Chapter 7 Chapter VII
When I set off for New York in 1936, that was the first time I stepped into a long-distance bus station.The Greyhound bus station was bustling with people from all over the country, and it was very lively.I was on a jumbo bus with a toilet and comfortable seats.It takes four and a half days by car from Chicago to New York, such a long journey, because I am busy weaving dreams about a great future, I don't feel bored.
I pulled into the New York bus stop with thirty dollars in my pocket—a sum I'm sure Natalie and Otto would hate to spend on their own.
Before leaving, I called the YMCA hostel and booked a room.The rooms are small and dark, but only four dollars a week.Even so, I knew the thirty dollars wouldn't last long.
I asked to see the hotel manager.
"I need a job," I said to the manager, "work now. Do you know someone? …"
“We offer employment services to residents,” he told me.
"That would be great. Any job offers now?"
He reached under his desk for a piece of paper and glanced at it. "The RKO Jefferson Cinema on Fourteenth Street needs an usher. Are you interested?"
Interested?At that moment, being an usher at the RKO Jefferson Cinemas was my only ambition.I said, "That's exactly what I need!"
The manager wrote something on a piece of paper and handed it to me, "Take this to the movie theater tomorrow morning."
Within a day of arriving in New York, I had found a job.I called Natalie and Otto to break the good news.
"That's a good sign," Natalie said. "You're going to be a hit."
In the afternoon and evening of the first day, I just walked around New York City.It's a magical place, a bustling city that makes Chicago seem rustic and dull by comparison.Everything here is bigger and grander—the houses, the marquee of the fair, the streets, the signs, the traffic and people, and my business.
The RKO Jefferson Cinema on 14th Street is an old two-story building with a ticket booth in the front. It used to be a sideshow and is now an offshoot of the RKO Cinema Line.There are usually two showings per show—customers get two movies for the price of one movie ticket. I walked thirty-nine blocks from the YMCA hostel, and finally handed the note to the movie theater manager. He looked me over and asked, "Have you ever been an usher before?" "No, sir." He shrugged. "It's okay. Can you walk?" "Will go, sir." "You know how to make a flashlight?" "Yes, sir." "Then you can do the job. Your wages are fourteen yuan and forty cents a week, and you work six days a week, from four twenty in the afternoon until the early morning." "Okay." Which meant that all morning and part of the afternoon, I could go to the Brill Building, the sanctuary of the entire music world. "Go to the staff locker room and find a uniform that fits." "Okay, sir." I put on my usher uniform, and the manager looked at it and said, "That's it. Be sure to keep an eye on the balcony." "The balcony?" "You'll understand then. Go to work tomorrow." "Yes, sir." Tomorrow, I'll start my songwriting career too.
The famous Brill Building is the most sacred place in the music industry.The building is located at 1619 Broadway, Forty-ninth Street. It is the center of the pop music publishing industry, and all the world's well-known music publishers have their headquarters here. When I walked into the building, I heard "A Beautiful Romance", "Love You to the Heart", "The God of Fortune" being played in the corridor... The names on the door also made my heart pound: Jieluo Jim Remick, Robbins Music, M. Wittmark, Shapiro Bernstein, and TB Harms—all the giants of the music industry.This is the cradle of musical genius.Cole Porter, Irving Berlin, Richard Rogers, George Gershwin, Ira Gershwin, Jerome Cohen...these guys all made their names here. I walked into the office of TB Harms and nodded to the man behind the desk, "Good morning, I'm Sidney Sheche-Sheldon." "What's your business?" "I wrote a song called "The Silent Self", and your company has expressed its intention to publish it." Looking at the expression on his face, it seems that he remembered such a thing, "Oh, yes, there was intention." Had? "Aren't you going to use it now?" "Well, it's been played too much on the radio. Horace Hayter has played it many times. Do you have anything new?" I nodded, "Yes. I can bring some over tomorrow morning. May I have your surname?" "Tasker."
