, dressed in a
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Very expensive but simple way as a grown woman. She had incredibly golden hair,
Huge deep sea-blue eyes and a fresh raspberry-red mouth. She was guarded by a
Woman obviously her mother, who tried to stare Hagen down with a cold
Arrogance that made him want to punch her in the face. The angel child and the
Dragon mother, Hagen thought, returning the mother's cold stare.
Finally an exquisitely dressed but stout middle-aged woman came to lead him
Through a string of offices to the office-apartment of the movie producer. Hagen
Was impressed by the beauty of the offices and the people working in them. He
Smiled. They were all shrewdies, trying to get their foot in the movie door by
Taking office jobs, and most of them would work in these offices for the rest of
Their lives or until they accepted defeat and returned to their home towns.
1 Jack Woltz was a tall, powerfully built man (крепко: «мощно» скроенный,
сложенный) with a heavy paunch (с «тяжелым» брюхом [po:nt∫]) almost concealed
(почти скрытым) by his perfectly tailored suit (его превосходно сшитым костюмом
[sju:t]). Hagen knew his history. At ten years of age Woltz had hustled empty beer kegs
(катал бочки из-под пива; keg – бочонок /до 10 галлонов/; hustle [hΛsl] – толкать,
пихать, гнать вперед) and pushcarts (тележки: to push – толкать + cart – телега,
повозка) on the East Side. At twenty he helped his father sweat garment workers
(выжимать соки: «пот» из рабочих швейной промышленности; garment – одежда,
предмет одежды). At thirty he had left New York and moved West, invested in the
nickelodeon (вложил деньги в один из первых кинотеатров; nickelodeon – так
назывались первые кинотеатры, в которых фильмы были лишь частью общего
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шоу и входная цена была 1 nickel = 5 cents) and pioneered motion pictures (и
запустил кинопромышленность, стал одним из ее основателей). At forty-eight he
had been the most powerful movie magnate in Hollywood, still rough-spoken (грубый в
обращении), rapaciously amorous (алчный в любви; rapacious [r∂’peı∫∂s] – жадный,
алчный; amorous [‘жm∂r∂s] – влюбчивый), a raging wolf (свирепствующий волк)
ravaging helpless flocks of young starlets (пожирающий беззащитные стада
молоденьких звездочек; to ravage ['rжvıdG] – разорять, опустошать; грабить). At
fifty he transformed himself (переменился). He took speech lessons (брал уроки
дикции), learned how to dress from an English valet (у лакея, камердинера ['vжlıt])
and how to behave socially (как вести себя в обществе: «общественно») from an
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English butler (у дворецкого, старшего лакея). When his first wife died he married a
world-famous (на всемирно знаменитой) and beautiful actress who didn't like acting
(которой не нравилось играть, сниматься). Now at the age of sixty he collected old
master paintings (шедевры живописи), was a member of the President's Advisory
Committee, and had set up a multimillion-dollar foundation (фонд) in his name to
promote art in motion pictures (чтобы содействовать искусству в кино; to promote –
выдвигать, продвигать; способствовать). His daughter had married an English lord,
his son an Italian princess.
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2 His latest passion (его последнее увлечение: «страсть»), as reported dutifully by
every movie columnist in America (как старательно было сообщено каждым
кинообозревателем; column [‘kol∂m] – колонна; колонка /обзор постоянного
корреспондента/), was his own racing stables (собственные конюшни для беговых
лошадей) on which he had spent ten million dollars in the past year. He had made
headlines («сделал заголовки» = это было во всех газетных заголовках) by
purchasing (тем, что приобрел, приобретя; to purchase [‘p∂:t∫∂s]) the famed English
racing horse Khartoum for the incredible price of six hundred thousand dollars and then
announcing (а затем заявил, заявив) that the undefeated racer (не знающий
поражения скакун; defeat – поражение) would be retired (больше не будет
принимать участия в скачках; to retire – уходить, удаляться; уйти на покой, на
пенсию) and put to stud (и станет использоваться в качестве жеребца) exclusively
for the Woltz stables.
3 He received Hagen courteously, his beautifully, evenly tanned (ровно загорелое),
meticulously barbered face (тщательно выбритое лицо; meticulous [mı’tıkjul∂s] –
мелочный, дотошный, тщательный) contorted with a grimace (исказилось гримасой)
meant to be a smile (которая должна была означать улыбку). Despite all the money
spent, despite the ministrations (несмотря на «оказания» помощи, услуг = несмотря
на все старания) of the most knowledgeable technicians (наиболее опытных
специалистов), his age showed (его возраст был виден, обнаруживал себя); the
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flesh of his face looked as if it had been seamed together (словно было сшито; seam –
шов; to seam – соединять швом, сшивать). But there was an enormous vitality in his
movements (огромная жизненная сила, энергия в его движениях) and he had what
Don Corleone had, the air of a man who commanded absolutely the world in which he
lived.
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