(23 Jun 2004) SHOTLIST
1. Former US President Bill Clinton, arriving at book signing
2. Journalists
3. UPSOUND: (English) Bill Clinton, former US President
"I'm glad it's finally happening. I've been living with this for two years"
4. Cutaway press
5. SOUNDBITE: (English) Bill Clinton, former US President
"Well I think that's something only the readers could decide. But I try to tell the story of my life and the story of America's life in the last half of the 20th century and then I tried to elevate the importance of politics again. I tried to show people that these political jobs are deciding jobs and that people, whether they are Republicans or Democrats, we have different ideas, we have different policies and the decisions we make have consequences for people. I think it will be obvious in this book that too often we lose sight of the fact that this public work affects the way Americans live and I hope that when they read this they'll have much more of an appreciation for it."
6. Pan from cameras to people getting their books signed by Clinton
7. Closeup of Clinton signing book, pull out to wideshot of people handing Clinton books to sign
8. Closeup of Clinton laughing
9. SOUNDBITE: (English) Barbara Drinkwater, book buyer:
"This is the most memorable day of my life. I love this man as a president and as a person and as a human being. I think he's the greatest. I had to be here for this occasion."
10. Various exteriors of queues outside bookshop
11. People walking into bookshop to buy the book
STORYLINE:
Former U.S. President Bill Clinton was greeted like a rock star on Tuesday as he arrived in New York for his first book-signing appearance.
Amid cheers, applause and screams of "Bill, we love you!" Clinton entered a Barnes & Noble book store in Rockefeller Centre about a half-hour late to sign his memoir, "My Life."
Fans started lining up outside the store the night before to meet Clinton and get his autograph.
By midmorning, police had estimated at least one-thousand people were in the line.
Bookstores in New York, Washington and Little Rock, Arkansas, stayed open late Monday night for buyers who wanted to buy copies right at midnight.
Critics and Clinton's political opponents have not been kind to the book.
Initial reviews have called the book self-serving and dull.
But with advance orders already topping 2 million, Clinton's book appears guaranteed to justify his reported $10 million advance and outsell the memoirs of his wife, Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton, who received $8 million.
To promote the book, Clinton has been interviewed by the "60 Minutes" television program, Time magazine and the BBC among others.
He will visit more book stores over the next month.
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