Bravo's reality lineup typically portrays the lives of its stars with a wink, but there's
a lot more to their stories than ever hits the air. We're willing to suspend disbelief
for the sake of entertainment, but from The Real Housewives to Below Deck, these are the
secrets Bravo tried to hide.
Real estate developer Lee Najjar was apparently bankrolling Kim Zolciak-Biermann's lifestyle
back when she was introduced on the first season of The Real Housewives of Atlanta.
But Kim was coy about Najjar's identity on the show, referring to him only as "Big Poppa."
"Big Poppa is a multimillionaire. He doesn't ever wanna be in public because he's a celebrity.
A lot of my girlfriends don't even know who he is."
She was not shy, though, about flaunting her access to his sizable wealth; an estimated
$50 million.
"I could die tomorrow, I'm gonna die wearing Dior."
But during the Season 1 reunion, viewers discovered why Kim had been less than forthcoming about
her man; apparently, "Big Poppa" was still legally married to another woman. Oof. This
confession prompted NeNe's infamous line,
"Close your legs to married men."
"Excuse me?"
"You heard me. Close your legs to married men."
Everything changed when Kim met her now-husband, Kroy Biermann, at a 2010 charity event, with
her rocky on-and-off romance with "Big Poppa" officially coming to an end. After their 2011
wedding was chronicled on Don't Be Tardy for the Wedding, Kim left Real Housewives mid-season
in 2012, and the Biermanns' spin-off parlayed into their reality show, Don't be Tardy, which
details the couple's life with their blended family.
"Remember, they're on a boat with a bunch of humans watching them."
The Below Deck production team monitors strategically-placed cameras and the live microphones of every
cast member, all with the hopes of catching juicy tidbits to air on the show. Since they
must pay close attention to every move the cast makes to avoid missing a stolen kiss
or brewing tiff, there's a control room on the boat dedicated solely to the Bravo production
crew, which is actually three separate crews working hard for round-the-clock coverage.
"The guests have a pretty big request, they want you to strip."
Producer Nadine Rajabi opened up about the filming process during a producer's panel
at BravoCon 2019, admitting,
"Back when we first started, we didn't have that many surveillance cameras because the
boat's not that big. We realized if we [installed] more cameras, and the boat was always running
audio, we could hear everything. Now we have close to 18 surveillance cameras, so we're
always rolling."
Of course, there isn't enough room on the yacht for the production staff to sleep, so
they stay at a nearby hotel on dry land during their off time. But even that is its own behind-the-scenes
production: during each shift change, production teams move to and from the yacht via water
taxi.
"Who's gonna urinate on me if I get stung?"
Between catering to the guests' every need, completing the grueling chores necessary to
keep the yacht safe, and avoiding the production crew, we imagine filming the show must be
a logistical nightmare for the busy cast and crew.
"Welcome to the millionaire's club."
Haters come for Patti Stanger from nearly every angle. While watching Millionaire Matchmaker,
they might lament Stanger's old-school dating rules and brash, controversial manner.
"You realize you're not a ten."
"Patti, I'm a 10."
"No you're not."
"I see a 10."
"You're delusional."
A less-common criticism, however, is that her TV matchmaking was reportedly mostly all
for show. According to Bustle, supposedly only two matches Stanger made on the series
ultimately developed into lasting love.
One reason for this might be the seemingly dubious selection methods Stanger used to
recruit dates for her millionaires, considering many of the women selected as potential matches
for her wealthy clients reportedly came straight out of LA Casting. But it wasn't just her
alleged recruiting methods that raised eyebrows. Some of Stanger's "millionaires" might not
have really been millionaires at all. An insider who allegedly matched with one of Stanger's
clients told HuffPost in 2011,
"The guy I met with…was never even interviewed in person…They never even questioned his
millionaire status. As long as you can pay the steep fees, you are good to go. They will
set you up with as many girls as you want for that price."
"Ya just gotta try something new."
"Gotta try it."
Stanger herself even admitted to The Fashion Spot that the show wasn't exactly true to
life, revealing,
"My clients would never go on the show. They're more discreet, living in places like Aspen
and Monaco, and want to remain private."
Every episode of Top Chef involves a scene, normally 10 minutes or less, of the judges
deliberating the merits of each contestant's dish. What we see on the air, though, is apparently
just the tip of the iceberg lettuce! The winner of each challenge, and the season's overall
champion, must be chosen unanimously by the judges, which can make for lengthy debates.
