John Doggett, at Senate hearing, will speak tonight at Claremont McKenna College.

Texas businessman John N. Doggett III said he thought he would slip back into anonymity after his proverbial 15 minutes of fame last October, when he testified at the Senate hearings into Anita Faye Hill’s sexual harassment allegations against Supreme Court nominee Clarence Thomas.

But it hasn’t worked out that way.

Doggett was widely ridiculed for his testimony, which seemed to focus inordinately on his own achievements. He offered scant evidence to support his conclusion that his brief conversations with Hill showed that she had “fantasized” about him.

Sen. Joseph R. Biden Jr. (D-Del.), chairman of the Judiciary Committee, suggested that Doggett’s ego tainted his conclusion. The national media was even tougher, using words like “pompous” and “arrogant” to describe him.

After the hearings, and the confirmation of Thomas, the criticism persisted, Doggett said. So he and his wife decided that, “if people aren’t going to leave us alone,” he would respond by accepting some of the many speaking engagements he was being offered.

Doggett will speak tonight at the Marian Miner Cook Athenaeum at Claremont McKenna College. Doggett, who is a graduate of Claremont McKenna and Yale Law School, will talk on “Returning Decency to the Political Process.” The 7 p.m. program is free.

He will speak to eight or nine groups this month, he said. Some want to know about the Thomas hearings; others are interested in his views on global competitiveness, said Doggett, who runs a company that advises clients on international marketing.

Although he has been paid for a few speeches, it is not a lucrative sideline, he said, because many of his talks have been at high schools and service clubs.

“If you know anything about Rotary,” he said, “all you get is nice fellowship and a free lunch.”

Doggett said he has no regrets about his testimony. Along with the brickbats, he said, have come many letters from people praising him for coming forward, and saying that his actions have encouraged them to participate in the political process.