The Truth Behind Donald Trump's College Date Night With Candice Bergen
Before Candice Bergen was an award-winning actress, with roles in moves like "Miss Congeniality" and TV shows like "Boston Legal," she was a student at the University of Pennsylvania. While she was there, she went on a date with none other than a future president of the United States — Donald Trump. Bergen has talked about the date on a number of talk show appearances, and it sounds like it was both memorable and unimpressive. On an episode of "The Late Show with Stephen Colbert," she said it happened when she was "about 18" when Trump wasn't the famous (or infamous) politician, reality TV star, or even a real-estate baron yet. Instead, as Bergen put it, "he was just kind of, you know, a guy."
When Bergen talked about her date night with Trump on Harry Connick Jr.'s talk show, she elaborated a bit more on how the date actually came about and why she went on it at all. "He was a nice-looking guy, [...] and I was in college, and it's where he was going to be going to college," Bergen said. "It was like a blind date. He called me in the dorm, and I was bored," via Facebook.
Donald Trump and Candice Bergen only went out once
On "The Late Show with Stephen Colbert," Candice Bergen also talked about what seemed to be one of the more memorable moments of the date — Trump's fashion choices for the big night. "I think he was wearing a burgundy suit with a burgundy vest and burgundy patent leather boots and was in a burgundy limousine."
We wonder which came first when he started matching. Did he have the limo in burgundy first? Maybe it was the boots? Whatever it was, Trump's fashion sense certainly has changed since his date with Bergen. Now, Trump's signature style is very much a long red tie with a dark suit — no burgundy in sight. On "Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen," Bergen added to her Trump date anecdote by saying there wasn't any chemistry between them. "There was no physical contact whatsoever," Bergen said. Maybe she didn't like burgundy?
Bergen also called him, "a douche." No elaboration from Bergen on just what it was that Trump did, or didn't, do that led her to that harsh conclusion. Interesting side note, Bergen was wearing a shirt embroidered with "Free Melania" as she talked about her bad first (and only) date with the future POTUS.
Candice Bergen used her real life in the Murphy Brown revival
On all the talk shows, Candice Bergen confirmed that her date with Donald Trump came to an early end. The overall experience may be summed up in how she descried it to People, "it was really a dud."
Bergen took inspiration from her real-life experience by giving her character Murphy Brown the same story in the short-lived "Murphy Brown" revival. In one episode, Bergen's character's goes viral for her post on Twitter about going on a date with Trump. The show also goes on to include imagined responses from Trump, with the situation devolving into a back-and-forth argument on Brown's show.
It was thanks to Trump, at least in part, that the "Murphy Brown" revival came about at all. "We wouldn't have brought back the show if Hillary (Clinton) had won," Bergen told USA Today. "All of us felt that now, we had a lot of things to say, and Murphy can address those things in a way that most shows couldn't." The show was focused on the importance of journalistic integrity, and mistrust of the media is a narrative that Trump pushed frequently while president.