Indeed. He was famous long before reality TV existed.
I wonder how he managed to become so well known, since people are not typically very interested in rich real estate tycoons.
NYC, read Manhattan, with it's track record of the most expensive real estate has long had a love/hate relationship with its real estate moguls. The sheer scale of midtown deals guaranteed press coverage...public relations mgrs helped of course. Couple that with high profile philanthropy. And NYC news in that media capitol becomes national news, morning tv shows, etc. That media coverage stokes some investor interest. Maybe you recall Harry and Leona Helmsley being prominent in the news decades ago, with Leona the Queen Bitch. Successes and failures have been epic, affecting livelihoods of a great many people as well market values. High drama all around.Trump just happens to have been the best.