The Real Housewives of D.C. | |
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Format | Reality television |
Starring | Mary Schmidt Amons Lynda Erkiletian Stacie Turner Catherine Ommanney Michaele Salahi |
Country of origin | United States |
Language(s) | English |
No. of seasons | 1 |
No. of episodes | 11 |
Production | |
Executive producer(s) | Abby Greensfelder[1][2] Sean Gallagher[1] Rich Calderone[1] |
Location(s) | Washington, D.C. area, United States |
Running time | 44 minutes (excluding commercials) |
Production company(s) | Half Yard Productions LLC[2] |
Broadcast | |
Original channel | Bravo |
Original run | August 5, 2010 – October 21, 2010 |
Chronology | |
Preceded by | The Real Housewives of New Jersey |
Followed by | The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills |
External links | |
Website |
The Real Housewives of D.C. is an American reality television program that debuted on the Bravo network Thursday, August 5, 2010. It was the network's fifth installation of The Real Housewives of... series, following The Real Housewives of Orange County, New York City, Atlanta, and New Jersey.[3][4][5] Bravo announced on April 7, 2011, that The Real Housewives of DC had been cancelled. This is the first time in "Housewives" history that an iteration of the franchise has not been renewed for a second season.
Contents |
The Real Housewives of D.C. introduces five women whose relationships with each other, and with the city in which they live, are the venues for exploring the nexus of politics, society, and even race, as well as how the proximity to political power dictates where one fits within Beltway society.
These connected D.C. power players all have their pulse on the most important cultural events, political galas, gallery openings, and fundraisers in Washington society. They are: Mary Schmidt Amons, the true Washingtonian and granddaughter of radio and TV personality Arthur Godfrey; the mother hen and owner of D.C.’s top modeling agency, Lynda Erkiletian; feisty Brit Catherine Ommanney, married to a White House photographer; model and founder of D.C.’s America’s Polo Cup, Michaele Salahi (who became the focus of media attention following the White House state dinner last November); and Harvard grad, active political fund-raiser, and philanthropist Stacie Scott Turner.
(Season 1)
Second generation Washington, D.C. native, Schmidt-Amons, is an active member of the Washington, D.C. social scene and the granddaughter of legendary radio and TV personality Arthur Godfrey. She has been married to her husband, telecom executive Rich Amons, for over 20 years and resides in McLean, Virginia with their five children: Lolly, Ryan, Alexandra, Meghan and Matt. She recently sold her home in McLean, VA.
On the business front, she is the founder of Labels for Love and co-founder of The District Sample Sale, two D.C.-based charities.
Schmidt Amons is a registered Republican.
(Season 1)
Southern born Erkiletian is the owner and founder of T.H.E. Artist Agency, one of the top modeling and talent agencies in Washington, D.C. She is also the mother of four children, ages 17 to 29 - Aaron, Jessica, Mihran and Sam - and during the first season they moved from Georgetown to McLean, Virginia.
She is very involved in numerous charitable organizations, including the Paula Coburn Foundation and Washington Ballet’s Women’s Committee.
Erkiletian was born a Southern Baptist but says she converted to Judaism.
She is a registered Republican, but she did state that she voted for Barack Obama.
(Season 1)
Alexandria, Virginia native, Turner, is a successful real estate agent. She is a Howard University graduate with a bachelor's degree in business administration/finance and an MBA from Harvard Business School. She worked in marketing at BET and as a manager at Proctor and Gamble (where she met her husband) and other companies before becoming a real estate agent. She is with Long & Foster, but was with Sotheby's International Realty prior to this and during the duration of the filming.
On the philanthropic front, she is the founder of Extra-Ordinary Life, a charitable organization that enables girls, who are in foster care (in the D.C. area), to achieve and be exposed to positive experiences while in foster care.
She resides in the Sixteenth Street Heights district of Washington, D.C. with her husband, Jason (an entrepreneur who once worked in Adrian Fenty's administration) and their two children, Jacob and Catherine.
She is a member of Delta Sigma Theta sorority.
She has also appeared on an HGTV episode of Get it Sold.
She is a registered Democrat.
(Season 1)
London, England, native Ommanney is an interior designer.