At 4:20 that afternoon, I put on my usher uniform and guided the audience down the aisle to their seats.The manager was right that the job could be done by anyone.Fortunately, there are still movies to watch, otherwise the work would be extremely boring.When I am free, I will find a seat at the back of the cinema and sit down and watch a movie. The first movies I saw there were The Marcos Brothers' "The Racer," and "Mr. Deeds Goes to Town."A Star Is Born starring Janet Gaynor and Frederick March and a good Madame Peacock starring Walter Huston also appealed to me. I worked until midnight, and then I got off work and went back to the hostel.I no longer feel that room is small and dark and believe it can be turned into a palace.In the morning I'll be able to take my work to TB Harms, the only question is which one they're going to publish first - "The Phantom of Love", "Walk as You Go", "Hold on to the Stars" ", "When Love Is Gone"... At 8:30 the next morning, I stood in front of TB Harms waiting for the commuting crowd.At nine o'clock, Mr. Tusk came. He looked at the big envelope in my hand, "Did you bring some songs?" I grinned, "Yes, sir." We go into his office.I handed him the envelope and planned to sit down. He stopped me. "You don't have to wait here," he said, "I'll watch it when I'm free. How about you come back tomorrow?" I nodded, trying to sound like a professional songwriter, "Okay." It was another twenty-four hours before my career could take off. At 4:20, I was back at the RKO Jefferson Cinemas, in uniform.The manager was right to ask me to pay more attention to the balcony.There was constant laughter in the gallery.A young man and a woman were sitting in the last row. When I walked towards them, the boy quickly left the girl's body, and the girl quickly pulled down her short skirt.I hurried away and didn't go upstairs to look again.To hell with the manager.Just let them have as much fun as they can.
The next morning, at eight o'clock, I was at the door of Hams's company, because I was worried that Mr. Tusk would come over early.At nine o'clock, he came and opened the office door. "Good morning, Sheldon." I was trying to tell from the tone of his voice if he liked my songs.Was his "good morning" just a casual greeting?Is there any excitement in it? We walked into the office. "Mr. Tusk, have you seen my song?" He nodded. "Those songs are very good." I am full of light, waiting for the next article.But he didn't say anything. "Which one is your favourite?" I asked. "Unfortunately that's not the type of song we want at the moment." That's the most depressing sentence I've ever heard in my life. "But there's always a..." I said. He reached under the desk and took out my envelope, and handed it back to me, "I'm looking forward to your new work anytime." This meeting is over.But this is not the end, I think, this is just the beginning. I spent the rest of the day wandering through the offices of other publishers in the same building. "Have you ever published your work?" "No, sir. But I..." "We don't accept work from newcomers. Come back after you have a major publication." If all publishers require me to have my work published before they are willing to accept it, how can my work have a chance of being published?For the next few weeks, whenever I wasn't going to the cinema, I just stayed in my room and wrote songs. When I was in the cinema, I fell in love with those wonderful movies.I watched Ziegfeld, San Francisco, My Godfrey, and Talk and Dance with Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers.These films transported me to another world, a world of glamour, passion, elegance, wealth. My money is gone.Natalie sent me a check for twenty dollars, which I sent back.I know that without me making money in the family and Otto without a job, their life must be even more difficult.I wondered if I was being selfish when I was only thinking of myself when they needed help? After writing a batch of new songs, I went to those publishers again.After they read it, they told me the annoying reply: "Come back to us after you have a big book published." In the lobby of one of these companies, a sudden wave of despair overwhelmed me.All seemed hopeless.I don't want to be an usher for the rest of my life, but the songs I write are not appreciated by anyone. The following text is quoted from my letter to my parents dated November 2, 1936: One morning, in the lobby of the YMCA hostel, I saw a young man about my age, sitting on the sofa writing something madly, humming a melody, and seemed to be writing lyrics.I stepped forward curiously. "Are you a songwriter?" I asked. He looked up, "Yes." "Me too. My name is Sidney Sheldon." He held out his hand, "Sidney Rosenthal." This is the beginning of a long friendship.All morning, we chatted non-stop, as if we were already friends who were like each other.
