Trump V Branson

[poliphilo]

Donald Trump is flying in the Trump helicopter towards the Trump tower. The music is a mixture of grandeur and high anxiety that sounds like an off-cut from Orff's Carmina Burana. Trump-world is the only place to be.

The last episode was twice the length. Bright-eyed Bill won out over laid-back Kwame. Bill's prize is to oversee the building of a new Trump tower in Chicago. It will set new standards in architecture.

They say there's going to be a British version of the show. I don't suppose it will feature Trump himself. He is too fabulous, too orange for us uptight little islanders. The British way of handling business success is to apologize for it.

The only British businessman with anything like Trump's degree of celebrity is Richard Branson. But the style couldn't be more different. Trump is the orange emperor, Branson is the world's best mate- a kind of plutocratic Jesus in beard and jeans. Trump has hair, Branson has teeth. The teeth are fixed in a perpetual grin. Please love me; please forgive me. Trump calls his empire Trump. Branson wriggles uncomfortably and calls his Virgin.

(It's a joke. I'm just playing at this, see. Such fun. And now come and watch me set a ballooning record.)

Whoever they get to front it, the British version will be a fascinating exercise in compare and contrast.

Comments

[jackiejj.livejournal.com]

Just because Trump can afford to have cherubs on all his chandeliers doesn't mean he should.

And his Las Vegas empire is bankrupt.

And Bill: we don't hear another thing from him until he suddenly reappears in Series II sitting at Trump's right hand instead of George! In his apprentice days, he was pleasant and cheerful; now he gravely passes out judgement. Like Caroline, he is cold.

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

Oh dear, am I that far behind the game?

But at least you've confirmed there is a series two. I'm looking forward to it.

I liked Heidi best. She had atitood!

[karenkay.livejournal.com]

I think the second series is disappointing. I will probably continue to watch, but I won't watch if there's a third one.

[jackiejj.livejournal.com]

I agree, Karen. It feels a little tired to me.

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

That's a pity. But ain't that so often the way with sequels- the fire and freshness goes out of the idea.

[karenkay.livejournal.com]

I'm pretty puzzled by my reaction, actually. I was so enamored of the first season! But I guess that when you''ve done it once, it's done. He's added some new twists, but they are not enough to make it new again.

I don't really care for reality shows as a genre, but this one I was hooked on because it was so REAL. This season, there are so many wacko characters instead of just Omorosa that I want to run away from them.

[jackiejj.livejournal.com]

Oh! I watched fifteen minutes of the most revolting reality show EVER last week!

Take 10 or so really hugely obese people and put them into a locked house with doughnuts and candy bars and workout machines. And sadistic workout leaders.

Let's see who can make it through the first week without pigging out! And let's all watch as they run laps and do jumping jacks! (And isn't it so funny to watch them jump?)

Those poor people. I changed the channel, and found myself watching a nauseated woman choking down cow's eyeballs on Fear Factor.

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

No thanks.

One of the things I like about Trump is that he doesn't humiliate his young people. He's firm where he needs to be, but also he works to build up self-esteem. The best reality shows are about the triumph of the human spirit.

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

It sounds like they've over-egged the pudding.

For some reason this past week I've been watching lots of "reality" shows. There was one where people were being trained to be secret agents and another where ultra-posh Trinny and Susannah got to sort out the wardrobes of women who would rather dress in faux-leather mini-skirts and/or football shirts. I'm afraid I've found them all quite riveting.

[jackiejj.livejournal.com]

I watched a reality show last month called "Wife Swapping." In this case, they take two incompatible families and get the wives to switch houses. The first week, the wives can't do one thing to change the lifestyle of her new family, but the second week she gets to make a list of rules.

So on this show I watched, they switched an animal rights activist with a woman who rode a Harley motorcycle and went hunting with her husband.

They both went nuts in a week. So did the husbands.

The animal rights activist started crying and praying as soon as she found the den full of stuffed deer heads. She'd stroke their heads and say, "I'm sorry."

The Harley rider hated the liberal house she'd been sent to. It was, for one thing, filthy. And she couldn't clean it up for an entire week!

The second week, she set the animal rights husband to work hanging an American flag on the fence and cleaning up the house. She also thought the daughter was lazy, and put her to work, too. The daughter called her "the old devil bitch" behind her back.

