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The offers began even before his brother was elected. His first putative sponsors were a group of journalists from Esquire magazine, who saw him perform at the Democratic Convention: Roger was the long-haired Clinton with the mike during the Circle of Friends finale who almost overshadowed the nominee every time he thrust his fist upward with the show-biz earnestness of a crooner. Mostly as a lark, the journalists formed a company called Snarling Jackass Productions, each putting up $250, to try to snag Roger a record contract. They persuaded him to cut a demonstration tape in Nashville, but after the election Roger sniffed the chance at a better deal and dropped them. Last month he signed a $200,000 contract with Time Warner's Atlantic Records to record his first album. (It is likely to feature several guest stars.)
The essential ambiguity of Roger's post-election career was summed up recently by the statements of his backer and would-be backers. "He has to have talent. He can't just be the President's brother," said Atlantic Records head Ahmet Ertegun. "He can't just have talent," said Esquire editor David Hirshey. "He also has to be the President's brother." The man who signed him for Atlantic Records is Danny Goldberg, who is better known in Hollywood as a Democratic activist -- he organized the music industry's resistance to Tipper Gore's system of rating records -- than as Bonnie Raitt's co-manager.
Roger seems willing to be exploited as long as he gets paid for it. As they were secretly negotiating the deal with Atlantic, Clinton and his manager, Norman ("Butch") Stone, allowed the crew from Esquire to take them to Planet Hollywood, a touristy restaurant in Manhattan, where the two Arkansans ordered steak and a vast amount of appetizers (the remnants of which they took away in a doggy bag). Roger let patrons take pictures, and he was treated by the staff to free caps, T shirts and a private tour. "I think he and Butch thought it was the funniest thing in the world that suddenly he was now in the position to really cash in," says Will Blythe, Esquire's literary editor. "They would just look at each other during the meal and start to laugh."
Roger is planning to market more than just his music. His moment in the public eye has come at a time when, even more than usual, there is a clear professional track for people from dysfunctional families. Last month he signed with the Greater Talent Network to give speeches around the country about "the triumph of the human spirit," or how Roger overcame life with an alcoholic and abusive father, a brother who seemed anointed, and a cocaine addiction. He is hoping to give 20 to 40 speeches a year for as much as $10,000 each. Roger is also peddling a book on the subject.