The day: July 9, 2000. The place: Wrigley Field. A young, 54-year-old fake billionaire with wild aspirations had been practicing singing “Take Me Out to the Ballgame” for two full weeks in preparation for his big debut. And as Donald Trump gleefully tore into the mic, an entire stadium began to boo.
The video above, which was mercifully resurfaced by Chicago’s WGN last week, shows Trump in a rare state of extreme self-consciousness. Because not only had he been supposedly practicing the song for weeks, and not only was he “very confident he would bring the house down” (according to the Chicago Tribune), but he apparently wasn’t even willing to risk a performance without eyes glued to the lyrics—all 57 words of them. And then, of course, there’s the fact that he sounds like shit.
Adding insult to injury, a New York Post article at the time quoted a fan who didn’t even know who Trump was. “‘Donald Trump, who’s that again?’ asked Millie Tracer of Skokie. ‘I came to see the game.’”
Don’t worry, 2000-era Donald. One day, 16 years from now, they’ll see. They’ll all see.
