Trump Gives Tramp Stamp of Approval

Wed., Jun. 13, 2007 1:13 PM PDT by Gina Serpe

Donald Trump oversaw the public makeover of former Miss USA Tara Conner. Now he's taking those mad skills back to reality TV to find a new kind of apprentice.

Inspired by the debauched antics of Tara—and Paris and Britney and Lindsay—Trump has dreamed up the prudently titled Lady or a Tramp, a reality-competition show in which purported party girls will get sent through the rigors of charm school.

There was no immediate word from Trump (whose Apprentice still may come back to NBC next year), but a spokesman confirms Fox is developing Lady or a Tramp as a possible midseason arrival. Per Variety, however, Lady or a Tramp has yet to receive the green light to begin production.

Lady or a Tramp is, like so many in the genre, based on a popular if slightly more respectfully titled U.K. series, Ladette to Lady, where the subjects are sent a British charm school and the one who's made the least amount of prim progress by the end of each episode is voted off.

Or, as co-executive producer Greg Goldman explained to Variety, the show's carges are taught "how to go from throwing a kegger to throwing a tea party."

Gloria Steinem would be proud.

In the original version, women are taught to master the fine arts of needlework and flower arranging while dressed to the nines in tweed and pearls. It has yet to be decided where the U.S. ladies, aged 18 to 30, will undergo their gentrification, though producers are considering setting it at the same charm school, Eggleston Hall, used in the British version.

One key difference between the editions, however, will be in the amount of the pre-competition party lifestyle highlighted in the show. Lady or a Tramp, as one may imagine, will be more party-heavy, though Trump & Co. maintain that the footage won't simply be shown for salaciousness' sake, but rather to capitalize on what's dominating the pop cultural psyche.

"A few months ago, Britney had just shaved her head, and the idea was timely," co-executive producer Chris Coelen told Variety. "Now, with all this craziness with Paris Hilton and Lindsay Lohan, it's even more timely."

Casting for the project is already under way. Under Trump's no doubt watchful eye, producers will be scouring the country for "rude and crude party girls" who, it probably need not be said, "love to party" and are "full of attitude."

Former Miss USA's need not apply.