Lost Tycoon: The Many Lives of Donald J. Trump - Softcover

Hurt III, Harry

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1626543941 ISBN 13: 9781626543942

Publisher: Echo Point Books & Media, 2016

Synopsis

Awarded The New York Times Critics' Top Books of 2017

Lost Tycoon presents an unvarnished, in-depth portrayal of the man who vows to “Make America Great Again.” Although first published in 1993, Lost Tycoon shows us that The Donald’s personal character, political philosophy, business ethics, and attitude towards women haven’t changed much in the past two decades.

Trump is a man of many lives. He is arguably the greatest self-promoter in the annals of American business. After inheriting a fortune, he made and lost billions in real estate and casino gambling, rising phoenix-like from his own ashes. He is a reality television show star, a father, a grandfather, and an alleged rapist. In Hollywood terms, he has literally been the producer and director of his own biopic—a real life “Citizen Kane” —whose father hammered the same lines into his head when was a little boy: “You are a killer . . . you are a king . . . you are a killer . . .you are a king.”

Harry Hurt has created a cinema verité-style narrative which allows the words and actions of the principals to speak for themselves. It is indisputable that Donald’s exploits in business, entertainment, and politics prove that he is—to borrow a metaphor from Fred Trump Sr.—”a killer.” Reading this important biography about the real Donald Trump will help you to make an informed and engaged choice as to whether he is worthy of being “king.”

Harry Hurt III is an award-winning print journalist, a former New York Times columnist, a former correspondent for Newsweek, a video journalist, and the author of six nonfiction books, including Texas Rich, a bestselling biography of the H.L. Hunt oil and silver dynasty. Hurt spent nearly three years researching and writing Lost Tycoon. He interviewed Donald Trump and observed him in action in New York City and Atlantic City. He reviewed thousands of pages of court documents and interviewed well over 100 people, including some of the most trusted confidants in the infamous Donald-Ivana-Marla love triangle that made front page tabloid headlines.

About this title

From Kirkus Reviews:

A deliciously wicked take on casino/real-estate mogul Donald J. Trump. Drawing on a wealth of sources, Hurt (For All Mankind, 1988, etc.) offers an exhaustive, gossipy rundown on a golden boy of the so-called greed decade who lost his touch--and way--in the hard realities of the 1990's. Capitalizing on political contacts made by his father, who amassed a fortune building and managing apartment houses for working-class residents of N.Y.C.'s outer boroughs, the erstwhile Wunderkind made a flashy name for himself in Manhattan property development. Moving on to Atlantic City's glittery gambling dens, the cocksure Trump (who turns 47 this June) took a great fall when his faith in ever-rising asset prices proved unfounded. In the wake of an acrimonious divorce that ended a 13- year marriage to the Czech-born Ivana (inducing bankers to review Trump's balance sheet with greater care), the ambitious hustler's leveraged empire and its trophy holdings now languish in undeclared bankruptcy. While Hurt doesn't wholly dismiss the possibility of a comeback, he leaves little doubt that Trump is bucking tough odds. Nor does the author overlook many opportunities to dish the dirt on his subject's star-crossed personal life and dubious business practices. Cases in point range from the Trump family's long- standing ties to organized-crime figures through The Donald's fling with Marla Maples; inability to weigh a deal's downside risks against its potential rewards; midnight demolition of a Manhattan landmark; and world-class talent for manipulation. Lacking the insider's edge of John R. O'Donnell's Trumped! (1991)--but, still, a slick, informed account of an upstart wheeler-dealer whose brass may be exceeded only by his reach. (Photographs--not seen) -- Copyright ©1993, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

From Library Journal:

Why are so many people writing "interim" biographies of Trump? Presumably because Trump is a flamboyant case of truth being sometimes stranger than fiction and because there is a vast audience for whom his every move is of enormous interest. One hesitates to use the word biography to describe this book. It is more a roundup of what is known to date about the famous financier and playboy, culled from a variety of sources. The chances are that most readers already have seen or heard, somewhere and sometimes in spite of themselves, most of what Hurt has to report. Right now, Trump seems to be down. Will he remain there? Stay tuned. Someone will be sure to let us know. Best to wait until the requests mount up before adding this one to the collection. Previewed in Prepub Alert, LJ 1/93.
- A.J. Anderson, GSLIS, Simmons Coll., Boston
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About this edition

• Publisher: Echo Point Books & Media
• Publication date: 2016
• ISBN 10: 1626543941
• ISBN 13: 9781626543942
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 436