Over the course of its 13-year and 15-season run on NBC, Donald Trump's business reality competition series The Apprentice became one of the most popular TV shows in the genre. After this amazing run came to an end in 2017, Trump was adamant that his successor, Arnold Schwarzenegger had 'ruined the show.'
The premise of the competition was that young business minds from around the country would come together for a number of weeks, and compete through challenges to eventually win the opportunity to work in the Trump Organization.
In the early seasons of The Apprentice, Trump was usually flanked by his underlings George H. Ross and Carolyn Kepcher, who was his right hand on the series. In latter years, the New York mogul's children Ivanka, Eric and Donald Jr. also started to join their father in the infamous boardroom.
From time to time, a winner from a previous season would also be a part of Trump's decision-making panel in their capacities as members of his business empire. But did every winner of a season of The Apprentice get to work for Trump?
The answer to that question is quite a mixed pot.
Kelly Perdew's Original Job In The Trump Organization Was Later Revealed To Only Be A Marketing Stint
The very first winner of an Apprentice season was cigar shop owner, William 'Bill' Rancic. After his triumph, the Illinois resident was given two options for his initial job in the Trump Organization.The first was to oversee construction of the Trump International Hotel and Tower in his native Chicago, while the second was to manage a new Trump National Golf Course in LA.
At the end of his original one-year-contract, Rancic opted against starting his own company. He instead continued to work in the Organization, and even occasionally filled for George H. Ross on The Apprentice.
Season 2 winner Kelly Perdew was meant to take charge of the construction of Trump Place in Manhattan, although this was later revealed to be a marketing gimmick for the new property. Perdew would later be described as 'executive vice-president of Trump Ice,' another not-so-concrete job title.
Kendra Todd, Sean Yazbeck and Randall Pinkett all got to work under Trump, but the latter has since become a very vocal opponent of him over the years.
Piers Morgan Is Still A Close Ally Of Donald Trump
Practicing attorney Stephanie Schaeffer was the winner of The Apprentice Season 6. After her victorious run, she was placed in charge of the Trump at Cap Cana project in Santa Domingo, in the Dominic Republican.
The project never really got to take off properly, but it was said that Trump managed to walk away with $15 million in profit. The following season, the first edition of Celebrity Apprentice was launched.
British journalist Piers Morgan came out on top in a competition that also featured the likes of country star Trace Adkins, legendary boxer Lennox Lewis and former Apprentice contestant Omarosa Manigault, who would go on to work in - and then get fired from - the Trump White House.
The following two seasons also followed the Celebrity Apprentice format, with comedian and actress Joan Rivers and rock musician Bret Michaels being crowned the ultimate winners.
Considering their prior active roles in other fields, none of the three celebrities actively worked for Trump. Instead, a respective charity of their choice would benefit from a sizeable donation. Nonetheless, Piers Morgan has remained a very vocal supporter of Trump in the years since.
Brandy Kuentzel Was Never Told "You're Hired"
Season 10 of The Apprentice saw a return to the previous format, with non-celebrities competing for a job in the Trump Organization. This installment was conquered by another lawyer, Brandy Kuentzel from San Fransisco, California.
Kuentzel intriguingly became the only Apprentice winner who never got told the words "You're hired" at the end of the season. It is also not well documented if at all she did indeed work for Trump. Today, her LinkedIn profile describes her 'Seasoned Animal Welfare Professional Redefining Access to Pet Care.'
Each of the remaining four seasons was a Celebrity Apprentice installment, whose ultimate honors went to musician John Rich, comedian Arsenio Hall, talk-show host Leeza Gibbons, as well as the returning Trace Adkins.
The 15th season of the American franchise was titled The New Celebrity Apprentice, and was the only one that never featured Donald Trump as host. That gig instead went to Arnold Schwarzenegger, although the ratings that year were so poor that the entire show was canceled.
Comedian and actor Matt Iseman became the first and only winner of this version of The Apprentice.