When I went to work the next day, the manager called me into his office. "Our usher is sick. I want you to take his place until he comes back. You'll be on duty all day. All you have to do is walk up and down the door of the movie theater saying, 'Buy tickets soon, they're about to sell out .' Salary is higher than your original." I was ecstatic—not because I had been promoted, but because there was a salary increase.I can send the extra money back home. "How much money do you have?" "Fifteen dollars and forty cents a week." Earn an extra dollar a week. I put on the uniform of a porter, looking like a Russian general.I have nothing against this new job except the monotonous repetition of the phrase "Buy your tickets now—they're going to sell out."Over and over again, endlessly.I decided to make things a little more interesting. I yelled at the top of my voice: "Two blockbusters—"Texas Patrolman" and "The Man Who Lived Twice." Ladies and gentlemen, how can a person live twice? Come in and find out. You It will be an afternoon I will never forget. Action is worse than action, hurry up, tickets will be sold out soon!" The genuine solicitor never showed up again, so I just kept doing it.The only difference between now and before is that the working hours are now in the morning and early afternoon.Of course I still have a lot of time to meet those music publishers.They're not interested in my songs.I co-wrote a couple of songs with Sidney Rosenthal, and they got a lot of praise, but no one agreed to sign. On the weekends, I often have only ten cents left in my pocket, and I have to rush from the movie theater to Brill Building.I had to choose whether to buy a hot dog for a nickel, a Coca-Cola for another five cents, and walk the thirty-five blocks, or take the subway for a nickel without a Coke.I usually trade the two options. A few days after I became a solicitor, the business of the movie theater began to improve. I stood in front of the movie theater and yelled, "Greta Garbo, Charles Bowyer co-starring, not to be missed. There is also "Nothing Sacred" free to watch, Carlo Langbad and Frederick March loves to perform, these couples are the most romantic couples in the world, let them teach you how to be romantic. The ticket price is only 35 cents. Two romantic love classes only cost 35 cents, Century University Special price. Hurry up, hurry up, hurry up and buy tickets!" Then the guests were called in. When it comes to the next movie, I say it even more amused: "Come on to two of the greatest simulcasts in the history of entertainment—Bones, featuring Robert Montgomery and Rosalyn Russell, and remember to bring Put on your coat, because you're sure to get chills. Plus a copy of the newest version of Tarzan." At this point I let out a long, imitative Tarzan howl, and then I saw people a block away They all turned their heads to see what happened, and then started to come over to the cinema to buy tickets.The manager was also standing outside watching my performance. The following weekend, a stranger walked up to me. "Where's the bastard from Chicago?" I don't like the tone of his voice, "What's wrong?" "The boss of RKO Cinemas wants all our solicitors to come and see how that son of a bitch solicits." "I'll tell him when he comes back." I turned my head away and yelled casually, "The movie is about to start. There are no seats reserved. The show is about to start, and there are no reserved seats."
The advantage of working during the day is that in addition to having time to meet with the publisher, I also have free time at night, and I can go to the cinema to watch movies at least three nights a week.I sat on the cheapest balcony and watched such things as Room Service, Abby's Irish Rose, Tobacco Road, Life Like a Dream...the list goes on. My new friend Sidney Rosenthal found a job.One day he suggested, "Why don't we chip in and find a new place to live?" "good idea." A week later we moved from the YMCA to the Grand Union Hotel on Thirty-Second Street.Our two-bedroom, one-living room was downright luxurious after the small room in the YMCA. Natalie reminded me in the letter that I also had a distant cousin in New York who ran a coat locker at the Glen Cove casino on Long Island.She suggested that I call my cousin.I called this cousin, Clifford Wolfe, who couldn't have been more enthusiastic. "I heard you were in New York. What are you doing now?" I explained the situation. "Would you like to come and work in my coat closet, three nights a week?" "Yes." I said. "I have a buddy..." "He can come too." So Sidney Rosenthal and I went to work three nights a week at the Glen Cove Casino on Long Island, stocking people's coats for three dollars each.We can also secretly eat the things on the buffet table, as much as we can eat. The casino shuttle will take us to Long Island, which takes an hour and a half.After get off work in the evening, the bus took us back to the hotel.I sent all the extra money I made to Natalie, and she always sent it back. When I went to the coatroom one evening, Clifford Wolfe frowned at me and said, "This coat you're wearing..." It was worn out. "What's wrong?" "Don't you have a better coat?" I shook my head in embarrassment, all my clothes can be packed in a briefcase, "No." "We'll figure it out," he said. The next night, after I got to the Glen Cove Casino, Clifford Wolfe handed me a blue serge coat and said, "Go to my tailor and have it altered." Every time I went to the Glen Bay Casino after that, I wore this Clifford Wolfe coat.
