Jeanna and Kara Interview

The RHOC Ex's Show - -

Wouldn't that be a well viewed show? Let's get the ex's together so we can hear their side of the story since the RHOC like to slam them every chance they get.

Let's see -

Tamra constantly puts down Ryan's father as he wasn't 'ready' to be a father. But she is a great mother jumping on her adult son and leaving wet boob marks on him or going dancing at the same club with her son or jumping on him when he comes home or leaving thong undies in his empty room for him to find. hmmm..... would love to hear this ex's story.

Vicki - who puts down Michael and Briann's father all the time since he was so unmotivated to earn a decent living. hmmm.. crazy psycho yelling mother or mellow dad. This interview would be good as well.

Tammy - We know's Lou's cheating ways and I have to say Tammy is the most mature of all. She doesn't seem to directly put him down except the lying about taking care of her girls part. Would love to hear from Duff about their story.

Quinn - Has made a few comments here and there. We just don't 'get' her yet so interviewing her TWO ex husbands would probably enlighten us a bit as well as the guy she recently lived with for three years.

Slade - Two kids with two different women. I am sure interviews with them would tell us that we are exactly correct on Mr. Smiley's character as he is what he is. The point Mr. Smiley does earn is that we never heard him say one bad word against his ex's so KUDOS to him. Maybe he can teach the rest a thing or two. That's right he is no longer on the show, oh well...

Lauri - The worst one of all. Constantly putting down her ex's and accusing them of horrendous behavior. Would love, love to interview those two.

George - His ex Gina from all accounts seems like George has put her through hell. Would love to hear the real truth from her as well.

Don't these 'ladies' understand that psychotherapy 101 says if you put down the ex in front of your children (or on national tv kept forever) you are ALSO putting down your own children in their mind? Children believe they are a part of each parent so put down the other one and you are putting them down. I know, hard concept but seriously someone needs to school these women on how to behave properly with ex's for their children's sake.

Update on the Knickerbocker family - -

From fans of reality tv -

(I must say we really like Tammy and hope she is able to reign in her beautiful daughters as they both need a serious wake up call. A little disturbing is her description on Veriya of kissing Lou when she was 19 and he was 42!!?? The RHOC pic on Veriya doesn't include Lauri either - hmmm....trouble in wifedom world!! )

Tammy Knickerbocker used to live in one of the biggest house in the gated community, but that was before she and her late husband, Lou, lost their fortune from their lucrative business. Lou's recent death has left Tammy trying to keep it together for her family. She has reunited all her children into her home and is concentrating on moving forward, helping her daughters adjust to life without their father. She is also embarking on a new marketing business venture called Veriya with her two daughters, Megan and Lindsey.

Megan has moved back in with Tammy and is currently going to school to become a nurse, while also working with her mother and sister launching their marketing company. She considers herself an O.C. rebel and even moved to the Inland Empire for a while, but is now back in town and trying to forge a place for herself in the O.C.

This year Lindsey is working hard, not only with her mother and sister as the spokesmodel for Veriya, but also at an energy drink company and a clothing company. On top of this, she is attending school part time. Lindsey is adjusting to her family's new lifestyle, adapting to not being as wealthy as they once were and missing her old activities, including her horses and equestrian competitions.

With all the tough times this family has seen, Tammy continues to be the rock for her children while still finding ways to reinvent herself.

What happened to Duff?

From Wikopedia -

Knickerbocker works as a loan officer and also has a young son, Ryley, from a 10-year relationship with a man named Duff who, in Season 2, worked in Gunvalson's insurance business managing her home office. Duff and Knickerbocker struggled to balance their "friends with benefits" relationship with jointly raising their shared son. At the end of season 2, Duff and Knickerbocker decide to end their sexual relationship and Duff proclaims that he is "done with the crazy women in Coto de Caucasian."!!

"done with the crazy women in Coto de Caucasian."
BEST LINE THIS YEAR - GOOD FOR YOU DUFF!!??

Quinn's Blog

From Bravo - -

(She's starting to grow on us but she has got to reign in her desperate lust factor and cleavage for miles attire if she wants to keep up her I'm so Christian personal description)

(For all of you who emailed us she was born in 1955 in Fort Knox Tennessee. She is 52 years old with two children from two previous marriages.)

A lot of you have been asking about what it is I do for a living and this episode gave you a little taste of it. My work keeps me very busy -- I’ve been working at a telecommunications company for nine years now as their Internet Marketing Manager and I also run an Orange County Event Web site that gives local people the weekly updates on where to go, what’s happening, and who’s playing where and when. We also have weekly restaurant reviews, concert updates, and list most charity functions. Those two jobs keep me VERY busy, both at the office and also out and about on the OC social scene. So if you want to know the haute spots in the OC to go, I’ll know them!

Religion and relationships -- wow -- where do I start? I guess I’ll start by saying that what a person feels strongly about (whatever that is) is woven into their very core. It’s part of who they are, why they act the way they do, and what makes them unique. If you are in a relationship and you believe strongly in something and the other person doesn’t, or worse believes the total opposite, things can get messy. If it’s something uncomplicated like …who likes butter and who likes margarine, obviously the butter wins -- kidding. But when it’s something that is important to the other person, you will need to talk openly about it and share why they feel the way they do with each other. If we are still at opposites after communicating our heartfelt beliefs … then for me that’s a deal breaker.

Religion didn't play a role in my first marriage because I was married to my high school sweetheart. He was the only boy that I had ever dated. We dated for five years and were married right after high school. He went to the same church. Religion was never an issue.

If Billy had his way, though, these topics would come up often. I have not studied different religions, but Billy has, and can speak volumes on each different one. I am comforted in what I believe in and I don’t ever wish to change that. I believe in God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit. I have since I can remember.

Billy and I had a great time on-board the yacht at Tamra’s 40th birthday party. Newport Beach is such a beautiful place and it was a warm southern California night. Billy got a chance to meet the other housewives and it was a fun party atmosphere, so he had some time to get acquainted with them. We danced, drank, ate sushi, and danced some more … a fun time was had by all. Tamra is so very beautiful and the Rolex watch that Simon got her was stunning! I still can’t believe she was yakking about being -- “so old” -- pleeeassseee! She is gorgeous and doesn’t need to worry about looking old, period.

