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Bill Bennett was breezing through the lobby of the Century Plaza Hotel on Wednesday when he bumped into an acquaintance.
Asked what he was doing in town, Bennett-whose reasons for stopping in Los Angeles usually involve things like political fund-raisers and speeches-responded, "I'm seeing my producer."
William Bennett, one of the leading voices among American conservatives, has gone Hollywood.
Bennett is the former secretary of education, national drug czar and-until he took his name out of the running recently-one of the names most often mentioned as a possible Republican presidential candidate in 1996.
Most recently, he's become an improbable best-selling author with "The Book of Virtues," an 800-page tome that contains no sex, murders or CIA plots, but rather a collection of classic tales from Plato to Hercules involving themes such as courage, honesty, friendship and personal responsibility.
With some 2 million copies sold to date, Bennett now plans to turn the book into an entertainment vehicle involving an animated series, videocassette collection and interactive project. Call it Plato meets CD-ROM.
Seated Thursday at a conference table in a renovated brick building in West Los Angeles, Bennett still seems a bit uneasy about getting into show business.
His personal television...