Rod Blagojevich is outdoing Chicago hog merchants famous for marketing every part of the pig but the squeal by signing a book contract for his story.
The publisher, Phoenix Books, has announced a "six-figure deal" for a memoir by the ex-governor to be titled "The Governor," to go along with their current volumes--"a sexy, darkly funny, and surprisingly poignant memoir" by a hooker known as the $2000-an-hour woman and a tome, "Interview With a Cannibal," about a German gentleman who "killed a man and ate him with a glass of fine red wine."
“The governor chose to go with a large independent company because he wanted to tell his story without any restrictions over content that might’ve come with a major publishing house," a publicist explains. "He simply did not want to accept constraints or conditions on what he could say in this book.”
Blagojevich's new best-selling effort will have to overcome the hurdles of a pending criminal indictment as well as a bill just introduced in the Illinois Legislature covering any book or movie deals about a crime for which an elected official was convicted, specifying that profits would have to be turned over to the state.
But the Governor, who showed his literary inclinations by citing Kipling and the short story, "The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner," before his impeachment, is unlikely to be deterred by such considerations as money from telling a story that "won't pull any punches."
Showing posts with label memoirs. Show all posts
Showing posts with label memoirs. Show all posts
Monday, March 02, 2009
Tuesday, November 27, 2007
Will Ted Kennedy Tell All?
The last survivor of the twentieth century's great brother act is writing his memoirs, fittingly for one of the largest advances of all time, north of $8 million.
"I've been fortunate in my life to grow up in an extraordinary family and to have a front row seat at many key events in our nation's history," Ted Kennedy said in a statement.
He will be the first of his generation to live long enough to tell the story of those lives that were marked by grandeur, scandal and grief.
The youngest of nine children, Edward Moore Kennedy was thrown out of Harvard for cheating but, with one brother as President and another Attorney General, he overcame adversity by winning Jack's former Senate seat, which had been kept warm for him by a family friend until he turned 30 in 1962 and was eligible to run for it.
In the 1960s, he was seen at TV funerals of both brothers, became the surrogate father of their 13 children and ended the decade, on the weekend of the first moon landing, driving a car into the waters off Chappaquiddick island, resulting in the drowning of the young woman who was with him.
That scandal would have ended any other political career but, in 1980, he was preparing to challenge unpopular incumbent Jimmy Carter for the Democratic Presidential nomination. I know because I published a 90th birthday reminiscence by his mother that summer, arranged by loyal JFK staffers as part of Ted Kennedy's public rehabilitation.
But his heart was not in it. In a CBS special just before announcing the candidacy, his answer to the question of why he wanted to be president was so vague, rambling and unsure that poll numbers plummeted and it was over.
When he looks back on all that and a remarkable 45-year career in the Senate that includes championing gun control, alternative energy and immigration reform as well as voting against invading Iraq in 2002, Ted Kennedy will have a lot to tell in his autobiography but, for better or worse, most potential readers will have strong opinions about him even before they turn the first page.
"I've been fortunate in my life to grow up in an extraordinary family and to have a front row seat at many key events in our nation's history," Ted Kennedy said in a statement.
He will be the first of his generation to live long enough to tell the story of those lives that were marked by grandeur, scandal and grief.
The youngest of nine children, Edward Moore Kennedy was thrown out of Harvard for cheating but, with one brother as President and another Attorney General, he overcame adversity by winning Jack's former Senate seat, which had been kept warm for him by a family friend until he turned 30 in 1962 and was eligible to run for it.
In the 1960s, he was seen at TV funerals of both brothers, became the surrogate father of their 13 children and ended the decade, on the weekend of the first moon landing, driving a car into the waters off Chappaquiddick island, resulting in the drowning of the young woman who was with him.
That scandal would have ended any other political career but, in 1980, he was preparing to challenge unpopular incumbent Jimmy Carter for the Democratic Presidential nomination. I know because I published a 90th birthday reminiscence by his mother that summer, arranged by loyal JFK staffers as part of Ted Kennedy's public rehabilitation.
But his heart was not in it. In a CBS special just before announcing the candidacy, his answer to the question of why he wanted to be president was so vague, rambling and unsure that poll numbers plummeted and it was over.
When he looks back on all that and a remarkable 45-year career in the Senate that includes championing gun control, alternative energy and immigration reform as well as voting against invading Iraq in 2002, Ted Kennedy will have a lot to tell in his autobiography but, for better or worse, most potential readers will have strong opinions about him even before they turn the first page.
