With the help of Alcoholics Anonymous, he got sober and clean. Then came the next step — the LDS Church. "I believe I am God's most impertinent child. I think God stalked me for a while. He threw Mormons in my path. ... The Lord humbled me." Beck said he kept thinking, "How many of these (Mormon) freaks are there?"

He later went to a theology school but left with more questions than answers. He finally decided to go on a church tour and shop for religion. A friend of Beck's who was LDS said he had to come to a Mormon meeting, and although Beck was hesitant, he finally went.

"I met the most plastic people on the planet," he said, describing his first reaction to attending a ward service. However, his daughters had such a warm feeling there that they kept going. After a few weeks, he realized the members weren't plastic. "They were happy. I wanted to be happy."

Beck and his family were baptized in the fall of 1999. Today Beck is a ward missionary, helping to convert others.

Asked what effect his LDS membership has on his radio and TV show, Beck responds, "I think that's too narrow. It affects my entire life."

He admits it's a struggle to have given up all the vices that once comprised his life. "I struggle so hard to be a decent human being."

Beck is keen after his stormy past that people should be more honest and open with each other. "We all make mistakes. We all have things we're hiding."

Having already written "The Real America" book three years ago, he's now working on a new one, along the lines of "Solving the World's Problems in Two Minutes." Which reflects Beck's philosophy: cut through the clutter and politics.

He said his family is his only hobby these days. "I'm trying to keep a balance in life."

Beck's programs originate from Radio City in New York City. He commutes to work from his home in Connecticut. He has two daughters from his first marriage; the oldest has cerebral palsy. He and his second wife, Tania, have a son and a daughter.

If you go

What: Glenn Beck

When: Saturday, Dec. 2, 2 and 7:30 p.m.

Where: Kingsbury Hall, University of Utah campus

How much: $20-$90

Phone: 801-581-7100

Web: www.kingsburyhall.org

Also: www.glennbeck.com or www.cnn.com/CNN/Programs/glenn.beck

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E-mail: lynn@desnews.com