Ivana Trump, the first wife of former President Donald Trump, died on Thursday at 73. She was reportedly found at the foot of the stairs in her Manhattan home after a possibly falling or going into cardiac arrest.
“Extra’s” Carlos Greer spoke with her close friend, socialite Nikki Haskell, about their friendship, Ivana’s final days, and how she feared her friend would fall down a “treacherous” staircase at her townhouse.
Nikki shared, “I’m in shock. I am totally devastated,” saying after she heard the news, “I spent a lot of time looking at old pictures and sort of reminiscing through the times we spent together and trying to have the best thoughts.” Nikki recalled, “The first time she went out with Donald, we double-dated… We always had a thing where we always wore the same clothes… The minute I met her it, was like we were separated at birth… The minute I met her, we became best friends.”
She had recently seen Ivana, recalling, “I had dinner with Ivana not that long ago in New York.”
Haskell said the COVID-19 pandemic was hard on her friend. “The past couple of years, she became very reclusive… She had a big townhouse and she was really afraid of getting the virus, much more so than anybody I know. She didn’t want to go anywhere, she didn’t want to travel… She took it very, very seriously. She was afraid of getting sick.”
Ivana was preparing to finally leave NYC and go to Saint-Tropez where she had a home. “She finally decided, ‘Okay, I’m going to go…’ She stayed in New York that whole time. She never left at all. and she was by herself and I am sure it was much more trying than I could even imagine.”
Nikki responded to reports that Ivana was found at the bottom of her stairs, saying, “I have to tell you something — that has always been my fear. She had one of those really beautiful staircases that was impossible to walk down. Narrow in the inside and wider as it got out. I was always afraid that she would fall. I don’t know what happened, but it’s not hard for me to believe that’s what happened — treacherous stairs.”
Ivana was the mother of Donald Jr., Ivanka and Eric Trump, of whom Nikki said, “I spoke with Eric and he told me that he had received the call from Dorothy, her loyal assistant and friend… He went over there… He was totally devastated.”
Haskell said she recently asked Ivana what she wanted to do that she hadn’t yet done in life, “She said, ‘You know, Nikki, I have been working since I am 3 years old… I just want to rest. I just want to enjoy my life.’”
Getting emotional, Nikki shared how she wants people to remember Ivana, saying, “I want them to remember one of the most fearless, loving, kind, delicious, fun, loving… She was just so special. I considered it an honor to know her and to be her friend.”
Video from “Extra.” : https://wbproductions.box.com/s/210myyt2ds5s1z04bq3q5jzterdhuerd
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