Donald Trump Biography

Donald Trump, business tycoon

Birthdate: June 14, 1946

Birthplace: New York City, New York

Sign: Gemini

Donald John Trump, the fourth of five children, was the son of real estate magnate Fred Christ Trump and Mary A. MacLeod. He attended The Kew-Forest School in Forest Hills, Queens, but his parents sent him to the New York Military Academy after he was involved in trouble at school.

He excelled at the NYMA academically, where he also played varsity sports. Trump then attended Fordham University for two years before transferring to the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania, where he graduated in 1968 with a Bachelor of Science in economics and concentration in finance. After that, he worked at his father's company, the Trump Organization.

At his father's company, he was able to successfully close deals on real estate and construction. However, by 1989, Trump suffered from the effects of recession and was unable to meet loan payments. By 1991, his increasing debt brought him to business bankruptcy and the verge of personal bankruptcy. He was forced to file a bankruptcy protection plan and give up his share to his Taj Mahal casino to banks and other lenders.

He was able to turnaround the events when in 2005, his company re-emerged from bankruptcy as Trump Entertainment Resorts Holdings. Forbes has valued his wealth to $3 billion.

Aside from real estate and development, he became a household name after he became the executive producer and host of the NBC reality competition, "The Apprentice," wherein a group of individuals compete for a high-level management job in one of his enterprises. He became one of the highest paid TV personalities. He also filed a trademark for his catchphrase "You're fired."

He also owns the Miss Universe Organization, which produces the Miss Universe, Miss USA, and Miss Teen USA beauty pageants.

His first wife Ivana Trump (nee Zelnickova) one time mistakenly referred to him as The Donald in an interview. Since then, the name has stuck to him. Ivana had been married to him from 1977 to 1992. They have three children, Donald Jr. (born 1977), Ivanka (born 1981), and Eric (born 1984).

He married his second wife, Marla Maples, in 1993 and divorced in 1999. They have one daughter, Tiffany (born 1993).

In 2005, he married Slovenian fashion model Melania Knauss, who is 24 years his junior. They have one son together, named Barron William Trump (born 2006).