Robert Trump

Robert Stewart Trump (August 26, 1948 – August 15, 2020) was an American real estate developer and business executive. He was the younger brother of Donald Trump.

Robert S. Trump
Born
Robert Stewart Trump

(1948-08-26)August 26, 1948
Queens, New York City, U.S.
DiedAugust 15, 2020(2020-08-15) (aged 71)
Manhattan, New York City, U.S.
Alma materBoston University
OccupationReal estate developer
Spouse(s)
​
​
(m. 1980; div. 2009)​

Ann Marie Pallan
​
(m. 2020)​
Parents
FamilySee Trump family

Early life and education
See also: Family of Donald Trump

Robert Stewart Trump was born in Queens, New York City, on August 26, 1948, to Fred Trump and Mary Anne MacLeod.[1][2] He was the youngest of their five children; his siblings were Maryanne, Fred Jr., Elizabeth, and Donald.[1][3] Trump attended Boston University where he majored in economics;[2] while there he played soccer and was the MVP and team captain in 1969.[4]

Career

Trump joined his father's business and came to manage the Trump Organization's real estate holdings outside of Manhattan.[5][6]

He served on the board of directors for ZeniMax Media, parent company to Bethesda Softworks, a position he occupied from 1999[7] until his death in 2020.[8] During his tenure as a director, ZeniMax published series including Fallout, The Elder Scrolls, Doom, and Wolfenstein. His role at the company was highlighted by media outlets in the wake of the Parkland school shooting, when his brother linked video games to violence and subsequently met with various industry chiefs,[9][10] including Robert Altman, CEO of ZeniMax.[11] In addition to being a Board member at ZeniMax, Trump was also an investor in the company.[12]

In the years prior to his death, Robert Trump was the president of Trump Management, a business owned by the Trump siblings, including Donald and Robert, as well as their sisters Maryanne Trump-Barry and Elizabeth Trump-Grau.[13] At some point, Trump worked as a real estate developer.[14]

Mary Trump book lawsuit
Main article: Too Much and Never Enough

In June 2020, Robert Trump filed a lawsuit seeking to preclude the upcoming publication of the book by his niece, Mary L. Trump, Too Much and Never Enough. Trump's lawsuit was based on a 2001 confidentiality agreement Mary Trump signed in settling a lawsuit related to her grandfather, Fred Trump's, will and estate.[15]

Justice Hal B. Greenwald of the New York Supreme Court ruled in July 2020 that the book's publisher, Simon & Schuster, was not a party to the 2001 NDA, and its rights to publish the book were not restricted by that agreement. Greenwald affirmed that Mary Trump's contract with the publisher gave her no ability to halt publication at that point.[16] The book was published as scheduled on July 14, 2020.

Personal life

Robert Trump lived in Millbrook, New York.[17] In 1980, Trump married Blaine Beard, whom he met at a Christie's fundraiser.[18] He had a stepson Christopher Trump-Retchin. The two filed for divorce in 2007, and the divorce was finalized by 2009.[2][19] Trump married his second wife, Ann Marie Pallan, in January 2020.[20]

Relationship with Donald Trump

In 1990, Donald Trump put Robert in charge of the Trump Taj Mahal casino in Atlantic City, New Jersey. The casino experienced significant problems with its grand opening, especially the slot machine financial controls, that took months to rectify. According to Jack O'Donnell, a former Trump Organization executive, at one of the meetings, "Donald Trump screamed at his brother, putting the blame for the slot machine debacle entirely on him."[2]

Robert Trump remained a loyal supporter of his brother's political career. In a 2016 interview, Robert Trump stated: "I support Donald one thousand percent."[21] Eric Bolling after Robert's death had stated that he and his wife Ann Marie Pallan were vigorous supporters of Donald. Trump himself stated on Fox & Friends that he was his biggest fan and would hear about his immense support from others too.[22]

Health and death

In June 2020, Trump reportedly spent a week in intensive care at Mount Sinai Hospital in Manhattan.[23] On August 14, 2020, the White House announced that he had again been hospitalized, and that his brother, the President, would visit him. President Trump visited him that day, later stating that Robert was very ill and was "having a hard time".[24][25] Robert Trump died at NewYork–Presbyterian Hospital in Manhattan the following day, August 15, 2020, at age 71, 11 days before his 72nd birthday; the cause of death has not been disclosed. The New York Times quoted a family friend as saying that Trump had recently started experiencing intracerebral hemorrhaging after a fall.[2] Mary Trump, in an interview with Greenpeace a few days before his death, said that Robert had been sick and hospitalized "a couple of times in the last three months."[26]

In a written statement, Donald Trump said, "He was not just my brother, he was my best friend."[2][27] A funeral service was held for Robert on August 21, 2020 in the East Room attended by 150 guests. This was the first time in almost a century that a president had held a funeral in the East Room. White House officials stated that all expenses would be privately paid by President Trump.[22]