My moods are still unpredictable, either ecstatic for no reason or suicidal. In the letter to Natalie on December 26, 1936, there is this passage: I wrote again in a letter a month later: During this period, I suffered from herniated disc twice, and had to stay in bed for three days each time.That was also my hyperactive period, and the future seemed bright.When I went to the Brill Building once, I met a gentleman who was not tall, well-dressed, and smiling.I didn't know who he was at the time.At Remick's corporate office, he happened to be there when the manager auditioned a song I had written. The manager shook his head, "This is not what we want..." "This song is sure to be a hit," I begged. "When the love is gone, the love is gone, the stars no longer shine, and the song is so sad..." The manager shrugged. The smiling, friendly stranger looked at me.He said, "Let me see." I handed him the sheet music and he looked at it carefully. "The lyrics are so good," he commented, "what's your name?" "Sidney Sheldon." He held out his hand. "I'm Max Rich." I know the name.Two of his very popular songs were playing on the radio at the time.One is "Smile, You Damn", and there is a very innovative song "The Girl in the Green Cap". "Have you ever published anything, Sidney?" It's this tricky question again, it's really frustrating, "No." My eyes turned to the door. He smiled and said, "Then let's change this together. How about working with me?" I was stunned.This is the opportunity I've been dreaming of. "I—I would love to," I said.I'm almost speechless. "I have an office here, on the second floor. Come to me at ten o'clock tomorrow morning, and we will work together." "OK!" "Bring all the lyrics you have." I swallowed. "I'll be there on time, Mr. Rich." I was already ecstatic. I told Sidney Rosenthal about it.He said, "Congratulations. Great! Max Rich has a way of publishing anything." "I can also show him your song," I suggested, "in this way..." "You'd better get your own first." "Also." I had a celebratory dinner with Sidney Rosenthal that night, and I was so excited I couldn't swallow anything.Everything I've longed for is about to come true.Song by Max Rich and Sidney Shelton.These two names are a perfect match. I have a feeling Max Rich would be a great partner and I'm sure some of the lyrics I've written will hit him. I was going to call Natalie and Otto, but on second thought, let's wait until after the business starts. In bed, I thought, Max Rich could work with anyone, why would he choose me?I'm just a nobody.He just did it out of kindness.He overestimated my poor talents, and he will be disappointed later.I'm not qualified to work with him.The black cloud descended out of thin air again.All the publishers at Brill House rejected my work. They are all professionals and have a good eye for talent.I could only be humiliating myself by going to Max Rich. At ten o'clock in the morning, Max Rich was waiting to collaborate with me in his office in the Brill Building, and I was already on the Greyhound bus for the return trip to Chicago.
The RKO Jefferson Cinema on 14th Street is an old two-story building with a ticket booth in the front. It used to be a sideshow and is now an offshoot of the RKO Cinema Line.There are usually two showings per show—customers get two movies for the price of one movie ticket. I walked thirty-nine blocks from the YMCA hostel, and finally handed the note to the movie theater manager. He looked me over and asked, "Have you ever been an usher before?" "No, sir." He shrugged. "It's okay. Can you walk?" "Will go, sir." "You know how to make a flashlight?" "Yes, sir." "Then you can do the job. Your wages are fourteen yuan and forty cents a week, and you work six days a week, from four twenty in the afternoon until the early morning." "Okay." Which meant that all morning and part of the afternoon, I could go to the Brill Building, the sanctuary of the entire music world. "Go to the staff locker room and find a uniform that fits." "Okay, sir." I put on my usher uniform, and the manager looked at it and said, "That's it. Be sure to keep an eye on the balcony." "The balcony?" "You'll understand then. Go to work tomorrow." "Yes, sir." Tomorrow, I'll start my songwriting career too.
