Bethenny Frankel has accomplished a lot in the last few years. Between her successful reality show, her liquor line, and her books, she’s really made a name for herself — and tons of money! Bethenny sold her Skinnygirl Cocktail brand for a reported $120 million! All of that is quite the accomplishment for someone who started out as a ‘housewife!’
Bethenny got her start when she was cast of Real Housewives of New York. Although she had appeared on The Apprentice: Martha Stewart before that, it was RHONY that put her on the radar. “I was in a different place in my life and I’m so grateful for the experience [because] it did get me here,” she recently said on her new talk show, Bethenny, which is currently airing in test markets — and doing extremely well.
Looking back on Real Housewives of New York and how it has progressed, Bethenny says, “It’s a totally different show than when I started. It was just about women who had children and were married and it was kind of more fun and playful. Then it got crazy. Then it got really crazy and it was a different show.” The crazy she was talking about began for her with Kelly Bensimon. The two butted heads from the start and never really made amends. Later, she butted heads with her former BFF Jill Zarin. Bethenny left the show after the third season to appear in her own spin-offs, Bethenny Getting Married? and Bethenny Ever After.
Regarding Jill Zarin, Alex McCord, and Kelly Bensimon getting the boot after season 4, Bethenny explains, “It happens all the time in Housewives. They keep recycling and they kind of let you know that if you’re a Housewife, you can be replaced. And they just want to spice it up a little bit.” If spicing it up means firing half the cast, Bravo definitely spiced RHONY up for season 5!
Although they weren’t always the best of friends, Bethenny still wishes her former co-stars well. “I wish Jill the best. I wish Kelly the best,” she says. “Honestly, it was an experience that I’ll never forget and the year with the first five of us is definitely very nostalgic. It makes me feel old and that feels like freshman year in high school.”