The RHONY Season 7 Premiere and TBB on Huff Post Live!

Sonja and Ramona on Huff Post Live. I chime in around 7:30 and then I’m back at the end.

By Tara Cushing (@TheBravoBlonde)

The Real Housewives of New York City are back, and they are back in a big way, a big Bethenny (Frankel) way. If you love Bethenny this is great, if you’re not her biggest fan, well it might not be. “The show was at least 40% about her,” my husband quipped at the end of the Season 7 premier episode which aired last Tuesday. So what happened in the other 60?

Ramonja– Ramona Singer, fresh from a very public divorce, and Sonja Morgan, who is acting like she’s fresh from her divorce, continue to be best frenemies. They fight for dominance of conversation, of the camera. Hey ladies, give up, Bethenny wins.

Heather Thomson– I love her, but was she even in this episode?

Kristen Taekman– Her daughter is finished with physical therapy, which will leave her plenty of time to go for the psychiatric variety she will be needing from having had a mother on Housewives.

Carole Radziwill– Carole has missed a deadline for a book deal. Perhaps Aviva Drescher‘s suggestion of a ghost writer wasn’t such a bad idea after all.

Countess LuAnn DeLesseps– She looks very, umm, refreshed. Hey I’m not knocking it, I just want to know what she’s done. Spill the beans please Lulu!

Dorinda Medley– Though Sonja and Ramona assured me on my Huff Post Live appearance (see clip below) that she “hit the ground running”, she seems more Real Housewives of New Jersey to me, than RHONY. Maybe it’s her boyfriend who seems the Jersey dry cleaning stereotype.

Bethenny Frankel– Aaaand back to the star, hey, she has no control over how much they edit her in or out. She’s back with the one liners and she’s as interesting as always. One thing that lit up Twitter was her scene with Million Dollar Listing New York‘s Fredrik Eklund, in which a displaced B states she is homeless, in the same breath that she talks about having bought a house in the Hamptons over the summer. In the words of Ramona on that evening’s Watch What Happens Live, she should rent something while she works on renovating her new apartment, and figuring out what to do about the one that her soon to be ex still inhabits. Between her and Kim Zolciak‘s similar statement on last season’s Don’t Be Tardy, I think it’s time for a new series…The Real Homeless Housewives, now that would be an interesting show. Skinnygirl dumpster dive recipes anybody?

http://embed.live.huffingtonpost.com/HPLEmbedPlayer/?segmentId=550879082b8c2a7ca6000764&autoPlay=false

PS: I was not at the premier party this year. I blame the harsh New York winter that made me a hermit on my absence of an invite. I turned too many invites down over the last few months. I love everybody and sincerely wanted to go to everything but, I don’t love you more than I hate the snow!

What did you think of season 7 opener? Share your thoughts with us!

Reality Roundup- December 6, 2014

Snooki ties the knot…
Source: Twitter

On Beyond Bravo by Lesley Rousso

Tuesday night’s episode of True Tori was a train-wreck if I ever saw one. The episode began with Tori (Spelling)‘s mother (Candy Spelling) showing up at one of her grandkid’s birthday parties with Tatum O’Neal. Despite both women being from legendary Hollywood families, Tori and Tatum, did not know each other…and we thought the entertainment industry was small. In the episode, Tatum was ragging on Tori because she was in the house with a headache. Not that I don’t agree, but, desperate for air time much? Meanwhile, Tori doesn’t speak to her mother unless it’s at one of her kids’ parties. Later in the episode Tori went away on a girls’ weekend and basically complained the whole time. She really needs to pull herself together.

Nicole Snooki Polizzi married her baby daddy Jionni Lavalle over the weekend. I saw the pics, she looked gorgeous. Jionni unfortunately spent his first weekday of married life in court copping to a DUI claim. His license was revoked for three months and he’ll have to attend a drug and alcohol education class.