The famous Brill Building is the most sacred place in the music industry.The building is located at 1619 Broadway, Forty-ninth Street. It is the center of the pop music publishing industry, and all the world's well-known music publishers have their headquarters here. When I walked into the building, I heard "A Beautiful Romance", "Love You to the Heart", "The God of Fortune" being played in the corridor... The names on the door also made my heart pound: Jieluo Jim Remick, Robbins Music, M. Wittmark, Shapiro Bernstein, and TB Harms—all the giants of the music industry.This is the cradle of musical genius.Cole Porter, Irving Berlin, Richard Rogers, George Gershwin, Ira Gershwin, Jerome Cohen...these guys all made their names here. I walked into the office of TB Harms and nodded to the man behind the desk, "Good morning, I'm Sidney Sheche-Sheldon." "What's your business?" "I wrote a song called "The Silent Self", and your company has expressed its intention to publish it." Looking at the expression on his face, it seems that he remembered such a thing, "Oh, yes, there was intention." Had? "Aren't you going to use it now?" "Well, it's been played too much on the radio. Horace Hayter has played it many times. Do you have anything new?" I nodded, "Yes. I can bring some over tomorrow morning. May I have your surname?" "Tasker."
At 4:20 that afternoon, I put on my usher uniform and guided the audience down the aisle to their seats.The manager was right that the job could be done by anyone.Fortunately, there are still movies to watch, otherwise the work would be extremely boring.When I am free, I will find a seat at the back of the cinema and sit down and watch a movie. The first movies I saw there were The Marcos Brothers' "The Racer," and "Mr. Deeds Goes to Town."A Star Is Born starring Janet Gaynor and Frederick March and a good Madame Peacock starring Walter Huston also appealed to me. I worked until midnight, and then I got off work and went back to the hostel.I no longer feel that room is small and dark and believe it can be turned into a palace.In the morning I'll be able to take my work to TB Harms, the only question is which one they're going to publish first - "The Phantom of Love", "Walk as You Go", "Hold on to the Stars" ", "When Love Is Gone"... At 8:30 the next morning, I stood in front of TB Harms waiting for the commuting crowd.At nine o'clock, Mr. Tusk came. He looked at the big envelope in my hand, "Did you bring some songs?" I grinned, "Yes, sir." We go into his office.I handed him the envelope and planned to sit down. He stopped me. "You don't have to wait here," he said, "I'll watch it when I'm free. How about you come back tomorrow?" I nodded, trying to sound like a professional songwriter, "Okay." It was another twenty-four hours before my career could take off. At 4:20, I was back at the RKO Jefferson Cinemas, in uniform.The manager was right to ask me to pay more attention to the balcony.There was constant laughter in the gallery.A young man and a woman were sitting in the last row. When I walked towards them, the boy quickly left the girl's body, and the girl quickly pulled down her short skirt.I hurried away and didn't go upstairs to look again.To hell with the manager.Just let them have as much fun as they can.
The next morning, at eight o'clock, I was at the door of Hams's company, because I was worried that Mr. Tusk would come over early.At nine o'clock, he came and opened the office door. "Good morning, Sheldon." I was trying to tell from the tone of his voice if he liked my songs.Was his "good morning" just a casual greeting?Is there any excitement in it? We walked into the office. "Mr. Tusk, have you seen my song?" He nodded. "Those songs are very good." I am full of light, waiting for the next article.But he didn't say anything. "Which one is your favourite?" I asked. "Unfortunately that's not the type of song we want at the moment." That's the most depressing sentence I've ever heard in my life. "But there's always a..." I said. He reached under the desk and took out my envelope, and handed it back to me, "I'm looking forward to your new work anytime." This meeting is over.But this is not the end, I think, this is just the beginning. I spent the rest of the day wandering through the offices of other publishers in the same building. "Have you ever published your work?" "No, sir. But I..." "We don't accept work from newcomers. Come back after you have a major publication." If all publishers require me to have my work published before they are willing to accept it, how can my work have a chance of being published?For the next few weeks, whenever I wasn't going to the cinema, I just stayed in my room and wrote songs. When I was in the cinema, I fell in love with those wonderful movies.I watched Ziegfeld, San Francisco, My Godfrey, and Talk and Dance with Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers.These films transported me to another world, a world of glamour, passion, elegance, wealth. My money is gone.Natalie sent me a check for twenty dollars, which I sent back.I know that without me making money in the family and Otto without a job, their life must be even more difficult.I wondered if I was being selfish when I was only thinking of myself when they needed help? After writing a batch of new songs, I went to those publishers again.After they read it, they told me the annoying reply: "Come back to us after you have a big book published." In the lobby of one of these companies, a sudden wave of despair overwhelmed me.All seemed hopeless.I don't want to be an usher for the rest of my life, but the songs I write are not appreciated by anyone. The following text is quoted from my letter to my parents dated November 2, 1936: One morning, in the lobby of the YMCA hostel, I saw a young man about my age, sitting on the sofa writing something madly, humming a melody, and seemed to be writing lyrics.I stepped forward curiously. "Are you a songwriter?" I asked. He looked up, "Yes." "Me too. My name is Sidney Sheldon." He held out his hand, "Sidney Rosenthal." This is the beginning of a long friendship.All morning, we chatted non-stop, as if we were already friends who were like each other.
