The Lost Housewive Speaks On Lack of Airtime

There will be someone missing from the upcoming reunion episode of the reality television show "The Real Housewives of New York City."

That's Jennifer Gilbert, an event planner who was quietly introduced in recent weeks on the Bravo TV show as someone arranging a party for housewife Jill Zarin.

Believe it or not, Gilbert wasn't just tapped to organize a party but to be a full-fledged cast member on the third season of the show, which follows a group of women as they juggle their careers, motherhood and busy social calendars. But she says she couldn't get any airtime.

"I don't know there's anything I could've done differently to advocate for myself without looking obnoxious. I found in a lot of situations if you didn't scream the loudest or say the meanest thing you weren't heard. I was surprised because I really did film quite a lot. It's not like I'm timid and afraid to speak my mind. I'm just not inappropriate, and I'm not going to say something that's mean just for the sake of saying it. That's never going to be me. If that's what they're looking for then I'm probably not the right fit."

No word on whether or not her contract has been renewed for the fourth season, but after her five minute appearance this year, we imagine she'll be out of there faster than Kelly Bensimon's sanity and Countess LuAnn's potential at a career in music!

Credit: The Associated Press / Perez Hilton

Jill Zarin To Bethenny Frankel: Let's Make Up

"Real Housewives of New York" star Jill Zarin stopped by "Extra" to dish about her new book -- and her public feud with fellow housewife Bethenny Frankel.

"I think it's just gotten way out of control and I think we should talk and make up," Zarin told "Extra's" Mario Lopez.

Check out what else the reality star had to say about her book, "Secrets of a Jewish Mother" and catch the anticipated "Housewives" season finale Thursday on Bravo!

Credit: Extra TV

Jill to Bethenny: What the Hell Happened to Us?

On Thursday's finale of The Real Housewives of New York, Jill Zarin decides to phone Bethenny Frankel because, she says, their fight has become "totally beserk."

"What the hell happened to us?" she asks her pal over lunch (see video, above). "I feel like we were married and then we separated, and I don't want to be separated."

As her eyes fill with tears, Frankel, 39, tells her: "Well, divorce can be ugly."

Zarin, 46, apologizes, adding that she feels "really bad" for refusing to reconcile with Frankel, whom publicly shunned after Frankel famously told her to get "a hobby."

Frankel tells her that a lot of monumental events occurred in her life - she got engaged, pregnant, lost her father -- and it hurt that Zarin, her pal of two years, wasn't there. She tells Zarin that she's been "disloyal" and that she's been "killed by this."

"I don't know how to build a relationship in the future because I am so damaged by this relationship," she says. "It's like a divorce."

Can the two become BFFs again?
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Credit: Us Weekly

Ramona: Why I Married My Husband Again

On March 14, exactly 18 years to the day after they first walked down the aisle, Ramona and her husband renewed their vows in Manhattan's posh Pierre hotel. "It meant so much to me to do it there," Ramona tells Life & Style, opening up exclusively about the special day. "It's where I originally wanted to get married."

Also very touching to Ramona: Her co-stars, who had been warring with one another all season, put aside their differences to attend the ceremony. "Jill [Zarin] put up a little bit of a fuss, and so did Kelly [Bensimon], but in the end, everyone came and had a wonderful time."

"This past year I've been renewing myself," she says. "I've renewed my career, my look, my friendships. I've renewed myself in so many ways, so I said, 'You know what, I want to renew my vows with my husband!'"

Credit: Life & Style

Jill Zarin: Cried for 3 Days After Party Crashing

Jill Zarin tells UsMagazine.com she still can't get over the frosty reception she received surprising Ramona Singer, Alex McCord and Bethenny Frankel on vacation in the Virgin Islands.

"It was such a Mean Girls moment that I literally cried for like two or three days," she tells Us. "They didn't offer me a glass of water or a bathroom! We had just traveled nine hours, and they knew it. I had to pee! You have no idea what a schlep it was. Schlep doesn't even describe it!"

Zarin, 46, originally told Singer, 53, she wouldn't go on the trip -- which was to celebrate Singer's marriage vow renewal -- because of her feuds with Frankel, 39, and McCord, 36. But she tells Us she decided to swing by on her way to St. Bart's to declare: "'I'm here to make up with everybody!'"

Zarin says Singer and McCord refused to give her a chance to explain.

