Ding! Ding! Ding! It’s round two hundred for Real Housewives of New York frenemies Jill Zarin and Ramona Singer.
Season four of the show has finished airing, capped off by three hours worth of hateful and hostile reunion footage. While these two ladies are schooled in the art of cat fighting, especially with each other, things got even more heated during the reunion when Ramona’s love affair with Pinot Grigio was addressed. In the aftermath of both ladies’ allegations of alcoholism, the women continue to speak about their feelings. And speak about their feelings. And speak about their feelings.
In an interview with People, Jill says she was hoping to help her friend (sure, we all buy that) by accusing Ramona of having a problem. “During the reunion, [Ramona was] hitting below the belt. I tried to be a friend to Ramona. And I thought that she was acting a little bit erratic, more so than before. I was trying to help her and point it out. A lot of times people who have problems don’t see it themselves. That’s why there are interventions … I really wanted to try to help her. And instead she tried to turn it around on me.” Cue the violins.
Jill is, of course, referring to the fact that Ramona called her out for being an alcoholic and going to AA. Jill contends, “Whether it is true or not, is irrelevant.” She reiterates that she went to the meeting with a friend to show support, but is appalled that Ramona would out anyone for attending something that is supposed to be anonymous for a reason.
Jill hopes that Ramona’s irresponsible statements won’t deter others from getting help through Alcoholics Anonymous. Ironically enough, Jill has since seen an example of her worries on the subject. A fan of Jill’s has reached out to her. Jill reveals, “The mother tells me the daughter is scared to go in the program because she’s worried that a friend of hers might out her. It’s destructive to people and the damage that [Ramona] caused is going to prevent people from getting help.”
As for Ramona, she stated in her Bravo blog that she was embarrassed by the reunion show. “To say I was embarrassed by everyone’s behavior on the reunion, including my own, would be an understatement,” wrote Ramona. “Who would ever think that we are a group of educated, sophisticated, polished, New York women? This was not evident in what I watched. The reunion was mostly negative energy. I, myself, made a few comments that I am not proud of.”
Jill however wants Ramona to make things right. Jill asserts, “She should really retract that and try to figure out how to go back out there and say, ‘I’m sorry.’ So will this deter Jill from famewhoring filming another season of the show? She admits, “The damage is done. I don’t know if I can film with these girls.”
She may not have to, if recasting reports are true (oh please let them be true!). According to the Huffington Post, season five of New York is scheduled to begin filming around Labor Day, meaning that cast members must be secured ASAP. An unidentified Bravo housewife reveals, “No one knows at the moment who is in or out, but the second the contracts go to our representatives we all email and call each other immediately. So if someone does not get a letter we know within hours. All the cast will now be glued to their iPhones as they wait for the call from Bravo on whether they are being invited back.”
Another housewife chimes in, adding, “What’s happened with other casts in the franchise is offers go out to the women they want and those [they] don’t do not hear a word. Technically no one gets fired they are just not invited back.” Sounds a lot like sorority rush…no wonder the ladies seem so catty!
If the show is recast, the bigger question is whether it will be able to hold the viewers’ attention. Former fans seem turned off by the ladies’ negativity and mean girls mentalities. Ratings for the show took a nosedive from the first half of the reunion to the second half, plummeting from 2,325,000 viewers to 1,781,000 in a mere week. Numbers don’t lie…and that can’t be good.
And finally, Bravo’s own Andy Cohen posted the following cryptic message on his facebook page yesterday morning: “” Wonder what that means?
Photo by: Brad Barket/Bravo
ARE YOU ON JILL OR RAMONA’S SIDE REGARDING THE AA DEBACLE? WHO WOULD YOU LIKE TO SEE RECAST? MORE IMPORTANTLY, ARE YOU EVEN STILL WATCHING???
