Melania Trump: The unusual, traditional first lady
The First Lady will speak at the Republican National Convention on Tuesday
Melania Trump will speak on the second night of the Republican National Convention on Tuesday. It's a rare - and potentially reluctant - step into the first lady spotlight.
In 1998, Donald Trump, who was already fabulously rich and charismatic but still had an ordinary-looking head of hair, was probably used to getting a phone number when he asked.
But when the real estate mogul tried a young model at a party in New York that year, it couldn't quite close the deal. "I won't give you my number," countered 28-year-old Melania Knavs. "You give me yours and I'll call you."
Seven years later, the couple wound the knot in a star-studded bash on their Florida estate. Fast forward again and Ms. Trump is now the First Lady of the United States. But who is she?
A "traditional" first lady
Ms. Trump is glamorous and totally committed to her husband and his success. She was cast as sort of a retro president's wife, a modern day Jackie Kennedy. Like former Ms. Kennedy, Ms. Trump, 46, speaks four languages: Slovenian, French, German and English.
When Mr. Trump first hinted at the top position in 1999, she told reporters, "I would be very traditional, like Betty Ford or Jackie Kennedy."
But there are ways she'll be a less-than-traditional first lady: she'll be the first to pretend to be nude in a magazine.
Ted Cruz supporters picked up on her work as a model and overlaid a picture of her posing naked with the warning, "Meet Melania Trump, your next first lady. Or you could vote for Ted Cruz on Tuesday."
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Donald and Melania Trump have a son, Barron (left)
In early 2016, a lewd telephone interview with Mr. and Mrs. Trump by Howard Stern, a shock-jock radio host, surfaced in which Mr. Stern asked Ms. Trump what she wore ("almost nothing") and how often she had sex with Mr. Trump ("every night, sometimes more") and described them to Mr. Trump as "so wide in your bed". The interview led to allegations of misogyny.
Ms. Trump has also sued the Daily Mail over an article she claims was a sex worker in the 1990s. The newspaper agreed to pay damages and apologized to the first lady in April 2017.
Her treatment has been compared by some commentators to "slut shaming" - the practice of attacking women for certain types of dressing or acting.
From Slovenia to New York
Ms. Trump was born to Melanija Knavs in Sevnica, a small town about an hour's drive from the Slovenian capital Ljubljana, to a relatively wealthy family. Her father Viktor worked for the mayor of nearby Hrastnik before becoming a successful car salesman. Her mother Amalija designed prints for a fashion brand.
Melania studied design and architecture in Ljubljana. Her professional website claimed that she graduated, but it was later revealed that she dropped out in her freshman year. The website has now been completely cleaned up and redirects to Mr. Trump's business site.
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Media captionHow was Melania Trump in Slovenia?
At the age of 18 she signed with a model agency in Milan and flew across Europe and the USA to appear in high-profile advertising campaigns. She met Mr. Trump at a New York Fashion Week party.
Like her husband, she reportedly never drinks and shies away from parties late into the night. She has her own branded jewelry business and is reportedly involved in the design process.
The couple married in 2005 and had a son, Barron, in 2006.
After his election victory, she initially did not move into the White House with her husband and stayed in New York until the end of Barron's school year before moving to Washington for president in 2017.
Since moving in, she has helped with the White House's annual Christmas decorations.
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Media captionFirst Lady Melania Trump reveals White House Christmas decorations
Ms. Trump has apparently balanced her background with her husband's attacks on immigration, stating that she did everything according to the book.
"It never crossed my mind to go undocumented here," she said to Harper's Bazaar. "You obey the rules. You obey the law. Every few months you have to fly back to Europe and get your visa stamped."
In July 2020, a statue of the First Lady was set alight in her homeland, Slovenia, which has been partially compared to a figure from the Smurfs. The police have opened an investigation.
"Guidelines are my husband's job"
Ms. Trump has largely stayed away from the political struggle and limited her appearances to standing by her husband's side. "I have decided not to go into politics and politics," she said in an interview with GQ. "These guidelines are my husband's job."
Her only big moment in the 2016 campaign came when she was the focus of traditional spouses' speech on the first day of the Republican National Convention in July and things didn't go well.
Commentators were quick to notice notable similarities with Michelle Obama's 2008 congressional speech, and the plagiarism scandal that followed overshadowed what she had to say.
In 2018, she caused a lot of controversy after wearing a jacket with the words, "I really don't care, do I?" written on the back on a trip to a children's prison for migrants.
There has been intense media speculation about why Melania Trump wore the jacket after her trip
"It was for the people and for the left-wing media to criticize me," she told ABC News. "I want to show them that I don't care."
Despite these incidents, it remains an unknown quantity compared to its predecessors. She advises her husband, she told GQ, but she remains excited to see what she says.
"Nobody knows and nobody will ever know," she said. "Because that's between me and my husband."