"Alex was the one to really throw me out," she tells Us. "If she said, 'I don't care‚' then Ramona would have had me stay. [And] why didn't Ramona say to Alex, 'Jill is my friend. She should have called, but I'm not throwing her out'?"

Says Zarin, "It was the most hurtful thing that's ever happened to me."

Credit: Us Weekly

Kelly Bensimon's "Out-of-Body Experience"

On Thursday's The Real Housewives of New York City, Kelly Bensimon attempts to explain her infamous May 20 show meltdown -- but only leaves her pals even more confused.

Sitting with Jill Zarin, LuAnn de Lesseps and Jennifer Gilbert, Bensimon, 42, says she lashed out at costars Ramona Singer, Alex McCord, Sonja Morgan and foe Bethenny Frankel during a trip to the Virgin Islands because they were gossiping too much.

"From the minute we were together, it was everything that I hate – talking badly about people," she begins.

(Oddly, she then starts gossiping about Frankel, 39: "She’s, like, a cook and everything like that, and I’m thinking to myself, ‘I mean, not one person that I know has ever hired her as a cook.'")

Bensimon says she was "so over tired" and "feeling sick" when she snapped (among her quips: She called Frankel a "ho bag"). "I was drinking this wine – I never drink wine – and I was sitting in this room with these women. I just wanted to get out of there," she says. "... It was an out-of-body experience."

In the end, the ladies still had no clarity about what actually went down.

Says de Lesseps, 45: "By the end of Kelly’s story about the trip, I was so confused. I mean, I just didn’t get it. I had to hear the other side of the story."

Credit: Us Weekly

Kelly Bensimon: I Was “Bullied” By Housewives

Kelly Bensimon is continuing the damage control after her disastrous blow-up on The Real Housewives of New York City led to speculation that she’s crazy. The former model told People that she’s “not proud” of the way she acted, but then ultimately placed the blame on the other housewives.

Claiming she was the victim of “systemic bullying” while vacationing in the Virgin Islands with the other housewives, Bensimon claims that the real problem was in being stuck on a boat with women who didn’t like her.

“It was four people against one. I go on this trip, I’m trying to be open. I have no expectations. I’m trying to be nice to these women who clearly don’t like me,” Bensimon told People. “But the minute I got on the trip, they went after me. It was constant.”Well, it’s hard to argue with her about the other women not liking her—they certainly don’t seem to. (Although Jill Zarin should be sending her flowers for taking the attention off her and her ill behavior surrounding Bethenny Frankel’s giving birth.)

She added that being away from her daughters, Sea, and Teddy, made a bad situation that much worse.

Who knows? But one thing’s for sure: The Real Housewives of New York City has gone from being that show you happen to catch because its on Bravo fifteen times a week to one you set the DVR for.

Credit: Babble

Jill Says RHONYC Not What She Signed Up For

Bamboozled or just a complainer? Jill Zarin has taken to her Bravo blog and lamented that the “Real Housewives of New York City” is not what she signed up for — literally. She claims the original concept was called “Manhattan Moms” and was promised to be fun and funny, not the dark, drama-filled nightmare that RHONY has clearly become.

Here’s what she says:

When I signed up to be on the show, it was called Manhattan Moms. It was supposed to be fun. Nothing I saw this week was fun nor has it been most of the season. The only “fun” or “funny” scenes for me were with my family. I didn’t want to fight or make up on camera and didn’t want negative energy around me. I still don’t and won’t. I was so disturbed and uncomfortable watching this week’s episode. It is hard for me to watch myself anyway, but this season is so dark and mean-spirited that I don’t feel connected to it at all. We filmed a lot of fun things but most of them ended up on the cutting room floor. There were a few fun or funny deleted scenes online (at bravotv.com) but they too were cut because they were considered “boring” or just don’t fit into the story line.

Does she have a valid point or is she just disappointed with the way she’s being portrayed on the show?

Credit: Babble

Sarah Jessica Parker Sides With Bethenny

Sarah Jessica Parker was the guest-of-honor on Bravo’s Watch What Happens Live last night, airing right after The Real Housewives of New York. And boy was it an explosive episode (it could have been subtitled: “Is Kelly Bensimon crazy?”). Host Andy Cohen put SJP on the spot, asking her tough, probing questions about the women of RHONY. Parker hemmed and hawed — she doesn’t like to publicly pick favorites — but in the end, she took sides. And she took them hard.  