It wasn’t awkward when Lauri’s wedding came up. I wasn’t expecting an invitation. The housewives were all excited about it and rightly so -- a wedding to the one you love is something to get very excited about. I have gotten to know Lauri better over these past few months since filming and she is a sweet and beautiful person. George is a very lucky man and I wish them a lifetime full of happiness!

Las Vegas was ... interesting. Don’t get me wrong -- the resort was spectacular! We stayed in a huge villa/suite complete with two master bedrooms, a pool table, bar, backyard pool, and its own personal butler! But the time that Billy and I spent together didn’t go as I had thought it might. We are just not in agreement on our beliefs and that is HUGE for me. I’ve already compromised too much to continue on and I’ve been conflicted about it. I’m afraid that I need to fish or cut bait (My father would say, "Sh** or get off the pot") and that’s going to be hard.

The Valley Ranch Resort reminded me of the Montage in Laguna Beach, or Las Ventanas in Cabo -- over the top! It was a great getaway and I think we needed that time together to clear the air on “US”. But before we had “the talk” I just wanted to enjoy the resort and relax, plus have some fun while in Vegas. Our room was awesome!

My “Releasing the Beast” comment will go down as a stupid thing I never should have said with a camera on me! But I guess it’s true. I need to be in a loving, safe, committed, trusting, and MARRIED relationship to “let go.” I think most women need this. I know it’s a generalization here and, forgive me to those sensitive men out there, but most men can have intimate relations with women and walk away or even have multiple partners and it’s a non-issue. Women are not made that way as a whole. We need to feel loved. We need that in order to feel safe, and then we can let go and maybe be a little wild. But being loved and feeling cherished is the key. I want that. I need that. I’m not going to settle or compromise anymore!

As for Jared, he and I headed to Mr. Chow’s in Beverly Hills for dinner recently. He thinks I need to get out of the OC and have some fun for a minute. It was not a “date” -- remember, he is my friend nothing more. But, I may be back out in the dating world soon and I’m NOT looking forward to it.

Remind us not to Piss off Ms. Kara Keough - - --

From the OC Weekly -

(Kara sent this letter in as a reponse to an article they ran on The Real Housewives of Orange County (see original article posted in our archives))

MONSTER’S BAWL
This is Monster Kara just reacting to Rebecca Schoenkopf’s extremely professional and civilized piece (of shit) in OC Weekly [“Careless People,” March 16]. First and foremost, I would like to comment on the interview you had with the five beautiful “bitches” of The Real Housewives. I am awestricken that you actually have the gall to complain about Vicki’s censorship over Kim, when you turn around and do exactly what Vicki anticipated. You blast the beautiful women of The Real Housewives that—surprise, surprise—have hearts under their silicone breasts that might actually be hurt by seeing that not only are they bitches, but they are fat, ugly, ditzy and fake. You’re a real winner. I have you to thank for my mom’s extremely high self-confidence.

You’re a great writer, however, your nasty little spirit infects your work—if you consider what you have done to these hard-working women’s reputations and self-image “work.” Kudos on the reference to Gatsby. I recently read The Great Gatsby in my AP composition and language class, and I must say, darling, you’re right up there with Fitzgerald! Oh, how nicely classic literature can compare to the lives of five women who happen to make their own money; God forbid they actually spend it! You might have missed that in Gatsby. Daisy and her brute husband had their money wired through their umbilical cords, in sharp contrast to the working women of Coto de Caza. However, I must consider the fact that your little article is filled with fallacies and vulgar that rots your words, due mainly to the fucks, bitches and assholes you pepper throughout the story.

After reading your “honest” article, I have been dying to meet you. You seem like the type of person that makes me the vivacious little firecracker, a.k.a. “Monster,” I am. The show was meant to entertain, and I am proud to say I believe it does just that—it got you hollerin’, didn’t it? As for the Real Children of the Real Housewives,we really can’t wait to show you what we’re really all about. Among these little monsters are honors students, a nurse-in-training, athletes, computer whizzes and, of course, assholes. Well, newsflash, baby, this time you pissed off the wrong little monster. Enjoy the show!

My plump mother and I send our regards.

Kara Keough
“Asshole, monster, Hitler

Season ONE RHOC Awards - -

From the OC Register -

(Yes it is from season one but hysterical so had to include it)

'Real Housewives' awards: May I have the envelope, please?

The final episode of "The Real Housewives of Orange County" aired last night. Thinking it may not be called forward at the Emmys, I've created my own awards.

Worst Overall Character
Nominees
Slade Smiley

Defining moment: Tries to convince college-educated Jo De La Rosa, 24, it's in her best interests to stay home and take care of his two kids by other women.

Mitigating factor: Utterly destroyed by an even bigger jackass, fellow Coto resident Brent McElwee, who while Smiley solicits him for business takes phone calls, reads e-mail and chugs Red Bull, finally dismissing him by yelling to his secretary, "Hey ... he's gotta' go right now!"

Quote: "When someone looks at me, they probably know I've got it going on." (While practicing martial arts moves in his jockey shorts.)


Vicki Gunvalson

Defining moment: Has her ex over for their daughter's graduation, then trashes his lack of ambition on national TV, concluding, "He was a ball and chain on me."

Mitigating factor: I'm still looking.

Quote: "Lick it, suck it, slam it, Briana!" (Teaching her 18-year-old daughter how to do tequila shooters in Mexico.)

Winner

Lauri Waring

Defining moment: Introduced 16-year-old son to the country in a way that forever brands him a pothead and teen drunk. Says Lauri as she's shown walking into a nightclub, "While Joshis in Juvenile Hall, at least I know he's relatively safe."

Mitigating factor: Has to work for Vicki.

Quote: "I will never look a day older than 32."

Dumbest kid

Nominees

Shane, 19. (Jeana Keough's) Shoots backyard rabbits with pellet gun; picking on little brother caused the lad to develop a stutter. Quote: "If you hook up or do anything with a mom, you're The Man."

