The Real Housewives of New York is finally back and there’s a new housewife on the block. Episode one jumped right in with the introduction of Leah McSweeney, RHONY’s newest cast member. I think we are all holding our breath this season, wondering if it’s going to be the same without OG Bethenney Frankel. But so far, I’m impressed with Leah’s willingness to jump right in.
The 37-year-old fashion brand owner (let’s face it, we can’t call her a fashion designer) jumped right in to defend Tinsley Mortimer during her fight with Dorinda Medley. She also told us she loves being single and completely shot down Sonja Morgan’s attempt at setting up a love connection with a young, attractive suitor at Dorinda’s party. Leah told the audience that he seems like the type of guy that erm, doesn’t know how to find a woman’s anatomy when it comes to sex. Tell us how you really feel, Leah. It’s clear from the first episode, along with a look ahead at the season, that Leah isn’t going to be shy or boring.
Another thing Leah doesn’t hold back on is her colorful past. Like Tinsley, she also has a mugshot after being arrested for a scuffle with NYC cops back in 2002. Leah admits that she is embarrassed that the world is seeing her mugshot. Nevertheless, nothing compares to when her 12-year-old daughter, Kier, came across it while working on a school project.
Leah tells People, “I guess for a school project she needed a photo of me, and she Googled me, which I should have told her never to do that. And she was basically like, ‘Mom, why do you have a mugshot?’ So I had to tell her.”
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According to Leah, another source of embarrassment is her appearance in her mug shot. She jokes, “Literally, the worst photo of me ever. People are going to think I had reconstructive face surgery, which I have not had, it’s so bad. It’s just such a weird photo that is distorted-looking. And it doesn’t even look like what I looked like then, you know? Oh my god.”
Lucky for Leah, that arrest resulted in a $75k lawsuit against police. She was awarded $75k and turned that money into her women’s wear line, Married to the Mob. 14 years after it’s inception, the line is reaching distribution in over 100 retailers and has recently relaunched its e-commerce site online.
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Either way, Leah isn’t going to let one little arrest define her as a person or a mother. She claims that her daughter isn’t too bothered by the phone and says, “She doesn’t think anything of it. She’s like her mom, in that sense. Not much phases us New Yorkers.” I’m ready to see how true that is for Leah this season on RHONY.
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TELL US – SHOULD LEAH BE EMBARRASSED OF HER MUG SHOT? WHAT DID YOU THINK OF HER FIRST EPISODE ON RHONY? ARE YOU LOOKING FORWARD TO SEEING MORE OF HER THIS SEASON?
[Photo Credits: Charles Sykes/Bravo/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images]
