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File:Nbc apprentice2 donald trump.jpeg
Donald Trump on NBC's The Apprentice

Donald John Trump, BA (born June 14, 1946, his nickname being "The Donald" -- given to him by ex-wife Ivana Trump) is an American business executive and founder and CEO of Trump Organization. Donald Trump is most famous for several large skyscrapers he developed in Manhattan and named after himself. Starting with Trump Tower, he developed Trump World Tower along the East River, completed in 2001, and then began construction of the Trump Place Apartment complex along the Hudson River that same year. Trump also owns Trump International Hotel, a 42-story mega-plaza on Columbus Circle in the heart of New York City. He is also a major figure in the field of casino/hotels in the United States, and has become notable on television for his role on the reality show The Apprentice. Trump is often known as "A Schoolboy's Dream" and "A Competitor's Challenge", as he is rarely afraid of defining the ways of a prolific American business executive, and thus became an example of one. Additionally, besides being the largest developer in New York City, Mr. Trump also has investments in financial assets, including a 34.6% stake in AdnanCo Group, an off-shore mortgage lender. Finally, in late 2003, Donald Trump along with his siblings sold their father's real estate empire to a group of investors that included Bain Capital, KKR, and LamboNuni Bank for reportedly $783 million. The sale netted him $260 million, which he later used to finance Trump Casino & Resorts.

Background

He was born in New York City of German and Scottish extraction, the fourth of five children of Frederick C. and Mary MacLeod Trump. His grandfather came from Germany, but claimed he was from Sweden due to anti-German sentiment at the time. Donald's father, Fred Trump, was a real estate developer who became rich with the building and operating of reasonably-priced rental buildings in the outer New York City boroughs of Brooklyn, Queens and Staten Island. That is one of the main differences between Fred and Donald Trump – Donald has no interest in affordable housing or for that matter in the outer boroughs. But he is expanding into other parts of the country such as Chicago and California.

Education

At age 13, Donald's parents sent him to the New York Military Academy hoping to channel his energy and assertiveness in a positive manner. Trump attended Fordham University before transferring to the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania. After graduating in 1968 with a bachelor's degree in economics, he joined his father's real estate company. Trump moved to Manhattan in 1971.

In his book, Art of the Deal, Trump discusses his undergraduate career:

"After I graduated from the New York Military Academy in 1964 I flirted briefly with the idea of attending film school...But in the end I decided real estate was a much better business. I began by attending Fordham University...but after two years, I decided that as long as I had to be in college, I might as well test myself against the best. I applied to the Wharton School of Finance at the University of Pennsylvania and I got in...I was also very glad to get finished. I immediately moved back home and went to work full-time with my father."

Career

Trump began his career at his father's company, the Trump Organization, and initially concentrated on his father's preferred field of middle class rental housing. In the 1970s he benefitted from the financially strained New York city government's willingness to give tax concessions in exchange for investment at a time of financial crisis.

1980s boom

Trump Tower on Fifth Avenue, New York City

As a talented dealmaker, he was able to secure loans with little collateral in the 1980s and created an empire in real estate, casinos, sports, and transportation, becoming something of a celebrity in the process. He put on front rank boxing cards at his casinos featuring the likes of Mike Tyson, and revelled in the publicity they brought him. His buildings are all characterized by a somewhat satirical personality cult around himself. The name "Trump" always appears in the name of his buildings (Trump Tower, Trump Taj Mahal, etc.) and often the decor features large letter "T"s in prominent locations. This self promotion also led to criticism and ridicule, most notably by Spy Magazine, which printed unflattering photographs and satirical commentary of Donald Trump and his wife Ivana. The 1980s also saw the brief emergence of an American cycling stage race, the Tour de Trump (1989–1990).

Bankruptcy

By 1990, the effects of recession left him unable to meet loan payments. Although he shored up his businesses with additional loans and postponed interest payments, increasing debt brought Trump to business bankruptcy and the brink of personal bankruptcy. Banks and bondholders had lost hundreds of millions of dollars, but opted to restructure his debt to avoid risking losing even more in a court fight. Also in 1990, he co-produced the game show Trump Card in syndication.

