Tuesday, August 31, 2010

Meet the Cast of the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills

“The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills” cast includes:

Adrienne Maloof – A savvy "no-nonsense" businesswoman, Adrienne Maloof is an Albuquerque, New Mexico native who moved to the palm tree-lined streets of Beverly Hills 15 years ago. Adrienne, her mother and four brothers comprise the Maloof Family dynasty whose multi-faceted sports and entertainment enterprise includes the Sacramento Kings, Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas, Sweeping Palms Entertainment (film, television & music) and Maloof Money Cup, the world’s largest skateboard competition. Adrienne is also involved in several charitable organizations within her community including the School On Wheels program, the Good News Foundation, and the Camp Kindness program with the Sacramento ASPCA. While business certainly plays an extremely important role in Adrienne’s life, her true passion is family. Married to prominent Beverly Hills plastic surgeon Dr. Paul Nassif, she is a mom through and through, raising her three young sons, Gavin (7) and twins Christian and Colin (4).

Camille Grammer - Camille is a multi-talented model, actress, dancer, and advocate, who calls Beverly Hills her home. Grammer began her career as a dancer on Club MTV. She was married to sitcom star and icon, Kelsey Grammer, for 13 years. Together, they have a daughter, Mason, and a son, Jude. Camille and Kelsey own a production company, Grammnet Inc., which produces the shows “Medium,” “Girlfriends” and “The Game.” She has appeared on both the big and small screens. Most notably, in the Halloween episode of Frasier, in Betty Thomas’ “Private Parts,” and Woody Allen’s “Deconstructing Harry.” She has also appeared as a dancer in several music videos. Grammer was featured in the HDTV video dream sequence in David Niles’ Broadway show “Dreamtime” at The Ed Sullivan Theater. Her hobbies include dancing, skiing, paddle boarding, tennis, hiking, and collecting rare first edition books, such as Pride and Prejudice, Works of Byron 1833, The Sound and the Fury, and the works of William Faulker and Roald Dahl.

Kim Richards - Kim Richards is a former child actress who is best known as the "Disney Girl,” starring in such films as " "Escape To Witch Mountain", and "No Deposit, No Return.” She also appeared in various television series including "Nanny and The Professor," "James at 15,” “Hello Larry,” "Different Strokes," "CHiPS" and "Magnum PI." After co-starring in the feature film “Tuff Turf” with James Spader and Robert Downey Jr., Kim decided to go into early retirement and devote her time to raising a family. Kim has four children Brooke (24), Whitney (20), Chad (19), and Kimberly (15). Kim, who is currently single, is the older sister to fellow Housewife, Kyle Richards and Aunt to Paris and Nicky Hilton. She is currently working on various business endeavors including a jewelry and water bottle line that donates proceeds to charity. Kim loves the Beverly Hills lifestyle and says, "you can take the girl out of Beverly Hills but you can't take the Beverly Hills out of the girl.”

Kyle Richards - This sassy California native was born in Hollywood, California into an acting family. She landed her first role at the age four in Disney's “Escape to Witch Mountain,” where she played the younger version of her sister, child actress and fellow Housewife Kim Richards. Her other sister is Kathy Hilton, mother to Nicky and Paris Hilton. Kyle’s TV credits include “Little House on The Prairie,” “Carter Country,” “Down To Earth,” and most recently “E.R.” Film credits include "Halloween," and "The Watcher in the Woods." Kyle is an avid cancer advocate and recently completed a 68 -mile bike marathon to raise money to help fight the disease. Kyle is married to the love of her life Mauricio Umansky, a high-end realtor with Hilton & Hyland Realty. Her greatest passion is being a mother to her four daughters Farrah (21), Alexia (14), Sophia (10) and Portia (2). Kyle believes "If you obey all the rules, you'll miss all the fun."

