NEW YORK (Dagbladet): The upcoming book “Apprentice in Wonderland” tells how the former reality celebrity and President Donald Trump wanted his children to take over the popular reality program “The Apprentice”.
The TV channel NBC did not want them.
According to the book, which was written by Variety editor Ramin Setoodeh, is based on interviews with the Trump family, NBC executives and former participants in the reality series, writes People Magazine.
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Trump himself suggested that his daughter Ivanka should take over as host when he ran for president for the first time in 2015. Instead, NBC chose to bet on Hollywood star and former California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, according to an excerpt in Variety.
– I said: The best person to hire will be Ivanka Trump, says her father Donald Trump in the book.
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He is also said to have suggested that his sons Donald junior and Eric should be co-hosts in the fictional boardroom in the series. All three children were regulars on the series at this time as Trump gradually entered politics.
– It was supposed to be the three of us. There was talk of it for a while, says Eric Trump in the book.
However, the idea did not sit well with NBC.
– Didn’t like it
– NBC didn’t like it because it became a family affair. But I said: You’re not going to hire anyone who comes close to Ivanka. And they came back with Arnold Schwarzenegger, says Trump.
Could ruin dad
The new season with the “Terminator” star as host premiered in 2017 at the same time as Trump was in his first year as US president. The series was canceled after one season due to poor ratings. Schwarzenegger said at the time that there was too much “baggage” to be associated with Donald Trump’s presidency.
– With Trump involved in the program, people have a bad taste in their mouths and will not participate as spectators or as sponsors or in any way support the program. It’s a very divisive period now, and I think the show got caught up in all the divisiveness,” Schwarzenegger added Empire magazine.
Cut ties
NBC, for its part, also chose to cut ties with Trump in 2015 for racist remarks about Mexican immigrants when he launched his presidential candidacy.
Both Ivanka, Donald junior and Eric also ended up running for their father in the presidential election campaign. Ivanka and her husband Jared Kushner also became Trump’s senior advisors in the White House, while Donald Jr. and Eric were given responsibility for Trump’s business operations.
“The Apprentice” premiered in January 2004 and immediately became a hit with viewers in the US with more than 20 million viewers per episode in the first season. This made Trump, who had previously been primarily known in New York, become a national celebrity. On TV, he appeared as a successful businessman, who judged the participants’ efforts. He became known for the line: “You’re fired!”. Eventually, celebrity contestants entered “The Celebrity Apprentice”.
The whole thing may have been absolutely crucial in giving Trump such a large national profile that he had a chance of winning the presidential election in 2016.
The book “Apprentice in Wonderland” will be published in the USA on 18 June.
2024-04-04 01:13:22
