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Manuela in the Toronto Star Prince's ex-wife Manuela Testolini helps children the world over
TheStar.com March 12, 2009 Malena Harbers Special to the Star It's no wonder Manuela Testolini thinks North Americans are easily distracted by stardom. She is an entrepreneur and philanthropist, runs a children's charity and champions living a green lifestyle. But instead of inquiring about her most benevolent causes, not five minutes into our interview, I ask about what I really want to know: "What was it like being married to Prince?" "It was a roller-coaster," says Testolini. Married in 2001, the duo met in Prince's native Minneapolis while Testolini was working for his charity, Love4OneAnother. They lived together in Toronto but ultimately divorced five years later. "It was a very eye-opening experience to see what show business was all about," remembers Testolini. "It was never my desire to be in the spotlight, but it was a great experience because it allowed me to start my own business." Born and raised in North York, she still calls the Bayview Ave. area home. A law and sociology student at York University, she was a philanthropist at heart and eventually left Toronto to pursue a career in Minneapolis. There, she founded her children's foundation, In A Perfect World, a non-profit organization that partners with other community-based associations to inspire and empower children. My unashamed, quick switch from talking charitable projects to rock star inquiries illustrates one of the intentions of her latest endeavour, Project Mumbai, which supports children affected by the terrorist attacks last November. "We hear about Mumbai and then we're back to talking about Britney Spears the next day," she says. "I wanted to keep what happened in people's minds and draw attention to the children affected." On a business trip to visit the Mumbai slums, Testolini witnessed first-hand the harrowing events. While dining at the Oberoi Hotel, she found herself surrounded by gunfire. Taking refuge in the hotel's ballroom, Testolini borrowed a companion's BlackBerry to email details of the attacks to her boyfriend, musician Eric Benét. "Eric called as many people as he knew to help us get out of there," she recalls. Ten hours later, back on safe ground, she created Project Mumbai to help pick up the pieces for the city's impoverished children. To finance her charities, Testolini created Altru, a group of fragrance-based lifestyle products inspired by textiles and trinkets she collected during her travels. The flower cut-out copper incense holder is a replica of one she found in a Cairo market, originally used to store prayers or marriage certificates. Each scent in the collection is aptly named after a core value: Harmony, Unity, Humanity and Integrity. Everything in the line is recycled or recyclable. Housed in reusable copper containers, the candles are soy, beeswax and palm oil. And the intricate packaging design, which oozes exotic charm, is made from recycled cardboard. Being green is a way of life for Testolini. Speaking to me from her second home in West Hollywood, she lists its eco-credentials. Her living room features non-toxic carpet and couches fashioned from organic cotton and reclaimed wood. And in Toronto, she's the proud owner of a home with a green roof and a hybrid Lexus SUV. Testolini is genuinely compassionate and believable when she says she never wanted to be famous and that red carpets make her shy. As for her recent walk down the scarlet walkway at the Grammys with Benét and his daughter, she says, "I have to do those things because they're necessary for being supportive of someone else." Altru products cost $15 to $65 (U.S) at amalsroom.com or neimanmarcus.com. For more info on In A Perfect World visit iapw.org. Never trust anything spoken in the presence of an erection.
H Michael Frase | |
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her boyfriend, musician Eric Benét.
Isn't he the dude who was bangin' everything under the sun while he was married to Halle Berry? Good call!  |
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NewPowerSista said: "What was it like being married to Prince?"
"It was a roller-coaster," "It was a very eye-opening experience to see what show business was all about," remembers Testolini. "It was never my desire to be in the spotlight, but it was a great experience because it allowed me to start my own business." 
She's a romantic I see.... | |
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Ace said: her boyfriend, musician Eric Benét.
Isn't he the dude who was bangin' everything under the sun while he was married to Halle Berry? Good call! Haha, indeed he was. I find it interesting that she chose to discuss their marriage in terms of business rather than a relationship. I realize it's an interview focusing on her work, but still, bit of an eye-opener as to her mindset perhaps? | |
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She didn't answer the question what was it like being married to Prince & she doesn't like the limelight, but she hangs marry's a rock star & dates another celb! eh. | |
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pardonme4livin said: NewPowerSista said: "What was it like being married to Prince?"
"It was a roller-coaster," "It was a very eye-opening experience to see what show business was all about," remembers Testolini. "It was never my desire to be in the spotlight, but it was a great experience because it allowed me to start my own business."
