Today is John Grisham's birthday -- he was born on Feb. 8, 1955. in Jonesboro, Arkansas.  Grisham, who practiced law in Mississippi for a decade, and served in the Mississippi Legislature for six years, published his first book, A Time to Kill, in 1989.

Two years later, Grisham published The Firm, which sold seven million copies and rocketed him into the literary stratosphere.  The Firm -- the story of a young law school graduate who goes to work for a high-powered law firm that is not what it seems -- was made into a memorable movie starring Tom Cruise, and later into a television show.

In this video, filmed when the television version of The Firm was launching, Grisham recalls how he came up with the idea for The Firm -- and the very unlikely way he got it published.