Thursday, November 22, 2007
Scott McClellan's Script Tease
Say this much for Dana Perino: She may not be the most scintillating White House press secretary in history but, after writing her memoirs, she won't be performing the verbal strip tease Scott McClellan did this week to get attention for his.
Earlier in this slow news week, his publisher posted 121 words from McClellan's oevre that won't be available until next April:
"The most powerful leader in the world had called upon me to speak on his behalf and help restore credibility he lost amid the failure to find weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. So I stood at the White house briefing room podium in front of the glare of the klieg lights for the better part of two weeks and publicly exonerated two of the senior-most aides in the White House: Karl Rove and Scooter Libby.
"There was one problem. It was not true.
"I had unknowingly passed along false information. And five of the highest ranking officials in the administration were involved in my doing so: Rove, Libby, the Vice President, the President’s chief of staff, and the President himself."
Most journalists (silly people) took this to mean that George W. Bush was "involved" in lies about Rove and Libby to the press.
But after getting attention with this admission, McClellan's publisher now tells us it all depends on what the meaning of "is" is. Peter Osnos of Public Affairs Books explains that his author "did not intend to suggest Bush lied to him" but told him what "he thought to be the case" and "didn't know it was not true."
Oh. Sounds a lot like the kind of work McClellan used to do from behind the White House podium.
The history of the Bush Administration's downfall can be traced in the arc of attractiveness of its spokespeople. When they were riding high, the media were held at bay by boring dough-faced types like McClellan and Ari Fleischer. Later, when the going got tough, they were replaced by the smoother and better-looking Tony Snow and Perino.
At this rate, Bush and Cheney should scouring Hollywood casting officers for a communications closer.
Earlier in this slow news week, his publisher posted 121 words from McClellan's oevre that won't be available until next April:
"The most powerful leader in the world had called upon me to speak on his behalf and help restore credibility he lost amid the failure to find weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. So I stood at the White house briefing room podium in front of the glare of the klieg lights for the better part of two weeks and publicly exonerated two of the senior-most aides in the White House: Karl Rove and Scooter Libby.
"There was one problem. It was not true.
"I had unknowingly passed along false information. And five of the highest ranking officials in the administration were involved in my doing so: Rove, Libby, the Vice President, the President’s chief of staff, and the President himself."
Most journalists (silly people) took this to mean that George W. Bush was "involved" in lies about Rove and Libby to the press.
But after getting attention with this admission, McClellan's publisher now tells us it all depends on what the meaning of "is" is. Peter Osnos of Public Affairs Books explains that his author "did not intend to suggest Bush lied to him" but told him what "he thought to be the case" and "didn't know it was not true."
Oh. Sounds a lot like the kind of work McClellan used to do from behind the White House podium.
The history of the Bush Administration's downfall can be traced in the arc of attractiveness of its spokespeople. When they were riding high, the media were held at bay by boring dough-faced types like McClellan and Ari Fleischer. Later, when the going got tough, they were replaced by the smoother and better-looking Tony Snow and Perino.
At this rate, Bush and Cheney should scouring Hollywood casting officers for a communications closer.
Saturday, September 22, 2007
W. and O.J., Blood Brothers
If smirking self-confidence were money in the bank, they would both be billionaires, the frat boy who got hold of a country and won’t let go and the football star who got away with murder and thinks felonies are his birthright.
George W. Bush and O.J. Simpson keep doing what they do, despite all the warning signs to slow down and consider the consequences. Why?
Because their grotesque sense of entitlement assures them they can get away with anything, and so far they have.
Bush will leave the White House as the worst president in history while O. J. could end up in prison, but that won’t wipe the “What, me worry?” smiles off their faces.
W. will just retire to his ranch, write his triumphal memoirs and “give some speeches to replenish the ol' coffers," as he told his biographer, while O. J., even behind bars, will be signing memorabilia and trying to hide assets from the family whose son he killed.
What separates them from the rest of us poor souls who struggle and sweat through life is the dead certainty that they are anointed by family power or celebrity to avoid responsibility for their actions. Rules are for other people.
Self-doubt has never been part of their diet. Like vampires, they thrive on the blood of others.
George W. Bush and O.J. Simpson keep doing what they do, despite all the warning signs to slow down and consider the consequences. Why?
Because their grotesque sense of entitlement assures them they can get away with anything, and so far they have.
Bush will leave the White House as the worst president in history while O. J. could end up in prison, but that won’t wipe the “What, me worry?” smiles off their faces.