By Tara Cushing (The Bravo Blonde)

Speaking of DUI, Cake Boss Buddy Valastro pleaded guilty on Monday to a similar charge. Valastro, who reportedly told cops, “You can’t arrest me, I’m the Cake Boss,” stated that he was “very disappointed” in himself for the event which occurred last month. Valastro, 37, was pulled over in New York City when police noticed his yellow Corvette was swerving in and out of traffic. Valastro lives in Montville, NJ, the same town as another favorite reality star convict (see next story)…

Credit:Getty/Dave Kotinsky
via popsugar.com

Whether you love her or loathe her, you can’t argue that Teresa Giudice makes great TV. She’s the Housewife that changed Housewives and she’s been the unofficial star of Real Housewives of New Jersey for seasons. E! Online reports, however, despite rumors,  the star will NOT be appearing on camera at all prior to her January 5th departure for the big(ger) house. E!, who, like Bravo, is part of NBC Universal, states that not only is Tre not filming before she reports to a Danbury, CT prison, but without her the show may not go on…initially. “Postponing season seven is just one possibility,” the article that was published on Tuesday reads, “…the powers that be are considering all options regarding the future of (the) series and whether Teresa is a part of it or not.” Jacqueline Laurita revealed to us in a recent interview that her own full-time return to the cast of the show is one of those possible options. Would you watch RHONJ without Teresa?

Speaking of Tre, TMZ says they have “obtained” a lawsuit she has filed against her bankruptcy lawyer. Teresa is suing Jim Kridel, for being “a slacker who never even met with her prior to filing bankruptcy docs.” Giudice accuses Kridel of failing to list several key assets including bank accounts, cars, and rental property income. Teresa is suing Kridel for malpractice to the tune of 5 million according to the TMZ article.

Our condolences go out this week to Todd Tucker, husband of Atlanta Housewife Kandi Burruss. Todd’s mother, Miss Sharon, passed on Tuesday unexpectedly. A friend of the family found Sharon unconscious. Todd was in Atlanta and flew to New York to be at his mother’s side where she was comatose in a New York hospital. Tucker, whose father passed when he was young and was raised by his mother, made the following statement via his social media:

“Today I lost my partner, my ride or die best friend! I don’t know what to do? I’m lost! My heart hurts so much! She was a fighter, a warrior for her son! It was me and her agains the world! She’s in a better place!! Mom I love you to death! Rest in peace!”

 

Nene takes on Broadway!
Credit: theatermania.com

In other, happier Real Housewives of Atlanta news, Nene Leakes has taken on Broadway and she’s been attracting Housewives from across the franchises to the Great White Way. Since her first night as the Evil Stepmother in Keke Palmer’s Cinderella, Nene has been cheered on by Melissa and Joe Gorga with their three children, Kathy Wakile, Kristen Taekman, and former RHONY star Jill Zarin. On her website Nene, who is never humble bashful, posted:

“Waking up this morning in a daze like what just happened! I stood before a SOLD OUT Broadway theatre screaming my name! The overwhelming amount of love and support brought me to tears! I have so many people to thank this morning…I can’t believe this. Like I really can’t believe this!”

Based on your behavior on recent seasons of Real Housewives of Atlanta, neither can we! All jokes aside though, it sounds like an amazing show! Maybe I should try to get my glass slippers down there to check it out! The show runs through January (Hmm maybe that could be my birthday present…calling Mr. Blonde…)

Speaking of Nene, it appears she will get another chance to tell Kim Zolciak to close her legs (or stop reproducing). The frenemies are scheduled to have a sit down with Housewives Fairy Godfather Andy Cohen on a December 7th airing of Watch What Happens Live. Despite a tumultuous relationship, the two have both come around to wanting to reconcile, with Kim recently saying that she missed her pal. Could this be a prelude to a RHOA comeback for Kim? Don’t Be Tardy for this WWHL episode!

Tell us: Would you like to see Nene and Kim together again?

