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Melania Knauss
By SARA TEMPLETON
 From
a struggling model to a heavy-hitting New York socialite who
can claim to rival the celebrity juggernaut known as Paris
Hilton, Melania Knauss had a trump card up her sleeve.
The Slovenian model showed up at the 2004 Academy Awards
arm-in-arm with boyfriend Donald Trump, and also makes an
appearance on the reality television show 'The Apprentice',
and though some are quick to bring up the old "It's not
what you know, but who you know" adage, Knauss is no
pretender.
Born in 1974 in the former Yugoslavia, the region of which
is today known as the Republic of Slovenia, Melania is of
Austrian/Slovenian heritage and was encouraged by her parents
to study, with the end result being a successful career.
Not completely opposed to cramming, Melania soon discovered
that there were other means and methods to succeed in the
modern Western World, and as she developed into womanhood
and had completed school, she decided to give modeling a go.
Having little luck in her home country, she packed up her
belongings and jetted over to America to pursue more leads.
Before long she landed some work - nothing huge, but TV campaigns
for companies like Panasonic and participating in modeling
shows for local New York lingerie companies helped pay for
jam.
While she couldn't seem to break the big names, such as Oscar
de la Renta and Givenchy, things started happening when she
met hotel and casino magnate, Donald Trump, at a high society
fashion event in 1999.
The hefty age difference posed no problem for the enraptured
couple, and before long Melania's profile was on the rise
again, shooting a pictorial spread for Allure magazine.
When the couple decided to be interviewed by US 'shock jock'
Howard Stern, interest in Knauss exploded, mainly from the
male side of the population as both she and Trump divulged
that their private times together could be described as 'naughty'.
Right away, the lads magazines, such as British GQ and FHM,
signed up Melania to shoot titillating pictorials. From here
on in, the Slovenian model would be ensconced in the well
heeled New York social scene, attending all the coolest parties,
movie and television events and top notch restaurants.
Donald Trump has been quoted saying "When we walk into
a restaurant, I watch grown men weep," in reference to
Melania's beauty. Being a true gentleman, he is of course
talking about her beautiful personality. Right?
Having moved in with Donald in his bazillion-dollar penthouse
in the Trump Tower in 2003, Melania has since completed plenty
of advertising campaigns for many haute couture consumables
and has even judged the Miss USA Pageant (also owned by Trump).
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Source: FHM
(December 2000)
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