It’s always thrilling to learn what a celebrity was like before they were famous. After all, fame serves as a kind of mask: no matter how much you enjoy a movie star, for example, you don’t know who they really are. You simply know the characters they play. And the more you see them playing different roles, the hungrier you become to know what the real person is like once the cameras stop rolling.
That’s certainly the case with Donald Trump, who has been a celebrity for almost all of his adult life. He’s been a real estate mogul, an actor, a reality TV star, and even the president. In that sense, he’s more famous than most people will ever be. But that leaves the question: what was Trump like before he became a household name? What do we know about his early days, and what do these facts tell us about the most powerful man in the world? Keep reading to find out!
Donald Trump’s special oasis from the big city
One thing that has often surprised Donald Trump’s biggest fans and his harshest critics is his love for Mar-a-Lago, a pretty piece of property in Palm Beach, Florida. Trump was raised in New York City, which is where he made a name for himself, one real estate project at a time. Why, then, does he spend so much time in Mar-a-Lago, a place that he would later dub the Southern White House? Simple: for a man who leads an insanely busy and bustling life, Mar-a-Lago represents a kind of peaceful oasis.
In all likelihood, the Palm Beach property reminds Trump of a different oasis that he had when he was much younger. Instead of growing up in a major metropolitan area, young Donald grew up in a secluded neighborhood his dad built (Jamaica Estates) in Queens, New York. He apparently loved his childhood home, and he later told The New York Times that it was his “safe…oasis” away from the big city.
Given that, is it any surprise that the older Donald Trump continues embrace a peaceful home away from home in Mar-a-Lago?
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Enrolling in a military academy
As Commander-in-Chief of the United States, Donald Trump is very accustomed to ordering American soldiers into conflicts in places like the Middle East. Some of his critics point out that this is ironic for a man who got a deferral to stay out of the Vietnam War, a deferral that he reportedly only got thanks to a family friend getting him a medical exemption. But staying out of ‘Nam doesn’t mean that Trump has no military experience. In fact, he spent some of his formative years in an elite military academy!
When he was a teenager, Donald Trump’s parents enrolled their son in the New York Military Academy. Instead of resenting them for this decision, Trump now believes his parents made the right decision. In 2016, he told The Washington Post that “I was a wise guy, and they wanted to get me in line.” He also concluded that, “Thinking back, it was a very positive influence.” Of course, he has reason to think positively about those years: at the academy, Trump swiftly rose through the ranks, eventually becoming captain of A company his senior year.
A baseball dream, deferred
Once you settle into your career, it’s fairly common for people to ask you what your road not taken was. For example, those in education often hear the same question from their students: “what would you have done if you hadn’t become a teacher?” This is a harder question to pose to Donald Trump, though, for the simple reason that he has embraced so many different careers. He dominated in real estate, television, and even politics. What, then, could be the alternative career this man would have chosen if given the chance to turn back time?
Believe it or not, Donald Trump longed to become a baseball star! Back in 2010, he claimed (as reported by MTV News) that he “was supposed to be a professional baseball player.” That might sound like a typically Trumpian boast, but his old baseball coach from the president’s military academy days confirmed that Trump was good enough to be scouted by West Point, the Boston Red Sox, and the Philadelphia Phillies.
Instead of playing ball, however, Trump chose to hit a “home run” in a different field altogether: real estate!
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Donald Trump wanted to go into show business
Later in his life, Donald Trump became something of a film and television icon. He made occasional cameos in movies and shows, including Home Alone 2. However, he became most famous in this field by headlining The Apprentice, a reality television show where he imparted his “art of the deal” wisdom to contestants. Because of this, you may not be surprised to discover that Donald Trump wanted to go into show business when he was younger. What is surprising, though, is that he wanted to be behind the cameras as a producer!
Before he began studying business, Trump wanted to be a movie producer, and he applied to the University of Southern California. However, they rejected his application, effectively dashing his dreams of film production. Trump subsequently tried to become a producer of plays, and he offered Broadway producer David Black a cool $70,000 so he could get a co-producer credit. Unfortunately, the play, Paris Is Out!, completely flopped. Trump’s dreams of being a creative producer died afterward, though he reportedly later wanted to create a musical based on (what else?) his own life.