18 year-old Bristol Palin, the daughter of Alaskan Governor and former Vice Presidential Candidate Sarah Palin, just gave birth to baby Tripp on Sunday. The celebrity glossies had a mild bidding war for the first photos of the baby, with People coming in first. Despite the economic downturn and an accompanying drop in the price that celebrity baby photos can command, Bristol is rumored to have received an estimated $300,000 for Tripp’s debut. The controversy over dad Levi’s mother’s arrest on felony drug distribution charges, presumably for selling Oxycontin, is said to have bumped the price of the photos up. There’s nothing like a family arrest to sell magazines:
According to one source, bidding for the baby photos began at $100,000. People won out in the end, but In Touch was the only other weekly to make serious bids, according to several sources involved in the process.
The price didn’t soar immediately, according to the sources, because Sarah Palin stories just didn’t sell all that well for the weeklies on newsstands.
“Sarah was on the cover of People, Us Weekly, and OK! the same week, and really only People saw a bump in sales,” says a source.
The drug-related arrest of Johnston’s mother, however, caused the price tag for the photos to go up.
“The bidding started well before the baby was born, but once Levi’s mom was arrested — well, then you had a story,” says one editor.
As for how much teen parents Bristol and Levi made from the deal — most estimates hover around the $300,000 range (none of the magazines would confirm the exact figure in the end, which is standard).
[From MSNBC’s The Scoop]
$300,000 is a lot of money, especially to a young couple just getting started. It can help set them up with a house and money that they can live on for years if they manage it well and keep day jobs. Bristol’s fiance, Levi Johnston, has dropped out of high school and is working as an electrician’s apprentice to earn money for his young family. They have a wedding planned for the summer of next year and the money will help with the expenses. There are also Levi’s mother’s legal bills to consider.
These are great news. This poor girl at least got something out of the humiliating publicity she got. I hope the little baby grows up healthy and has nice life.
Hopefully they won’t spend it all in one place.
OMG I wouldnt pay $2.00 to see those pictures…nothing against Bristol or her baby but before the election we didnt know the Palins from hell or highwater and now all of a sudden they’re royalty…PLEEZE.
I’m not surprised they’re selling photos of their child. It’s right in the Palin family tradition of trying to profit from Sarah’s status as a public official.
Does anyone besides me question whether Bristol and her babydaddy will actually get married? I thought the engagement was a ploy to placate their conservative supporters.
PJ, they do seem to be draggin’ their feet, don’t they?
Why are we still hearing about these people? I realize the media needed to bash the crap out of them during the election, but what’s the point of coverage now?
Go away Palins, just go away…
Once again I thank the stars that Barack Obama was elected, and not these yahoos from Alaska.
living in the meth capital of america with redneck teenagers for parents that poor baby doesn’t stand a chance.
hmmmm think I will find on the internet instead. not all that interested.
Love the lib tolerance and acceptance on this site LOL
Only in America. *sigh*
Wow…he could have finished high school and greatly improved his chances. Sarah could at least help them take care of the Bristol’s baby for a year or so, she does make enough money. Anyway, this is SCANDALOUS! Hahhahha…
I expect nothing less. These people are trash, pure & simple
Congratulations to the parents and the new baby. I don’t care about seeing pictures of the child, though. I don’t understand the magazines’ bidding war for photos of celebrity (and I use the term loosely) babies. But whatever sells magazines, I guess.
I agree. I don’t understand the demand for photos of newborns. They all look pretty much alike at that age.
And the obsession with photos of baby bumps too–I don’t get it.
Bristol is just a teenager and not a public official, so hope I wasn’t too harsh on her. But the fact is, she’s willing to display her newborn to the public in exchange for cash, so that says something about her values.
Not overly embarrassed to admit that it’s because of people like me that baby pics get the money they do. I LOVE looking at babies in general and I’m always completely curious about what the babies of celeb/pseudo-celebs look like. Although, they’re alot more interesting when they’re about 5+ months old… you know, when they’re out of their “blob” stage, lol.
I’d love to see what Bristol’s baby looks like in a couple months. Bristol is NOT Sarah, in fact, she clearly doesn’t embrace the same ideals her mother does or she wouldn’t be in the news right now. She shouldn’t be judged by her mother. And if you’re calling her names because she’s an unwed teen mother, then you’re doing the same to alot of other reader’s mothers, daughters, sisters, etc.
agree with paris on this one. dropped out of school … ? jeez. since all the parents are so supportive, there is absolutely no reason for them not to support the kids (yes, kids) for a year while he gets his degree. even better, 5 years while they both grow up a bit and go to college. ug. trashy.
$300,000 will “help” with wedding expenses??? yikes.
also…am I the only one who wishes that hairstyle would go away?
it is in no way their responsibility to pay for his m others legal bills.
Ummm…just one question: Who put the pictures out to bid to other magazines…it sure wasn’t People Magazine. It’s all very distasteful and speaks of commercializing what should be a private, family matter. I don’t recall any other person in government doing this. So…Palin is using the “gotcha media” to help support her daughter and grandchild?
You’d think they’d have enough money what with all the kickbacks her mother gets from the logging companies, the oil companies and meth lab gang-bangers.