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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=soXm_uLPSsg
CNN LARRY KING LIVE
Countdown to Michael Jackson Memorial Service
Aired July 6, 2009 - 21:00 ET
KING: Joining us now on the phone, Donald Trump, old friend, real estate
mogul, star of "Celebrity Apprentice." How well did you know Michael, Donald?
DONALD TRUMP: Well, Larry, as you know, I knew him very well. He was a
great guy. He was actually a very, very smart business man. He was somebody
that was very special. He lived in Trump Tower for an extended period of time in
New York -- and right next to me, actually. And so I got to know him very well.
He would go down to Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach a lot. In fact, that's where he
was with Lisa Marie Presley when it first came out. And he was there for a very
long period of time. But he would go down often.
KING: When was the last time you spoke with him?
TRUMP: Probably a year ago, Larry. You know, Michael was a much different
guy in the last seven or eight years, maybe 10 years, than he was. I always
view it as two Michael Jacksons. You had...
KING: How do you mean?
TRUMP: Well, you had Michael from, let's say, up to around the age of 35.
And that was somebody -- the greatest -- the greatest entertainer I've ever
seen. And then you had the later version of Michael, who was much more reticent.
He was much shyer. I mean, you know, the -- he was just a -- a little bit of a
different guy.
KING: Yes.
TRUMP: And I -- I really knew both Michaels. He was a terrific guy. He was a
wonderful guy. But he lost a certain amount of confidence in the last ten years.
I mean, he went through a lot, including some very, very bad doctors.
KING: What about the business aspect of this? Is he going to be worth a lot
more gone than here?
TRUMP: Well, he's going to be worth a lot of money. He's got -- all of his albums
are number one now. Probably they've never seen anything like it. I guess the debt
will be paid off pretty quickly. He really was -- he was a great businessman. He'd
come into my apartment, and we'd talk a lot about business.
As an example, he met with Paul McCartney. Paul McCartney was telling him -- and
this is a pretty well-known story. Michael told it to me. Paul McCartney mentioned that
he was going to try and buy back the other half of the Beatles music. Michael then went
out and bought it. You could say it's not very nice. I've heard that Paul has always been
very angry at Michael for doing that. Perhaps Paul shouldn't have mentioned it. Perhaps
that's just business and the way it is. But he really was a very, very good businessman.
A very smart guy.
KING: You're a sharp realtor guy and you know southern California. I was up
at Neverland. We did a whole show from there Thursday. I never saw a property
as beautiful as that, 3,000 acres. What would you do with it?
TRUMP: I'm not sure exactly who owns it. A very good friend of mine, Tom Barrack
(ph), is very much involved --
KING: He was there. Their company apparently pretty much owns it.
TRUMP: Yes, Tom is a brilliant guy and a wonderful friend. And he was actually
somebody who helped Michael Jackson a lot over the last couple of years. But I
think Tom has that. I'm just not sure what you can do from a zoning standpoint.
KING: Could you envision a Graceland?
TRUMP: Well, I could, but it's a difficult area. You have to go through this town.
As you know, they drove him crazy. The interesting thing is I've known Michael
from many different standpoints. And Michael would spend a lot of time with my kids.
I have beautiful kids. And at the time, like at Mar-a-Lago and even at Trump Tower,
the kids were very young. Michael would come, play with the kids. He just loved children.
He was not a child molester. And I am certain of that. He loved children. He'd play with my
son Eric, and my son Donald. And he'd just play with them forever. He loved children.
But he was not a child molester.
You know that whole final saga of Neverland and the police and what they did was,
I think, a very, very -- a very, very bad part of Michael's life.
KING: Are you coming out for the service?
TRUMP: They invited me today, and they've called me so many times. I'd love to
do it. I just won't be able to there be. I'd love to be there. I'd love to be with you.
I'd love to be with the family. But I just won't be able to be there.
KING: What do you make of this whole thing, this billions of people going to
watch this on television?
TRUMP: Well he was a unique guy, you know? I first met him years ago when he
did a concert in Madison Square Garden. I was back stage. I just spoke to him a
little while. He was low key even in those days. That was the "Thriller" days, when
he had great, great success. It was amazing, because I would talk to him. I would
say, there's no way that this guy is going out to that stage to perform. Then you'd
see him Moon Walk across the stage and the place would go crazy.
You know, I've had every entertainer working for me, more or less. And I just sort
of know them all. I knew Pavarotti. I knew all the great entertainers.
I think
the greatest entertainer I've ever seen was Michael Jackson. There's never been
anyone like him. I guess Elvis was like him, and the Beatles. There were a few every
generation.
KING: Sinatra. ?
TRUMP: Sinatra was great. But there are very few. These people you can count
them on your hand. Michael was one of them. Just a great guy. He took tremendous
-- I mean, he's just had tremendous -- really difficult last ten years. His last ten
years, he's been living in hell.
KING: Donald, thanks so much for sharing these moments with
us.
TRUMP: Thank you very much, Larry.