W. will just retire to his ranch, write his triumphal memoirs and “give some speeches to replenish the ol' coffers," as he told his biographer, while O. J., even behind bars, will be signing memorabilia and trying to hide assets from the family whose son he killed.
What separates them from the rest of us poor souls who struggle and sweat through life is the dead certainty that they are anointed by family power or celebrity to avoid responsibility for their actions. Rules are for other people.
Self-doubt has never been part of their diet. Like vampires, they thrive on the blood of others.
Saturday, September 01, 2007
A Condoleeza Rice Sighting
After a long disappearing act, the Secretary of State has surfaced, sort of, with a New York Times interview so guarded that her own words appear only toward the end of a long piece with everybody else’s judgments about her tenure with the Bush Administration.
Most are harsh. Former colleagues and students at Stanford University are protesting her planned return to the faculty after serving “an administration that has trashed the basic values of academia: reason, science, expertise, and honesty.”
Colin Powell’s former Deputy Secretary of State, Richard Armitage, no rose himself in the Valerie Plame outing, complains about Rice’s performance as National Security Adviser, saying he felt like he was getting on a “gerbil wheel” every morning “and nothing would be resolved, and we’d get off at night, and the next morning we would get back on and do it all over again.”
Rice’s response is a shrug that “if that’s the assessment, you know, I’ll accept people’s assessment,” pointing out it is “a very difficult job because everything is by remote control. You do not own any of the assets.”
Introspection does not come easily to Condoleeza Rice. The interview reports her “falling back on her usual talking points, except this time, those talking points were interspersed with grumbling that she was being asked for personal reflection, something she does not like to do.”
Two books about Rice, almost certain to be critical, are coming out soon and she, of course, will be writing her own memoirs, but readers should not expect much in the way of personal revelation. At one point, she complained to the Times interviewer, “Now you’ve got me trying to psycho-analyze myself.”
No problem. There are plenty of others around who are eager to do that.
Most are harsh. Former colleagues and students at Stanford University are protesting her planned return to the faculty after serving “an administration that has trashed the basic values of academia: reason, science, expertise, and honesty.”
Colin Powell’s former Deputy Secretary of State, Richard Armitage, no rose himself in the Valerie Plame outing, complains about Rice’s performance as National Security Adviser, saying he felt like he was getting on a “gerbil wheel” every morning “and nothing would be resolved, and we’d get off at night, and the next morning we would get back on and do it all over again.”
Rice’s response is a shrug that “if that’s the assessment, you know, I’ll accept people’s assessment,” pointing out it is “a very difficult job because everything is by remote control. You do not own any of the assets.”
Introspection does not come easily to Condoleeza Rice. The interview reports her “falling back on her usual talking points, except this time, those talking points were interspersed with grumbling that she was being asked for personal reflection, something she does not like to do.”
Two books about Rice, almost certain to be critical, are coming out soon and she, of course, will be writing her own memoirs, but readers should not expect much in the way of personal revelation. At one point, she complained to the Times interviewer, “Now you’ve got me trying to psycho-analyze myself.”
No problem. There are plenty of others around who are eager to do that.
Monday, August 13, 2007
Murdoch Retirement Plan for Rove
If Newt Gingrich got $4.5 million and Clarence Thomas $1 million, what will Rupert Murdoch pay for Karl Rove’s memoirs?
In announcing his departure exclusively to Murdoch’s soon-to-be Wall Street Journal, Rove disclosed “no specific job plans, save to write a book on the Bush years, which ‘the boss,’ as in Mr. Bush, ‘has encouraged me to do.’"
To keep his wholly owned franchise, the other boss, Rupert Murdoch, will undoubtedly be the overbidder, even if no other publishing house is holding its nose and competing.
Should the umpteen-million advance not be enough to keep Rove living in high style retirement, there will undoubtedly be a part-time job as a commentator for Fox News.
In announcing his departure exclusively to Murdoch’s soon-to-be Wall Street Journal, Rove disclosed “no specific job plans, save to write a book on the Bush years, which ‘the boss,’ as in Mr. Bush, ‘has encouraged me to do.’"
To keep his wholly owned franchise, the other boss, Rupert Murdoch, will undoubtedly be the overbidder, even if no other publishing house is holding its nose and competing.
Should the umpteen-million advance not be enough to keep Rove living in high style retirement, there will undoubtedly be a part-time job as a commentator for Fox News.
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