When I went to work the next day, the manager called me into his office. "Our usher is sick. I want you to take his place until he comes back. You'll be on duty all day. All you have to do is walk up and down the door of the movie theater saying, 'Buy tickets soon, they're about to sell out .' Salary is higher than your original." I was ecstatic—not because I had been promoted, but because there was a salary increase.I can send the extra money back home. "How much money do you have?" "Fifteen dollars and forty cents a week." Earn an extra dollar a week. I put on the uniform of a porter, looking like a Russian general.I have nothing against this new job except the monotonous repetition of the phrase "Buy your tickets now—they're going to sell out."Over and over again, endlessly.I decided to make things a little more interesting. I yelled at the top of my voice: "Two blockbusters—"Texas Patrolman" and "The Man Who Lived Twice." Ladies and gentlemen, how can a person live twice? Come in and find out. You It will be an afternoon I will never forget. Action is worse than action, hurry up, tickets will be sold out soon!" The genuine solicitor never showed up again, so I just kept doing it.The only difference between now and before is that the working hours are now in the morning and early afternoon.Of course I still have a lot of time to meet those music publishers.They're not interested in my songs.I co-wrote a couple of songs with Sidney Rosenthal, and they got a lot of praise, but no one agreed to sign. On the weekends, I often have only ten cents left in my pocket, and I have to rush from the movie theater to Brill Building.I had to choose whether to buy a hot dog for a nickel, a Coca-Cola for another five cents, and walk the thirty-five blocks, or take the subway for a nickel without a Coke.I usually trade the two options. A few days after I became a solicitor, the business of the movie theater began to improve. I stood in front of the movie theater and yelled, "Greta Garbo, Charles Bowyer co-starring, not to be missed. There is also "Nothing Sacred" free to watch, Carlo Langbad and Frederick March loves to perform, these couples are the most romantic couples in the world, let them teach you how to be romantic. The ticket price is only 35 cents. Two romantic love classes only cost 35 cents, Century University Special price. Hurry up, hurry up, hurry up and buy tickets!" Then the guests were called in. When it comes to the next movie, I say it even more amused: "Come on to two of the greatest simulcasts in the history of entertainment—Bones, featuring Robert Montgomery and Rosalyn Russell, and remember to bring Put on your coat, because you're sure to get chills. Plus a copy of the newest version of Tarzan." At this point I let out a long, imitative Tarzan howl, and then I saw people a block away They all turned their heads to see what happened, and then started to come over to the cinema to buy tickets.The manager was also standing outside watching my performance. The following weekend, a stranger walked up to me. "Where's the bastard from Chicago?" I don't like the tone of his voice, "What's wrong?" "The boss of RKO Cinemas wants all our solicitors to come and see how that son of a bitch solicits." "I'll tell him when he comes back." I turned my head away and yelled casually, "The movie is about to start. There are no seats reserved. The show is about to start, and there are no reserved seats."