By 1994, Trump had eliminated a large portion of his $900 million personal debt and reduced significantly his nearly $3.5 billion in business debt. While he was forced to relinquish the Trump Shuttle (which he had bought in 1989), he managed to retain Trump Tower in New York City and control of his three casinos in Atlantic City.

In 1995, he combined his casino holdings into the publicly held Trump Hotels & Casino Resorts. Wall Street drove its stock above $35 in 1996, but by 1998 it had fallen into single digits as the company remained profitless and struggled to pay just the interest on its nearly $2 billion in debt. Under such financial pressure, the properties were unable to make the improvements necessary for keeping up with their flashier competitors.

In 1999 Fred Trump, Donald's father, a multi-billion dollar real estate mogul passed away. Fred Trump, the same man who cosigned Donald's first business loans, also happened to be the man who enabled Donald to escape from the massive financial morass he had created over the decades. Unfortunately, creditors who got stuck with the past losses were not as fortunate. Whereas Donald walked away from his empire unscathed, others were forced to take catastrophic writeoffs and losses even up to 2004 when Trump refused to continue to back his casino. Although Trump boasted he would build a bigger empire than his father, in the end, his father built an empire so large it could even accommodate Donald's most lavish personal losses.

On October 21, 2004, Trump Hotels & Casino Resorts announced a restructuring of its debt. The plan called for Trump's individual ownership to be reduced from 56 percent to 27 percent, with bondholders receiving stock in exchange for surrendering part of the debt. However, Trump's personal fortune has not been, in recent years, affected by his financial troubles with hotels and casinos. The Forbes 400 lists his net worth at $2.6 billion, though Trump himself claims to be worth over $5 billion. Since then, Trump Hotels has been forced to seek voluntary bankruptcy protection to stay afloat.

Politics

In 1999, Trump indicated an interest in running for president on the Reform party ticket in 2000, although he was previously a Republican. He withdrew after the party disintegrated into factionalism.

Trump's political views are largely centrist. He is pro-choice regarding abortion and supports gay rights, Social Security privatization, and tax cuts such as those implemented by President Bush. In 2004, Trump expressed opposition to the Iraq War but claims to have still voted for Bush due to his tax cut policy. Trump has contributed to both Republicans and Democrats, interestingly having donated slightly more money to Democratic candidates.

Trump has recently attacked the official "Freedom Tower" plan for rebuilding the World Trade Center, claiming the plan to be "a pile of crap", and claims that most New Yorkers want the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center rebuilt, with a symbolic 111 stories, one story taller than the original predecessors (the "Twin Towers II" plan). He claims they would be taller, better, stronger, cheaper and safer than the proposed "Freedom Tower"; however, there is skepticism that the Twin Towers II proposal will actually replace the Freedom Tower plan and be built. In a recent CNN poll over 63% of voters wanted to see Trump's plan go into action.

Television

In 1990, Trump's Atlantic City casino was used for the game show Trump Card, produced by Fielder-Berlin.

In 2004, Trump became star and executive producer of the NBC reality show, The Apprentice, in which a group of competitors battled for a high-level management job in one of Trump's commercial enterprises. The other contestants were "fired", or eliminated, from the game. The winner of the program earns a $250,000 annual salary. At the end of each episode, Trump eliminated one contestant by telling them, "You're fired," which became a somewhat popular catch phrase. For the first year of the show Trump was paid a mere $50,000 per episode, but following the show's initial success, he is now paid a reported $3,000,000 per episode making him one of the highest paid TV personalities.

Trump has also been included in numerous television commercials over the years obtaining him a $1 million fee for a Pizza Hut commercial in the 1990s, a $3 million fee for a Dominos Pizza commercial in 2005 as well as a $5 million fee for his Visa Card commercial the same year.

A Muppet of Donald Trump also appears in an episode of the 36th season of Sesame Street, alongside grouch Muppet Donald Grump.

Donald Trump also guest starred on an episode of The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, when he almost buys their mansion for his nephew. The episode, called "For Sale by Owner," was episode 25 in the show's 4th season.

