Casey Anthony: Should she get a book deal?
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Casey Anthony was found not guilty of killing her daughter, Caylee, on Tuesday, bringing to an end a trial that caused a sensation. On Thursday, the 25-year-old was sentenced to four years for lying to investigators; with time already served and good behavior, she is expected to be released Wednesday.
Culture watchers who noticed the attention Anthony’s trial drew have wondered if she might be in line for a book deal. ABC News talked to one expert who said that a book deal for Anthony could run in the high six figures, about $750,000:
‘Anything to do with a mother and a dead child tends to attract lots of attention,’ said Linda Konner, a New York City based literary agent who has brokered deals for actors, singers and lawmakers. ‘I think there will be some frenzy among publishers to acquire her book.’ Konner said that it’s ‘not impossible’ to expect Anthony to get an advance between $750,000 and $1 million for her memoirs. On top of that, Anthony would receive a cut from the sales of the book. If a TV or film studio acquires the rights to it, she would profit even more.
Not everyone thinks Anthony should receive a windfall to tell her story. ‘I think that’s a crock,’ writer and publishing observer Jason Pinter wrote on the Huffington Post. Pinter points out that Anthony, despite being found not guilty of first-degree murder, hardly even has the ‘modicum of sympathy’ that O.J. Simpson did when he published his strange memoir ‘If I Did It.’ Anthony’s behavior after her daughter’s disappearance -- which included lying about her job, leaving Caylee with a nonexistent nanny and about speaking to her daughter on the phone -- seemed to do nothing but alienate trial watchers. Some have even protested the verdict.
That kind of intense reaction has got to spark the interest of publishers. What do you think: Should Casey Anthony get a book deal?
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-- Carolyn Kellogg