Michael, 19. (Vicki's) Lack of ambition makes his dad seem like Tony Robbins. Quote: "I'd quit my job in a heartbeat to go to Havasu, there's no question about it."

Winner

Ashley, 20. (Lauri's) Jobless, she moves back home, bringing a dog she can't care for and a new car she can't afford. Quote: "It was my brother calling from juvey, so I hung up. Should I have answered it?"


Fantasy Marriage Made in Hell

Ashley and Michael.


Tackiest moment

Nominees

Vicki. Takes hireling Lauri to New Orleans but puts her in cheaper hotel.

Slade. Remarking on his fiancée's smarts while the couple is having drinks with the McElwees: "Jo's from Peru, so many things escape her."

Kimberly. Calls Ford salesman "slimy" shortly after he suggests she might need to use a car seat for "... a grandchild."

Winner

Vicki. "Called it! Called it!" she says with poorly concealed glee upon hearing Slade and Jo have broken up.


Best quotes

"Divorce is good for my business. I get to buy each of them a house." Jeana.

"If she buys me this car today, it'll prove that she loves me." Kara, 16, of Jeana.

"At the age of 32, 33 is probably when I first got a taste of the seven figures. Then you kind of fall into a thing where it's just adding zeros." Slade.

"Out here, it is very common that girls receive breast implants for high school graduation." Kimberly Bryant.

"I would love to see Jo step up and become that housewife I've kind of dreamed of." Slade.

"My husband and his mother picked me out of several of his girlfriends because they thought I have the right build for their genetics." Jeana.

"If his friends think I'm a (mom they'd love to have sex with), then great!" Vicki.

"Eighty-five percent of the women around here have had breast implants." Guess who?

"What's Pledge?" Jo.

Tamra Hasn't Spent a Night without Simon

Smiley doesn't play by the Bravo rules.....

From the LA Times -



HOLLYWOOD -- Like his neighbors in Coto de Caza, Slade Smiley is used to making things happen. He co-founded a title insurance company, bought a home in the planned, gated community, invited his girlfriend, Jo De La Rosa, a student and loan officer, to move in and proposed they sign up for Bravo's docu-soap "The Real Housewives of Orange County" because he figured it would be good for business.

When the show took off and the calls starting coming in, he wasn't one to sit back and let network executives decide what to do with their fame. "All of us made it happen. I won't let my success be handled by someone else," said Smiley, one of the more outspoken cast members who have created a modest but intense cadre of fans fascinated by their successful -- and sometimes arrogant, shallow and self-absorbed -- personas on the reality show, which recently concluded its second season.

Smiley has produced De La Rosa's first record, as seen on the show, but behind the scenes he also has joined her on TV talk shows, red carpets and promotional events not allowed by Bravo.

He said publicists called to "reprimand" him. And he spoke to the Los Angeles Times without a Bravo representative -- really not allowed.

"They hate the fact we've figured how to take exposure from the show and turn it into something," said Smiley, who argues that the appearances that he and De La Rosa make are not for press or promotion. "We're about making personal relationships in the industry. It comes across when we meet people," he said. "We're not hungry for it. We're not pushing too hard."

A spokesman for the network said, "Bravo doesn't discuss the terms of its talent contracts, which are standard for the industry," and declined to comment on the activities of Smiley and his cast mates. "The talent contracts are all designed to protect the confidentiality of the plot development," the spokesman added.

Typically, the stars of low-cost reality shows agree to network contracts and small paychecks hoping to get a foot in the door of the entertainment industry. And the promise looms large. The young cast of MTV's first season of "Laguna Beach: The Real Orange County" moved from high school to Hollywood to live the life and pursue careers in entertainment. Elisabeth Hasselbeck, eliminated from "Survivor: The Australian Outback," went on to co-host "The View." "American Idol" loser Jennifer Hudson won a career and Oscar gold in the business through the exposure.

While there's always a loose cannon or two, most reality cast members appear one season only and comply with the networks' often strict regulations.

But when it comes to successful Type-A suburbanites with their own ideas about running things, it's a different story. "Nobody at Coto de Caza needs anything from Bravo TV," Smiley said. "The other shows are competitive in their nature. People trying to make something of their lives. We're already there."

Created and produced by a resident of Coto de Caza, Scott Dunlop, "Housewives" has followed the melodramas of the enclave's families, capturing some jaw-dropping moments of materialistic excess (a house for every child in one family), alcohol-fueled parties with inane conversation ("Do you speak Canadian?") and increasing strangeness -- rabbit shooting, daughters turned into sexy spokesmodels for an energy drink, a catfight, pit bulls and naked jealousy over men, cars and bling. And that's just what shows up on-screen.

"Housewives" draws about a million viewers per episode, respectable enough for pay cable but a tiny fraction of what "American Idol" draws. Still, the "housewives," their children and husbands, ex-husbands and their ex-wives are recognized in the grocery stores, restaurants and hospital emergency rooms, not to mention a number of foreign countries that also air the show.

Like Smiley, real estate agent-"housewife" Jeana Keough said she hoped the exposure would help her business, though she also wanted to promote an acting career for her daughter, Kara, who had appeared in some movies as a child. And like Smiley, she's taken advantage of opportunities as they appear. She said she and three other "housewives" set up an online shopping center, TheRealOCBrand.com, to fulfill requests for the clothes and jewelry they wear and the products they use. "We asked Bravo to partner, and they weren't interested," she said.

"They threatened to sue if we didn't remove all pictures of two or more of us together from the Web site. They didn't want us to mention Bravo in any of our ads or to link with us."

Smiley said the show's participants are paid and that, contractually, two or more cast members cannot appear in unsanctioned media, nor are they allowed to use Bravo's name or logo. And there's the issue of public appearances and interviews. Smiley, De La Rosa and Keough were the only participants willing to be interviewed without permission.