In 2019, judge Gail Simmons told Syracuse.com,
"We talk through every dish and every layer of what happened in the challenge."
"I think you see, you know, an eight minute version of judges table, and ultimately we
spend a lot of time talking to them."
At a 92nd Street Y discussion, in 2017, Top Chef host Padma Lakshmi further described
the process, saying,
"[Producers] wouldn't let us leave the judge's table if we didn't feel comfortable with our
decision."
"I'm the only human being on Top Chef that has eaten every single thing made."
At that same panel, Simmons revealed there have been, quote "eight to ten-hour judging
tables." She went on to recall one particular deliberation that lasted so long that the
set lights had to be adjusted to account for the rising sun. Deliberations between these
celeb chefs don't necessarily border on fisticuffs, though, as fellow judge Tom Colicchio explained,
"We do disagree, but we do have each other's backs, and we care for each other."
"Yeah, you finally have to say how you feel. I guess this is the right time."
It appears that the quips and zingers in cast confessionals might not be quite as organic
as Bravo would have us believe.
"If I'm gonna be honest, I'm really f---ed up on Adderall and tequila."
Producers have sneaky methods of evoking emotion during interviews. And a common trick is suggesting
that a cast member is boring. Intervention producer Seth Grossman opened up about this
TV roguery in a piece for Defamer, writing,
"Check your phone, yawn, flip through your notes, unwrap and start eating a hoagie, and
force the interview subject to get your attention."
"Life is like a s--- sandwich. The more bread you have, the less s--- you have to eat."
Grossman also admitted he'll sometimes come right out and say,
"You're boring me. Give me the dirt."
Another approach he's taken is opening up about his own life in an effort to get cast
members to spill the beans about theirs. This mutual sharing creates what Grossman called
a quote "circle of trust."
"How many f---s do I give? Zero, zero, zero f---s."
Producers also sometimes give different call times to cast members to spark discord. No
one likes waiting, and drama ensues when someone shows up late, or not at all. When Teddi Mellencamp
and Dorit Kemsley arrived at a restaurant 45 minutes apart on Season 8 of The Real Housewives
of Beverly Hills, they argued over what time they were supposed to have met.
"I didn't actually care that you left me at the restaurant for 54 minutes."
"I didn't leave you for 54 minutes."
"Dorit."
Did producers give them different call times? Taste of Reality claimed it had the markings
of a call-time caper, but we'll never know for sure.
"If I wanted to sit alone and have a glass of wine, I woulda' done it in the comfort
of my own damn home."
When Michaele and Tareq Salahi somehow gained admittance to the Obama's 2009 White House
State Dinner without an invitation, it made headlines worldwide. They were branded the
"White House Crashers" and became the butt of many jokes. Revealing that the couple somehow
slipped through a checkpoint, Secret Service rep Ed Donovan told The Washington Post,
"Everyone who enters the White House grounds goes through magnetometers and several other
levels of screenings…No one was under any risk or threat."
"Do you ever have second thoughts about going that night?"
"No, we were really excited."
The Salahis', who were set to appear on The Real Housewives of D.C., became global news
before the first episode of the show had even aired. But their antics cast an unfortunate
shadow on the rest of the cast, with Bravo's own Andy Cohen telling The Hill,
"That show really got torpedoed by the 'Salamis,' I feel like, with the White House crash. There
was such a stink on it from those two."
The Real Housewives of D.C. was not renewed after its first and only season.
Sisters Dina and Caroline Manzo, who appeared on the first and second seasons of The Real
Housewives of New Jersey, married into a family with suspected mob ties, though they deny
any connection to the mafia.
"Caroline is very protective. If something happens, you know, she kinda wants to kill
somebody over it."
The Brownstone Restaurant, which was featured prominently during the show's first season,
was owned by the ladies' father-in-law, Albert "Tiny" Manzo, before their husbands, who are
brothers, took ownership.
The New York Daily News reported on the family's alleged quote "mob pedigree" ahead of the
show's 2009 premiere. Reportedly, the infamous Gambino family suspected "Tiny" of dealing
himself dough from a Staten Island casino under Gambino control back in 1983. Shortly
thereafter, "Tiny" was murdered in an alleged mob hit, and was found dead in the trunk of
his car in a supermarket parking lot. Still, the Manzos insist his death remains a mystery.
