Randal the Apprentice Defends His Decision
- From: Ablang <HilaryDuff111905@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Wed, 21 Dec 2005 19:32:29 -0800
Randal the Apprentice Defends His Decision
by Matt Webb Mitovich
When Donald Trump promises a twist, he usually comes through. Such was
the case on last Thursday's Season 4 finale of NBC's The Apprentice,
when, after crowning 34-year-old Randal Pinkett as the show's
first-ever African-American champ, Trump invited his brand-new protégé
to recommend runner-up Rebecca Jarvis for a job, as well. Randal,
however, held tight to his big night by obviously waylaying Trump's
plan for a double-hire. TVGuide.com spoke with Randal the following
day to discuss what has become a topic for hot debate amongst
Apprentice diehards.
TVGuide.com: First of all, congratulations on being named the
Apprentice.
Randal Pinkett: Thank you very much. Thank you.
TVGuide.com: You can probably guess what my first question will be.
Randal: You might as well go ahead and ask it....
TVGuide.com: Why not give Rebecca the nod?
Randal: Well, my response is consistent with what I said last night:
The premise of the show is that Mr. Trump seeks to identify who will
be his apprentice. At the beginning of every episode, he says, "One of
you will be chosen." Those are the rules as he states them.
TVGuide.com: But you had been chosen. You had already won.
Randal: Absolutely, absolutely. But there have been strong candidates
in the past [finales] ? [Season 1's] Kwame Jackson was an extremely
strong candidate, but Bill Rancic was not offered the opportunity to
hire Kwame. And the fact of the matter is that ultimately, this was
not my decision, this was Mr. Trump's decision. All he did was solicit
my opinion.
TVGuide.com: But you could tell he was hoping you'd say yes.
Randal: But again, ultimately it is his decision. If Mr. Trump wanted
to hire Rebecca yesterday or if he wanted to hire her today, he has
more than the means to do so. The analogy that I draw is that if you
were given the gold medal and then invited by the International
Olympic Committee to share it with the silver medalist, you wouldn't
even consider it.
TVGuide.com: The less-cynical fans have noted that your exact response
to Trump was that he should not hire Rebecca "tonight." Was that your
way of saying, "Hey, I believe in her. Let's just not give her a job
at this particular moment, OK?"
Randal: I absolutely believe in Rebecca. The premise of the show that
evening was to hire the Apprentice. I encourage Mr. Trump to bring
Rebecca into the Trump organization ? I think she would be a great
addition ? but competition is competition. I hate to see my favorite
sports team lose, but I don't expect them to share the title. Again, I
have tremendous respect for Rebecca; I just think it was a situation
where you had two very strong candidates. Mr. Trump could have easily
made the decision himself if he wanted to hire both of us last night.
TVGuide.com: Prior to the live finale, had you heard the buzz that he
might hire you both?
Randal: Absolutely, yes I had.
TVGuide.com: Was it a calculated decision of yours not to play the "I
suffered a death in the family during taping" card during the final
boardrooms? Rebecca mentioned her broken ankle and when they cut to
your reaction, you seemed to be thinking, "Hey, I'm not going for the
sympathy vote. Why is she?"
Randal: Yeah, I found it curious that in the final boardroom at Trump
Tower and then in the final boardroom at Lincoln Center, Mr. Trump and
Rebecca played up the ankle....
[0]
TVGuide.com: When it had pretty much gone without mention until then.
Randal: When obviously we had both dealt with adversity as part of the
interview process. It was certainly deliberate for me not to play up
[my grandmother's death] ? I only really made a comment on it at the
time that it happened, and never made reference to it again until just
before the final task, when he asked us to sum up our experience. I
was never looking to leverage my grandmother's passing as a way to
gain greater standing. That's unnecessary.
TVGuide.com: So you chose the Atlantic City gig.
Randal: It's a really high-profile opportunity, and Atlantic City is
one of the capitals of the country, next to Vegas, in terms of the
scene there, so I figured it'd be an exciting opportunity. I'm looking
forward to it.
TVGuide.com: What's your game at the casinos? Blackjack? Roulette?
Randal: [Laughs] I'm actually not a gambler, believe it or not.
TVGuide.com: Oh, I think you soon will be. Hey, how excited were you
to be reunited with your wife, Zahara, as part of the final reward?
Randal: Oh, that was a blessing and an honor to have her join me on
the show. And I really did miss her, as you probably could tell from
my reaction! It was such a grueling process, so to see a familiar,
living face warmed my heart. It was a priceless moment.
TVGuide.com: Let's talk about your much-discussed five degrees. I
imagine they must cover a whole wall in your house.
Randal: A wall in my office. [Laughs] Yeah, I've got a pretty
extensive academic background. But I also have an extensive business
background. I've been involved in starting five enterprises, and I run
a multimillion-dollar consulting firm. I believe my business
experience rivals my academic credentials.
TVGuide.com: Was it an extra-special victory to be named the first
African-American apprentice?
Randal: Absolutely. I've had a lot of support from the
African-American community throughout the process, and I'm greatly
appreciative of all their e-mails and calls and expressions of
support. I do take pride in being the first African-American to win.
TVGuide.com: Lastly ? and to come full circle here ? if you had last
night to do all over again, having seen the backlash you got for your
decision, would you give Trump the same answer regarding Rebecca? Have
you asked yourself that question?
Randal: I stand comfortable in the decision that I made. I might have
taken the opportunity to say truthfully how impressed I was with
Rebecca and what an incredible competitor and colleague she was
throughout the interview process, but I still firmly stand by the fact
that the premise was to hire the Apprentice, not "the apprenti."
Coming up in Tuesday's Insider: Apprentice runner-up Rebecca Jarvis
tells how she would have handled Trump's twist, discusses a setback
you didn't see, and gives TVGuide.com the exclusive scoop on the
pre-finale heartbreak she endured.
http://www.tvguide.com/News/Insider/default.htm?rmDate=12192005
====
"I don't care (if I get booed). I don't know any of those people. As long as my kids tell me that they love me, I'm fine. My motto is, when people talk about me, I say, 'Who are they? They're not God.' If God was out there booing me, I'd be upset."
-- Bonzi Wells, Sacramento Kings
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