Bring Sean home

Meredith Vieira • Profile

Like all good fairy tales, this one has a prince - the handsome international model - and his princes, the beautiful fashion student. They were young, gorgeous, and seemed to have it all - even a little Prince Charming.

David Goldman: It was beautiful. It was perfect.

Meredith Vieira: You were head over heels.

David Goldman: Yeah, I was.

But David Goldman's story book romance would not be the kind with a happy ending. Instead, love would disintegrate into an unimaginable tale of deception and tragedy, and a bitter war of hearts waged over international borders.

Meredith Vieira: It's like being dropped into a nightmare.

David Goldman: Except you never sleep. A living nightmare.

David's “once upon a time” began when he was 21. He was lifeguarding near his hometown on the New Jersey shore when a camera crew recruited him to pose with swimsuit model Kathy Ireland.

David Goldman: I didn't even get a chance to open my mouth one way or another before my friend pushed me off the lifeguard stand.

With one camera click, David's plans for law school vanished in fairy dust. The shoot launched him into a glamorous world where he posed with big stars like Claudia Schiffer, played Heidi Klum’s boyfriend in an ad for Caress body wash, and even got to try a little acting.

Video   Brazil court still won’t let American boy go home June 7: David Goldman, who has been fighting an international custody battle five years, was given another devastating blow by the court in Brazil this week in his attempt to bring his son Sean home. Dateline NBC traveled with Goldman down to Brazil during this latest twist in the case. NBC’s Meredith Vieira reports. Dateline NBC

That buff beach bod got Cosmopolitan Magazine's attention. In 1997, it dubbed David “Mr. November,” one of the country's most eligible bachelors.

In the flirtatious Cosmo video, David is the down-to-earth guy who loves working with his dad as a fishing guide.

Meredith Vieira: There's a calendar, a video portraying you as the sexy fisherman. What was that like for you? Did it go to your head?

David Goldman: I just -- kinda just felt lucky. And – humbled.

Karen Bott: That was the funny thing. He never really thought it was that big of a deal.

Bobby Chang: He was a regular guy from Jersey that happened to be modeling. He wasn't a show-off about it.

Bobby Chang is one of David's best friends. Karen Bott is a college buddy. They say David was never mesmerized by the stunning models he worked with. He always yearned for something more. And just months after musing about his perfect girl, Mr. November found her. He was modeling in Milan and she was his neighbor in this apartment building.

Meredith Vieira: And that first time you saw her?

David Goldman: She was smiling such a vibrant, bubbly smile. We ended up, of course, having a pizza (laughs) in Italy. What else would you do?

Her name was Bruna Bianchi. She was 23, and had come to Milan from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil to get her masters in fashion design. David was smitten.

David Goldman: She didn't do drugs. She didn't smoke. She spoke different languages. She was cultured, smart. And, I thought, sincere and honest.

Suddenly, David was hopelessly stuck on the ode to the girl from Ipanema.

Bobby Chang: "Dave, ya know, why do you keep whistling that song? It's getting annoying." He's like, "Well, wanna let you guys know that I think I met the girl that I'm gonna marry."

And in 1999, David did, giving his Ipanema girl a ring he designed himself, made from diamonds belonging to the most cherished women in his life.

David Goldman: My grandmother, my great grandmother, my mom. And it was just this special way to give this to the person that I thought I would be with for the rest of my life.

Karen Bott: She shined. She was a beautiful person inside and out. Warm and friendly and just as easy and outgoing as he was.

Video   Dad divulges on struggle for son A video diary of David Goldman's fight in Brazil to be reunited with his son. Dateline NBC

In May of 2000, the glowing couple, who'd settled in New Jersey, welcomed a little boy into the world. They named him Sean, and David was over the moon.

Bobby Chang: He was ecstatic. That's what Dave wanted to be, he wanted to be a father.

David Goldman: I wanted to dedicate my life to my wife and child.

To do that, David stopped traveling and stuck to local modeling gigs. He started selling real estate on the side, and when Bruna took a teaching job, his more flexible hours allowed him to take on the role of "Mr. Mom."

Meredith Vieira: What did you guys do together?

David Goldman: What didn't we do together? I would take him out for breakfast, take him on the boat. We did everything - everything a father and son could do and then some.

It seemed so idyllic. The family enjoyed a comfortable suburban life, and right in their backyard, Sean had a natural wonderland that David taught him to love.

Bobby Chang: He lives in this gingerbread house that's kinda in the woods. And he and Sean would go camping in the back. They were inseparable. They had a very, very special bond.

It was a bond Bruna often told friends like Casey Fillian she was grateful for.

Casey Fillian: I remember her feeling lucky that she had a dad that was as good for Sean as he was. Great dad. That was all she used to say. He's a wonderful father.

Video   Father waits and wishes Meredith Vieira talks to David Goldman about his support network and what life is like as he fights - and waits - for his son Sean to be returned home. Dateline NBC

And it wasn't always just David and Sean. The close-knit family took plenty of vacations. And, Mom and Dad always made time for date night.

Michelle Langdon: They were definitely a happy couple. People commented on how wonderful their family was.

But behind her beaming smile, Bruna was hiding something. The fairy tale was about to shatter.

Meredith Vieira: You're in love, you have this child, you think everything is great.

David Goldman: I had no idea.

Karen Bott: She should've been an actress, ‘cause she had us all fooled.

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