Cultural Smackdown: The Apprentice Edition

This version of the Smackdown will focus on the main difference between the two versions: the host of the respective versions of The Apprentice.

US vs. UK!

So let's break this down:

US Version

The classiest boss in the world

- Hosted by: Donald Trump
- Known as: "The Donald", though generally shown respect by candidates who refer to him as "Mr. Trump"
- Age: 65
- Signature hand gesture when firing:  the cobra (pictured above)
- How he became wealthy: Family money.. He joined his father's already successful real estate company, he took it to heights of success and some shaky depths.
- How he became famous:  He raised his profile due to his outrageous style, outspoken nature, and penchant for trading in wives.
- Politics:  Aye, aye, aye...  He initially toyed with running for President as a 3rd party candidate in 2000.  He's been making noises (and vaguely racist proclamations about our current president) about running as a Republican in the next election.
- Children: 5 by 3 different wives; Donald Jr., Ivanka, Eric, Tiffany & Barron
- Wives: Ivana (1977-1992); Marla Maples (1993-1999); Melania Knauss (2004-present)
- Likes:  gold, golf, calling things "classy", the sound of his own voice, styling his hair in a thoroughly ridiculous manner and refusing to listen to anyone who might suggest that is might look better in another style.
-Estimated to be worth:  $2.7 billion (according to Forbes)

UK Version

The Tell-it-like-it-is Boss

- Hosted by: Alan Sugar

- Known as: "Lord Sugar", though his official title is Baron Sugar, of Clapton in the London Borough of Hackney.  Before he was made a Lord he was known as "Sir Alan" as he was knighted in 2000.  

- Age: 64

- Signature hand gesture when firing:  the point (pictured above)

- How he became wealthy: All on his own, baby.  He grew up poor in the East End of London, the son of a tailor.  He began his entrepreneurial empire by selling electronics out of a van as a market seller.  From there he built an electronics company that he sold in 2007 for £125 million.  

- How he became famous:  He came into the public eye when he bought Tottenham Hotspur.  This raised his profile.  Possibly the fact that his business deals with electronics and media, combined with his self-made status, made him a "celebrity" of sorts.

- Politics:  He's a supporter of the Labour party.  There were reports that he'd been approached to stand as the Labour candidate for Mayor of London, which he has dismissed.  He was given the title of Baron so that he could serve with Gordon Brown's government as "Enterprise Champion", a non-political role.

- Children: 3; Simon, Daniel, Louise

- Wives: Ann (1968-present)

- Likes:  Rolls Royces, footballsoccer, travel, getting in Twitter spats, being shot from angle that doesn't make him look quite so short, talking about his roots

- Estimated to be worth: $1.14 billion

So who wins?
In my opinion, Trump has become too much like a caricature.  He's made the show increasingly entertainment-oriented as it progressed from season to season.  Sugar, on the other hand, has exerted more and more control over the show to demand better candidates and more real business-oriented tasks.  It could just be because Sugar is new to me, and hasn't had time to grow as tiresome as I find The Donald, but for my money- Sugar takes it.

Mr. Trump-  You're fired! (Note:  I was going to take a cute picture of myself doing a signature firing hand motion, but I don't feel very photogenic today... so just picture it for yourself, ok?  Ok.)

What do you think?