Lisa Vanderpump - This charming and witty Brit has only been in the U.S. for five years but has already made her mark in Beverly Hills. Lisa Vanderpump was born and raised in London but lived in Monte Carlo and the South of France before moving to California. Married to her husband Ken Todd for almost twenty-nine years, the couple has two children Pandora (24) and Max (18), plus their four dogs that they also consider their babies. While in Europe Lisa designed various homes, yachts and all of twenty six bars and restaurants that the couple owned in London. And Lisa hasn't slowed down now that she is in the states. She currently owns two restaurants that she created, Villa Blanca a celebrity hangout, which has been described as "the sexiest restaurant " in Beverly Hills and Sur in West Hollywood. Design is her passion, but she also writes a page each month for Beverly Hills Lifestyle magazine and she has a skin care line, "Epione." Lisa says Beverly Hills is "an oasis in Los Angeles" and loves the glamorous lifestyle this "fantasyland" enables. Additionally, she is candid about the fact that she spends every night in bed with a gigolo, also known as her pint-sized pup Giggy.

Taylor Armstrong - Taylor Armstrong is a stunning Oklahoman native who moved to Beverly Hills seven years ago. She is married to venture capitalist Russell Armstrong and together, they have one four-year-old daughter named Kennedy. This Midwestern girl knows how powerful men in Beverly Hills work, so she makes sure that she is always looking her best because she knows that something younger and prettier can always come along and catch her husbands’ eye. Taylor is not just a beauty; she has brains too and is passionate about both her business and philanthropic work. She founded her own SAP firm, eImplement Inc. and also volunteers for the 1736 Family Crisis Center. Taylor enjoys the chic lifestyle Beverly Hills has to offer but doesn’t elude to the fact that "beautiful women are a dime a dozen." Even though she has adapted well to the luxurious lifestyle Beverly Hills offers, she has the "work hard, play hard" attitude that has enabled her to maintain her own identity.

Friday, August 13, 2010

A Night at the Museum - continued

I spoke with Miles, one of the three finalists, of course, and he's very nice, maybe a bit bashful. He called his time on WOA "the funnest game I ever played" so he obviously enjoyed the experience even without the big win.


I was able to chat a bit with Erik, my favorite of all the artists. He's also a fan of the show and a cheerleader for a second season. He uttered the best line of the season on his way out. I won't repeat it here but he has no regrets for his reference about Miles and the two are not likely to become drinking buddies any time soon. I thought he was a real gentleman.




I found myself sharing a cocktail table with a woman in a hot pink dress who turned out to Abdi's mom, Donna. She should be on televisions herself. She's a scientist who has always loved art and took Abdi to museums near and far throughout his childhood. She must have bitten a few fingernails while viewing the show because she said she knew he didn't work as quickly as he had to to complete the challenges. Did I say she was nice? She took this photo of Erik and I.




At about 10:00, we were invited to take our seats to watch the finale. There were a lot of laughs throughout the show and the artists seem to enjoy it and each other. Abdi's win was a crowd pleaser. In his remarks he generously said he was in awe of Miles' and Peregrine's work and that the win was an amazing honor. He encouraged everyone to "be fearless and ignore the haters."


A great, great event. Thank you.


And some random observations .... Judith, one of the first artists to arrive, wore a tank top with her backwards Pride and Prejudice design from the book cover challenge ... Andy Cohen gives people high fives ... Andy and SJP sat together during the viewing ... Peregrine attended with her husband ... when the judges were introduced just before the viewing, they all got rock star applause ... Luann is taaaaallllll and was surrounded by an entourage of much shorter men ... there was a huge rat outside the front door of the museum ... Abdi cannot respond to all the email he gets and feels guilty about it so don't send him any for a while .... and one line from Sex and the City's final season kept playing in my head. Carrie tells Alexander Petrovsky "I'm not very arty."


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Wednesday, August 11, 2010

Blogging Bravo Interview with Nicole Nadeau - Continued

BB: Countess LuAnn de Lesseps is your aunt. Are you close?

NN: Yes, she is my father's sister and I have always admired her. She is fearless. As a young woman she packed up and moved to Italy to become a model.

BB: Are you close to Victoria?

NN: Yes, "Peachie" is only 15 and she is definitely very artistic.

BB: What is next for you?

NN: I have started/co-founded KNS Design Collective with Kameron Gad.

BB: Are any of your designs for sale?

NN: Yes, I just designed a series of rings based on topography.

BB: We are almost out of time. Is there anything else that you would like to say about your experience on "Work of Art?"

NN: It was so much fun! I mean there was stress but it was exciting - a true competitive artistic adventure.

BB: Thank you Nicole.


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