The animal rights activist got rid of all the guns and deer heads the second week. The husband had to take them to a storage facility. He sat on his porch in a recliner and sulked.

I have to say, it was pretty entertaining...

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

We have a British version of this show. I've never watched it. Perhaps- as a new convert to the joys of "reality"- I should.

[karenkay.livejournal.com]

Just because Trump can afford to have cherubs on all his chandeliers doesn't mean he should.

Thank you! Everyone goes on about how elegant his place is, and I can think of is how overblown and ugly it is. Not my taste at all.

I went to Hearst Castle in San Simeon with some European friends a few years ago, and about halfway through the tour, one of them said, "Oh, this is where my heritage went!"

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

I'd love to see San Simeon- but mainly because I'm a huge fan of Orson Welles.

[karenkay.livejournal.com]

It's definitely interesting. The swimming pools are each fabulous in their own right. In general, though, your senses are just overloaded after a couple of hours there.

[four-thorns.livejournal.com]

richard branson is starring in a reality show on fox called the "rebel billionaire", in which contestants will (supposedly) compete to be president of all his various virgin enterprises. it's been hyped quite a bit here, so i assume it's premiering soon... i don't know about overseas

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

Rebel billionaire- good grief!

Branson is so ingratiating. I don't know what you guys make of him, but over here we hate him because his trains don't run on time- which is unfair because it's hardly his fault.

Actually, I'm a bit of a rebel too, because I rate Virgin trains. I was on one that ran late and they gave me a refund without me even having to ask.

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

I knew a guy at Theological college who looked a lot like Branson. He had the same ingratiating smile and absolutely no sense of humour.

Also he smelt funny. Not bad- just funny.

Maybe this colours my view of the great man

[morrison-maiden.livejournal.com]

I agree, it would be very interesting to compare the two. I also heard about the Rebel Billionairre program in the States. I don't know if I'd want to watch it though; I hate reality television. I think Branson seems more likable and interesting, but then, I don't really know much about him :\

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

Branson is a hippy. But a hippy who's into money in a big way (so slightly untypical.) He started off with a record shop- which turned into a record company- and now he owns an airline and a railway company and all sorts. The last I heard he was getting into space tourism. He's always had a reputation for being ahead of the field.

[morrison-maiden.livejournal.com]

Wow, that's pretty ambitious. I remember when all I'd heard about the Virgin enterprise was the record label and the airline...

I forgot to mention!

[karenkay.livejournal.com]

I read last week that Steve Martin is doing a reality program called "The Scholar". Here's a blurb: http://www.cnn.com/2004/EDUCATION/10/18/television.scholar.reut/index.html

This sounds so serious; I can't imagine him getting all the way through it without making fun of it.

Re: I forgot to mention!

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

It sounds almost too worthy and that a little light relief would be welcome.

I wonder if we'll get this over here. Our schools systems are rather different.

[besideserato.livejournal.com]

I usually avoid the television. But one entry and I want nothing more than to curl up and watch these shows.
You are so good!

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

Thank you.

The problem is I've too much time on my hands.

But tonight I've been good. I broke away from the TV- after watching an hour-long show on the history of stage magic- and got up on the ladder and painted a bit of the kitchen wall.

[besideserato.livejournal.com]

I haven't been able to pry myself away from the computer all day. I wish it was because I was inspired. Nope. It's LiveJournal. I need to stop. But I don't want to.

Oh, my god! I'm such a junkie.

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

I too find LJ takes up more and more of my time- but I'm not complaining. I live in this pokey little town in northern England, but I get to talk and listen to amazing people from all round the world.

[besideserato.livejournal.com]

Me too. Well, change "town" to "island" and "England" to "Mariana Islands" and you have my act.

Except it's 7:28 a.m. and I have been only since 4:00 p.m. yesterday, so I am somewhat losing sleep over it...

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

Omigosh.

I couldn't risk an all-nighter like that.

If I lose my beauty sleep I become so unbeautiful it's not true.

[besideserato.livejournal.com]

It's tough! I'm crashing but I still can't stop!

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

It's coming up to 11.30. A few more minutes and I'm off....

[besideserato.livejournal.com]

Oh, I might still be here! [Laughs]