Two months before publication, in a more cynical bid to promote the book, Trump waded into national politics. Trump also appeared on a number of magazine covers as part of publicity for the book.
There were a series of appearances by him on television talk shows. This included Trump holding a release party at Trump Tower, hosted by Jackie Mason, featuring a celebrity-filled guest list. A promotional campaign was undertaken in conjunction with its release. The Art of the Deal was published in November 1987 by Random House. Schwartz repeated his self-criticism on Good Morning America, saying he had " put lipstick on a pig." In response to these claims, Trump's attorneys demanded that Schwartz cede all his royalties from the book to Trump. He also stated that if it were to be written today it would be very different and titled The Sociopath. Schwartz was the subject of a July 2016 article in The New Yorker in which he describes Trump unfavorably and relates how he came to regret writing The Art of the Deal. The chapter was excerpted in New York Magazine to promote the book and served as a blueprint for future autobiographies. The experience was condensed into chapter one, "Dealing: A Week in the Life," which introduces the reader to countless boldface names and events. When interviews with Trump himself proved unproductive, the two struck on an unusual alternative: Schwartz listened in on Trump's office phone calls for several months to witness the dealmaker in action.
To inform the content and style, Schwartz drew on the already-substantial archive of news, profiles and books about Trump as well as interviews with Trump associates. I wrote the book." Former Random House head Howard Kaminsky, the book's original publisher, said "Trump didn’t write a postcard for us!" The book was published with the authorship given as "Donald Trump with Tony Schwartz". Trump responded with conflicting stories, saying "I had a lot of choice of who to have write the book, and I chose Schwartz", but then said "Schwartz didn't write the book. Īccording to Schwartz in July 2016, Trump did not write any of the book, choosing only to remove a few critical mentions of business colleagues at the end of the process. He needed the money to support his new family. Schwartz later admitted that his motivation was purely financial. Schwartz was hired to write the book for $250,000 upfront Trump assigned him half of the royalties. To Schwartz's amazement, Trump loved the article and even had the cover, which had an unflattering portrait of him, autographed by Schwartz and hung in his office. Journalist Tony Schwartz was recruited directly by Trump after he read Schwartz's extremely negative 1985 New York Magazine article, A Different Kind of Donald Trump Story, regarding his failed attempts to forcibly and illegally evict rent-controlled and rent-stabilized tenants from a building that he had bought on Central Park South in 1982. Trump was persuaded to produce the book by Condé Nast owner Si Newhouse after the May 1984 issue of his magazine GQ-with Trump appearing on the cover-sold well.
The book also contains an 11-step formula for business success, inspired by Norman Vincent Peale's The Power of Positive Thinking.
It then describes his early work in Brooklyn prior to moving to Manhattan and building The Trump Organization, his actions and thoughts in developing the Grand Hyatt Hotel and Trump Tower, in renovating Wollman Rink, and regarding various other projects. The book talks about Trump's childhood in Jamaica Estates, Queens. In 2019, Schwartz suggested that the work be "recategorized as fiction." Trump has personally given conflicting accounts on the question of authorship. Schwartz called writing the book his "greatest regret in life, without question," and both he and the book's publisher, Howard Kaminsky, alleged that Trump had played no role in the actual writing of the book. Trump cited it as one of his proudest accomplishments and his second-favorite book after the Bible. The book received additional attention during Trump's 2016 campaign for the presidency of the United States. It reached number 1 on The New York Times Best Seller list, stayed there for 13 weeks, and altogether held a position on the list for 48 weeks. Part memoir and part business-advice book, it was the first book credited to Trump, and helped to make him a household name. Trump: The Art of the Deal is a 1987 book credited to Donald J.