Posted on 06/22/2004 11:30:44 AM PDT by ambrose
Fans Line Up to Buy Clinton's Book Hundreds Crowd Along Several City Blocks Near New York
Bookstore to Get Bill Clinton to Sign His Book
The Associated Press
NEW YORK June 22, 2004 — Eager for a few seconds of face time with their idol, hundreds of Bill Clinton's fans crowded along several city blocks Tuesday near a Manhattan bookstore where he was scheduled to sign copies of his new memoir, "My Life." "Bill Clinton is a rock star," said Lynne Roberts, 37, who set up camp Monday night, nearly 15 hours before the signing was to begin. "He is our cultural icon and we miss him now more than ever, given everything that's going on in the world."
The Rockefeller Center Barnes & Noble planned to give out more than 1,000 wristbands that would allow customers to purchase several copies, but only one autographed by the former president, who was to arrive at 12:30 p.m.
Although fans were told there would be no time to talk to Clinton, Dana Scinto of Stamford, Conn., said she would try to convey a message anyway.
"I want to thank him for eight fun years where he didn't insult my intelligence or rule by fear like our current president," said Scinto, 39, as she waited on 48th Street, a short distance from the Fifth Avenue store entrance.
By midmorning, a sea of umbrellas appeared as a steady rain began falling on the orderly and undeterred assemblage, estimated by police at at least 1,000. The line snaked from Fifth to Sixth avenues and 48th to 49th streets.
Some people, happy to buy the hefty tome and leave without waiting for Clinton's signature, exited the bookstore clutching a Barnes & Noble bag like a prized possession.
Those who spent the night on the concrete said an atmosphere of camaraderie helped speed the waiting. Roberts said she played gin rummy with her boyfriend and read a newspaper before swaddling herself in a sleeping bag for a few hours' nap.
Yvette Clarke of Brooklyn got on line at 7:30 a.m.
"I love the man. He was a great president. Fabulous," said Clarke, who hoped to buy two copies. "He's wonderful, and his wife and their daughter Chelsea. He had a problem with his reputation, but who doesn't? Nobody's perfect."
Clinton was also scheduled to sign books Tuesday night at Hue-Man bookstore, near his Harlem office.
Bookstores in New York, Washington and Little Rock, Ark., stayed open late Monday night for buyers who wanted to snap up their copies right at midnight.
"It's a historic moment for me," said Margaret Woods, a Manhattan billing consultant who stood in a late-night line of about 100 people at a Barnes & Noble near Lincoln Center. "When he was in office, the country was prosperous, people had jobs, the budget was balanced and we weren't at war. He gave a lot of people hope."
The Books-A-Million store in North Little Rock, Ark., staged a party with trivia contests that drew about 80 people.
Although initial reviews have called the book self-serving and dull, Garry Caldwell, 54, of Sherwood, Ark., said he wanted to read "My Life" to better understand Clinton's political legacy.
"I believe in listening to both sides of the argument and making up my own mind," he said. "I think he was a good president I think he could have been one of the best presidents except for the scandals."
Alfred A. Knopf has given the memoirs a first printing of 1.5 million. Mary Ellen Keating, a spokeswoman for Barnes & Noble, said the chain ordered 300,000 to 400,000 copies of the book for its stores across the country.
To promote the book, Clinton has served as keynote speaker at BookExpo America, the publishing industry's annual national convention, and been interviewed by "60 Minutes," Time magazine and the British Broadcasting Corp., among others. Over the next month, he will visit independent booksellers, chain superstores, black-owned stores such as Hue-Man, and price clubs such as Costco.
The book also went on sale Tuesday in Britain and Ireland; translated copies were being readied in France for a Wednesday launch.
In other countries where translations remained months away, "My Life" arrived in the form of newspaper serializations that focused largely either on Clinton's relationship with his wife, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, or with former intern Monica Lewinsky.
In Ireland, which the ex-president still visits yearly for golf and lucrative speaking engagements, Dubliners lauded Clinton as a driving force behind both the country's 1990s economic boom and the peace process in neighboring Northern Ireland.