She's a romantic I see.... I said the same thing... | |
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NewPowerSista said: Prince's ex-wife Manuela Testolini helps children the world over
TheStar.com March 12, 2009 Malena Harbers Special to the Star It's no wonder Manuela Testolini thinks North Americans are easily distracted by stardom. She is an entrepreneur and philanthropist, runs a children's charity and champions living a green lifestyle. But instead of inquiring about her most benevolent causes, not five minutes into our interview, I ask about what I really want to know: "What was it like being married to Prince?" Testolini is genuinely compassionate and believable when she says she never wanted to be famous and that red carpets make her shy. As for her recent walk down the scarlet walkway at the Grammys with Benét and his daughter, she says, "I have to do those things because they're necessary for being supportive of someone else." this has got to be the most bullshit article ever.  | |
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MajesticOne89 said: pardonme4livin said:
She's a romantic I see.... I said the same thing... I agree it is obvious what hidden goals she had while "married" to Prince. She obviously was using him to advance herself publicly and financially. She has the nerve to say she was in the "spotlight" implying she became "famous." I think she should realize she became "infamous." As much as she was trying to pose in pictures with Prince every chance she had and all the magazines ads for her Altru product with her in the pictures when she could have just used a picture of the product is very telling and she is obviously not "camera shy." "Altru" - please - I think she needs to rebrand the product name to be "All Lies" for the sake of accuracy. Can anyone say Golddigga, Hussler, Opportunist - just a few words that come to mind when reading this interview which is another sad attempt at trying to draw attention to herself. It is sickening how she would play with someone's life for her selfish reasons but yet is pretending to be concerned about other people with her "charity" work. By the way can the Moderators on Prince.org remove the thread link about this sickening excuse for a human being from the front page of the site!!! Just KeepinItReal [Edited 3/12/09 18:44pm] | |
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keepinitreal said: MajesticOne89 said: I said the same thing... I agree it is obvious what hidden goals she had while "married" to Prince. She obviously was using him to advance herself publicly and financially. She has the nerve to say she was in the "spotlight" implying she became "famous." I think she should realize she became "infamous." As much as she was trying to pose in pictures with Prince every chance she had and all the magazines ads for her Altru product with her in the pictures when she could have just used a picture of the product is very telling and she is obviously not "camera shy." "Altru" - please - I think she needs to rebrand the product name to be "All Lies" for the sake of accuracy. Can anyone say Golddigga, Hussler, Opportunist - just a few words that come to mind when reading this interview which is another sad attempt at trying to draw attention to herself. It is sickening how she would play with someone's life for her selfish reasons but yet is pretending to be concerned about other people with her "charity" work. By the way can the Moderators on Prince.org remove the thread link about this sickening excuse for a human being from the front page of the site!!! Just KeepinItReal [Edited 3/12/09 18:44pm] Whoa. 69 posts and most of them related to Manuella? You might want to take a step back. | |
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you know, one day she's gonna come across an interviewer who happens to be a Prince fan or knows her story, then it will be showtime with some real questions. 
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pardonme4livin said: NewPowerSista said: "What was it like being married to Prince?"
"It was a roller-coaster," "It was a very eye-opening experience to see what show business was all about," remembers Testolini. "It was never my desire to be in the spotlight, but it was a great experience because it allowed me to start my own business."
She's a romantic I see....
I didn't catch that. | |
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TwiliteKid said: keepinitreal said: I agree it is obvious what hidden goals she had while "married" to Prince. She obviously was using him to advance herself publicly and financially. She has the nerve to say she was in the "spotlight" implying she became "famous." I think she should realize she became "infamous." As much as she was trying to pose in pictures with Prince every chance she had and all the magazines ads for her Altru product with her in the pictures when she could have just used a picture of the product is very telling and she is obviously not "camera shy." "Altru" - please - I think she needs to rebrand the product name to be "All Lies" for the sake of accuracy. Can anyone say Golddigga, Hussler, Opportunist - just a few words that come to mind when reading this interview which is another sad attempt at trying to draw attention to herself. It is sickening how she would play with someone's life for her selfish reasons but yet is pretending to be concerned about other people with her "charity" work. By the way can the Moderators on Prince.org remove the thread link about this sickening excuse for a human being from the front page of the site!!! Just KeepinItReal [Edited 3/12/09 18:44pm] Whoa. 69 posts and most of them related to Manuella? You might want to take a step back. TwiliteKid - I think you need to stop lying - Anyone can easily look at my posts and the majority are about Prince and correcting the false information people on Prince.org have posted regarding Jehovah Witnesses. Also you should notice I have only posted a total of 69 posts since 2002 - 7 years. Which tells you I only post statements when I have something worth saying. Just KeepinItReal [Edited 3/12/09 19:19pm] | |
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NewPowerSista said: "What was it like being married to Prince?"