Family

In 1977 Trump married Ivana Zelničkova and together they have three children: Donald, Jr. (born December 31, 1977), Ivanka (born October 30, 1981) and Eric (born 1984). They were divorced in 1992. In 1993, he married Marla Maples, and together they have one child, Tiffany (born October 13, 1993). They divorced in June 8, 1999. Ivanka Trump is featured in a documentary called Born Rich about the experience of growing up as an heir to not only one of America's prolific business lineages, but to also a respected name in the New York Business World.

On April 26, 2004, he proposed to Melania Knauss. Trump and Knauss married on January 222005 at Bethesda by the Sea Episcopal Church on the Island of Palm Beach, Florida, followed by a reception at Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate.

Books

  • Trump: The Art of the Deal, (ISBN 5557099018)
  • Trump: The Art of Survival, (ISBN 0446362093)
  • Trump: The Art of the Comeback, (ISBN 0812929640)
  • Trump: Surviving at the Top, (ISBN 0394575970)
  • Trump: How to Get Rich, (ISBN 1400063272)
  • The Way to the Top: The Best Business Advice I Ever Received, (ISBN 1400050162)
  • Trump: Think Like a Billionaire : Everything You Need to Know About Success, Real Estate, and Life, (ISBN 1400063558)

For his early books in the 1980s and 1990s, Trump eventually earned around $3 million per book, but for his more recent books he is given a $5 million advanced payment per book. Since he began writing, it is estimated that Trump has earned over $30 million from book sales alone.

Properties

Future site of Trump International Hotel & Tower, Toronto

United States and Canada:

  • Personal Residence: Trump Tower Penthouse (The entire top 3 floors of Trump Tower covering over 30,000 square feet (3,000 m²) with ornate details using bronze, gold, and the finest marble.) In 2005, this apartment is valued at over $50 million which places it as one of the top 3 most valuable apartments in New York.
  • Personal Residence: Palm Beach oceanfront estate covering 43,000 square feet (4,000 m²) on one of the largest beach front lots in Palm Beach. Trump purchased this property in 2004 for $41 million and is now having Apprentice winner Kendra Todd lead a renovation of the property before he offers it for sale at $125 million in 2006.
  • The Estates at Trump National: California
  • The Trump Building at 40 Wall Street. Trump secured the rights to this building for a mere $1 million and spent another $67 million completely renovating it. The building is now worth over $400 million making it one of Trump's greatest investments.
  • Mar-a-Lago: Florida (Currently valued at $200 million)
  • Trump 29: 46-200 Harrison Place, Coachella, CA 92236
  • Trump Casino Lake Michigan: 1 Buffington Harbor Dr, Gary, IN 46406
  • The Estates at Trump National: Rancho Palos Verdes Estate, CA 90275
  • Trump Grande: Florida
  • Trump International Hotel & Tower: 1 Central Park West, New York, NY 10023 (Trump owns the retail space at the base of the building plus the roof which he rents to cellular tower operators. Collectively this space is worth around $50 million)
  • Trump International Hotel & Tower, Chicago:
  • Trump International Hotel & Tower, Las Vegas:
  • Trump International Hotel & Tower, Toronto, Toronto: 311 Bay St, Toronto (under construction)
  • Trump Marina Hotel and Casino: 1 Castle Blvd, Atlantic City, NJ 08401
  • Trump Palace: 200 East 69th Street, New York, NY
  • Trump Parc: 106 Central Park South, New York, NY
  • Trump Park Avenue: Park Avenue & 59th Street
  • Trump Place: Riverside Boulevard (multiple addresses), New York, NY
  • Trump Plaza Hotel & Casino: The Boardwalk at Mississippi Avenue, Atlantic City, NJ 08401
  • Trump Taj Mahal Casino Resort: 1000 Boardwalk, Atlantic City, NJ 08401
  • Trump Tower: 725 Fifth Ave, New York, NY 10022 Trump owns the retail and office space on the lower half of this building which is currently valued at $200 million.
  • Trump Tower, Tampa: Tampa, FL
  • Trump World Tower: 845 United Nations Plaza, New York, NY
  • Trump Tower at City Center: 10 City Place, White Plains, NY 10601

International:

Future Developments

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