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Reality Roundup-November 29, 2014

Teresa at the recently aired reunion show.
Credit: Charles Sykes/Bravo/Getty Via:People.com

By Tara Cushing (The Bravo Blonde)

What’s cooking? According to The Daily Mail it’s a new Bravo cooking show starring Teresa Giudice. A Real Housewives of New Jersey “insider” reportedly told the publication that there is already a deal for the mother of 4 girls, and several New York Times bestselling cookbooks, to host her own cooking show while appearing part-time on the series that made her famous enough to write a cookbook in the first place.

“Teresa is, of course, devastated she has to spend even one day behind bars but she has already made this whole situation a money maker for her…Teresa and Bravo have been taking this time to plan a big media event when she is released from prison either late next year or early 2016.”

Teresa reports to a facility in Danbury, Connecticut to start serving her sentence on January 5th.

Will Jacqueline Laurita see Teresa before sentencing? According to what she told me at an event on November 19th, probably not.” The once besties have barely even spoken since the sentencing. “I texted her, she answered me, and that was it,” Jacqueline said when I asked her about the current status of their friendship. To read the entire interview including what Jacqueline said about coming back to RHONJ and about her feud with Dina Manzo, click here.

Kim Zolciak shows off what looks like a corseted waist. Credit: Instagram

Kim Zolciak has 4 reasons to celebrate this week. On Monday twins Kaia and Kane Biermann turned one. Kim posted adorable pictures of the birthday twins on her social media and made the following statement:

“It seems like yesterday I told Dr. Hood I feel different this pregnancy I couldn’t stay awake. Seriously though and he did an ultrasound and BAAM 2 sacs!!! I couldn’t believe it!!!…although twins run high on my moms side I was still in shock! What a blessing!!”

 The other two reasons she should celebrate, her impossibly thin waist which she is flaunting in selfies. She credits a cleanse from 310 Nutrition, but let’s not forget that she did  have a tummy tuck. As a mother of twins I can tell you that is a huge part of the formula (I had to do it too). She is quick to point out that plastic surgery isn’t a “cure all” and that she does work out (I will also agree that this is key). The fourth reason she should celebrate is that she’s gone a full year without being knocked up. Guess she should be kissing the feet of her plastic surgeon and Kroy‘s urologist. Ummm, it is a urologist that does the vasectomy…right? I’m not sure, what I am sure of is that Kim, those twins would only be inherited from your mother’s side. Twins on the father’s side are usually not genetic. It’s the female line that double ovulates. I’m also sure that you didn’t proofread that post (commas and apostrophes are our friends, my dear.)

Real Housewives of Orange County ‘s Vicki Gunvalson is no longer hiding her relationship with Brooks Ayers. Though the two have been off and on for quite a few years now, Vicki told US Weekly’s Brody Brown that not only have the two been exclusively dating again for the last year, but Brooks has moved into her home. Vicki’s daughter, Briana Culberson, who has been publicly against her mother’s relationship, hadn’t known that the two were together prior to the interview. However, this is the least of the couples’ problems.

Photo via usweekly.com

Brooks, who has battled Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma since 2009, is once again facing the reality of having the disease. Brooks told Vicki earlier this fall that he was diagnosed with Stage 3 of the cancer. Vicki stated in the interview that cancer, “will either tear you apart as a couple or bring you together. And with us, without a doubt, it’s brought us together.”  Vicki also stated that her RHOC castmates have mostly been there for her all except for ex BFF Tamra Judge. “You know what, you really find out who your true friends are when things like this happen,” she said. Are you team Tamra or team Vicki? Tell us why below.

Want some exclusive Bravo buzz? Check out my new interview with Jacqueline Laurita.

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We are happy to introduce our new and improved Reality Roundup! We know you are busy and will still offer the same all in one place gossip “cheat sheet”, but we will also give you the option of reading it as the gossip grows during the week. Read now or read later, it’s up to you, but we will have the latest buzz waiting for you when you are ready!

Tell us below what you think of the new Reality Roundup format and any opinions you have on this week’s news!

Let the tongues wag!