She relocated to Chevy Chase, Maryland shortly after marrying Charles Ommanney, a prize-winning photojournalist for Newsweek, after a brief courtship. She has two daughters from a previous marriage, Jade and Ruby. Before the series aired, it was reported that the Ommanneys had separated.[6]
Ommanney is writing a book about her "racy" escapades while living in London, titled Inbox Full.
She is a member of the Labour Party.
(Season 1)
Michaele Salahi (née Michelle Ann "Missy" Holt) (born October 1, 1965) is an American self-proclaimed model and socialite. The Oakton, Virginia, native is a very active member of the Washington, D.C., social scene. She graduated from Oakton High School in 1983.
She and her estranged husband, Tareq, are founders of America's Polo Cup, which had become one of the largest polo events in the U.S. They have also been the alleged owners and residents of the Oasis Winery near Hume, Virginia.[7][8] (Both the Oasis Winery and America's Polo Cup, Inc. filed for Chapter 7 protection in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in February 2009[9] and September 2010,[10] respectively.) In 2009, she claimed to be a former Washington Redskins cheerleader; however, The Washington Post reported that this was untrue.[11]
Michaele is the daughter of Howard A. Holt Jr. and Rosemary (née O'Malley) of Fairfax, Virginia. She attended, but did not graduate from, King's College.
Michaele was a sales girl and make-up artist at Nordstrom.[8][12][13][14] She met Tareq in 2000 at a party thrown by McLean, Virginia, real estate broker N. Casey Margenau and his wife Molly.
Michaele married Tareq in 2003 in a ceremony at Cathedral of St. Matthew the Apostle in Washington, D.C. The guest list included 1,836 guests, including Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy and former U.S. Ambassador to Ireland Margaret Heckler. The wedding, originally scheduled for October 2002, was postponed numerous times, prompting Kennedy to quip that he needed to issue "subpoenas" to the bride and groom.[8][12][15][16]
In September 2010, it was claimed in an interview with Fox News Channel that Michaele was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis 17 years ago. According to interview transcripts, this statement was made by Diane Diamond, the tabloid journalist who authored the couple's 2010 book, rather than Michaele herself, who seemed too distraught to speak.[17] On the reunion episode of the Real Housewives, Salahi's castmates expressed doubt about her claims of suffering from MS, as well as her claims of having been a Redskins cheerleader and having been invited to the White House for President Obama's first State Dinner.
In September 2011, Michaele's husband Tareq reported her missing and kidnapped after she disappeared and was not at her mother's home as she claimed to be. However, Michaele was located within days and admitted she had run off with Neal Schon, guitarist for Journey, and intended to leave Tareq for good. Michaele had had a prior relationship with Schon, who at this point was two months into a new marriage which he stated he was leaving to be with Michaele. Tareq responded by filing for divorce from Michaele on September 16th.[18][19][20]
Michaele is also known as one of the "White House Gate Crashers" as she and her husband showed up at the White House without invitations and greeted President Barack Obama on November 24, 2009, in the receiving line for 400 invited guests. Three days later, the United States Secret Service publicly stated the Salahi couple had not been invited to the event and, although they went through magnetometers and other levels of screening, should have been prohibited from the event altogether. Bravo producers said they had been filming the Salahis before the dinner, but were told by the couple that they were invited. Both Salahis claim no wrongdoing but pleaded the Fifth Amendment and refused to testify to their story during the subsequent investigation.[21][22]
Housewives | Season 1 |
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Mary Schmidt Amons | |
Lynda Erkiletian | |
Stacie Scott Turner | |
Catherine Ommanney | |
Michaele Salahi |
Season | Episodes | Series Premiere | Series Finale | |
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1 | 11 | August 5, 2010 | October 7, 2010 |
Ep # | Title | Airdate | US Viewers (million) |
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1 | "Welcome to the District" | August 5, 2010 | 1.628[23] |
Welcome to D.C., the most powerful city in America, where it takes more than money to impress people – it's about political power. ith the social season in full swing, Michaele's polo event caters to those who want to be close to it all, with attendees including the Ambassador of India, Michelle Jones and Republican lobbyist, Edwina Rogers. As old rivalries cause Lynda to snub Michaele's polo event, Mary struggles with the guest list for her birthday party. And Cat, the brash Brit and new girl in town, gets a crash course in public relations at Stacie's dinner party prepared by a celebrity chef. |
