Bill Gates Sings For Barbara Walters -- Software Magnate To Show Softer Side - And A New Talent - On National TV

Bill Gates sings for the first time on TV, talks about his family life, and discusses the Justice Department action against Microsoft in an interview with Barbara Walters airing tomorrow night.

The session was taped Jan. 21 at Gates' Hood Canal compound, Walters said in a phone interview.

"I was surprised at how easy he was to talk to, and how personable," said the veteran broadcaster known for getting emotional responses from her subjects. "I was a little nervous because this is Bill Gates, and I worried we'd get into computer talk, but that didn't happen."

Gates set no ground rules, specified no topics, and took on all subjects, Walters said. Her one disappointment was not being able to do the segment at Gates' new waterfront estate in Medina. Gates said he is private about the residence and wanted no cameras in the house.

Walters asked Gates about the singing lessons he and his wife, Melinda, take as a hobby. "I said, `What do you sing the baby?' " Walters said, referring to his 21-month-old daughter, Jennifer Katharine, and Gates broke into a rendition of "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star."

"He wasn't bad, as a matter of fact," Walters said.

The first night in his new house, Gates told Walters, he watched a big-screen TV that pops up out of a console in his bedroom. But things went awry when he tried to go to sleep.

"He couldn't get it to go down, he couldn't get it to turn off, so he just put a big blanket over the thing," she said. Gates has joked that everything from light switches to music speakers goes on and off unexpectedly in the house, which is run by a high-end PC network built on Microsoft's Windows NT system.

Opposed to cloning

Gates also told Walters he opposes cloning and thinks laws should be passed banning it, and that he wants to raise his daughter and any additional children in a religious setting.

"But as to whether God exists, or what God is, he said it's not something he has the answers to," Walters said. Gates took some heat after a Time magazine cover story quoted him as saying church was not an efficient use of his time.

Gates repeated assertions that government regulation of software, such as the U.S. Justice Department's current action to prevent Microsoft from forcing computer makers to ship its browsers with Windows PCs, is a bad idea. He compared the approach to requiring a car manufacturer to sell wheels, engines and radios separately from the vehicle itself.

But the only time he really "bristled," Walters said, was when she asked about an assertion in the Time article that he did not care about personal relationships.

`Deeply in love'

"He said he thought that was very unfair," she said. "He said his priority in his life is his family, and he's also very close to people he works with." Gates singled out Melinda, saying, "I'm very deeply in love with her," Walters added.

Walters wanted to include Gates on her "10 Most Fascinating People" show at the end of the year, but he was unavailable. Her producer followed up, hoping for an interview later this year, but was told Gates would do it within the next 10 days. Walters flew from a network affiliates' meeting Jan. 20 in New Orleans to Seattle and spent the next day interviewing Gates.

Gates also talks about his plans to give away his fortune and what it feels like to be called "evil" and "the devil." He takes Walters for a ride in a Ford Explorer equipped with AutoPC, a new navigation and communication device for vehicles that features Microsoft's Windows CE system.

The program will air on KOMO-TV locally.

Paul Andrews' phone message number is 206-464-2360. His e-mail address is: pand-new@seatimes.com

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On TV

Barbara Walters' interview with Bill Gates will be on "20-20" at 10 p.m. tomorrow on KOMO-TV (ABC).