Trump back to roots

'The Apprentice" will ditch its "Celebrity" title this fall and return to its roots.

A new edition of "The Apprentice" -- featuring everyday people and reflecting the economic downturn -- will begin taping this June in New York for a fall premiere.

And, once again, Donald Trump will return to the boardroom to "fire" people each week.

"This really is a sign of the economy," Trump told The Post yesterday.

"So many people were calling and asking us when we'd do a 'regular' 'Apprentice' again, and this happened over the last year-and-a-half during bad times.

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Donald Trump in fire mode on "The Apprentice."

"It seems to be more pertinent than ever."

This version of the show will feature 14 people, of different ages and economic circumstances, who've been hard hit by the economy (but not all of them will be unemployed).

"We'll have these young kids from Harvard or Wharton or wherever as well as people who are supposed to be running companies but are now driving cabs," Trump said.

"It will be very representative of the economy."

The back-to-basics version will likely premiere in September, with another version of "Celebrity Apprentice" airing the following February (though NBC hasn't confirmed that yet).

And, Trump said, he's done shooting the show in Los Angeles (the current "Celebrity Apprentice" was shot in New York last fall).

"No more LA," he said. "I didn't like driving in LA in a Rolls Royce with the top down -- and this show works better as a New York show.

"It always has."