"I'm not going to bite the hand that feeds me," said Vicki Gunvalson, a "housewife" who owns an insurance business. "We've been asked to abide by the rules. I want to do everything the correct way." De La Rosa, who has moved to Los Angeles, said Bravo had been "very supportive" of her efforts to build a singing career. Other participants did not return phone calls. Some spoke on condition of anonymity.

"I know we drive them crazy, because we keep trying new things to grow our business from our newfound celebrity," Keough said.

Keough and Gunvalson also started a travel business, CotoTravel.com. And in response to thousands of e-mails from women, Gunvalson is writing a book about starting an insurance company. Keough is auditioning to be a spokeswoman for a weight loss company. Lauri Waring, as shown in the series, is starting a jewelry business.

New boyfriends and ex-husbands also have seized opportunities. Businessman Lou Knickerbocker, ex-husband of Tammy Knickerbocker, Season 2's new "housewife," hired young women on the show as traveling spokesmodels for his new OC Energy drinks. His Web site displays their photos and labels them as having appeared on the show. Tammy's ex-boyfriend, Duff, works for Gunvalson selling insurance.

Smiley argues that participants deserve to see a better return on their exposure than what Bravo provides. Keough and Smiley said what Bravo pays participants doesn't come close to compensating for the time required to make the show. It costs money to start up their new businesses, and some said they even have lost money. Smiley said his firm lost a client who thought he was too arrogant on the show. One participant estimated losing close to $100,000 as a result of lost work time after a year, Keough said. Plus, she said, "They wanted endless hours of blogs for their Web site, which we are not paid to do."

Smiley and Keough's sense of their value to the show, and their plans for maximizing the show's value to them, no doubt have been colored by this not being their first taste of Hollywood. Keough was an actress and Playboy Playmate of the Month; Smiley was a professional cyclist and model.

(JUST A THOUGHT BUT MAYBE SMILEY'S CONSERVATIVE TITLE INSURANCE CLIENTS DIDN'T PROPERLY APPRECIATE ALL THE SEMI-NUDE PHOTOS OF MR. SMILEY THAT PROLIFERATED THE WEB LAST YEAR. INTERSTING ENOUGH, MR. SMILEY HAS REMOVED THE PHOTOS AS OF ABOUT A MONTH AGO. hmmm... why would that be?)

Kimberly Bryant's Cancer Scare - -

From WebMD - -

(For those of you who did not see Season 1. This is Kimberly Bryant who moved out of SoCal after season one due to cancer scares. Following is an interview she did prior to leaving)

Reality T.V. Star Becomes Melanoma Patient

TV star Kimberly Bryant's wake-up call came when her doctor found and removed a malignant mole.
Orange County, you faced a serious health threat. What happened?

My doctor found a malignant mole -- a shallow melanoma in early stages -- on my thigh, a few inches above my knee. I've faced skin cancer before, but I never intended to share this "reality" on the show. Now, I'm glad I did. Since the show has aired, several people have told me they've gotten their skin checked because of me -- and it thrills me to hear it.

When were you first diagnosed with skin cancer?

At age 27 -- 17 years ago. I went in for acne treatments and my doctor gasped. He removed 22 moles from my body. He tested them all, and one came back malignant.

Were you a sun worshipper when you were young?

I got a tremendous amount of sun exposure as a child. All the damage was done before I was 25.

You write on your Bravo blog that you had an eye sewn shut for two months after half of your lower eyelid was removed due to skin cancer. Tell us about this experience.

I had a tiny tumor near my tear duct. It was not malignant, but I still tell everyone: Wear sunglasses! Make sure your children wear sunglasses! Protect your eyes!

How much has changed in the last two decades, in terms of prevention and treatment of skin cancers?

Not enough. It will take someone like Brad Pitt getting melanoma to get the kind of funding needed to get the research done that this cancer needs.

Any advice for other mothers trying to keep their families safe from UV rays?

When my kids were little, it wasn't hard keeping them covered up. Now they want to be at the beach with their friends -- and not look dorky in long sleeves. But there are companies that make cute clothes that have sunscreen built into the fabrics. Also, be creative. Don't tell your teenager she can't go to the beach. Instead, plan an indoor activity for her and her friends -- like going to a cool sushi bar or a museum -- then take them to the beach after 4 p.m. Watch the sunset together.

Since facing cancer, do you view your life or relationships differently?

Completely. Yes, plan for the future. But enjoy the moment. Share your feelings for someone right now. Take more risks. Have a sense of adventure.

How do you feel about aging?

I like it. I am more confident in my 40s than I was in my 20s. I've got a great husband, great kids; I'm more direct. And physically? Well, I do look at my skin and wish I didn't get so much sun.

Quinn Fry - Season 3's Newest Member - -

From the Orange County Register



Quinn Fry is a little nervous about being the new "housewife."

The San Clemente resident is the newest cast member of "The Real Housewives of Orange County," which airs Tuesdays on Bravo. Fry will make her first appearance in the Dec. 11 episode.

She says she initially thought it would be fun to be featured on the popular reality TV series, but now, she's not so sure.

"It is a really scary thing," said Fry, 52. "I'm being real cautious. I know what can lie on the editing floor. I've already seen a few little pieces, and know there's a lot of editing going on."

Fry is no stranger to media. She's an Internet marketing manager and managing editor of an Orange County-based entertainment Web site. She also appeared as an on-air personality on Cox Communications' cable program, "OC Lifestyle."

When she was younger, she modeled in Northern California for newspaper ads, television and fashion shows.

In episode 6 of "Real Housewives," she is portrayed as something of a "cougar" – an older woman who dates younger men. She is simultaneously dating a 40-year-old named Billy and a 26-year-old named Jared.

"I generally date younger men," she says on the episode. "I haven't been called a cougar because I don't think they think I'm a cougar … they think I'm closer to their age."

"I don't think I'm a cougar, no," she said during a recent interview with the Register. "I think of a cougar as an older woman, going after, prowling for younger men. Some people that approach me, I don't even know what age they are. I'm not an aggressor at all."

Pamela Quinn Fry was born in 1955 in Fort Knox, Ky., where her father was stationed in the military. She moved to Orange County when she was a baby. Her mother was homecoming queen at Garden Grove High School and her father attended Santa Ana High School.

