Melania Trump: she's about to be the first
lady! But what do we really know about her journey
from model to mom? Here's a look at the stunning transformation
of Melania Trump. Growing up Knauss She was born Melania Knauss, on April 26,
1970 in the tiny town of Sevnica, in the former Yugoslavia. According to the AP, her father Viktor worked
as a salesman, and her mother Amalija was a children's clothing designer. Childhood friend Mirjana Jelancic said that
"I think I can say Sevinca was too small for her. Even as a child, she dreamed of moving." Child prodigy While attending the Secondary School of Design
and Photography in Ljubljana, Melania was discovered by photographer Stane Jerko at
the age of 16. He taught her how to pose, but ran into an
unusual problem when he first went to photograph her: he couldn't find any shoes that would
fit her. "I didn't have shoes for her because she had
very big feet. The other models had smaller feet." Despite this handicap, Melania went on to
model in Paris and Milan before moving to New York to follow her American dream. She did what she had to do In New York, Melania struggled at first to
land modeling gigs. So according to GQ, she improvised, going
on "casting calls for alcohol and tobacco ads, which her under-age competitors couldn't
be hired for." And former roommate Matthew Atanian said she
ended up getting breast augmentation to be more competitive. "She went away for a two-week vacation, then
came back, and was more… buxom. She admitted it to me. She just said it needed to be done to get
more lingerie jobs." All of this led to her infamous nude British
GQ spread in 2000. In a 2015 interview with Barbara Walters,
Melania gracefully acknowledged her former career. "I think people will always judge. Maybe they will say: oh the past that you
have or the way you were modeling. That's part of the job that I was doing, that
I was very successful model. And I did some photoshoots… yes they were
a little risky, but nothing more than what you see every year in Sport Illustrated." Meeting the Donald In 1998, the then 28-year-old Melania met
her future husband, Donald Trump, at a party during New York Fashion Week. She quickly took charge, getting his number. "Well at first when we met I didn't give him
my number: he was with a date. So I told him give me your number and I will
call you. I wanted to see what kind of number he would
give me: business, home. If he would give me business number, I'm not
a girl doing business with him." Her friend Matthew Atanian said it didn't
go well at first, but eventually worked out. "She had some trust issues with him at the
beginning. She kept her apartment to have her own space
because of this… It's about all that power and protection. I think she needed a strong man, a father
figure." One that would put a $3 million dollar ring
on it. Her marriage philosophy Melania told Parenting magazine, "I don't
think you need to be with your husband every minute of every day. Both people should do what their passion is
and then get together in the mornings and evenings and share and experience life and
have a great time. You know that saying, 'Work hard and play
harder?' That's what we do." For her part, during their marriage, Melania
has kept active in creating a skin-care line and jewelry collections while also raising
their son Barron. Motherhood over politics In a late 2015 20/20 interview on ABC with
the Trumps, Barbara Walters questioned why Melania wasn't more active in the campaign. Melania answered decisively. "Well it's my choice not to be there. I support my husband 100 percent, but we have
a 9-year-old son together, Barron. And I'm raising him, and this is the age he
needs a parent at home." Hard to argue with that. First Lady In her most public role yet, Melania is taking
on the role of First Lady of the United States. She will be America's second foreign-born
First Lady, a fact that has already led people to ask her what she thinks about her husband's
immigration policies. Which is no surprise: like all First Ladies,
one of her main jobs will be the task of defending her husband, as she has already had to do
regarding his comments towards women. "The words my husband used are unacceptable
and offensive to me. This does not represent the man that I know. He has the heart and mind of a leader. I hope people will accept his apology, as
I have, and focus on the important issues facing our nation and the world." The next Jackie Kennedy? Melania has stated she would take on a "traditional"
role as First Lady, citing Jackie Kennedy as inspiration in an interview with GQ, which
noted that JFK's wife was "endlessly glamorous and endlessly tolerant of her husband’s
philandering." Professor of History Katherine Jellison, who
studies first families, also cited Jackie Kennedy as a likely role model for Melania. "I think she will be a quiet first lady. Because that's been her demeanor throughout
the campaign — someone who doesn't weigh in on policy issues. She might be sort of a Jackie Kennedy type,
well-dressed woman who will be seen as popular in the women's magazines but largely stays
quiet and on the sidelines in terms of her public image." Only Melania can truly know how similar she
is to Jackie, but one thing is certain: we're all about to find out. Thanks for watching! Click the List icon to subscribe to our YouTube
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