So, this game can be very tough at the start of each part...then once you get into a groove, it can become very easy.

So right now, I've started Part 2 with $200K... (You license all you movies and wait to pick them up...the money just keeps piling up...Automatically moves forward when the account is 50K.)

I built the necessary structures, hired almost all the necessary people...but I can't get any male actors.
I have put out multiple adds at various levels, waited for weeks, restarted Part 2 with various amounts of money...including almost exactly $50K (in case that glitched it)...and I do not get a single male actor's application. I can't start making a movie without one.

Does anyone else have this issue..or remember some special thing that needed to be done to get one?

Something funny I've learned is that if you offer too much pay, you don't get any responses to your ads. I think the game compares your list against the actors in it's list and if it is close enough to one it might add it. I find I get best results for male actors if I offer a bit lower pay than I would for a female actor of the same stats.