LOS ANGELES (AP) – Rafael Mantesso turned 30 in an empty New York apartment after divorce left every wall, floor, closet and shelf bare. The only things he had left were his cellphone and a pit bull named Jimmy Choo that his neighbors went out of their way to avoid.
When he turned 33 on Jan. 14, Mantesso still owned that apartment and it’s still vacant. But it’s for sale now. And people can’t get enough of his 6-year-old bull terrier – from the Instagram sketches-plus-photos of Jimmy that went viral, the book “A Dog Named Jimmy” and a collection of Jimmy-inspired bags and purses for the high-end fashion brand Jimmy Choo. (Mantesso’s ex-wife had named the dog for her favorite shoes.)
There are future plans too: a calendar, endorsements and launching the charitable Jimmy Foundation. Meanwhile, Mantesso is working at an advertising agency in Sao Paulo in his native Brazil, and doing the occasional photo shoot.
The first night they were alone in the “naked” apartment three years ago, Jimmy did a happy dance through all the rooms. Mantesso picked up his phone and started shooting photos of Jimmy’s contagious dance of joy.
“When I sat in my empty living room, Jimmy was happy, running from one side to the other side, in circles, crazy. The apartment was a playground to him. He was loving that empty place. That energy was amazing. I looked at him and said to myself, ‘Oh my God, I was thinking everything was lost and I had the most important thing in the house – Jimmy,'” Mantesso said in his Portuguese accented-English.