Wonkette

Washington, D.C., attorney Bob Barnett has worked the same magic handling the Kennedy book deal as he did with Bill and Hillary Clinton’s. As we reported earlier this month, the rep was shopping around Kennedy’s autobiography in New York. After a six-day auction that ended Nov. 19, Grand Central Publishing bought world rights for a reported $8 million. Before the deal can be completed, however, Kennedy’s publishing contract must be approved by the Senate Ethics Committee (fun!). Editor and publisher Jonathan Karp said he hoped to publish the book in the fall of 2010, telling The New York Times that Kennedy is “walking, talking history… There’s no limit to what he can talk about with authority and distinctive personal perspective.” Kennedy Memoirs Said to Fetch $8 Million [NYT] MORE »

While were were quite happy with the Ted Kennedy tell-all Senator, written by former aide Richard Burke (Ricky! Give me that cookie!), it looks like we’ll soon be hearing from the old lion himself, as a bidding war has reached the mid-seven figure range. Washington, D.C., attorney Bob Barnett, who worked book deals for Alan Greenspan, and Bill and Hillary Clinton, is handling the Kennedy deal. According to the New York Post, “selected publishers met with Kennedy in Washington in September and were asked to give their assessments of what they could do by last Friday. The auction began Monday. “It should be over by [today],” said one source.” MORE »