The Real Housewives of New York City is a reality television program on the Bravo network. As a spin-off of the successful series The Real Housewives of Orange County, it is the second version of the The Real Housewives of... series.
The show's first season premiered on March 4 , 2008 . The five housewives are Bethenny Frankel, LuAnn de Lesseps, Alex McCord, Ramona Singer, and Jill Zarin. The women are not all actually housewives; the intent of the show is to reveal the lifestyles of relatively affluent women and their families living in New York. With the exception of LuAnn de Lesseps, the women all have active careers.
The series was renewed for a second season on April 15 , 2008 and premiered on Bravo in the USA on February 17 , 2009 with a sixth "housewife", Kelly Killoren Bensimon.
The Real Housewives of New York City will add to its reality family again when it returns for a third season next year, Bravo announced. No casting decisions have been made yet as to which Housewives will return for Season 3, Bravo told TVGuide.com.
Current Housewives
Bethenny Frankel
Bethenny Frankel (born November 4 , 1970 ) is a natural foods chef and is currently on The Real Housewives of New York City on Bravo. She is daughter of the late thoroughbred race horse trainer Robert Frankel, a National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame inductee and five-time winner of the Eclipse Award for Outstanding Trainer.
Bethenny graduated from Pine Crest School and matriculated to New York University. Before she appeared in the reality show, Frankel starred in the 1994 movie "Hollywood Hills 90028" and acted in the 1995 movie "Wish Me Luck". Additionally, she was a contestant and the first runner-up on The Apprentice: Martha Stewart. She was a regular contrbutor to NBC's coverage of the 2009 Kentucky Derby and 2009 Preakness Stakes and Bravo TV's coverage of the 2009 Kentucky Oaks
Currently Frankel is the creator and head of Skinnygirl™ products(most famous for the "Skinnygirl™ Margarita") and author of the New York Times Best Seller,"Naturally Thin: Unleash Your SkinnyGirl and Free Yourself from a Lifetime of Dieting." "Naturally Thin" has remained on the Best Sellers Paperback Advice List for 13 weeks since its publishing debut on March 10, 2009, peaking at number 2.
In Early October 2009, Bravo confirmed Frankel will be leaving Real Housewives to start her own show on the Bravo Network. She is being replaced by Sonja Morgan.
LuAnn de Lesseps
LuAnn de Lesseps, a former Wilhelmina Models model and nurse, is of Algonquin and French descent.
At 44, she is the fourth wife of Count Alexandre de Lesseps, a descendant of Ferdinand de Lesseps of the Suez Canal family. They have two children—Victoria and Noel. In March 2009 LuAnn and her husband began the process of filing for divorce. It was reported that Count de Lesseps was having an extramarital affair.
De Lesseps is the author of a new book released in 2009 entitled " Class With The Countess ".
Ramona Singer
55-year-old Ramona Singer is a businesswoman and an aficionado of fashion. As a graduate of the Fashion Institute of Technology, Singer started in the business 30 years ago as a buyer for Macy's, then moved into the wholesale clothing business with French Connection and Calvin Klein. She is now designing jewelry. Her line of pendants, earrings, bracelets and rings are currently sold on the Home Shopping Network (HSN). Her jewelry line was inspired by her love for estate and art deco jewelry, which she says she adores because it is timeless. "I don't want a trendy piece of jewelry to hand down to my daughter Avery, because it will be out of style and she won't want to wear it," Singer notes. "Estate jewelry will always be in style, and women will always wear it."
In addition to being one of "The Real Housewives of New York City" on Bravo Television, Ramona's career includes purchasing excess inventory and reselling it. She also recently helped to develop a skin care line "Tru Renewal." Ramona Singer lives on Manhattan's Upper East Side with her husband Mario and their teenage daughter Avery. She has been married for 18 years and married her husband when she was 37.
Alex McCord
McCord, the youngest of the cast at 35, is married to Simon van Kempen, a hotel manager, and has two children, Francois and Johan. McCord is a former actress and model. She was a graphic designer for over nine years. In March 2009, McCord was laid off from her job in visual merchandising for Limited Brands/Victoria’s Secret. She is now consulting for Second Time Around, a luxury consignment chain. McCord was born in Washington, DC, and has lived in New York City since 1996. She and van Kempen currently reside in the Cobble Hill neighborhood of Brooklyn.
Jill Zarin
Jill Zarin, 46, is married to Bobby Zarin. She is involved in numerous charities that are frequently featured in the show. Jill has a teenage daughter named Allyson Shapiro Zarin who is dealing with a form of arthritis called Spondyloarthropathy. The episode "Runway Run-In" featured Jill organizing a charitable event to raise awareness for her daughter's condition and for her new charity, "Creaky Joints."
Jill is close friends with Carole Rome and her husband Governor Charlie Crist.
She attended Simmons College.
Zarin lives on the Upper East Side neighborhood with her family. They sold their home in the Hamptons, retaining the right to stay there through the end of the summer of 2009.
Kelly Killoren Bensimon
Kelly Killoren Bensimon, 41 years old, is the newest housewife to join the "Real Housewives" series. Killoren Bensimon, who is from Rockford, IL, was married to iconic fashion photographer Gilles Bensimon. She is the mother of two children, author, former model, equestrian, and magazine editor.
Sonja Morgan
Sonja Morgan, 45, has been casted to join the NYC Housewives for the upcoming 3rd season. Morgan will not be replacing any former housewife.
Jennifer Gilbert
Series Overview
Episode Guide
Season 1
Season 2
See also
- The Real Housewives of...
- The Real Housewives of Orange County
- The Real Housewives of New Jersey
- The Real Housewives of Atlanta
References
- ^ Gina DiNunno (08 July 2009). "Real Housewives of NYC to Add New Castmates". TVGuide.com . http://www.tvguide.com/News/Real-Housewives-NYC-1007820.aspx . Retrieved 2009-07-08 .
- ^ "Bethenny Frankel: Bio" Bethenny Frankel, 2009. Retrieved on June 26, 2009.
- ^ "Best Sellers: Paperback Advice (June 21, 2009)" The New York Times, 2009. Retrieved on June 26, 2009.
- ^ "'Naturally Thin" Product Details" Amazon, 2009. Retrieved June 26, 2009.
- ^ "Best Sellers: Paperback Advice (June 05, 2009)" The New York Times, 2009. Retrieved on June 26, 2009.
- ^ "Countess LuAnn de Lesseps for Ford Models - Manhattan Moms on Bravo - Bazaar.com". Phoebe Eaton . http://www.harpersbazaar.com/magazine/feature-articles/real-housewives-new-york-city-0708-4 . Retrieved May 2 2009 .
- ^ "Class With The Countess: About". LuAnn de Lesseps, 2008 . http://www.classwiththecountess.com/about.htm . Retrieved May 2 2009 .
- ^ "Simon van Kempen". McCordvanKempen, 2008 . http://www.mccordvankempen.com/simon.php . Retrieved May 2 2009 . ...
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