Donald Trump was a famous New York real estate mogul even before he ran for president.

The man with the distinctive blond comb-over haircut made himself into a multi-billionaire through property, licensing and reality television. He is the author of numerous books, including the 1987 business-advice bestseller 'The Art of the Deal'.

Trump, 70, got into business through his father, the son of German immigrants, who himself had become a millionaire in the construction business in New York.

Trump was born June 14, 1946, the fourth of five children of Frederick and Mary Trump. He showed brash confidence as a boy and proved to be a difficult child.

At age 13, Trump's parents sent him to a military academy, where he did well. He went on to study at Fordham University and then the University of Pennsylvania's prestigious Wharton School of Business.

After graduating from Wharton, he joined his father's business and in 1974 became its president and renamed it the Trump Organization. Investments in hotels, casinos, golf courses and luxury apartments followed.

Trump dabbled in entertainment and media investments, including the Miss USA and Miss Universe beauty pageants. Then came his roles in the TV reality show 'The Apprentice' and 'The Celebrity Apprentice'.

When it was time to dismiss a candidate, he told them curtly, "You're fired," and that became his catchphrase.

He told an interviewer last year he was initially interested in film production as a career, rather than business.

"I wanted to make motion pictures," he said. "I liked it. I liked the glamour of movies."

For most of his life, Trump seemed to favour the Democratic Party, then leaned independent. He had a previous run for the White House as the Reform Party candidate but had little success.

Insulted women and handicapped people

He hit his stride in politics as a right-wing populist in 2016, knocking off 16 other Republican presidential hopefuls in the primaries.

During the campaign, he did and said things that would have ruined any other candidate. He insulted women and handicapped people. He pandered to Russia, contradicted himself on a number of issues and refused to release his tax returns, which would have cleared up skepticism about the size of his fortune.

Trump's campaign was called unconventional and unprecedented, and right until the day before the Nov 8 election, he was expected to lose.

But he was energetic and tenacious, battling Hillary Clinton with his "make America great again" theme.

Trump was never known for modesty or rhetorical finesse. Pomposity is his trademark, meaning the media lens remains firmly focused on him. The avid social media user has millions of followers and friends online, including 20 million on his favourite mode of communication, Twitter.

His megalomania is well-documented.

"Everybody loves me," Trump often declares, and he calls himself a "truly smart person."

Trump's three marriages to glamorous women - and his two divorces - were fodder for tabloid newspapers. In 1977 he married Czech model Ivana Zelnickova, with whom he had three children, Donald Jr, Ivanka, and Eric.

From 1993-99, Trump was married to actress Marla Maples and they had a daughter, Tiffany. In 2005 he married Slovenian model Melania Knauss, and they have a son, Barron.

As a golfer, Trump has boasted a handicap of under three and he says he has never drunk alcohol because his older brother died at age 42 in 1981, having told him "don't ever drink."

- dpa