Biography: Bill Gates

Think Bill Gates is the devil incarnate? Think he's the greatest business genius of the 20th century? As usual, the truth lies somewhere in-between, and this episode from the popular A&E Biography series provides a fairly rounded picture of the Microsoft Man. Hosted by Jack Perkins, the program sketches a portrait of a very competitive and extremely intelligent "nerd" from a privileged youth to his present dominance of the computer operating system and software universe. A man so driven that he's competitive in just about every aspect of his life, Gates is also shown to be a devoted family man and a notable philanthropist (he's provided considerable sums of money to charitable and educational institutions, including libraries). In short, he's a complex human being possessed of the sometimes contradictory traits that appear so often in the dominant American business leaders of this century. This video will appeal to computer users and those fascinated with the "right stuff" that makes a person a successful entrepreneur. Now, if Bill could just get the bugs out of my computer.... Recommended. Aud: J, H, C, P. (S. Fisher)