But while there has been drama between Dina and Caroline, we're fairly certain none of
it was mob related. Dina told Andy Cohen on Watch What Happens Live in 2018 that she and
Caroline had been estranged for several years, and there has been no indication the two have
communicated since then.
"Okay, I don't care about TV, I don't care what the papers say, I want my family back."
Both ladies have long since left Real Housewives, but a source told Hollywood Life in March
2020 that Caroline was eyeing a Season 11 return as long as her paycheck matches her
O.G. status.
In 2013, Radar Online gained access to a contract for unpaid participants of The Real Housewives
of New Jersey. The agreement essentially gave Bravo the right to manipulate scenes with
any and all footage. It also stated that participants filmed for the series must agree not to hold
producers, the production company, or NBC Universal accountable for any fallout from
real or fictionalized quote "personal, private, surprising, disparaging and embarrassing"
revelations about them.
"I just realized I forgot to put the petticoat."
"I said her ass was hanging out."
"I left half my costume home."
Meanwhile, all Real Housewives stars reportedly can't sue one another unless they want to
also take on Bravo, as Carole Radziwill could attest when she told BuzzFeed that she was
unable to sue her costar, Aviva Drescher, for defamation because she'd signed that right
away in her contract. On a similar note, The New Zealand Herald reported that The Real
Housewives of Auckland were forced to forfeit any right to the use of their quote "name,
likeness, nickname and voice throughout the universe."
"You know what I heard about you? Not a f---ing thing."
It seems the price of Bravo fame is high, but The Real Housewives icons still keep coming
back season after season for another taste of that Bravo stardom.
"I hope it's not over. I love drama."
For Lala Kent, navigating her relationship on a reality show was...complicated. She started
seeing Hollywood producer Randall Emmett in early 2016, but they didn't go public until
January 2018. So, why the two-year secret? Probably because his divorce from his ex-wife
wasn't finalized until December 2017.
"We are out there, we're open, and I can finally say what his name is. It's Randall!"
Kent tried to shield her now-fiancé's identity from viewers, but after joining the Vanderpump
Rules cast for Season 4, Kent quit halfway through the following season when her fellow
cast members repeatedly questioned her relationship with Emmett, whom she simply referenced as
"my man." She later told Entertainment Tonight,
"It takes a lot of energy to constantly call someone, like, 'My man, my man, my man.'"
After announcing she was leaving the show, Kent further explained her reasons to E! News,
saying,
"I think just the negativity finally got to me. I'm not good at separating real life from
work, so it started trickling into my everyday relationships with people who have nothing
to do with the show and once that started happening that was like not OK anymore."
"You need to be heard from."
"Mm-hmm."
"You know what I mean?"
"Yeah."
"It's much better that you're here."
Kent later rejoined the cast of Vanderpump Rules, after going public with her relationship,
and Emmett has made frequent appearances alongside his leading lady.
"I should have done it a long time ago, probably."
"Yeah."
Kathy Griffin is perhaps most famous for not being famous. The show, My Life On the D-List,
produced by Andy Cohen, chronicled her everyday antics, which usually involved lightheartedly
humiliating herself and anyone in her path. However, both D-List and Griffin's subsequent
talk show, Kathy, were eventually canceled by Bravo. There appears to be no love lost
between Griffin and Cohen, and tensions finally boiled over in 2017.
Griffin infamously hit a career low after posing for a purportedly satirical photograph
depicting herself holding the bloody head of President Trump. Later telling The Daily
Beast that she was investigated for quote "conspiracy to assassinate the president of
the United States" following the photo's release, the comedian lost almost all of her work,
including hosting CNN's New Year's Eve special with longtime pal Anderson Cooper. After Cooper
condemned the snapshot via Twitter, Griffin retaliated by lobbing public insults at him,
ushering in the demise of their friendship.
"I didn't think what she said was appropriate, but I wish her the best."
When Cohen was named as her replacement for the CNN gig, Griffin described him as quote
"deeply misogynistic" and claimed he treated her "like a dog" when producing her shows,
which he alleged to USA Today was untrue.
"I think she just shaded me a little bit."
We don't know what started the Griffin/Cohen feud, but an iconic pop culture moment stemmed
from it: Cohen pulled out the "shady boot" when TMZ asked him about Griffin's comments.
Embodying Mariah Carey, he simply responded,
"I don't know her."
Check out one of our newest videos right here! Plus, even more Nicki Swift videos about your
favorite celebs are coming soon. Subscribe to our YouTube channel and hit the bell so
you don't miss a single one.