Fry moved to Arcata in Northern California when she was a teenager. She met her first husband there when she was 15 and married him after five years of dating. They had a daughter, Shannon, who now lives in Eureka. The couple divorced, and Fry moved back to Orange County.

She met another man here, a West Point graduate, and married him. They had a son, Colin, and then divorced. She has been a divorcée for about 14 years, according to Bravo.

"Sometimes people give up too soon on a marriage," she said. "What I learned from that is, I should have stuck it out. I just gave up too soon. That relationship shouldn't have ended."

She said she's still "extremely great friends" with Colin's father and the two have intertwined families and celebrate Christmas together.

Back in April, Fry saw a large ad in the newspaper for "Real Housewives" auditions and decided to try out.

"I saw the show twice last season. I was a little angry at how they portrayed Orange County women. I have such great friends here. They're strong, wonderful, generous, caring women. They happen to be pretty. But they're beautiful on the inside."

So she allowed the cameras to follow her and document her life. They shot dozens of hours of her during the summer – four to five months ago and 20 pounds ago, she said.

"I don't have that much to hide. I don't think I'm that much different than women out there dating right now. …I'm a normal woman that is just looking for somebody to love me, really."

In the Dec. 11 episode, the other housewives meet her at a Mission Viejo restaurant. They immediately launch into personal questions, such as her age and who her plastic surgeon is.

"I was nervous. I hadn't met them. … I wasn't ready for their cattiness. Women that I know wouldn't right off the bat say, 'How old are you?' I wasn't pleased with that night, the whole evening. It didn't go as expected."

Fry has also been a little surprised by all the negativity about the show on Internet message boards and blogs.

"Orange County has such strong negative opinions about the show," she said. "I read the blogs and the message boards – there's such strong negative opinions out there. They put you in a mold, in a category so fast it makes your head spin."

Fry says she and her family have strong connections to Orange County. She wants to portray a different side of her home county and how much it has to offer.

"I really would never do anything on purpose to hurt the opinions of people in Orange County, or have people draw any negative conclusions. I never want to portray this town in a negative way."

E-Financial / Vicki Gunvalson Press Release - - -

From E-Financial website -




December 19, 2007 - Vicki Gunvalson is a TV Star – and an Insurance Star.

The Coto financial insurance agent has played herself for three seasons for the wildly successful TV series, “Real Housewives of Orange County.” Gunvalson’s star quality stems not only from her fulfilling personal life as a housewife in affluent Coto, California, but from her shining success in business working with Efinancial. Gunvalson runs a national life insurance operation in Orange County California, Coto Financial, her business star has risen, as she’s grown her insurance business with the help of Bellevue, Washington- based Efinancial.

Efinancial debuts on “Real Housewives” Tuesday, Dec. 11th, in a segment tracing Vicki’s trip to Seattle last summer. The cameras follow Gunvalson and her college-student son, Michael, as he “shadows” Efinancial CEO Michael Rowell to learn more about the industry his mother has helped make famous.

Vicki works with Efinancial in the dynamic online life insurance industry. Working through the Internet gives Gunvalson freedom to function independently and to sell insurance over the phone, rather than traditional face-to-face sales. Internet access makes it possible for Gunvalson -and Efinancial- to offer life insurance to a wider client base –people often too busy to meet with agents and compare quotes. But with Gunvalson and Efinancial, prospective clients can learn about many of the top rated, most trusted insurance carriers in one-stop virtual shopping. "Working with many different carriers allows the customer to shop and compare policy options in one place,” Gunvalson said, "and who wants a bunch of high pressure life insurance agents in their home?" Efinanical’s online presence means that quotes tailored to the client’s unique needs are instantly available at www.efinancial.com or www.cotoinsurance.com. online. Efinancial’s Automated Life Insurance Sales System software, ALISS, enables Gunvalson to accurately give multiple quotes to a customer over the phone in minutes, complete the application and schedule a medical exam at a convenient location. (Learn more about ALISS) Gunvalson credits much of her success as an agent to Efinancial and ALISS. Efinancial has streamlined her business so much that she is able to sell more life insurance and work on other projects - and even star on cable television.

Kara Keough ...........

CLICK ON LAYOUT ABOVE FOR FULL VIEW OF KARA'S MODELING/ACTING INTO CARD

Shane Keough's Baseball Profile

From Canadian Baseball -

22 Shane Keough

Position: OF B/T: S/R
Height: 6'3" Date of Birth: 1986-09-11
Weight: 190 Aquired: 36th Round 2005

Hometown: Coto da Caza, CA
Last Team: Yavapai College

Megan Knickerbocker's Plastic Surgery..........

From the OC Register - -



NEWPORT BEACH – For more than half her life, Megan Knickerbocker refused to be photographed.

“I always felt like I was the ugly, fat one,” said the 20-year-old Coto De Caza resident. “My sister was tiny, cute and Britney Spears-like-looking and all my friends looked the same way… I was a big girl with no breasts and a bump on my nose.”

Tonight on Bravo’s “The Real Housewives of Orange County” – an hourlong documentary-soap drama that chronicles the lives of five Coto De Caza women and their families – Knickerbocker undergoes cosmetic nose surgery. A year before she had a breast augmentation.

Orange County plastic surgeons are seeing a steady rise in high school and college-age women having plastic surgery as a way to better fit in.

“The average person portrayed in the media is fit, well- proportioned and well-endowed,” said Newport Beach Dr. Michael Elam, who performs the hourlong nose surgery on tonight’s episode. “From the Lindsay Lohans to the Olsen twins, celebrity status is gained at puberty rather than as young adults. Pressure for the youth to conform to these images (is) greater than ever before.”

Elam is seeing a dramatic  drop in his patient’s ages. Last year he did 13 “graduation gift” surgeries, with breast augmentation, nose surgery and liposuction the most popular procedures. He’s seen a 25 percent increase in patients under 20 since 2005.

Elam says he won’t do surgery on those who aren’t realistic about desired results.

