In a recently revisited interview, Ivana Trump, the first wife of President Donald Trump, expressed her opinions on the two women who followed her as Trump’s spouses. In a conversation with CBS Sunday Morning, Ivana drew a clear distinction between Marla Maples, Trump’s second wife, and Melania Trump, the current first lady, dismissing Maples as a “nobody” and showing acceptance of Melania.
When questioned about the two women, Ivana remarked: “One is a nobody, the other is First Lady.” This comment highlighted her ongoing resentment toward Maples, whose relationship with Donald Trump in the late 1980s led to Ivana’s divorce from him in 1990. The couple had been married since 1977 and were considered prominent figures in New York society.
Ivana and Donald Trump had three children together—Donald Jr., Ivanka, and Eric—who later gained prominence in their father’s business and political endeavors. Despite their contentious divorce, Ivana and Trump maintained a civil rapport. She passed away at the age of 73, with Trump noting after her passing that she never gave up and took nothing for granted.
The interview revealed Ivana’s persistent animosity toward Maples. When CBS correspondent Jim Axelrod brought up Trump’s second wife, Ivana declined to discuss her, describing Maples as “a showgirl” who had not achieved anything significant, and she avoided mentioning Maples by name.
Ivana’s resentment stemmed from a well-publicized incident during a ski trip to Aspen, Colorado, in 1989. In her memoir Raising Trump, she recounted a confrontation with Maples on the slopes. According to Ivana, Maples approached her and professed her love for Donald Trump, to which Ivana responded by telling Maples to leave her alone, describing the encounter as shocking and unrefined.
Trump acknowledged the Aspen confrontation in a 1994 interview, noting the visible tension between the women, although not any verbal altercations. The incident contributed to the end of his marriage with Ivana, who filed for divorce the following year. Trump and Maples married in 1993 and divorced in 1999, sharing one daughter, Tiffany Trump.
In the same 1994 interview, Trump expressed some regret over the affair, reflecting on the life he had shared with Ivana. He suggested that without the affair with Maples, his first marriage might have continued, describing his former life as having a beautiful girlfriend, beautiful wife, and beautiful everything—life was just a bowl of cherries, he reflected.
However, Ivana did not blame Donald for the affair during her CBS interview. When Axelrod questioned whether she faulted Maples rather than Trump, Ivana clarified that Maples had been flirting and had gotten away with it. She mentioned that women frequently approached Trump, claiming he received numerous business cards in his pocket every night and could choose any woman he wanted.
In contrast to her views on Maples, Ivana seemed to have no grudge against Melania Trump. This acceptance may have been influenced by Melania’s position as first lady, a role that appeared to earn her respect from Ivana. The civil relationship also benefited Ivana and Trump’s three children, who remained central figures in both parents’ lives.
Trump met Melania in 1998 while still in the process of separating from Maples. After an intermittent courtship, Trump proposed to Melania at the Met Gala in 2004. The couple married in Palm Beach, Florida, at a ceremony attended by notable guests, including Rudy Giuliani, Barbara Walters, and President Bill Clinton. They have one son, Barron Trump.
When Trump became president in 2017, Melania became the first foreign-born first lady since Louisa Adams, the wife of President John Quincy Adams, in 1829. Ivana expressed pride in her children’s involvement in their father’s political activities, with Donald Jr., Ivanka, and Eric frequently participating in campaign events and serving in various roles during Trump’s administration.
The relationships among Trump’s three wives illustrate the complex personal history of a man who has been married three times, maintaining a high public profile throughout. Ivana’s assessment of Maples and Melania sheds light on her experience as Trump’s first wife while witnessing two other women fill roles she once held.