How Mark Burnett Resurrected Donald Trump as an Icon of American Success

[sglowrider]

https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/...d-donald-trump-as-an-icon-of-american-success

Trump had been a celebrity since the eighties, his persona shaped by the best-selling book “The Art of the Deal.” But his business had foundered, and by 2003 he had become a garish figure of local interest—a punch line on Page Six. “The Apprentice” mythologized him anew, and on a much bigger scale, turning him into an icon of American success.

“The Apprentice” portrayed Trump not as a skeezy hustler who huddles with local mobsters but as a plutocrat with impeccable business instincts and unparalleled wealth—a titan who always seemed to be climbing out of helicopters or into limousines. “Most of us knew he was a fake,” Braun told me. “He had just gone through I don’t know how many bankruptcies. But we made him out to be the most important person in the world. It was like making the court jester the king.” Bill Pruitt, another producer, recalled, “We walked through the offices and saw chipped furniture. We saw a crumbling empire at every turn. Our job was to make it seem otherwise.”

 

[zeke4ahs]

https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/...d-donald-trump-as-an-icon-of-american-success

And now seeing some rumors of Mark Burnett ties to Russia, which certainly helps to explain why he won’t release the tapes.

 

[iuwclurker]

...and now he's bankrupting his new company, the United States of America and will finish as a garish figure.