Trumped!: The Inside Story of the Real Donald Trump--His Cunning Rise and Spectacular Fall

by John R. O'Donnell and James Rutherford

Book Overview

An inside account of what went wrong in Donald Trump's empire, as revealed by one of Trump's top executives. The author explains how Trump's personal life affected his decision-making, and why he really sent Ivana from Atlantic City to run the Plaza Hotel in New York.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 067173735X
• ISBN13: 9780671737351
• Release Date: January 1991
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster
• Length: 348 Pages
• Weight: 1.45 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.2" x 6.5" x 9.4"

Customer Reviews

O'Donnell Knows the Gaming Industry

Jack O'Donnell certainly has legitimate reasons to hold a grudge against Trump, who repeatedly goes into businesses that he knows virtually nothing about; then ignores the advise of the experts he hire (who do know the business); then runs the businesses by "shooting from the hip"...followed by blaming the subsequent failure of the businesses on the experts he ignored. Hence, though O'Donnell certainly can't claim to be impartial, one must err towards believing him as opposed to Trump, who is a known braggart & "blowhard". O'Donnell's credentials of over 30 years in the hospitality/gaming industry (he is still very much involved as a consultant) can be found on his website jackodonnellspeaking dot com.

Considerably entertaining, potentially vastly biased

Trumped offers deep insight into Donald Trump's New Jersey casinos from the perspective of a top executive (Jack O'Donnell) who left the organization on bad terms. This insight offered in the book is extremely engrossing especially if you find the inner workings of casinos intriguing. Jack O'Donnell is not fond of Trump in the least and despises the manner in which he runs his organization, particularly the casinos. O'Donnell presents a very detailed depiction of what takes place behind the scenes of the casinos as well as his qualified opinions on Trump's failings at the time. There will be some difficulty trying to determine if many of the details regarding Trump's economic issues are described as factual or with a certain degree of hostility. We are only provided with one side of the events and ultimately we may never know if the account provided is presented with complete accuracy or merely tainted with extreme bias that might be expected of a disgruntled ex-employee. My estimate is that the truth likely falls somewhere in the middle. It should also be noted that since Trump's massive financial difficulties in the early 90s, something O'Donnell seemed to have maintained delight in, Trump has not only rebounded but appears to be more successful and wealthier than ever, yet O'Donnell has all but vanished from public view. Despite Trumped being a potentially opinionated piece, there is no question the material is considerably entertaining. No matter your feelings toward Trump (or for that matter O'Donnell), I highly recommend this book to anyone with an interest in a behind the scenes account of Trump's casinos and/or a fascination with high stakes business enterprise.

Great insider view of the Trump organization

I've always wondered how Donald Trump could go bankrupt running a casino, this book is a fascinating read on how it happened. Jack O'Donnell was a high ranking executive in Trump's casino operations, and for a time actually ran his only consistently profitable casino, Trump Plaza (at least it was consistently profitable until Jack O'Donnell quit). Jack details in fascinating detail Donald Trump's erratic behavior, lack of knowledge of the casino business, and all the "fuzzy math" surrounding the junk bonds that financed Trump's acquistions. This book shows very clearly what goes on behind the hype surrounding the myth of Donald Trump, it is very highly recommended.

Fascinating Account of Trump and the A. C. Casino Industry

This book recounts firsthand through the eyes of Jack O'Donnell, a man who for a time ran the Trump Plaza and intimately dealt with all of the Donald's casino holdings in AC, Trump's rise and fall in the Atlantic City gaming industry. I came at the book from two ends, for one I am facinated by the casino industry and high dollar business in general, and two when you mix in a volatile personality like Trump's the end result is a fast read that was throughly satisfying. O'Donnell's prose reads like a novel as he recounts Trump's slick business dealings and initial success. Things start to sour as the Donald makes a string of strategic errors and allows his ego to cloud his perception of reality leaving his business holdings on the brink of financial ruin. Anyone interested in Trump should make this a first purchase as the Donald is disected in an unflinchingly intimate light by a man who spoke with him almost daily for three years. Others interested in high finance and the casino industry will also enjoy this book.

Trump - Trumped!

Good book. Gives you insight into how Donald Trump thinks and makes decisions.

Entertaining and informitive read

This was a well written book by someone with inside knowledge of the Trump organization. The reader learns a lot about Trump's personal life and the inner workings of the casino industry. Highly recommended.