24. Breakthrough
If there’s an image of Trump finally branching out from the umbrella that his grandfather and father had put up, it might be this one. Trump is seen here just after the New York Board of Estimate approved a plan for Trump to purchase and refurbish the abandoned Commodore Hotel in Manhattan. This was the purchase that allowed Trump to launch his real estate business, according to Wikipedia. Of course, it would be unfair to say Trump truly ventured out on his own.
The $70 million construction loan was guaranteed jointly by Fred Trump and the Hyatt Hotel chain (which would get its name on the building after the reconstruction). Though Trump continues to this day to claim he built the company himself, it’s more accurate to say he simply continued the success his grandfather and father had before him.
