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Born in Yugoslavia, in
an area now a part of the Republic of Slovenia, in
1974, Melania Knauss grew up in a comfortable but
overprotective household. Her Austrian father and
Slovenian mother wished to make sure their daughter
was well-educated so that wherever she ended up in
life, she'd be well placed to succeed. This
translated into many hours of study for the young
Knauss; as a child, her head was frequently buried
in a book.
As Melania blossomed into a stunning young lady, she
realized that another asset, besides the mind, could
be utilized to succeed. Knauss had developed a
curvaceous body to match her beautiful face. Out of
high school and in the process of becoming a
quadrilingual -- she learned English on top of
Eastern Europe dialects -- she tried her hand at
modeling in her homeland.
After Melania put in a lot of hard work and received
little in terms of pay or job opportunities in
return, she decided to travel to the United States
to see how things would work out. She was bent on
establishing herself as a successful and unique
model, confident she could woo designers and
magazines with both her body and wit.
In the late 1990s, work began to finally roll in.
Melania did ads for a small watch-company, found
work with Panasonic in a television commercial and
strolled the catwalks of New York City a few times
for local lingerie designers. Sill, it wasn't the
big break she had been hoping for. Life was still
giving her the cold shoulder
Her luck would change in 1999, however. At a
red-carpet fashion event, Knauss met billionaire
developer Donald Trump.
He was just coming
off his well-documented divorce from Marla Maples
and was on the rebound. Despite their age
difference, the two hit it off. The relationship
bloomed slowly, partly because Trump wished to give
the media some time to stop gabbing about his most
recent failed marriage.
Just when news was breaking that "The Donald" was
dating a stunning Slovenian, Knauss shot a pictorial
for Allure magazine. She then became a frequent
newsmaker after her developer boyfriend announced
his interests in running for the Reform Party
presidential nomination. As Trump toured the country
spreading his political mandate, Knauss, naturally,
received most of the attention while at his side.
Together, they were interviewed on The Howard Stern
Radio Show during Trump's campaign and announced to
the world they were happy and, to the delight of
gossip columnists, quite naughty. After the
interview, news spread quickly of Knauss's penchant
for sexual wickedness. British GQ picked up on this
and had her pose nude in Trump's private jet for
their January 2000 cover.
Melania Knauss voted sexy woman.
Though the attention over Trump's presidential bid
died down, Knauss continued to get attention.
Between features in Celebrity Sleuth (as the 9th
Sexiest Woman of 2001), Ocean Drive and Country
Living, she was recognized as a true New York
socialite, appearing at the city's most popular
fashion shows, celebrity parties and five-star
restaurants. Though it was reported that in 2000,
Trump and Knauss had broken up, both now contend the
rocky period in their relationship was short-lived.
melania as miss
usa judge .
Soon, with her rich boyfriend still firmly in the
picture, magazines FHM and Front came calling for
small, but very memorable, spreads. Knauss also
worked for jeweler Charles & Covard, appearing in
print ads in Vogue and Vanity Fair. In 2003, having
now moved into the multi-million dollar penthouse
atop Trump Tower, Melania became a celebrity judge
for the Miss USA Pageant, which Donald Trump owns.
Both her father and son
(Donald Trump Sr. and Donald Trump Jr.) have now
married supermodels.
It shouldn't surprise anyone that Melania
and Donald are a couple. This is Donald Trump's
third wife who is a former model. Busty Melania
Trump fits the mold perfectly.
Melania Knauss quotes &
Tidbits ::
From the Oprah Winfrey Show
- Donald has been
dating Melania Knauss for five years. When he first
asked her for her number, she turned him down!
"I said to him, 'Give me your number and I'll call
you back'…He gave me all his numbers!" says Melania.
Is Donald romantic?
"Yes, he's very private, but he's very romantic."
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