References
  1. Hannan, Martin (May 20, 2016). "An inconvenient truth? Donald Trump's Scottish mother was a low-earning migrant". The National. Archived from the original on October 14, 2018. Retrieved February 11, 2017.
  2. Karni, Annie (August 15, 2020). "Robert S. Trump, the President's Younger Brother, Dies at 71". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved August 16, 2020.
  3. "Trump's Brother and Yankees Executive Coming to Hudson Valley". WKXP. January 9, 2017. Archived from the original on February 12, 2017. Retrieved February 11, 2017.
  4. Staff Writer (August 16, 2020). "Robert Trump, BU Alum and President's Brother, Dies". BU Today. Retrieved August 17, 2020.
  5. Blair, Gwenda (2015). The Trumps: Three Generations of Builders and a Presidential Candidate. Simon & Schuster. p. 454. ISBN 1501139363. Archived from the original on February 17, 2017. Retrieved February 11, 2017.
  6. Horowitz, Jason (January 2, 2016). "For Donald Trump, Lessons From a Brother's Suffering". New York Times. Archived from the original on October 27, 2017. Retrieved February 11, 2017.
  7. McAloon, Alissa (August 17, 2020). "Obituary: ZeniMax board member Robert Trump". Gamasutra. Retrieved August 17, 2020.
  8. "ZeniMax Media Board of Directors". Archived from the original on July 31, 2020. Retrieved August 16, 2020.
  9. Sink, Justin; Palmeri, Christopher (March 8, 2018). "Video-Game Companies Are Meeting With Trump. His Brother Is on One's Board". Bloomberg. Archived from the original on June 25, 2020. Retrieved August 16, 2020.
  10. Montanaro, Domenico; Parks, Miles (March 18, 2018). "Trump Pits Video Game Makers Against Harshest Critics In Closed-Door Meeting". NPR. Retrieved August 16, 2020.
  11. Snider, Mike (March 8, 2018). "These are the video games the White House played in its meeting on game violence". USA Today. Retrieved August 16, 2020.
  12. Takahashi, Dean (May 30, 2008). "ZeniMax Media raises $9.9 million from some big names". VentureBeat. Archived from the original on June 25, 2016. Retrieved August 16, 2020.
  13. Thomas Kika (August 14, 2020). "Who Is Robert Trump? President's Brother Hospitalized, Seriously Ill". International Business Times. Retrieved August 16, 2020.
  14. "Trump says younger brother and 'best friend' Robert Trump has died". The Independent. August 16, 2020. Retrieved August 16, 2020.
  15. Jacobs, Shayna (July 13, 2020). "Judge affirms Trump's niece can publish her book about the president and his family". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on July 18, 2020. Retrieved July 17, 2020.
  16. "Donald Trump's Niece Mary Can Speak Out About Her Family with Scathing New Memoir, Judge Rules". People.com. July 14, 2020. Archived from the original on August 5, 2020. Retrieved August 15, 2020.
  17. Kasssel, Matthew (November 2, 2016). "Where Has Donald Trump's Brother Robert Been During This Election?". Town & Country. Archived from the original on May 20, 2017. Retrieved February 11, 2017.
  18. "The Winning Ways of Blaine Trump". New York Times. October 28, 1987. Archived from the original on January 27, 2017. Retrieved February 11, 2017.
  19. Rosenblum, Emma (December 8, 2007). "Divorce, Park Avenue Style". New York Magazine. Archived from the original on June 3, 2017. Retrieved February 11, 2017.
  20. "Robert Trump, younger brother of president, dead at 71". Retrieved August 31, 2020.
  21. Richard Johnson (January 17, 2016). "Donald Trump's brother Robert emerges". Page Six. Archived from the original on August 14, 2020. Retrieved August 16, 2020.
  22. "Trump Holds a Rare White House Funeral for His Younger Brother, Robert". The New York Times. Retrieved August 24, 2020.
  23. Holland, Steve (August 16, 2020). "'He was my best friend' - Robert Trump, US president's brother who shunned the spotlight, dies". Irish Independent.
  24. "Robert Trump, Donald's brother, seriously ill in New York hospital". The Guardian. Retrieved August 16, 2020.
  25. Jackson, David; Fritze, John; Subramanian, Courtney (August 14, 2020). "'Having a hard time.' President Trump's brother Robert is hospitalized in New York". USA Today. Retrieved August 16, 2020.
  26. "Fireside fire drill with Jane Fonda and Mary Trump". Greenpeace USA. Retrieved August 14, 2020.
  27. "Robert Trump, the younger brother of President Donald Trump, dead at age 71". CNN. Retrieved August 16, 2020.
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