Donald Trump - The Almost Interview
By Carole Panick

Trying to do a phone interview with Donald Trump is like trying to call a ticket agent the day U2 tickets go on sale. Busy. Busy. Busy. Redial. Redial. Redial. Then, finally, a ring. Your heart leaps expectantly while you wait for someone to pick up. For me, just getting the phone to ring was a huge accomplishment. However, just because you get a ring doesn't guarantee that you'll speak to the man who is a rock star in the business world. I was supposed to have met with Donald in person two days earlier, but that didn't exactly pan out.

NYC - Wednesday
Scheduled to meet with Donald at 2pm, I arrived half an hour early. I navigated the sparkling lobby of The Trump Tower in order to kill some time. Ten minutes prior to the appointed meeting time, I made my way past the red velvet ropes protecting the gold elevator doors and approached an impeccably dressed concierge. It was like trying to get into an exclusive nightclub, only this time, I was actually on the list! After calling Trump's office to confirm, the concierge let me into one of the elevators - complete with uniformed elevator operator. I was whisked directly up to Trump's floor.

The Trump offices have sweeping views of Manhattan, naturally. The reception area is bordered on the north side by a wall-to-wall window allowing visitors to peek up Fifth Avenue to Central Park, or across 57th. This is the area where you sometimes see Robin answering calls in front of a mirrored wall on The Apprentice. This is also the area where I spent my afternoon waiting. First, I was waiting for Donald's long-time assistant Norma (as seen on The Apprentice Season One) to return from lunch on the QE2 and confirm my appointment. Then, I was waiting for George to return from lunch so I could interview him - while I was waiting for Donald to return from wherever he was. After about 45 minutes of perusing the available selection of magazines featuring Trump interviews, I learned that my interview had somehow been scheduled for the wrong day. Donald had no idea I was there. The Trump staff could not have been more pleasant or apologetic, but my afternoon was rapidly ticking away. I had another interview in Brooklyn that afternoon, appointments all day Thursday and a plane ride back to Los Angeles on Friday morning. I was determined to get my Trump interview.

Thursday
My afternoon phone interview with Carolyn went well and inspired me to call Trump's office for a second time to try and reschedule. With the help of NBC Publicist Jim Dowd, I was able to snag a 9am call on Friday. The car to the airport was coming that morning at 9:45am. I was slowly beginning to live up to my last name.

Friday
I was up early to pack and completed the electronic checkout, so that I was ready to dash to the airport once The Call was over. Luckily, the room had a speakerphone so I would be able to tape record the conversation and transcribe it later. This was when calling Donald Trump's office became like trying to score U2 tickets.

I tried calling at about 5 minutes to 9am, just to be safe. But I kept getting a busy signal. Somehow, this did not seem possible. Could a powerful real estate magnate who is known for getting into the office very early have only one phone line? And even if he only had one phone line, would he not have a recorded message instead of a busy signal? Or if he had one phone line and no message, wouldn't he have an assistant there at the crack of dawn? Finally, I tried calling from my cell phone and reached Trump's office. They told me to call back in 15 minutes. I realized that the hotel's speakerphone wasn't working because I had technically already checked out. I placed a frantic call to the hotel operator, but she politely told me it could take up to 25 minutes to restore the phone service. I only had 12 minutes! Now my challenge would be to hold my tiny cell phone close enough to my ear to actually hear Donald, while also juggling the micro-cassette recorder close enough to that same ear to record the interview.

At 9:15am I said a silent prayer to the cell phone gods and redialed the Trump Office. Within moments I was told to "Please hold for Mr. Trump." I admit that my hands shook a little while juggling my electronic gadgets. And then he was on. I was talking to Donald Trump. He instructed me to "keep it short, dear." So, I asked him what would be different about Season Three of The Apprentice. I asked how the candidates have changed over the season. I asked if he would do a Season Four. I covered as much as I could in about five minutes. With the interview quickly over, I dashed down to a waiting car and managed to make my flight. Only once I was airborne did I have a chance to review the tape.

My voice on the tape is loud and clear, as is a very loud buzzing sound of mysterious origin. Mr. Trump's voice, however, is barely audible! Good thing I wasn't a PM or this would've been my boardroom mea culpa. Below is what I was able to salvage.

What do you think will be different about this new season?
This season is going to be very interesting because the cast is totally unique. People have become much more savvy. They've studied every episode and every word that's come out of my mouth. They bring the show to a new level which means I have to rise to the challenge.

Do you rise to the task?
It's definitely a challenge. It's an amazing experience for me. The thing that is so spectacular about the show -- and that the ratings prove - is that it just continues to be a good show. Season Two was bigger and better than Season One and I think Season Three is going to be the same thing.

If Season Three is your last, who do you see succeeding you? I don't know who could do it.
Well, I agree with you. It's hard to imagine who could replace me. I have a good partnership/relationship with Mark Burnett and NBC. So we'll see what happens after Season Three.

What advice do you have for wannabe tycoons?
More than anything else, enjoy what you do. It's very important.

For Mr. Trump, I'm sure it was just another day, another phone interview. For me, it was an exciting albeit brief conversation - and a valuable business lesson learned on the art of tape recording via a cell phone.

Read George's Interview

Read Carolyn's Interview

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