“If a girl comes in that has a fairly nice figure and breast size, I’ll turn her away,” he said.

“We’re not taking a girl and trying to make her the belle of the ball. We’re taking a girl who feels uncomfortable and giving her an ability to be part of a group.”

Knickerbocker – daughter of Tammy Knickerbocker, 43, and the show’s newest housewife – grew up wealthy. Her parents owned a business that launched on the Home Shopping Network in the 1980s selling celebrity-endorsed products. They lived in one of Coto’s largest homes. But luck changed, and the Knickerbockers divorced. Tammy, Megan and sister Lindsey, now 18, moved from their 9,000-square-foot home to a much smaller house they shared with friends.

“I lost 90 percent of my friends because I wasn’t good enough for them to hang out with me anymore,” Megan Knickerbocker said.

Just out of elementary school, she begged her father for plastic surgery.

“I saw magazines and pictures of pretty girls,” she said. “I used to sit in the corner and was never the life of the party because I didn’t feel pretty. My dad said I could have surgery on my 18th birthday if I lost 40 pounds. I worked at it and lost almost all the weight. The second he said yes, I was in the doctor’s office.”

Her father says he should have approved it sooner.

“She walks with a good, self-confident attitude,” said Louis Knickerbocker, who at first didn’t think she needed the surgery. “Now instead of slouching she stands up straight. She’s grown a lot.”

Now Knickerbocker agrees to be photographed again. When her mom signed on for the show’s second season, Knickerbocker knew she wouldn’t have to feel like the ugly older sister.

On the show’s third episode, Knickerbocker reveals her surgery to the world.

“At first I was terrified and I had second thoughts of doing it on TV,” she said. “I wondered what people would say and if they thought I was conceited… It turned out better than I could even imagine. I feel feminine and attractive.”

The Rise and Fall of the Knickerbocker Business........

From Reference for Business.com -

(The last pic is Tammy and her daughter looking a the home they lost after the company BK)

Origins
The roots of Charisma Brands date to 1985, when husband-and-wife entrepreneurs Louis and Tammy Knickerbocker founded a California-based firm called International Beauty Supply. The couple, who had earlier found success with Mexican restaurant chain Casa Lupita, soon began to market a home nail salon kit via cable televisions's Home Shopping Network.

After Louis Knickerbocker met plastic surgeon Michael Elam at a party, the company formed an offshoot called LaVie Cosmetics to make a face cream that the two men developed. Recruiting comedian and Elam patient Phyllis Diller as on-air spokesperson, the firm soon began to sell Creme de LaVie on the Home Shopping Network, taking orders for $997,000 worth in a single August 1988 weekend.

In 1989, another offshoot company, MLF Enterprises, was created. It would offer replicas of jewelry pieces owned by Charlie's Angels star Farrah Fawcett, who would also hawk the line on the Home Shopping Network. Not long afterward an additional division, Knickerbocker Creations, was launched as well. By 1990, the company was reportedly handling orders worth $18 million from the Home Shopping Network, which was nearly its exclusive source of revenue.

In 1990, he later alleged, Louis Knickerbocker was approached by Home Shopping Network chairman Roy Speer with a proposal that he secretly receive a 50 percent stake in Knickerbocker's businesses in exchange for arranging a $10 million line of credit. After checking with his lawyer about the propriety of such an offer, Knickerbocker declined it, which resulted in Speer banning the company's products from his network and then trying to woo away its celebrity spokespersons.

The firm soon reached a deal with rival shopping channel QVC, but Speer allegedly continued to keep track of its inner workings by paying Knickerbocker's executive vice-president to spy for him. The allegations surfaced several years later when government agencies began a probe of the Home Shopping Network's finances, which precipitated Speer's resignation as that firm's chairman and the sale of his controlling interest. Meanwhile, 1990 had also seen Knickerbocker drop Crème de LaVie face cream after co-inventor Michael Elam's medical license was revoked for malpractice and insurance fraud.

Marie Osmond Dolls Debut in 1991
In 1991, the company moved into a new product area with the introduction of Marie Osmond Fine Porcelain Collector Dolls. Doll aficionado Osmond helped design the new line, which would be sold via QVC and in stores like Toys "R" Us and JC Penney. Prices started at $25 and went as high as $6,000 for a limited-production special edition, with most selling for around $200. The first dolls debuted on QVC in November of 1991, with the company reporting sales of $1.4 million in four hours of air time. Osmond donated a portion of her proceeds to the Children's Miracle Network, a charity she helped establish in 1983.

The success of the Osmond dolls led to a similar deal the following year with former Mouseketeer and 1960s beach movie star Annette Funicello, who would sell a line of collectible bears under her name. Funicello suffered from multiple sclerosis, and part of the proceeds would fund a charity she had formed to help fight neurological diseases. Despite initial success with dolls and bears, by 1994 the company's annual sales had fallen to $7.8 million, with net earnings of $725,000.

In January 1995, Louis Knickerbocker's various businesses were merged into a single entity, the Rancho Santa Margarita, California-based L.L. Knickerbocker Company. That same month, the firm raised $4.9 million in an initial public offering (IPO) of stock on the NASDAQ Small Cap exchange. Of the 2.4 million shares extant, Louis Knickerbocker held 64 percent. The company used the funds to develop new products and to create television infomercials and a direct marketing sales campaign. At this time, the Marie Osmond doll line was the firm's biggest seller, accounting for approximately 40 percent of sales, with most of the remainder coming from Annette Funicello Collectible Bears and the ECT Ionizer, a product which purportedly removed harmful particles from indoor environments.

Following the IPO, L.L. Knickerbocker began signing a number of new licensing deals. Plans were soon announced to offer memorabilia and figurines based on the 1950s television program The Honeymooners, hair removal and skin care products, a recovery service for lost or stolen articles called Tracker, and a line of collectible angel dolls promoted by flamboyant fitness guru Richard Simmons. The firm also took a dip in the waters of the Internet, creating a joint venture with MultiMedia Magic Productions to develop "Electronic Storefronts" for online sales of a variety of products.