"It was a roller-coaster," "It was a very eye-opening experience to see what show business was all about," remembers Testolini. "It was never my desire to be in the spotlight, but it was a great experience because it allowed me to start my own business." She was a philanthropist at heart and eventually left Toronto to pursue a career in Minneapolis. Testolini is genuinely compassionate and believable when she says she never wanted to be famous and that red carpets make her shy. As for her recent walk down the scarlet walkway at the Grammys with Benét and his daughter, she says, "I have to do those things because they're necessary for being supportive of someone else." Too much BS in this interview, but we know her better. I don't really know too many philanthropists who leave Toronto to pursue a philanthropic career in Minneapolis.  Sad to know she married Prince only to find out what the show biz world was all about and to help her along in her career. Didn't she care about HIM? | |
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keepinitreal said: TwiliteKid said: Whoa. 69 posts and most of them related to Manuella? You might want to take a step back. TwiliteKid - I think you need to stop lying - Anyone can easily look at my posts and the majority are about Prince and correcting the false information people on Prince.org have posted regarding Jehovah Witnesses. Just KeepinItReal Pardon me? Lying? Not exactly. I clicked on your profile and saw a fairly high percentage of posts in threads about her. Having read a few of those, it seems you've got some unhealthy issues about her connection to Prince. | |
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TwiliteKid said: keepinitreal said: TwiliteKid - I think you need to stop lying - Anyone can easily look at my posts and the majority are about Prince and correcting the false information people on Prince.org have posted regarding Jehovah Witnesses. Just KeepinItReal Pardon me? Lying? Not exactly. I clicked on your profile and saw a fairly high percentage of posts in threads about her. Having read a few of those, it seems you've got some unhealthy issues about her connection to Prince. TwiliteKid - LOL - I do not have any unhealthy issues about her. Let's just put it this way - I am not some fan speaking based on rumors. I am speaking based on my direct knowledge about her. Nuff said. I just feel the unhealthy aspect is giving someone like this who obviously has issues with using people to gain attention and using Prince to do that does not deserve any attention on his fan website. That is the true irony of this thread. Oh by the way I see you are from Toronto, Canada - interesting. Just KeepinItReal [Edited 3/12/09 19:34pm] | |
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TwiliteKid said: keepinitreal said: I agree it is obvious what hidden goals she had while "married" to Prince. She obviously was using him to advance herself publicly and financially. She has the nerve to say she was in the "spotlight" implying she became "famous." I think she should realize she became "infamous." As much as she was trying to pose in pictures with Prince every chance she had and all the magazines ads for her Altru product with her in the pictures when she could have just used a picture of the product is very telling and she is obviously not "camera shy." "Altru" - please - I think she needs to rebrand the product name to be "All Lies" for the sake of accuracy. Can anyone say Golddigga, Hussler, Opportunist - just a few words that come to mind when reading this interview which is another sad attempt at trying to draw attention to herself. It is sickening how she would play with someone's life for her selfish reasons but yet is pretending to be concerned about other people with her "charity" work. By the way can the Moderators on Prince.org remove the thread link about this sickening excuse for a human being from the front page of the site!!! Just KeepinItReal [Edited 3/12/09 18:44pm] Whoa. 69 posts and most of them related to Manuella? You might want to take a step back. thats what I was thinking.... the tone of this entire thread like many of threads on this board are so negative and just downright nasty Dance... Let me see you dance | |
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Alexandernvrmind said: the tone of this entire thread like many of threads on this board are so negative and just downright nasty
 it's time for a new direction / it's time for jazz to die | |
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She saw prince as an easy mark...she was light skined with no booty. she knew she could get him | |
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keepinitreal said: TwiliteKid - I think you need to stop lying - Anyone can easily look at my posts and the majority are about Prince and correcting the false information people on Prince.org have posted regarding Jehovah Witnesses.
TwiliteKid - LOL - I do not have any unhealthy issues about her. Let's just put it this way - I am not some fan speaking based on rumors. I am speaking based on my direct knowledge about her. Nuff said.
I just feel the unhealthy aspect is giving someone like this who obviously has issues with using people to gain attention and using Prince to do that does not deserve any attention on his fan website. That is the true irony of this thread. Oh by the way I see you are from Toronto, Canada - interesting. Hi, Prince!  |
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pardonme4livin said: NewPowerSista said: "What was it like being married to Prince?"
