“Chipped Wings”

Posted by  BSE on 1/10/2003, 2:13 pm.

“So we are in agreement then?”

“I really hate to do it, Jay, but sheez gotten plenty of chances to turns things around and hasn’t,” Spazienza shakes his head ruefully. “I think she is talented as hell, but I don’t think I can do any more with her.”

“So that is that then. I have both of them coming in an hour or so for a meeting. After I break the news to them, we will make our other announc….”

Before Bell can finish his sentence, the door to his office opens unexpectedly with a BANG! Standing there and obviously visibly upset is one Britney Spears. “You Can’t do this Mr, Bell!: she blurts. “It just isn’t fair!”

“Now Britney,” Jay offers smoothly, “why don’t you just have a seat and calm down a moment…”

“I WILL NOT!” the blonde fumes,  stepping a few more steps into the office. “You just can’t throw people away like this! Jess has brought a lot to BSE since she has been here. How can you toss her aside just because she is struggling a little right now? It’s inhuman! It’s…it’s…corporate!” she hisses in disgust.

“Britney please take a seat NOW!” Jay orders with a steely hint to to his voice that bring the singer to a halt mid-rant. “And Vincent…would you please leave Ms. Spears and I alone for a moments. We have some things to discuss.”

“Sure Mr. bell,” Spazienza rises and heads for the door, pausing only to whisper in the distressed blonde’s ear. “I’m sorry Brit, but I am with jay on this. It’s for the best.” With that Spaz exits and closes the door silently behind him.

The pop singer takes a seat opposite the CEO of Bell Sports with a pleading expression. “Please don’t do this to her Mr. Bell! Jess is my friend and she is too talented to be let go like thius. I thought we were a family here…”

“We are a family Brit, but we are also a business too and sometimes you haver to make hard decisions to be successful.”

“That is both cold and cruel!” Brit accuses acidly. “If you had puit in the same three fights I might have done just as poorly!”

“That is true,” Jay concedes, leaning back in his chair, “but in reality the three fights results were only a part of the problem. Did you know I had every intention of releasing her even before this trio of bouts? The only thing that stayed my hand was her talent and my liking of her. And I really even didn’t care if she won any of them…what I wanted to see from her was that spark back…and that supreme effort Vinnie expects all of you to give. Jess sadly didn’t want to stay badly enough.”

“You Don’t throw people away Mr. Bell. that is the sort of thing bean counters do…or cracker makers for that matter. Is that what we are becoming here?”

“Now who is being cold and cruel?” Bell counters. “I am not releasing Jessica because of her recent performance, but mostly because of her of desire to be apart of this family we have formed here. Even you will have to admit she has stopped listening to Vinnie many months ago, and it showed very clearly in the ring. That is the whole reason  I brought Vanessa Williams in to BSE. I mean you, Halle, and Fuentes all benefited from her experience but I hired her to polish Shakira and to get Jess motivated again. Sadly, it didn’t work in the latter case.”

“But…”

“Now listen. Sometimes you have to overcome a setback in order to grow. If anyone should understand this, it is you. Where would you be if Disney had retained you all this time? They would racked in millions pushing you as their show pony, but would you have gotten any better.  Or what if HISC had kept you longer and totally run your career into the dust? It was these roadblocks which spring boarded you into the fighter you are today…for which I am very glad and grateful for.” Jay leans forward with a sigh. “Perhaps she can use this in the same way you did. At least this is my hope for her. Up to this point, Jessica has never had to struggle for anything. Her looks and skills paved the way for everything, but when things became tougher she seemed not to be able to rise to the challenge.”

“It still isn’t fair Jay. When HISC was kicking our asses, it was Jess who rose to the occasion for BSE>“

:I know Britney, but things have been going downhill ever since. When two parties are unhappy with each other, why prolong the relationship? Alba seems to want to be the star of BSE, but doesn’t want to put in the work to earn it., It s best if the two of us part ways.

“So there is nothing I can say to change your mind? The decision is final?”

“Yes Britney. It is a done deal. We are going to announce her release this afternoon, along with some new signings to BSE. We are going on a small mini-expansion…to better position the company for the growing competition in the FCBA. I can’t name names yet, but I can tell you they all have some intriguing upsides.”

************************************************************************
“Alba Soundbyte”

Posted by Simguy on 1/11/2003, 8:15 am., 8:15 am.

(As reported in “Celebrity Ring”--”This and That” column)

“I’ll be back,” states Jessica Alba flatly “I’ve already gotten offers on the outdoor circuit--I’ll be as busy as I want to be and Bell Sports is definitely going to regret the way they handled this.

“BSE claims that they’re a family, that they’re nothing like HISV or other money grubbing corporations and it’s all a crock of sh__. I’ve got a paper trail of broken promises I mean to act on the outside the ring, and I plan to be merciless when I meet BSE bodies in the ring.

“Do I hold Britney responsible for my termination? What do you think? Do you believe she had absolutely no say in who stays or goes over there? I was held back in so many ways so that Spears could be privileged, and that bill has to be paid. Write this down: I’ll put Britney Spears out of boxing before I’m done. She Can’t come out of this looking all sweet and innocent. I know better.”

Reposted by Archer 9/2/11.