All of this activity, as well as new business from mail-order sales via advertisements in Doll Reader magazine, helped boost the company's stock value tenfold by mid-summer 1995, and in July the NASDAQ exchange moved it to the higher-profile National Market System. Over the summer, more new products were announced, including a series of videos called "Secrets of Modeling A-Z," which would be sold via infomercials.

With more attention directed toward the firm's once thinly traded stock, allegations began to surface that stockbroker Rafi Khan was somehow manipulating its price, and with reports of a possible Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) investigation, it began falling. By late August, it had dropped to less than half of its recent peak, and then continued to slide.

In the fall of 1995, L.L. Knickerbocker began marketing its modeling videos via infomercials and selling the Tracker recovery service on QVC with help from actress Angie Dickinson, formerly the star of television's Police Woman series. The company also announced it would market a digital telephone with which users could make free long distance calls via the World Wide Web as well as a series of posters of company board member Farrah Fawcett, who had recently posed nude for Playboy magazine at the age of 48. Late in the year, L.L. Knickerbocker sold $3 million worth of new Christmas-themed Marie Osmond dolls in a single weekend on QVC, as the company announced plans to begin selling them through retail outlets like FAO Schwarz. QVC sales accounted for some 98 percent of revenues for the firm at this time.

In December 1995, a $10 million joint venture was formed with Paxson Communications to market products via informercials and through Paxson's new Shop at Home cable TV network. The first efforts included selling exercise devices endorsed by Olympian Florence Griffith Joyner and marketing Mr. Khalsa Numerology to compete with the successful Psychic Friends Network. For 1995, the firm reported sales of $13.1 million and earnings of $1.3 million.

Acquisitions and New Ventures in 1996
In March 1996, L.L. Knickerbocker entered a completely new business area by purchasing a 40 percent stake in Pure Energy Corp., a California firm that sought to produce an alternative motor fuel from industrial waste products. Pure Energy, which would be headed by Louis Knickerbocker, soon committed to invest $5.3 million in a wood-sludge conversion plant in Watertown, New York, which would also be funded by state and federal agencies and a chemical firm.

In the spring, the company expanded its offerings to jewelry through the acquisition of three companies: The Krasner Group, Inc. of Rhode Island, which sold jewelry designed by the likes of Kenneth Jay Lane and Nolan Miller on QVC, and Grant King International Co. Ltd. and S.L.S. Trading Co. Ltd., both of Thailand. The three new additions had total annual revenues of approximately $20 million.

Key Dates:
1985: Louis and Tammy Knickerbocker found International Beauty Supply.
1991: The company begins to sell Marie Osmond Fine Porcelain Dolls via the QVC television shopping network.
1995: The firm, now known as L.L. Knickerbocker, goes public on NASDAQ.
1996: Jewelry companies are acquired.
1999: The firm is forced into bankruptcy by creditors.
2001: Brian Blosil acquires the assets of Knickerbocker; the firm becomes Marian LLC.
2004: Blosil sells the company to management; Marian's name is changed to Charisma Brands LLC.
In the summer of 1996, the firm bought a 25 percent stake in Insta-Heat Inc. and sister firm Self-Heating Container Corp. (later known as Ontro, Inc.), which had developed cans that could be heated by pressing a button on the bottom. Fall saw the addition of another Thai jewelry company, Harlyn International Co., and the signing of an agreement with country music superstar Barbara Mandrell to tout a line of jewelry on QVC.L.L. Knickerbocker also bought controlling interest in New England-based doll maker Georgetown Collection, Inc. and subsidiary Magic Attic Press for $1.68 million. The respective firms produced collectible porcelain dolls and 18-inch vinyl dolls for children that were modeled after the successful American Girls line and sold with related storybooks and accessories.

In the summer of 1997, the company formed a joint venture with Arkenol Holdings to market alternative fuels in Asia, securing a new $20 million line of credit. Several of the company's recent ventures were now beginning to run into problems, with the Tracker service's telemarketers accused by the Federal Trade Commission of using scare tactics to sell unnecessary credit card insurance and Classy Lady hair removal devices abandoned when they did not receive Food and Drug Administration approval. The firm reported a loss of $4.4 million on sales of $68.3 million for the year.

The year 1998 saw L.L. Knickerbocker working to cut costs by consolidating its Far East offices into a single site in ShenZhen, China, and farming out Magic Attic Press book production and marketing to Millbrook Press. The company also secured $7 million in new financing from private investors, built a new silver manufacturing facility in Thailand, and took a6.7 percent stake in Phoenix Environmental Ltd. in exchange for 2 percent of its Pure Energy holdings. The company continued to sign new licensing agreements as well, with recent additions including Disney, Universal Studios, and Kodak.

In July 1998, the SEC officially charged Rafi Khan and a partner of manipulating L.L. Knickerbocker stock five years earlier, though the company itself was not implicated. Khan agreed to cooperate with prosecutors and received a sentence of three years' probation and a five-year ban from the securities industry.

With losses continuing to mount, the company's stock price began falling steadily, ameliorated only slightly by announcements of new Internet sales efforts through Yahoo! and America Online. To help boost share value, the firm split off its holdings in the energy and self-heating container businesses by forming a new company called Knickerbocker Investments, Inc., which would be run by an independent advisory board. A short time later, another new unit, Knickerbocker WorldWide Co. was created to sell jewelry online. The company also relocated its Georgetown Collection business from Maine to California, consolidated related operations in Portland, Maine, and closed manufacturing facilities in Maine, New York, and Pennsylvania. One-quarter of the firm's 290 U.S. employees were laid off as a result of the downsizing, leaving a total of 450 worldwide. For 1998, L.L. Knickerbocker's revenues declined to $60 million and a whopping $28 million loss was reported.

