American entrepreneur Bill Rancic was born in 1971 in a Chicago suburbs, and grew up in the Orland Park area of the city. After graduating from Loyola University Chicago, Rancic worked in a variety of business industries before auditioning for the first season of Donald Trump’s reality competition, The Apprentice. Rancic ultimately went on to win the competition, and the first reality television star to endure the interview and hiring process on national television.
Rancic’s first work for Trump consisted of overseeing the construction of Chicago’s Trump Tower. He then went on to manage one of Trump’s golf courses in California to finish out his one-year employment contract as Trump’s “apprentice.” Ultimately, at the end of the year, Rancic decided to remain with the Trump Organization, although he did embark on a number of other business ventures outside of the organization.
In addition to his work for Trump, Bill Rancic has hosted the television show In the Loop with iVillage; hosted the A&E reality show We Mean Business; and founded his own production company through which he produces a number of news programs. Rancic has also authored three nonfiction books (You’re Hired: How to Succeed in Business and Life from the Winner of the Apprentice, 2004; Beyond the Lemonade Stand, 2005; and I Do, Now What? Secrets, Stories, and Advice form a Madly-in-Love couple, 2010.)
Most recently, Bill Rancic began hosting Kitchen Casino for the Food Network; the show features chefs in competition over casino-themed challenges. Rancic’s first fiction novel, First Light, was recently published in 2016.