"Clinton was a charmer, whereas Bush is just scary," said Pat Huxtable, a psychotherapist thumbing through a copy of "My Life" in Eason's, the flagship bookstore of Ireland.
Critics and Clinton's political opponents have not been kind. Rush Limbaugh has said the book should be called "My Lie." The New York Times' Michiko Kakutani, in a front-page review Sunday, called it "sloppy, self-indulgent and often eye-crossingly dull."
On NBC's "Today" show, Bay Buchanan, chairwoman of the conservative-oriented American Cause organization, called the book's marketing "masterful" and Clinton "a brilliant man." But she said it was "boring and too long."
Also on the show, Clinton's former press secretary, Joe Lockhart, said he thought "My Life" will make a major contribution to the national dialogue.
"I think people are going to find the book fascinating," Lockhart said.
With advance orders already topping 2 million, Clinton's book, which runs from his Arkansas childhood through his presidency, appears guaranteed to justify his reported $10 million advance and outsell the memoirs of his wife, who received $8 million. According to her publisher, Simon & Schuster, Sen. Clinton's "Living History" has about 2.3 million copies in print, including both hardcover and paperback editions.
The former president joked about his advance at a Monday evening book party in his honor at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, saying, "I hope my publisher makes back its money."
He also quipped that despite the size of his advance, "by the time I finished this book I was just about down to minimum wage," so long had he worked on it.
Close to 1,000 people filled the museum's Great Hall, including actress Lauren Bacall, folk singer Judy Collins, comedian Al Franken, recent presidential candidate Al Sharpton and TV personalities Barbara Walters and Paula Zahn.
Pre-orders for "My Life" have tripled over the last week at Barnes & Noble and also increased by double digits for Borders, even though the Borders discount for the $35 book dropped from 40 percent to 30 percent for orders made after June 14.
Associated Press writers Jennifer Friedlin, Ula Ilnytzky and Jocelyn Noveck contributed to this report.
morons, each and every one.
"hundreds" means about 50-75 idiots.
Fox news showed people lined up around the block for this about 8am (I guess, it was 6 here).
"hundreds" who had nothing better to do after their unemployment or welfare checks came in. Was I being too nasty by saying that?
Characteristics of a psychopath:
superficial charm, self-centered & self-important, need for stimulation & prone to boredom, deceptive behavior & lying, conning & manipulative, little remorse or guilt, shallow emotional response, callous with a lack of empathy, living off others & predatory, poor self-control, promiscuous sexual behavior, early behavioral problems, lack of realistic long term goals, impulsive lifestyle, irresponsible behavior, blaming others for their actions, short term relationships, juvenile delinquency, breaking parole or probation , varied criminal activity.
Monica also got "face time", as I recall.
80 if you include Michael Moore.
Were you being too nasty in saying that?
Don't think so ... made me laugh, and you have a good point.
Losers lining up to worship a big-time loser.
Well, you can't fault people for doing a job for which they are being paid.
Poor thing! Been working on this book for 3 years and only got 12 million dollars! That is disgraceful. A lousy 4 mil a year! And I bet kerry wants to tax it. Anyone want to take up a collection to help slick out?
TC
This man's patients are not getting the help they need.
Red
How about, "I did not have sexual relations with that woman" or the 100's of "I don't recall" answers during the various Congressional investigations?
Insult your intelligence, indeed, Ms. Scinto. One must have some intelligence before it can be insulted.
Red
You weren't being nasty IMHO, you sounded as if you were showering the crowd with compliments.
I'm just a self-educated poetaster, but I have the feeling that most of these people have double digit IQs. Some of these Birkenstockers are actually bright, and this always bemuses me. Perhaps self-congratulations is more desirable than self-preservation.
A news article yesterday called the '90s an "innocent" time and that this book will make us almost wish for that. If "innocent" is Clinton-speak for tabloidish, then I guess they're right. LOL!
San Diego radio station interviewed people who were at local bookstores - they report that there are NO people lined up at any stores here and the people they interviewed all made comments like & to include "I had to read enough about Bill Clinton when he wasn't president, I'm not going to pay to do it now" and "I'm not going to read My Life in My Lifetime".
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