The Tragic Story Of Ivana Trump's Fourth And Final Marriage

Following the the death of Ivana Trump, the ex-wife of the one-time real estate tycoon and mother to Ivanka Trump, Donald Trump Jr., and Eric Trump, in July 2022, interest in her love life and four marriages hit a peak. 

As many already know, Ivana and Donald's marriage lasted for 15 years, culminating in a messy divorce circa 1992. They would each would go on to marry and divorce multiple times. For the former president, he later married and divorced Marla Maples (mother of daughter Tiffany Trump), later tying the knot with former first lady Melania Trump, who is mother to his youngest, Barron Trump. 

For Ivana's part, she was married (and divorced) prior to marrying Donald. After she and Donald split, Ivana married yet again, once from 1995-1997, and then for a fourth time, in 2008, to Rossano Rubicondi, an Italian actor and media personality 23 years her junior. Tragically, Rubicondi died at age 49.

On paper, the marriage between Ivana Trump and Rossano Rubicondi (pictured above in 2005) was brief — all told, they exchanged vows in 2008 and divorced a year later, per the Daily Mail. Even so, their relationship — which morphed from romantic to platonic and back again over the years — had a much longer arc than a marriage license would suggest. 

As the tabloid noted, the couple dated for six years before marrying in Palm Beach, Florida, at none other than her ex-husband Donald Trump's current homestead, the Mar-a-Lago private resort and golf club. Even after Ivana and Rubicondi called it quits, they remained in each others lives — even going as far as to appear on the Italian version of the "Dancing With the Stars" franchise in 2018. In fact, they wound up getting back together, but split again in 2019, per Page Six. Still, it's clear they remained friends, as they were seen together as recently as July 2021, per the Daily Mail.

As for the cause of death, Rubicondi's father, Claudio, opened up about it in a November 2021 interview with Italian show "Pomeriggio Cinque" (via People). He explained that, although his son had been diagnosed with liver cancer, he ultimately died due to an accidental fall in the bathtub following a vein burst in his lung.

Their marriage may not have been the longest of her four, but Ivana Trump struggled to deal with the death of her last husband, Rossano Rubicondi. Sadly, he also turned out to have been Ivana's final husband, as the socialite died within a year of the dashing Italian passing away.

Ivana was found dead at the bottom of the stairs at her East 46th Street Manhattan home on July 14. A statement from the New York City medical examiner's office ruled that the 73-year-old's death was caused by "blunt impact injuries of the torso" following an accidental fall, Newsweek reports. Fellow socialite Nikki Haskell offered insight into her good friend's last year of life. She explained that despite looking forward to an upcoming vacay to Saint Tropez, Ivana had "really become very reclusive" of late, as she feared contracting COVID and grieved the death of Rubicondi.

"She hasn't gone anywhere or done anything," Haskell admitted during an interview with Fox 5 affiliate morning show, "Good Day New York," the day after Ivana's death. "She was overwhelmed with a lot of different things," Haskell continued. "Of course, her ex-husband passed away earlier this year which was quite devastating for her. And I think just being alone sort of set its mark with how difficult it is when you're alone."

Ivana Trump and Rossano Rubicondi had enjoyed an untraditional marriage, spending extended periods apart because of geographical disparities. However, the stresses of a long-distance relationship soon became too much. "Rossano wants to live in Miami and work in Milan," Ivana explained after they first split, just months into their marriage (via Yahoo!). "But I am a New Yorker, and my family, friends, and businesses are here. As the beautiful song says, 'Que será, será!'"

They were soon back together, though, with Ivana seemingly returning to a sentiment she shared in 2009. "It's not a 24-7 marriage, but we're both enjoying it!" Ivana had told People at the time. However, the same problems eventually arose again, spelling the end of the marriage. "The relationship just ran its course," Ivana told Page Six in June 2019. "Rossano spends a lot of time in Italy, and I spend a lot of time in New York, Miami, and St-Tropez, and he has to work." She said the break-up was "amicable," and they remained close friends.

When Rubicondi died in October 2021, Ivana told People that she was "devastated." The Daily Mail ran photos of a "grief-stricken" Ivana looking "frail" as she was helped out of a car on her way to attend her late husband's memorial service in November 2021. The paper reported the couple was last spotted together strolling "arm in arm" in Manhattan in July 2021, just three months before his death.