Which magazine first published Melania Trump's nude photos and what was its ownership at the time?
Executive summary
Reporting shows Melania Trump posed nude in at least two different magazine shoots from the 1990s–2000s: a French men’s magazine called Max published images in 1995/1996 (often credited to photographer Alé de Basseville) and British GQ ran a high‑profile January 2000 shoot photographed by Antoine Verglas that included partial/full nudity in some images [1] [2] [3]. Available sources do not offer a single definitive statement that one distinct magazine “first” published her nude photos across all markets; different outlets document different early appearances [1] [3].
1. Which magazine published the early nude images that resurfaced? — Multiple early publications, notably Max and GQ
Contemporary and retrospective coverage identifies a French men’s magazine called Max as publishing a 1995 (sometimes cited as January 1996) spread of Melania Knauss that included fully nude photos taken by French photographer Alé de Basseville; several outlets characterize those images as among the earliest to surface in the press [1] [4] [5]. Separately, a January 2000 shoot for British GQ by Antoine Verglas—shot aboard Donald Trump’s Boeing 727 and described in multiple accounts—produced nude or partially nude images that were later republished and widely circulated during political scrutiny [3] [2] [6]. Because reporting cites both Max and British GQ as sources of nude/explicit images at different times, sources do not offer a single canonical “first” publisher across all publications and markets [1] [3].
2. What exactly did Max publish, and when? — A mid‑1990s European men’s magazine spread
The New York Post and other outlets reporting on the resurfaced images say Max ran a steamy spread in the mid‑1990s showing Melania posing nude at roughly age 25; coverage often dates the issue to 1995 or January 1996 and attributes the photographs to Alé de Basseville [1] [4] [5]. These accounts present Max as a now‑defunct French men’s magazine that ran provocative material and that those particular images were among the earliest to draw public attention to Melania’s modeling past [1].
3. What did British GQ publish, and why did it matter? — The 2000 “Sex at 30,000 ft” shoot
British GQ’s January 2000 issue ran a high‑profile shoot by Antoine Verglas, featuring Melania on Donald Trump’s private Boeing 727; Verglas and outlets describe the spread as provocative and note Verglas later defended licensing and misuse of those images during political campaigns [3] [2] [6]. Vanity Fair and ABC News specifically tie the GQ shoot to Verglas and to editorial packaging that emphasized sex and novelty, and they note GQ’s publisher at the time was Condé Nast [6] [2]. British GQ’s images became especially salient during U.S. political coverage because of the airplane setting and the prominence of the photographer and publisher [6].
4. Who owned the magazines at the time? — Max vs. British GQ (Condé Nast)
Available reporting identifies the title Max as a French men’s magazine but does not provide a clear corporate‑ownership line in the provided sources for the mid‑1990s Max issues; sources describe Max as a European men’s magazine that later ceased publication [1] [4]. By contrast, reporting explicitly states British GQ was part of Condé Nast at the time that Antoine Verglas photographed Melania for its January 2000 issue; Vanity Fair notes Condé Nast owns that title and related publications [6].
5. Areas of disagreement and reporting limits — What sources do and don’t say
Different outlets emphasize different shoots: some focus on the Max 1995/1996 images as the earliest nude photos [1] [5], while others spotlight the 2000 British GQ spread because of its later political prominence and identifiable photographer [3] [2] [6]. The provided sources do not offer a definitive catalogue showing which magazine literally published the very first nude photograph of Melania across all markets; they also do not supply corporate details for Max’s ownership at the time of publication [1] [4]. Where corporate ownership is mentioned, it is for British GQ and Condé Nast [6].
6. Why this matters — Context and potential motivations
Journalistic accounts show the images have been republished or recirculated at politically sensitive moments, and photographers or publishers have at times defended or restricted use of the images; Antoine Verglas has been quoted about licensing and legal threats when images were reused [2] [6]. That pattern suggests both commercial and reputational incentives shape which images are highlighted and when, and it helps explain why different media outlets emphasize different original publications [2] [6].
If you want, I can attempt to create a side‑by‑side timeline of the known shoots (dates, photographers, magazine names) drawn only from these sources to clarify the sequence as presented in current reporting [1] [3] [2] [6].