Energetic and playful music burst forth from the little girl's fingertips, and with Catherine's beaming smile and rhythmic sway, she radiated pure vitality.
"So no one told you life was gonna be this way," Catherine sang the opening line, and Jessica, who had found a small clapboard from somewhere, amusingly clapped it four times.
"Your job's a joke, you're broke,
Your love life's D.O.A.
It's like you're always stuck in second gear.
When it hasn't been your day, your week, your month, or even your year," Catherine continued cheerfully, and just before the next line, she winked at Jessica and sang, "But I'll be there for you!"
Jessica, still strumming the acoustic guitar, immediately replied with a smile, "When the rain starts to pour!"
Before she finished, Catherine sang again, "I'll be there for you!"
Jessica continued, "Like I've been there before!"
When Catherine sang for the third time, "I'll be there for you!"
Jessica, still smiling, echoed, "'Cause you're there for me too!" But her eyes were filled with emotion as she looked at Catherine.
The simple and heartfelt lyrics quickly resonated with everyone. No matter who you are, life inevitably has its ups and downs, but in those low moments, the support from friends and family makes all the difference. The charm of this song lies in its optimistic and playful portrayal of friendship, making it irresistible.
The song was "I'll Be There for You," not the famous Backstreet Boys song, but the iconic theme song from the classic American sitcom "Friends!" Yes, the very one that aired on NBC from 1994 for a full 10 seasons and became a nationwide hit. This show wasn't a big-budget production with grand scenes but simply chronicled the day-to-day lives of six good friends over ten years. It might sound plain, but those who watched it knew how interesting, exciting, and engaging the stories were. Catherine had watched it countless times in her past life and absolutely loved the theme song, almost tailor-made for the show.
She had once considered plagiarizing "Friends," but the idea quickly faded. Unfortunately, if she were ten years older, stealing "Friends" would have been no problem, but now, absolutely not! Even writing "Forrest Gump" now would be better than trying to create "Friends."
It's simple: writing "Friends" requires deep social experience and a keen eye for the subtleties of humor and daily life. Clearly, an 11-year-old girl couldn't possibly have such experiences! "Friends" spanned 10 seasons, with each season having about 23 to 25 episodes, each approximately 20 minutes long. If we assume 23 episodes per season at 20 minutes each, that's 4600 minutes! To write about the lives, friendships, troubles, laughter, conflicts, romances, and jobs of six friends over ten years in those 4600 minutes is far beyond what a little girl could achieve. Even in her past life, the scripts for "Friends" were written by many people.
Of course, American TV shows never have a complete script from the start. They're always adjusted based on audience feedback after the first few seasons, but even if you reduced that 4600 minutes by one-tenth to 460 minutes, it's still far more than a 180-minute movie script. If she really wanted to write it, she'd probably spend the rest of her life going in and out of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. So, writing a TV series would have to wait until she was an adult. But like buying stocks back then, this was just a small part of Catherine's grand plans, so it could be skipped for now.
When the song ended, applause erupted again, with a few whistles mixed in. Catherine and Jessica held hands, spreading their arms wide and bowing to the audience as if they had just finished a stage play, then returned to the campfire.
"I finally understand why the crew calls you 'Surprise,'" Meg said, clapping lightly and smiling.
"Yes, the music was wonderful, Catherine. How did you come up with three such different styles?" Dennis asked as he took the electric guitar back from the little girl. As a music lover, he particularly enjoyed the last song, "I'll Be There for You."
Catherine glanced around. Nancy, Charles, and a few others by the campfire were all looking at her. She felt a bit anxious, knowing her performance tonight had been a bit too outstanding. Writing scripts might be forgivable for an 11-year-old, but writing songs, playing instruments, and singing so well might push her into the realm of needing to report to a national academy. She didn't mind being called a genius, but being a genius to the point of national attention was another matter entirely.
"I remember—I told Nancy before, I used to..." Catherine trotted out her old ADHD explanation once again. Given her evident musical talent, she could handle related questions smoothly enough. As the group showered her with praise, one person, George Wells, was deep in thought. He had returned to the set today after a brief trip back to the film company, which was unusual.
Though he held the position of production manager, George had mentioned before that he was mainly representing Disney to oversee finances. Besides, he was the head of the script review department at Touchstone Pictures. So why had he rushed back from Los Angeles to the Napa Valley vineyard without resting?
The reason was clear: remember that script for "The Lion King"? When Disney received it from the little girl, they had begun preparatory work. Several days later, when it was time to return the original manuscript, someone noticed an additional sheet of staff paper and a few loose sheets at the end. These sheets were different from the script paper and contained two songs, one of which had a musical score.
Yes, these were the original themes from "The Lion King": "The Circle of Life" and "Can You Feel The Love Tonight." These songs were almost tailor-made for "The Lion King." The grandeur of "The Circle of Life" and the tender romance of "Can You Feel The Love Tonight" were both classics. It was because of these songs that Disney achieved some success at the 67th Academy Awards, despite being overshadowed by "Forrest Gump." So when this was reported to the animation department, recognizing the enormous value of "The Lion King," Disney was naturally thrilled.
However, there was debate over the origins of these songs. While the handwriting was indeed Catherine's, and there were her own annotations on the sheets—such as a note under "The Circle of Life" suggesting a sunrise with an African-style chant to signify the cycle of life—many were skeptical. For instance, Evelyn Cande, head of the animation department, said, "I absolutely don't believe it, gentlemen. She's just a child, an 11-year-old who's never been to Africa. Watching Africa on TV is one thing; experiencing it is another. Even with formal musical training, it's not easy to compose two such distinct styles of music."
Nevertheless, whether or not the songs were the girl's, they needed to be acquired because they fit the animation so perfectly. Disney's CEO Michael Eisner decided they should approach the girl politely and respectfully. If she was the author, they'd buy the songs; if not, they needed to find out who was. Thus, George Wells, who had just returned to Los Angeles as the production manager of "The Parent Trap," was the ideal choice.
Listening to the three songs sung by the little girl, George's thoughts strayed from his initial task. He thought of Hollywood Records, another Disney subsidiary, established on January 1, 1990, still in its infancy. Though the girl's vocal technique might need improvement, her singing lacked any childish quality, and she handled various musical styles with ease. This made George confident in Catherine's songwriting and composing abilities. Signing a record deal with Catherine would be the best move for a record company seeking to establish itself in the music industry.
This leap in George's thinking wasn't surprising, considering his uncle's identity. His uncle was Frank G. Wells, Disney's current president and COO, and a close friend of the current chairman and CEO, Michael Eisner.
For George, he did not want anyone doubting his work capabilities because of his presidential uncle. Almost no one at Disney knew of his relationship with the president, including his friend Matthew. Eager to prove himself without his uncle's help, George took Eisner's repeated advice to be patient. That's why he was so focused on Catherine and her potential.