It seems like there are almost weekly opportunities to blast Donald Trump here on BloggingStocks, and the latest comes courtesy of Perez Hilton who reports (with a great illustration that is too vulgar for AOL) that "Last Thursday's Celebrity Apprentice came in at third place with a lousy 8.2 million viewers. That's down a sharp 26% from its previous week premiere. At its heyday, the show could get close to 20 million viewers per episode."
What went wrong, other than the fact that Trump has overexposed himself to the point where everyone wishes he and his comb-over would take a hike? Part of the problem is that the whole Celebrity Apprentice thing lacks the appeal of watching hungry up-and-comers duke it out for a shot at wealth. It's a little bit like watching Warren Buffett play Deal or No Deal -- Who cares? There's no drama, and watching Gene Simmons dial up his friends to buy a $5,000 hot dog so his team can beat Omarosa in a contest just isn't very interesting.
But then again, the whole Apprentice show has gotten stale -- and its applications to the real-life business world have always been highly overrated. It's a made-for-TV reality show full of over-produced melodrama.
But the flop of the celebrity edition probably spells the end of the series, and now Donald Trump can go back to focusing on his business ventures rather than his insatiably narcissistic appetite for publicity. And judging from the performance of Trump Entertainment Resorts (NASDAQ: TRMP), his real-life ventures could use some attention.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
1-31-2008 @ 10:07PM
Jan Smith said...
If this season is a flop, it is in no small way because of Omoroso, who is dishonest, a light weight thinker, know it all and generally disagreeable. Gene Simmons was on the money about her
2-03-2008 @ 10:35AM
Shannon said...
I never watched the show before the Celebrity Apprentice. I never liked Mr. Trump. To me he was an arrogent jerk. I've learned by watching him and his daughter at work, that i was completely misled by the media. I really enjoy watching them at work. I've agreed with everything that he's done. The "your fired" thing?? I can't imagine being in that position, however, he does it so well. It's not as rude as I thought it was. You know this man has a heart, but he has a job to do. I like him. I pictured his daughter as a Paris Hilton flake. For that I appologize. They've both impressed me. I really wanted a chance to let them know that. Also I want to say that ya'll should back off of Omoroso. She's not rich and she had to work really hard to get where she is. Yes, she's a bitch. Gene?? Who cares? Would you treat a potential client the way he has? I was pleased to see him go. He's RUDE. Donald, if you read this.. YOU ROCK! Dayton OH.
9-13-2009 @ 1:29AM
Alessandro Machi said...
The show is not a flop, the fact that you cared when Simmons left just proves it.
This past episode, it almost seemed to me as if Amarosa should have followed suit and done what Simmons did and resigned as well.
Overall, the celebrities seem to do a better job at their tasks then did the blue collar folks of past seasons. Seems to me the successful celebs have certain level of intelligence above and beyond their acting and performing abilities.
I commend Trump for upping the ante and revitalizing what had become a worn out premise. Trump could probably run a network. I'm not saying he would be great at it, but he would give it a competent shot.
2-18-2008 @ 1:08PM
Josie said...
Donald, BLAST OMAROSA OFF THE SHOW; THERE IS SOMETHING BAD WRONG WITH HER!
3-29-2008 @ 9:42AM
j duerr said...
Thanks to DT for reaffirming all that is wrong in America and now he has taken it a step further by alligning a charity behind his "winning is the most important" thing. I believe a convicted drug felon , if he raised more money for a particular charity would have won over Mother Theresa. Kind of reminds me of Gen. Pattons speach at the beginning of WWII, "you make the other SOB lay down his life for his country. Well, DT has laid down his integrity, and all that is right for America, for a damn television show. Sure hope there were not many younger viewers looking on to witness the "selling" of a soul!
4-01-2008 @ 5:20PM
Rann said...
This show exemplifies what is wrong with this country. Enron, Countrywide, and now Donald's Celebrity Apprentice. Piers was in it for whatever he could get with no thought or care about doing what's right, who he lied to, or who gets hurt. The only thing that was "right" was the charity he chose, but his method of representation degraded them. He's not a person we should be proud of or who The Donald should glamorize. J. K. Rowling said it best: "It is our choices...that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities."
1-17-2008 @ 10:34PM
JoeFromNorwalk said...
ok...this show i just started watching and was thrilled...ik thought it was great...then the idiot fires the one guy who everyone loved on the show...gene simmons...trump is a jerk,...now i wont even watch this dam show.
i was enjoying this with my wife and friends at work were talking about how great Gene was on the show and that mental moron (Trump) could just go fire Nellie and step over Genes head...noooooooo so he just sent all the ratings on this show and flushed them down the toilet,....
I am going back to bed...thanks for nothing Donalld Duck...you disgraziad you!
2-18-2008 @ 6:15PM
Josie said...
Worse was last week when Omarosa wasn't shot off the show from a cannon! Piers had every right to be appalled at her behavior; what a despicable character. I realize the other team lost, but Omarosa should have had her ears pinned back by everyone on the team.
1-18-2008 @ 4:55PM
EL said...
Oh -- man, Gene is gone! He was the best thing on that show... he might have been abrasive at times -- but he's cool! I dig his asshole-ness
http://www.a-procare.com
1-22-2008 @ 2:39PM
xbenzx555 said...
You're just a schmuck Zac, Riding against the wave is only the begginging. I hope to see another big battle with one person getting money for college. That was really like a soap opera and people like that sorta thing. With all the elections debates on "Duh" . The rating will achieve true life after debates are over. I tried out for the Apprentice I hope it goes back to regular people. It Figures the same people talking down on Mr. Trump are the same people who came out with Trump Nation (made by time warner). " I hope he wins the 5 billion"