The advantage of working during the day is that in addition to having time to meet with the publisher, I also have free time at night, and I can go to the cinema to watch movies at least three nights a week.I sat on the cheapest balcony and watched such things as Room Service, Abby's Irish Rose, Tobacco Road, Life Like a Dream...the list goes on. My new friend Sidney Rosenthal found a job.One day he suggested, "Why don't we chip in and find a new place to live?" "good idea." A week later we moved from the YMCA to the Grand Union Hotel on Thirty-Second Street.Our two-bedroom, one-living room was downright luxurious after the small room in the YMCA. Natalie reminded me in the letter that I also had a distant cousin in New York who ran a coat locker at the Glen Cove casino on Long Island.She suggested that I call my cousin.I called this cousin, Clifford Wolfe, who couldn't have been more enthusiastic. "I heard you were in New York. What are you doing now?" I explained the situation. "Would you like to come and work in my coat closet, three nights a week?" "Yes." I said. "I have a buddy..." "He can come too." So Sidney Rosenthal and I went to work three nights a week at the Glen Cove Casino on Long Island, stocking people's coats for three dollars each.We can also secretly eat the things on the buffet table, as much as we can eat. The casino shuttle will take us to Long Island, which takes an hour and a half.After get off work in the evening, the bus took us back to the hotel.I sent all the extra money I made to Natalie, and she always sent it back. When I went to the coatroom one evening, Clifford Wolfe frowned at me and said, "This coat you're wearing..." It was worn out. "What's wrong?" "Don't you have a better coat?" I shook my head in embarrassment, all my clothes can be packed in a briefcase, "No." "We'll figure it out," he said. The next night, after I got to the Glen Cove Casino, Clifford Wolfe handed me a blue serge coat and said, "Go to my tailor and have it altered." Every time I went to the Glen Bay Casino after that, I wore this Clifford Wolfe coat.
My moods are still unpredictable, either ecstatic for no reason or suicidal. In the letter to Natalie on December 26, 1936, there is this passage: I wrote again in a letter a month later: During this period, I suffered from herniated disc twice, and had to stay in bed for three days each time.That was also my hyperactive period, and the future seemed bright.When I went to the Brill Building once, I met a gentleman who was not tall, well-dressed, and smiling.I didn't know who he was at the time.At Remick's corporate office, he happened to be there when the manager auditioned a song I had written. The manager shook his head, "This is not what we want..." "This song is sure to be a hit," I begged. "When the love is gone, the love is gone, the stars no longer shine, and the song is so sad..." The manager shrugged. The smiling, friendly stranger looked at me.He said, "Let me see." I handed him the sheet music and he looked at it carefully. "The lyrics are so good," he commented, "what's your name?" "Sidney Sheldon." He held out his hand. "I'm Max Rich." I know the name.Two of his very popular songs were playing on the radio at the time.One is "Smile, You Damn", and there is a very innovative song "The Girl in the Green Cap". "Have you ever published anything, Sidney?" It's this tricky question again, it's really frustrating, "No." My eyes turned to the door. He smiled and said, "Then let's change this together. How about working with me?" I was stunned.This is the opportunity I've been dreaming of. "I—I would love to," I said.I'm almost speechless. "I have an office here, on the second floor. Come to me at ten o'clock tomorrow morning, and we will work together." "OK!" "Bring all the lyrics you have." I swallowed. "I'll be there on time, Mr. Rich." I was already ecstatic. I told Sidney Rosenthal about it.He said, "Congratulations. Great! Max Rich has a way of publishing anything." "I can also show him your song," I suggested, "in this way..." "You'd better get your own first." "Also." I had a celebratory dinner with Sidney Rosenthal that night, and I was so excited I couldn't swallow anything.Everything I've longed for is about to come true.Song by Max Rich and Sidney Shelton.These two names are a perfect match. I have a feeling Max Rich would be a great partner and I'm sure some of the lyrics I've written will hit him. I was going to call Natalie and Otto, but on second thought, let's wait until after the business starts. In bed, I thought, Max Rich could work with anyone, why would he choose me?I'm just a nobody.He just did it out of kindness.He overestimated my poor talents, and he will be disappointed later.I'm not qualified to work with him.The black cloud descended out of thin air again.All the publishers at Brill House rejected my work. They are all professionals and have a good eye for talent.I could only be humiliating myself by going to Max Rich. At ten o'clock in the morning, Max Rich was waiting to collaborate with me in his office in the Brill Building, and I was already on the Greyhound bus for the return trip to Chicago.