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2 | "Disloyal to the Party" | August 12, 2010 | 1.397[24] |
Mary quickly realizes that having Lolly, her adult daughter, move back home comes with bigger burdens than she expected. Michaele makes good on her promise to take Cat and Mary horseback riding, but Mary is far from impressed. Stacie’s attempt to show the ladies “where she comes from” takes an unexpected turn when her down-home, soul food dinner is ruined by one of her guests. Lynda is pushed to her limit when a confrontation with Michaele breaks all the D.C. rules. | |||
3 | "Don't Go There With Me" | August 19, 2010 | 1.373[25] |
It’s off to Paris! After a spontaneous decision by Michaele and Tareq to join Stacie and her husband in Europe, the couples start to bond. Meanwhile, controversy over D.C. etiquette has the housewives questioning Michaele’s role as a host for high profile events. Cat is hard at work on her book and getting her cover ready, when disappointment strikes. The housewives gather at Mary’s fashion dinner to welcome a celebrity hairstylist, but with previous drama still lingering, things don’t go as planned. | |||
4 | "The Grape Stomp of Wrath" | August 26, 2010 | 1.429[26] |
Mary and Cat learn from a mutual friend that Tareq and Michaele crashed the Congressional Black Caucus dinner and were later escorted from the event. Despite her suspicions about Michaele, Cat decides to attend Michaele's wine tasting. Lynda politely declines, although she's less than polite about Michaele in her private interview. Later, Lynda must make a decision about buying a house and moving from her apartment. Mary, Cat and Stacie are surprised to learn that there is a security detail around Tareq's winery, supposedly regarding his mother's unhappiness at losing ownership. The condition of the Salahi's winery is brought into question by the other housewives. Cat and Tareq clash and later Michaele accuses Mary of talking badly about her. The dinner ends with Tareq's making an accusation against one of Mary's children. | |||
5 | "Foreign Relations" | September 9, 2010 | 1.233[27] |
A spontaneous decision by Michaele and Tareq to take a trip to Paris, with Stacie and her husband, leaves the couples with one chance to bond. Cat is working diligently on her new book and works to get a good cover shot. The housewives gather at Mary’s fashion dinner to welcome a celebrity hairstylist, whom everyone is excited about. The housewives question Michaele's motives about a prior party she hosted. | |||
6 | "Securing Homeland" | September 16, 2010 | 1.274[28] |
Michaele asks for Stacie's help in finding a home in D.C. Stacie is still in search of her birth father, while her mother is of no help. Cat and Mary bond over talks of motherhood. Cat loses a dear friend and is devastated by the loss, feeling alone while her husband is out of town. Tareq has family troubles yet again and Michaele realizes it's taking a toll on her. | |||
7 | "Perception Gap" | September 23, 2010 | 1.315 |
Cat finally puts the finishing touches on her book before sharing some of the juiciest bits with the rest of the housewives, all of which inspires Michaele and her husband to seek a lucrative Book with author Matt Carson who eventually backs away from the deal. During a fun night with the housewives and their families, an argument between Cat and Stacie's friend Erica breaks out and gets heated, bringing one of them to tears. | |||
8 | "Nation Building" | September 30, 2010 | 1.178 |
Michaele and Tareq Salahi attend the White House state dinner, which results in controversy for the couple; Stacie continues her search for her biological father; Lynda makes the final necessary preparations for debuting her fashion line. | |||
9 | "Breaking News" | October 7, 2010 | 1.426 |
Michaele and Tareq attend the State Dinner at the White House, the ladies deal with the aftermath. The Real Housewives of D.C. Series Finale |
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10 | "Reunion Part 1" | October 14, 2010 | 1.573 |
The ladies of D.C. reunite and tempers flare. Cat comes clean about her marriage problems. Lynda makes a shocking revelation about her habits. Stacie updates us on her situation with her birth father. The issue of race is discussed. The ladies doubt Michaele's claims that she has multiple sclerosis and that she was a Redskins cheerleader. Part 1 ends when Andy Cohen wants to bring out Tareq Salahi and housewife Lynda speaks up and says she will not allow it unless her boyfriend, Ebong, comes out as well. | |||
11 | "Reunion Part 2" | October 21, 2010 | 1.673 |
The ladies of D.C. reunite in the second part of the crazy reunion. |
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