Disclaimer: This article contains mentions of abuse. Reader discretion is advised.
Adult film star Stormy Daniels, whose real name is Stephanie Clifford, was born in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, reported People Magazine. She grew up in the Southern state town in her mother’s care. The Evening Standard noted that Daniels’ parents, Sheila and Bill Gregory, had divorced when she was only three or four. Her single mother worked in a trucking company and would leave her alone for days. Additionally, as a girl, her life was ruined by sexual abuse and poverty.
Daniels detailed her early life in a memoir, Full Disclosure, claiming there were “days without electricity,” per the outlet. According to Reuters, in 2021, she told Vice News, “We were just trash.” She said that her “clothes didn’t fit, and I was poor and I smelled” while describing her childhood. The actress added that her mother “was a train wreck” who spent her days drinking, partying, and “always looking for situations with men,” reported People Magazine.
In the memoir book and recent Peacock documentary, Stormy Daniels also described the story of her alleged sexual abuse. Daniels claimed she was only nine years old when her neighbor, a middle-aged man, sexually abused her. She alleged that the man did the same with many other girls from her school. However, once the report reached authorities, Daniels claimed her mother urged her to lie. Sheila feared that the authorities would take her daughter away.
People Magazine and The Evening Standard stated that Daniels visited a strip club at 17 when she was first introduced to the business. She began working in adult entertainment until she graduated high school. Per Reuters, in 2002, Daniels’ career as an adult film star began, and she took on the stage name. She became a renowned star in the industry, won awards, and appeared in TV shows and films, including The 40-Year-Old Virgin and Knocked Up. She later began producing and directing X-rated films.
When did Stormy Daniels and Donald Trump first meet?
Stormy Daniels and Donald Trump first met in 2006 when they had their alleged sexual encounter. Per People Magazine, they allegedly first met in July 2006 at the American Century Championship, a celebrity golf tournament that took place at Edgewood Tahoe golf course in Nevada. Daniels has claimed on several occasions that the alleged sexual encounter took place in Trump’s hotel room. Trump was 60 at the time, while Daniels was 27 years old. He reportedly invited her over to his room for dinner.
The Guardian reported that in her memoir, Daniels claimed she spanked Trump with a Forbes Magazine. The cover of that same magazine had featured him at the time. The adult film star claimed Trump told her that she reminded him of his daughter, Ivanka, and claimed that he and his wife, Melania, slept in separate beds. He and Melania, his third wife, had been married for about a year, but she wasn’t present at the tournament. Melania had given birth to their son Barron less than four months before.
Stormy Daniels called her alleged sexual encounter with Donald Trump “textbook generic sex” in the Peacock documentary. Daniels added that she initially did not want to go to Trump’s room for dinner, per People Magazine. She accepted the invitation after her publicist, insisting that she would “have a good story,” urged her to go. The star claimed they had a good conversation but later felt cornered by the 60-year-old.
“I don’t remember how I got on the bed, and the next thing I know, he was humping away and telling me how great I was,” she said. USA Today stated that Daniels claimed it was the first and the last alleged sexual encounter with Trump. The latter frequently contacted her afterward, and they even met “five or six,” but nothing happened between them.
When did Stormy Daniels’ alleged sexual encounter with Donald Trump first surface?
Stormy Daniels first spoke about the alleged sexual encounter with Donald Trump in a shelved interview with a magazine in 2011, per The Evening Standard. Then, in 2018, allegations surfaced that Trump paid Daniels $130,000 in hush money to keep their alleged affair a secret. His then-lawyer, Michael Cohen, paid the money to Daniels in 2016 before the U.S. Presidential elections to avoid a scandal.
Daniels has revealed that she accepted the money and signed an NDA to keep her family from harm’s way. The NDA was to “keep the story from coming out,” per USA Today. The star believed, “There would be a paper trail and money trail linking me to Donald Trump so that he could not have me killed.”
The Wall Street Journal was the first to report on the payment Trump allegedly made to Stormy Daniels in 2018, reported Reuters. At the time, Michael Cohen alleged that he made the payment to Daniels on his own accord and that Trump had nothing to do with it. BBC further stated that Cohen pleaded guilty to tax evasion and breaking campaign finance rules in August of that year. He later testified that Trump made him pay the money to Daniels and that he received a reimbursement for it.
Over the years, former President Donald Trump has denied all allegations, including having the alleged sexual encounter with Daniels. He has also denied paying hush money to Daniels. However, in 2023, Trump was first faced with 34 felony counts of falsifying business records and is now on trial on the charges.
Peacock’s documentary on Stormy Daniels examines the star’s personal life, career in the adult film industry, and the case against Donald Trump. The documentary premiered on March 18, 2024, and is now streaming on the network.
