American Castle

2023 Marks the 100th Anniversary of Groundbreaking at Mar-a-Lago Includes a Focused History of Trump’s Pre-Presidential Financial & Real Estate Dealings Deeply Researched History, 100 Years of Upper-Class Gossip, and Sharp Critique of Architecture and Design—This Is the Full Biography of America’s Most Infamous Mansion and Notorious Crime Scene: Uses previously untapped interviews, documents, and recordings to bring to life the estate and an incredible cast of characters. The Story Behind Mar-a-Lago and “Trumpville:” To juice up his flagging cash flow in 1991, Trump tried to appease locals and still satisfy creditors by keeping the house but selling off $15 million worth of Mar-a-Lago’s grounds as homesites. But Palm Beach rebelled against “Trumpville,” and then Trump threatened to sue everybody. Sending Mar-a-Lago to the Moon: The story behind Trump’s threat, more frightening than a lawsuit, to sell Mar-a-Lago to the Rev. Sun Myung Moon and his Unification Church of “Moonie” congregants.  Inside Trump’s War to Turn Mar-a-Lago into a For-Profit Resort Club Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous: Includes Trump and Ivanka, Marla, and Melania, plus the marriage and affairs of original Mar-a-Lago owners E.F. Hutton and divorcee Marjorie Merriweather Post (heiress to the Post Cereal fortune), followed by more divorces.   Before Donald Trump, There Was Marjorie Merriweather Post: An heiress who turned her father’s company into General Foods, one of the first women to command a global corporation. The story of her building, inhabiting, and trying to offload Mar-a-Lago. History Repeating: Takes the story of the wealthy couple who built it—their 1935 divorce, the newspaper coverage and gossip about adultery, and their own publicity campaign to put a positive spin on it, and pairs it with Trump’s financial shenanigans, affairs, divorces, and aggressive publicity campaigns. Mar-a-Lago as Center of Stark Racial and Demographic Distinctions: After the hurricane of 1928, for example, Mar-a-Lago's owners simply had to repair damages while thousands of poor, Black laborers living in shacks had died the suffocating death of drowning. History of Mar-a-Lago’s Outrageous and Scandalous Dinners and Parties and Raids: From the FBI raid to Kanye West and white nationalist Nick Fuentes back to Trump’s celebrity-studded pre-presidential parties, the book also covers Post’s benefits showcasing trapeze acts, rodeo performers, and a trick mule named Spark Plug; even a circus freak show featuring French and Belgian midgets, a “living” skeleton, monkey man, an armless wonder, and a 700-pound woman.  History of Mar-a-Lago’s Impressive Guests: The book narrates how, long before Trump, Mar-a-Lago was a celebrated stop for royalty, powerbrokers, and socialites. The Surprising Pre-Trump Presidential History of Mar-a-Lago: Joseph Kennedy’s attempt to buy it for the Kennedys; Lady Bird Johnson’s 1968 visit to consider it for a more luxurious version of Camp David; and Nixon’s July 1974 diary entry upon “look[ing] over the property to determine its potential for possible use by US Presidents for visiting foreign dignitaries.” A Tale of Florida and Palm Beach: The story behind the failed attempt in 1963 to give the estate to Florida as “The Mar-a-Lago Center for Advanced Scholars.”  How the Federal Government Swallowed It Up and Spit It Back Out: Though it became a national historic site in 1969, the upkeep cost too much, and President Carter signed an act into law on Dec. 23, 1980, to officially delist Mar-a-Lago from the park service.   Unpacking the Parsimonious Truth About How Trump Purchased Mar-a-Lago from the Post Foundation: How Trump got 99.97% financing from Chase Manhattan Bank and used less than $3,000 of his own money to purchase the estate.   Architecture and Real Estate Thread: Fascinating comparisons to the other mansions of the area, like El Mirasol, and its wealthy residents, plus detailed portrayals of Mar-a-Lago architects Marion Sims Wyeth and Joseph Urban; and Austrian sculptor Franz Barwig. Successful Publishing Trend of Books About Celebrated and Notorious Buildings:·      The Last Castle and The Plaza and 740 Park and Life at the Dakota 15 to 25 black-and-white photos