Scandals: Cashing in on an Inside Story

Whenever a sensational crime makes the headlines these days, literary agents seem to arrive on the scene almost as fast as the lawyers, and movie producers are not far behind. Such was the case with R. Foster Winans, the former Wall Street Journal reporter and author of the paper's influential "Heard on the Street" column. Winans was convicted last year of fraud and conspiracy for leaking the contents of his articles before their publication to two New York stockbrokers, who traded on the information and earned nearly $700,000 in illegal profits. The reporter, who received $30,000 of that money, was sentenced to 18 months in prison.

Free while appealing his conviction to the Supreme Court, Winans, 38, has not been idle. In the dubious tradition of H.R. Haldeman, G. Gordon Liddy and other authors of Watergate fame, Winans has told his story in a new book titled Trading Secrets: Seduction and Scandal at the Wall Street Journal (St. Martin's Press; $17.95). To promote this candid and engrossing tale, the author is on a 13-city tour. Winans is also negotiating to sell film rights to Hollywood Producer Arnold Orgolini, who wants to make a movie "along the lines of All the President's Men." Winans got a $35,000 advance on his book, % and is on the verge of receiving a six-figure movie contract, but the money may be consumed by lawyers' fees: $200,000 so far.