Literary agent Luciane Goldberg, who played a key role in the Clinton sex scandal, has died at the age of 87. Goldberg’s council made the affair with Monica Lewinsky public, which led to an impeachment trial against the president in the late 1990s.

About five years earlier, Goldberg had been approached by Linda Tripp, a former White House aide who was disappointed in the Clinton administration. In exploratory talks about a revealing book Tripp wanted to write, she said her work friend Lewinsky confided in her that she was having an affair with the president.

Goldberg’s advice to Tripp was that she should start recording the conversations with Lewinsky so she could have evidence of what had been discussed. In the more than twenty hours of audio recordings, many intimate details came to light, such as descriptions of sexual acts, Lewinsky’s doubts about the relationship and its influence on her career.

The tapes also reveal that Tripp advised Lewinsky to keep a dress that contained DNA from Clinton. This piece would help Special Counsel Kenneth Starr prove that the President actually cheated and lied.

Review of the affair:

Although the recordings were originally intended for Tripp personally, she had to turn the tapes over to Starr when it became clear that she had recorded Lewinsky illegally. Because Goldberg had falsely told her secret tapes weren’t a problem, Tripp had to pay law enforcement by giving the tapes to Starr.

The Republican-dominated House of Representatives began impeachment proceedings against Bill Clinton in December 1998 for perjury in the affair. It was the first time an American president had had to deal with it in a century.

In the Senate, where his Democratic Party members were in power, Clinton was eventually acquitted. Tripp’s book, for which she approached Goldberg, never materialized. Conservative Goldberg later said they were glad Clinton “got caught at something.”