Ivana Trump was Donald Trump’s first wife, long before he became the President of the United States. During her marriage with the Republican, she had to endure a scandalous affair of her husband, which had left her scarred for life.
Reports claim that Ivana was left heartbroken when she got to know about Trump’s affair with Marla Maples. Her intense feelings towards the affair resulted in a very public showdown. When she came face-to-face with Marla, who would later become Trump’s second wife, Ivana didn’t hold back. Although Maples has since said that she had never considered herself a “mistress” of Donald, the tension between the two women was inevitable, to say the least.
In 1989, during a family trip to Aspen, Trump’s then-wife and lover came face to face at a restaurant. According to a report by Vanity Fair in 1990, Trump’s late ex-wife shouted, “I have a happy marriage,” seemingly warning the homewrecker. “I’m very happy. Stay away from him! Stay away from us!” she said, addressing Maples.
However, ultimately, Ivana failed to save her marriage, as just a year after this awkward run-in, the two split. Three years later, Donald Trump went on to marry Maples. Together, they had Tiffany.
“It would’ve been so much healthier for all of us if it had happened after his divorce,” Marla later said during ABC News’ Journeys of Faith podcast.
Donald Trump and Marla Maples through the years pic.twitter.com/XdRgWywDMN
— 𝕏 Analyst (@XAnalyst2020) June 4, 2025
Opening up about the scandalous affair, she said, “Everything had to happen the way it did to bring us to where we are now.” On the contrary, since the face-off till her death in 2022, Ivana rarely mentioned Marla in interviews, except a few times.
“I don’t talk about her. She’s a showgirl. Never achieved anything in her life,” she told CBS in 2017. On the Sunday Morning interview, she was asked whether Maples was the one flirting with Donald.
Ivana commented, “She was flirting and she got away with it,” while keeping in mind that Marla wasn’t the only one to blame.
“Donald would get a thousand business cards in his pocket every night. He could choose any girl he wanted. So I’m not sure if she was [the only one]. There could be another one. I really don’t know,” Ivana said, casting doubts on the time she was married to him.
Despite the tumultuous relationship, Ivana Trump often jokingly described herself as the “first lady” in Donald Trump’s life.
