ILLUSTRATION BY LARA TOMLIN FOR TIME

FROM THE TIME ARCHIVE Martha's Endgame With the founder sentenced to prison, her troubled company plans to invent a new identity for itself [7/26/2004]

Martha, 63, has had a remarkable year. As everyone knows, last month she finished a five-month jail term. A career ender? Not for this gal. Her comeback is already well under way. Even before she returned home, she had signed deals to appear in two new TV programs, including a spin-off of Mark Burnett's and my show, NBC's The Apprentice, which I'll help produce.

Thanks to the enduring appeal of her magazine and earlier TV programs, Martha is still the standard for gracious domestic living. She gave value and definition to a niche that had been underappreciated. Her influence on American culture is still enormous: Martha, after all, has remained a Kmart brand throughout her ordeal. No one else could have pulled that off.

I remember when I first met Martha, years ago at a party. She lit up the room. Before I even knew who she was, it was obvious that this was someone special. As the years went by and I watched her turn into a one-woman industry, I was not surprised. She had everything it takes to be that successful.

I look forward to working with her on The Apprentice, watching her deal with an endless flock of Martha wannabes.

Trump is executive producer and host of The Apprentice

Oct. 11, 2004	May 22, 2000	March 26, 2001
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