THE LOST TYCOON

A deliciously wicked take on casino/real-estate mogul Donald J. Trump. Drawing on a wealth of sources, Hurt (For All Mankind, 1988, etc.) offers an exhaustive, gossipy rundown on a golden boy of the so-called greed decade who lost his touch—and way—in the hard realities of the 1990's. Capitalizing on political contacts made by his father, who amassed a fortune building and managing apartment houses for working-class residents of N.Y.C.'s outer boroughs, the erstwhile Wunderkind made a flashy name for himself in Manhattan property development. Moving on to Atlantic City's glittery gambling dens, the cocksure Trump (who turns 47 this June) took a great fall when his faith in ever-rising asset prices proved unfounded. In the wake of an acrimonious divorce that ended a 13- year marriage to the Czech-born Ivana (inducing bankers to review Trump's balance sheet with greater care), the ambitious hustler's leveraged empire and its trophy holdings now languish in undeclared bankruptcy. While Hurt doesn't wholly dismiss the possibility of a comeback, he leaves little doubt that Trump is bucking tough odds. Nor does the author overlook many opportunities to dish the dirt on his subject's star-crossed personal life and dubious business practices. Cases in point range from the Trump family's long- standing ties to organized-crime figures through The Donald's fling with Marla Maples; inability to weigh a deal's downside risks against its potential rewards; midnight demolition of a Manhattan landmark; and world-class talent for manipulation. Lacking the insider's edge of John R. O'Donnell's Trumped! (1991)—but, still, a slick, informed account of an upstart wheeler-dealer whose brass may be exceeded only by his reach. (Photographs—not seen)