Rossano Rubicondi (left), Ivana Trump.Photo: Michael Loccisano/FilmMagic
In a recentappearance onPomeriggio Cinque, Rubicondi’s mother and father, Rosa and Claudio, opened up about his legacy, learning of his death and his continued bond withDonald Trump’s famous ex.
They said that Rossano, 49, was to be cremated.
“Ivana asked if she could keep half the ashes. I said yes,” Rosa said, according toa translation.
It was Ivana, according to Rossano’s parents' interview, who cared for him while he was secretly ill for the last year. While host Barbara d’Urso said that Rossano had had liver cancer before suffering an accident while in the bathtub, his father said that there was no hint of Rossano’s sickness in their many phone calls.
That is, until a fateful final call with the news that their son was dead: Rosa grew emotional in the interview as she recalled learning what had happened.
From left: Ivana Trump and Rossano Rubicondi in 2007.
Claudio said a vein in Rossano’s lung burst and he fell in the bathtub, hitting his head, while he was alone at home. He was found the next morning.
Ivana, 72 — who had an up-and-down relationship with Rossano through the years but remained close with him in the end — called his parents herself.
“She called us to express her sorrow,” said Claudio, who described growing distraught as well.
Looking back, he said, Rossano had seemed happy and well-established, with a good life. Both he and his wife said they now planned to remember their son in moments of joy: looking through old photos of him on the beach or, in a particularly sweet memory, singing at a restaurant with his dad. His belongings and the remainder of his ashes were to be sent to them in Italy.
Ivana subsequently confirmed the news, telling PEOPLE she was “devastated.” (Rossano’s listed reps did not respond to requests for comment.)
“It’s not a 24-7 marriage, but we’re both enjoying it!” Ivanatold PEOPLEin 2009, referring to the couple’s often long-distance relationship.
From left: Ivana Trump and Rossano Rubicondi in 2008.
The two filed for divorce less than a year after tying the knot but never drifted too far apart (even as Rossanohad other relationships). The twodanced togetheron the Italian version ofDancing with the Starsin 2018.
Ivana laterrevealed they called it quitsin 2019, though they werephotographed togetheras recently as July in New York City.
Rossano was born March 14, 1972, in Rome and worked as a model and actor, appearing in such films asThe Eighteenth AngelandThe Golden BowlwithUma ThurmanandKate Beckinsale. In more recent years, he had been working on launchingRossano To Go, a pizzeria in West Palm Beach, Florida.
source: people.com
