The Apprentice, Episode 14: You’re Hired!

The final episode of The Apprentice begins with Trump giving us a full recap of what’s happened so far on the show. But you fine people have undoubtedly been printing and filing my articles all along, so you don’t need me to go over that again, right? Interestingly, Trump says that once the candidates got to the casino challenge, Kwame and Bill had emerged as leaders. He points to their two different strategies (though they were on the same team). Bill handled the VIPs, and Kwame relied on the shock value of bringing a tiger into the casino. Trump says that Bill is an “idea man,” and has business savvy and street smarts. Kwame is a “solid competitor” who managed to avoid conflict with his teammates – a difficult task with this group for sure. He has a calm and collected demeanor, a Harvard MBA, and a prestigious job.

But in the final challenge, Trump says both men were in a bit over their heads. Bill was to manage a golf tournament at the Trump National, but had some organizational problems. Kwame, in charge of managing the Jessica Simpson concert at the Taj Mahal, had some logistical nightmares that culminated in the star herself going missing. In the final boardroom, only one will win. Let’s get to it!

We start at the Taj Mahal. Omarosa wonders again how you can lose a rock star like Jessica Simpson. Kwame and Troy join her in the office to track down Jessica. In an interview, Kwame says, “Omarosa just totally dropped the ball. I would fire Omarosa because she’s incompetent, but I don’t have the luxury of doing that.” Finally, Omarosa gets Jessica on the phone. Where is Jessica? Why, she’s in the hotel! It turns out that Jessica’s people booked their own transportation, but the staff of the Taj Mahal didn’t know that. It’s too bad there wasn’t anyone in charge of handling the logistics of the transportation. What’s that? Oh, that’s right! Omarosa was in charge!

Kwame and Omarosa head to Jessica’s suite and meet her and her husband Nick. Omarosa jokes that she thought she had just lost “the biggest rock star in the country.” Could it be more obvious that she’s trying to kiss up to Jessica? Jessica is indeed a big star, but to call her the biggest rock star in the country is taking things a little too far. Jessica says that she was confused about the transportation, but they figured it out. Omarosa assures Jessica that from now on, the logistics will be tight. I wonder if by that she means that she will no longer be in charge, because that’s the only way I can see that happening. Kwame, in the background, looks relieved.

Bright and early the next morning, Bill and his team get to work on the golf tournament. Bill says that they got up at four and started work at 5:30 so they’d have as much time as possible to iron out the last details. He notes that for the first time ever, Katrina was dressed and ready for a task on time, and he appreciates it. Shortly after they start work, Bill discovers that the sponsor sign for Marquis Jet is missing. One of the workers at the clubhouse asks him what the sign looks like. A frazzled Bill says that it’s a sign that says Marquis Jet on it. Hee! The man goes to look for the sign.

Next, Bill learns that because of the cold weather, there will be a frost delay that will postpone the tournament. The tournament was to start at 9:00, but because of the frost, people walking on the green would damage the grass. They won’t be able to start until 10:30. Bill asks what the normal procedure is when this happens. Good question – it’s not like this is the first time this has ever happened, and I’m sure the Trump National knows just how to deal with this problem. The groundskeeper says that all you can do is have a cup of coffee and wait.

Bill says that he’s not stressed yet, but he is worried about the Marquis Jet sign. He calls to see if it’s in the model home. Amy explains in an interview that they are under a contractual obligation to display the signs. Bill says that it’s crucial to have good relationships with the sponsors. As he’s looking for the signs, the reps from Marquis Jet arrive. Bill smoothly tells them that their sign will be up as soon as the frost goes away. Good move, Bill. Bill then decides, in desperation, to see if maybe the sign got thrown away by mistake. Sure enough, it’s in the dumpster, undamaged. Amy thinks that in their frenzy of cleaning the office, it must have been thrown away by mistake. Bill has the sign on a golf cart just as the Marquis Jet reps return.

At the Taj Mahal, Kwame and Troy have an 8:30 meeting with the reps from Project Smile, a charity that Jessica Simpson works with for children born with cleft palates. Kwame notes that he woke up at 6:30 even though he had been up until 2:00 the night before. Much like I’ll be doing after I finish this recap. There is to be a breakfast that morning with Mark from the Taj Mahal, the Project Smile people, Jessica, and Nick. Kwame says that Troy took over the planning of the breakfast, which was supposed to be Omarosa’s job. Good plan, Kwame, but unfortunately, things aren’t going well yet. Jay, who heads the food and beverage staff, was unclear on when breakfast was to be served, so nothing has happened yet. Kwame makes arrangements for them to pull together a quick cold breakfast for everyone.