A little recap of last night’s RHONY: Relations between Kelly Bensimon and Bethenny Frankel got especially heated, with Kelly claiming that she was worried Bethenny was going to kill her in her sleep (really? really?). It appeared that Kelly had some sort of mental break, teetering close to the edge of insanity. Is Kelly Bensimon crazy? So far, the evidence points to yes.

Sarah Jessica Parker’s take? She said she can’t be sure what actually went down, since we (and she) only get to see the editors’ version of events, but, from what she saw, she sided with Bethenny: “I strongly believe that Bethenny is not threatening in general, or specifically to Kelly.” Point: Bethenny.

Cohen also asked Parker to pick sides in the Bethenny/Jill feud. Again, she sided with Bethenny. Then she joked, with an embarassed laugh, “I’m so scared of Jill.” Aren’t we all? Point: Bethenny.

That’s a lot of Bethenny solidarity. SJP seems to get the warm fuzzies when discussing Frankel, and I wonder if it’s due to the two of them have something in common: Parker has new baby girls (hello, twins!), and Frankel just gave birth to her own baby girl, Bryn. Remember when your kids were infants? Remember how you gravitated to other new moms at parties, over lunch, in line at the bank? New motherhood is a form of magnetism.

Parker also admitted to admiring the newest Real Housewife of New York, Sonja Morgan, a.k.a. the sane one. Sonja has a daughter as well, but hers is 9 years old (there’s a lot of estrogen on the show: Kelly, Ramona, and Jill are moms of girls-only, too). “I really like Sonja, she’s like a little bit of helium…she’s been good for the show,” says Parker. Aye, we agree.  Final Tally: Two Points Bethenny, One Point Sonja

Credit: Babble

Jill Zarin: 'Secrets of a Jewish Mother' Signing

Jill Zarin, her mother Gloria Kamen and daughter Ally attended a book signing for Zarin's 'Secrets of a Jewish Mother' at Alene Too on May 19, 2010 in Boca Raton, Florida.

Credit: Getty Images

Jill Zarin Hosts Fundraising Cocktail Party

Jill Zarin hosted a fundraising cocktail party at La Pomme this past Thursday, May 13, 2010, in New  York City. She is photographed above with her husband, Bobby Zarin, and Tyler Helms.

JillZarin "What a wonderful night. We raised so much money  for AIDS." 9:29 PM May 13th via Facebook

Credit: Wire Image

Mama Spears asks Jill Zarin for College Advice

Jill Zarin, the ones who either hate her or love the gossip queen from Real Housewives of New York. There is a rumor going around that Jill and Lynne Spears (Britney Spears mama) are good friends and apparently they were talking about the little sis, Jamie Lynn Spears going to college.

Rumor has it that Lynne asked Jill advice about going away to school. According to an 'insider',

Jamie Lynn is looking at colleges. Jamie Lynn wants to go to college and Lynn needed some guidance. Jill and Lynn are friends and they end up talking a lot about what their daughters are up to. Lynn knows that Jill helped Ally and she has very little experience in this area. Jill knows all about the applications and follow-up and Lynn needed an idea of what to expect with Jamie Lynn doing it. Jamie Lynn is ready to continue her education. It was difficult being a young mom, but she's doing it and she's ready for a new challenge. College would be great for her - she's very smart. Lynn is so supportive of all of her kids, and she would love to see Jamie Lynn earn a college degree.

Althought it makes sense, since the eldest didn't go to college, but she didn't need to, she was already making too much dough...

Credit: Mom's Word

Bethenny Frankel's Blog: Baby Bryn

First of all, thank you so much for all of your incredible, heartfelt well wishes. Bryn is a tiny peanut of a girl weighing 4lbs 12 oz. When I feel a little better next week, I will write a newsletter and give you all of the details. Sign up at www.bethenny.com.

If you don't mind, this blog will be brief. I'm writing from a hospital bed in pain from stitches and waiting to be able to visit Bryn in the premature unit.

I think LuAnn's single is fun as a gimmick, catchy type of song. As long as she had fun recording it, that's all that matters. I give her credit for going for it.
‪
Evidently, turtle time is dancing at an island bar trying to avoid psychotic episodes on a luxury yacht.