Bankruptcy in 1999
With its Asian joint venture with Arkenol also recently declared a total loss, and having spent over $1 million on legal fees related to two separate lawsuits, by the summer of 1999 the company found itself in serious trouble. On August 23, as the firm's stock was coincidentally being delisted from the NASDAQ due to its low trading price, three of L.L. Knickerbocker's creditors filed a Chapter 7 petition in U.S. Bankruptcy Court seeking immediate payment of their debts. The firm began seeking a way out of liquidation, and in November it was allowed to convert from a Chapter 7 forced bankruptcy to a Chapter 11 reorganization and began negotiations with creditors. For the year, the company recorded revenues of $42.2 million and a loss of $11.2 million.

During the fall of 1999 and into early 2000, operations were streamlined by selling the unprofitable Georgetown Collection brand and discontinuing the Annette Funicello and Richard Simmons product lines. The firm also began to move away from the money-losing mail order area and toward retail sales, though QVC continued to account for nearly half of its earnings. For 2000, sales declined to $30.3 million, with a net loss of $3.4 million. The company's employee ranks had by now been whittled down to 357.

In July 2001, L.L. Knickerbocker accepted an offer of $6 million from Brian Blosil, the husband of Marie Osmond, to buy substantially all of its assets, which would form the basis of a newly formed company called Marian, LLC. Louis Knickerbocker subsequently filed a plan of liquidation with the bankruptcy court for the minimal remaining assets he held. The firm's founder later reappeared with a company called RG Global Lifestyles, Inc., that marketed dietary supplements and health and beauty aid products in Asia, as well as a device that created drinking water from air.

Reality shows once again why the Fairytale/Brady Bunch image isn't REALITY...

From the OC Register -



Yes, this all happened a year ago but it clearly prints the REAL picture of Ms. Lauri Waring/Peterson and George Peterson's integrity and character. Since they continue to perpetuate this Fairytale/Brady Bunch image we thought you should all be privy to their REAL lives as documented in their court cases.

Josh got a job and a company truck, Gina got an aggressive attorney and made headway toward getting her kids back, and this very column became "Exhibit C" in a court case – all part of the ongoing domestic fight involving one of the "Real Housewives." It was a good day.

Some complain that covering this stuff dips into the realm of the tabloids. If it were just the nasty life of some semi-celebrity, I'd agree. But there's an underdog element to this case I find both irresistible and worthwhile of coverage. On one side, you've got the divorced mother of four, Gina Peterson, and the troubled teen, Josh Waring, who was kicked out of the house by his mother. On the other side are Josh's mom – Housewives' diva Lauri Waring –and her newfound sugar daddy-love, who is Gina's millionaire ex-husband, George Peterson. I guess it's that dumb "afflicting-the-comfortable-and-comforting-the-afflicted" thing idealistic journalism professors used to drum into you, post-Watergate.

I started Thursdayat the family-law court in Orange, where Judge Nancy Pollardtried to bring some clarity to the messy custody fight between George and Gina. A few months ago, George got a magistrate to grant an emergency order revoking Gina's partial custody of the four kids they have together. George said it was because Gina had allowed undesirable people to live with her. On Thursday, George also decried what he called Gina's "decision to litigate this case in the media," and submitted as evidence several of my recent columns.

Hmm. Haven't George and Lauri exposed all seven of their collective kids and their problems to a national television audience? Maybe I'm just not hewing to the "Brady Bunch" version Bravo has served up.

Gina says the people living with her included a desperate single mom, the mom's kid, and Josh, who had sought refuge. None are dangerous or bad influences, she argues. George's real motive, she says, is harassment. Since Nov. 9, she says, she's had her kids for four days around both Christmas and New Year's and on two weekends.

Gina gave Pollard declarations written by three of her children in which they say they want to live with her. "I really just want to live with my mommy," 10-year-old Bria scrawled. If I quoted any more, I'd have readers crying all over the county. Fifteen-year-old Slayte's declaration is so full of spite toward George that not even a bottom-dweller like me can bring himself to quote from it. Gina also submitted declarations showing that the people staying with her, including Josh, have moved out.

As Gina's forceful new attorney, Peter Hermes, called George's declarations "a barrage of lies," George sat a few rows back in the spectator area smiling and shaking his head. Lauri sat to his right, stroking the hand he had placed on her knee.

Pollard is brand-newto the case. You get the sense she is very concerned but still doesn't have enough info to take definitive action. She's awaiting reports from a child psychologist and the children's own court-appointed attorney. In the meantime, she made it clear Gina is entitled to the every-other-weekend visits and unlimited phone calls from them. "What I'm concerned about is these little girls being denied access to their mom," Pollard said.

Late in theday, I called Josh. The big news is, a guy I put him in touch with has given him a job servicing vending machines, and he gets use of a truck. He's living with his father in Mission Viejo.

"You can't screw this up," I told him. "A lot of people went out on a limb for you."

"I know, that's what Gina said, too," he replied, sounding excited. "I'm going to have to do a good job."

Bye Bye Fairtytale..............

From Star magazine -



War has erupted behind the scenes of the hit reality show "The Real Housewives of Orange County." The fighting began after busty housewife Lauri Waring kicked her teen son Josh out of the house and he moved in with Lauri's boyfriend's ex-wife!

Fans of Bravo TV's hour-long docu-series about five wealthy families have learned that Lauri's son Josh, 18, was sent to rehab for behavioral and substance abuse problems. But fans don't know that mother and son have been clashing bitterly since his release.

"She's a different person," says Josh about his mom Lauri.

"I don't know if the show went to her head, or what."

When Josh was sprung from rehab, Lauri - who had moved in with millionaire developer George Peterson - allowed Josh to stay rent-free in her townhouse and use her car, providing he did not have parties.

Lauri says she kicked out Josh after discovering nine people in the home. But Josh insists only six people were there - and insists that there were no drugs or alcohol.

According to Josh, Lauri kicked him out with no clothes and no car. Without transportation, he says he was forced to drop out of college.

Despite Lauri's objections, Josh moved in with Gina - the ex-wife of Lauri's boyfriend George.

Now George has leaped into the fray - reportedly taking legal action to boot both Josh and Gina out of the home they share. George co-owns the home with Gina.

Isn't this the same home George's daughters share with their mother? So George is in essence taking legal action to remove his own children from their home? Again, integrity and character are not virtues in this home.