Donald Trump's grim love life and wife Melania's 'mysterious' disappearance
After twice-impeached Donald Trump ended his presidency amid a cloud of controversy in 2021, it seemed highly unlikely he'd ever re-enter the world of politics.
Three years on however, the 77-year-old has his eyes firmly set on returning to the White House, even while facing 91 felony counts across four different prosecutions. At the time of writing, Trump is leading the 2024 United States primary elections with 20 delegates, steaming ahead of fellow presidential nomininees Ron DeSantis and Nikki Haley, all while fighting his numerous legal battles,
Ahead of new ITV documentary Trump: The Return?, we take a look at Trump's frequently complicated love life, including his three marriages and the 'mysterious' whereabouts of his current wife, Melania Trump.
Ivana Trump
Trump and Ivana were regarded as the ultimate '80s power couple (Getty Images)Trump met first wife Ivana Trump, née Zelníčková, in New York in 1976, back when then-model Ivana was in the Big Apple for a fashion show. Recalling their fateful first meeting during a 2016 interview with the New York Post, Ivana remembered how the businessman had approached her group of friends while they waited for a table in a bar.
She revealed: "[There's] this tall blond guy with blue eyes. He said: 'I'm Donald Trump and I see you're looking for a table. I can help you'. I look at my friends and said: 'The good news is. we’re going to get a table real fast. The bad news is, this guy is going to be sitting with us."
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According to Czech-American socialite Ivana, Trump later drove them home in his limousine, after which point they began dating. They tied the knot in 1977, in what was an uncharateristically private ceremony, and went on to earn a reputation throughout the '80s as the ultimate power couple. Ivana held various high profile positions in the Trump Organisation, including managing Manhattan's Plaza Hotel, and played a key role in building the mogul's real-estate empire.
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Ivana later claimed that she was the one who had the most influence when it came to raising their three children Donald Jr,, Ivanka, and Eric. In her memoir Raising Trump, Ivana revealed: "I believe the credit for raising such great kids belongs to me. I was in charge of raising our children before our divorce, and I had sole custody of them after the split. I made the decisions about their education, activities, travel, child care and allowances. When each one finished college, I said to my ex-husband, 'Here is the finished product. Now it's your turn'."
In 1990, the Trumps hit the headlines on account of their explosive divorce. The drama that ensued later earned Ivana a cameo in the 1996 The First Wives Club, in which she proudly told the leads, 'Don't get mad, get everything'. Trump's infidelity was reportedly a factor in the divorce, with Ivana later claiming that she knew her marriage was over after running into Marla Maples in 1989 - the actress who would go on to become Trump's second wife.
In Raising Trump, Ivana remembered their reportedly heated exchange, which took place during an Aspen ski trip at Christmastime, writing: "This young blonde woman approached me out of the blue and said 'I'm Marla and I love your husband. Do you?' I said, 'Get lost. I love my husband'. It was unladylike but I was in shock."
Although their marriage had a fiery end, its understood Trump and Ivana were able to reconcile their differences, and reportedly had a strong friendship at the time of her death in 2022 at the age of 73. In a statement posted to his social media platform, Truth Social, following her passing, Trump paid tribute to Ivana, describing her as a 'wonderful, beautiful, and amazing woman, who led a great and inspirational life'.
Marla Maples
Marla was asked to sign a strict pre-nup (WireImage)
She later admitted that she was 'sad' about the animosity between her and Ivana (Getty Images)Trump's relationship with Marla Maples was regarded as scandalous as the time, with Marla widely viewed as the 'other woman' who'd caused the split between Trump and Ivana. Prior to getting married, Trump presented Marla with a pre-nup that stipulated that, in the event of a divorce, Marla would get no alimony, just a relatively modest payout of $1 million payout. She also had to sign a confidentiality agreement regarding any potential split.
As reported by The New York Times, Trump and Marla opted for an opulent wedding at the iconic Plaza Hotel on December 20, 1993, attended by some 1,000 guests and plenty of paparazzi. The ceremony took place two months after the birth of their daughter, Tiffany Trump, who would go on to support her father throughout his 2016 and 2020 presidential campaigns.
After their divorce in 1999, Marla raised Tiffany in California, in a reported bid to keep her out of the spotlight. During a 2016 interview with People, Marla admitted she felt 'sad' about the animosity between she and Ivana, who had declared she'd hadn't forgiven her for her affair with Donald.
Marla, now 60, said: "It makes me sad because I wish her nothing but love and I've never had any intention of hurting her. I love her kids I'm still close to. I love and adore them." She added: "So, it was sad to hear that. I wish her absolutely the best. I really do, and I hope that if she's holding any kind of resentment toward me, I really hope, for her sake, that she can forgive me and just love her life."
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Melania Trump
Melania has made only rare appearances in public over the last year (AFP via Getty Images)Trump reportedly met his current wife Melania Trump, née Knauss, while on a date with another woman at a party thrown at New York City's Kit Kat Club in 1998. The Slovenian model wouldn't give him her number at first, and so, while his date was in the bathroom, Trump 'sneakily' gave Melania his contact details so they could set up a date.
The couple went on to tie the knot on January 22, 2005, in a star-studded ceremony attended by the likes of Heidi Klum, Elton John, Arnold Schwarzenegger, and Trump's future presidential rival, Hilary Clinton. Melania is regarded by some to be quite a different sort of character to Trump's previously two wives. Summing her up in an interview with Vanity Fair, Trump's friend and business associate Federico Pignatelli, said: "Ivana was an intelligent, entrepreneurial woman. Also a very strong-minded person and very feisty. While instead, Melania . . . really no fights."
Six months after their wedding, Melania became pregnant with their son Barron, now 17. In the same Vanity Fair article, a source alleged that Trump agreed to having a baby with Melania on the condition that she 'got her body back'' after giving birth. Melania showed support for her frequently controversial husband throughout his 2016 presidential bid, but insisted that she doesn't always share his views.
Speaking with reporters in Egypt during a 2018 solo trip to Africa, Melania said: "I don't always agree [with] what he thinks, and I tell him that. I give him my honest opinion and honest advice." She added: "I have my own voice and my own opinions and it's very important for me that I express what I feel."
Melania, 53, has rarely been seen in public over the course of the last year, making a rare appearance in November for the memorial service of fellow former first lady Rosalynn Carter. According to author Laurence Leamer, who wrote Mar-A-Lago: Inside the Gates of Power at Donald Trump's Presidential Palace, Melania is so rarely seen at Trump's Palm Beach resort Mar-a-Lago, which is also his official residence, that members are now speculating as to her whereabouts.
In December, Leamer told The Telegraph: "Nobody knows where she is. It's like a mystery. It's certainly talked about."
You can catch Trump: The Return? at 9pm, January 16 on ITV1.
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