Despite Sonja's comments, I don't believe she has a crush on Kelly. Sonja just likes to drink and have fun and have fun girl time. She seems to want everyone to just get along which is an admirable trait.

Wow, was I craving a skinnygirl margarita. Not drinking on that vacation was like being deprived of water after a marathon. I could hardly believe what was going on around me, and I was obviously stone cold sober.

Jill and LuAnn have just made an art out of whining and complaining and really judging everyone around them. It has become white noise that you really don't pay attention to. It is so inconsequential to me right now that it is very difficult to even comment on.‪

Jill and Kelly seem to have a good friendship because Kelly really needs someone to take her under their wing, and Jill needs someone to influence and navigate.

I'm not sure exactly what set Kelly off. I don't think you can ever really predict what Kelly will say or do. She certainly doesn't operate under any normal circumstances nor is she predictable whatsoever. It is a little bit scary. I've learned to really just stay away from her.

Credit: Bethenny Frankel on Bravo TV

Mario Singer's Blog: Buzzkills

I don’t know about you, but I thought it was very enjoyable to finally see an episode with a minimal amount of drama. Could it be because the drama queens chose not to come along? Ramona had it right when she declared that Jill and LuAnn are buzz kills. Jill had chosen not to go because instead of the trip being about her, it was Ramona and the upcoming renewal of her vows that were the center of attention. LuAnn chose to follow along with Jill. No surprise there. Too bad they couldn’t convince Kelly to stay behind, but I guess we do need some drama. She certainly provided it.

At lunch we see Kelly start to lose it and she goes on the attack when the topic of Jill comes up. In her narration Bethenny states how it was like an electric shock that was setting off Kelly. I agree, but what was setting off that shock was the chip that Jill had embedded in Kelly so she could direct Kelly’s attack by remote control. That lemonade comment was vintage Kelly. After her self-imposed time out, Kelly manages to hold it together for a while until the evening when out of nowhere she begins to attack Bethenny, who is not only dealing with the loss of her father but is pregnant as well. I think Kelly’s lack of mood medication and the shots she was drinking (as well as that chip) finally took its toll and off into Kellyland she went. And what was wrong with 1979? I was having a great time.

There is a great scene with Bethenny and Alex waiting for the girls discussing Kelly and both go off into a fit of laughter. I find Alex’s laugh to be contagious.

When we see the girls go snorkeling, Ramona has her trusty noodle to keep her afloat. Otherwise, she will sink like a stone. I am always amazed how she has no fear of the water as long as she has her noodle or better yet a round lifesaver. When we would go to the San Pietro in Positano, the hotel had one with her name on it and kept it for our yearly visit. We have even gone scuba diving to 30 feet and she has no fear. I have often advised her to take swimming lessons but she’s convinced she can tread water if necessary until I come to the rescue.

I’m sure Jill was going through camera withdrawal when she watched this episode. Oh and LuAnn, I think you should stick to singing in the shower.

Credit: Mario Singer on Bravo TV

Kelly Bensimon: "Embarrassed by My Behavior"

Kelly Killoren Bensimon may have come off looking like a loon on last night's episode of The Real Housewives of New York City, but whatever. Bensimon insists what you see is not what you get.

Especially the seemingly nonstop bickering during last night's episode about Ramona Singer's all-girl weekend getaway...

"Enjoy it," Bensimon told me earlier today with a laugh. "Have fun with it because that's going to make my name bigger and bigger and give me a bigger platform to be charitable."

And believe it or not, Bensimon says she's actually missing her frenemies now that they're not filming.

"I'll be honest with you, I miss it. I miss the drama," she said. "I welcome the craziness. Listen, I'm on a TV show, and I'm having blast."

However, Bensimon admits she doesn't relish when she responds to the drama of the moment by lashing out at her costars, like calling Bethenny Frankel a "ho-bag" or questioning the then-mom-to-be about her professional experience by sneering she was more of a cook than a chef. "I'm so incredibly embarrassed by my behavior," she said. "That I would let someone or some situation get to me...I am so horrified."

Bensimon continues to be friends with this season's villainess, Frankel's former BFF Jill Zarin. "It's an edited-for-television show," she said. "Each and everyone one of us works really, really hard to entertain you. For people to take it seriously, that really disturbs me."

Credit: E! Online