THE WORLD ACCORDING TO TRUMP

Trump may be the show, but he's not the only star to emerge from "The Apprentice." The 16 contestants have all become mini-celebrities: Kwame, Omarosa, Troy--in certain circles, you don't even need to give their last names. Even the losers are winners. Sam Solovey lasted three episodes, but he became one of the show's stars, thanks to his bizarre business decisions (he tried to sell a guy a cup of lemonade for $1,000) and his almost unnatural adoration of Trump. "I would sell widgets on the side of the road with that guy," Solovey says. "Donald Trump is the king of them all." And Sam is already riding his coattails. Thanks to the show, Solovey has been featured in newspapers across the country, proposed to his girlfriend on "Today" and fielded all sorts of job offers. "A tech company out in San Francisco said they were looking for a new CEO and wanted to bring me in for an interview," says Solovey, who publishes a technology newsletter. "A comedian wants me to go on the road with him to radio stations. It's kind of funny."

The fact that wacky Sam lasted on the show as long as he did has made people wonder whether Trump, who is an executive producer of the show, keeps the most entertaining people even if they're the least competent. He has also spared the show's reigning villain, Omarosa, even though his own lieutenants have recommended she go. "It has nothing to do with the fact that we have great ratings and I want to keep them that way. It's just pure instinct as to who's going to do the best job," he says. "Wait until you see me go after Omarosa." Not everyone is convinced that Trump is playing fair. "It's a TV show. You gotta remember that," says fired contestant Bowie Hogg. "Trump knows how to get good ratings. He's a smart, smart man."

And now's he's a very busy one. Trump has always been as much of a promoter as a developer, so he's wasting no time cashing in on his TV fame. He's marketing his own bottled water, Trump Ice--featured, naturally, on "The Apprentice" this week. He's writing another book, "How to Get Rich," which will include a section on "The Art of the Hair." And he's signed on for a second run of "The Apprentice," though he's quick to point out that he'll get paid "a lot more" than the $100,000 per episode fee he got the first time round. There's only one thing worrying him. He doesn't want people to think he's just another TV fad, a real-life Joe Billionaire who's a hit today and reality roadkill tomorrow. "This isn't my so-called 15 minutes," he says. "I'll be around." As if anyone could ever fire Donald Trump.

WITH BARNEY GIMBEL AND VANESSA JUAREZ

© 2004