"It was a roller-coaster," "It was a very eye-opening experience to see what show business was all about," remembers Testolini. "It was never my desire to be in the spotlight, but it was a great experience because it allowed me to start my own business."
She's a romantic I see.... Translation: "If nothing else good came out of the relationship, it certainly allowed me the opportunity to start this business." C'mon, folks: you're being way too hard on the woman (and, contrary to popular belief, blindly defending Prince in any circumstance does not eventually lead to a close personal relationship with the man). Like everybody else who's ever lived, her motivations for doing anything are mixed. P.S. "Everybody else" includes Prince.  |
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I kinda want to admire her charitable spirit, but something about her just gives off the vibe of severe fakeness. Change it one more time.. | |
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lezama said: I kinda want to admire her charitable spirit, but something about her just gives off the vibe of severe fakeness.
true Love God. Love Music. Love Life. | |
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NewPowerSista said: Prince's ex-wife Manuela Testolini helps children the world over
TheStar.com March 12, 2009 Malena Harbers Special to the Star Born and raised in North York, she still calls the Bayview Ave. area home. A law and sociology student at York University, she was a philanthropist at heart and eventually left Toronto to pursue a career in Minneapolis. There, she founded her children's foundation, In A Perfect World, a non-profit organization that partners with other community-based associations to inspire and empower children. AND SHE ENDED UP GOING TO COLLEGE IN CANADA? 
To finance her charities, Testolini created Altru, a group of fragrance-based lifestyle products inspired by textiles and trinkets she collected during her travels. The flower cut-out copper incense holder is a replica of one she found in a Cairo market, originally used to store prayers or marriage certificates. ALONG WITH HER DIVORCE SETTLEMENT MONEY
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Bull... shit... uh... make... beard... itch... If prince.org were to be made idiot proof, someone would just invent a better idiot. | |
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. [Edited 3/21/10 13:26pm] ..She's Just A Baby..but she's my lady..my loveR..my only friend!..true love that will last!..PEOPLE DON'T UNDERSTAND..WHAT SHE SEES IN AN OLDER MAN..they never stop 2 think that maybe i'm what she's looking 4..THEY NEVER TAKE THE TIME..2 look in her mind | |
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i just think it's funny, she's still "prince's ex-wife" and she's been with eric benet for years now. says so much life's a bitch, but god forbid the bitch divorce me...
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wonder505 said: you know, one day she's gonna come across an interviewer who happens to be a Prince fan or knows her story, then it will be showtime with some real questions.
Damn, that's a dream come true! "Hey Mani, so tell all the other stalkers in the world how to work it!" | |
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keepinitreal said: MajesticOne89 said: I said the same thing... I agree it is obvious what hidden goals she had while "married" to Prince. She obviously was using him to advance herself publicly and financially. She has the nerve to say she was in the "spotlight" implying she became "famous." I think she should realize she became "infamous." As much as she was trying to pose in pictures with Prince every chance she had and all the magazines ads for her Altru product with her in the pictures when she could have just used a picture of the product is very telling and she is obviously not "camera shy." "Altru" - please - I think she needs to rebrand the product name to be "All Lies" for the sake of accuracy. Can anyone say Golddigga, Hussler, Opportunist - just a few words that come to mind when reading this interview which is another sad attempt at trying to draw attention to herself. It is sickening how she would play with someone's life for her selfish reasons but yet is pretending to be concerned about other people with her "charity" work. By the way can the Moderators on Prince.org remove the thread link about this sickening excuse for a human being from the front page of the site!!! Just KeepinItReal [Edited 3/12/09 18:44pm] I caught that shit too. And people on here got the damn nerve to blame Prince for all of these women leaving...pfft! How do y'all know they left him, he could have left them and for a good reason. surviving on the thought of loving you, it's just like the water
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Music pleazzzzz..... 
She take my money when I'm in need Yea she's a trifflin friend indeed Oh she's a gold digga way over town That dig's on me [Chorus:] (She did me wrong Now I aint sayin she a gold digger (When I'm Need) But she aint messin wit no broke niggaz (She did me wrong) Now I aint sayin she a gold digger (When I'm need) but she aint messin wit no broke niggaz get down girl go head get down (I gotta leave) get down girl go head get down (I gotta leave) get down girl go head get down (I gotta leave) get down girl go head Da, Da, Da....Emancipation....Free..don't think I ain't..! London 21 Nights...Clap your hands...you know the rest..
James Brown & Michael Jackson RIP, your music still lives with us! | |
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