Jill Zarin Says Bethenny Frankel ‘Was A Nobody’ At Start Of ‘RHONY’ – Hollywood Life
Matthew Underwood
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Over a decade later, former besties Jill Zarin, 57, and Bethenny Frankel, 50, are still at odds. But the drama isn’t going down on The Real Housewives of New York City: it’s happening in PEOPLE reporter Dave Quinn‘s new tell-all, Not All Diamonds and Rosé: The Inside Story of the Real Housewives From the People Who Lived It. Jill was among hundreds of people interviewed for the book, and in the chapter about RHONY, she threw some shade at Bethenny while reflecting on the Skinnygirl founder’s iconic fight in season 2 with Kelly Killoren Bensimon about their relevancies.
“Kelly Bensimon was a supermodel and Bethenny Frankel couldn’t sell a cupcake in a grocery store,” Jill said. “Honestly, she was a nobody.” Gotta love some good Housewives shade!
Bethenny didn’t have a rebuttal for Jill, considering that she opted not to participate in the book. But Kelly did participate, and she also reflected on that infamous clash with Bethenny. The fight involved Kelly telling her co-star they’re “not friends,” after which Kelly used hand gestures to make it clear that she was much more relevant than Bethenny at the time. And according to Kelly, she’s gotten some good feedback about how that fight went down. “I mean, people come up to me all the time and do it” Kelly said in the book. “NeNe Leakes, when I first met her she was like, ‘Girl! I’m up here, you’re down there! You’re amazing. I love you!’ ”
Bethenny, Jill and Kelly all delivered some iconic moments in the early era of RHONY. But the trio have all since departed Bravo: Bethenny left the show after season 3, came back for seasons 7 to 11, and then quit again; while Jill and Kelly were both fired after season 4. Back in 2019, Jill told HollywoodLife EXCLUSIVELY that she will never return to the reality series that put her in the spotlight.
“My time has come. My time has passed,” she said. “It’s my choice. A little chill goes a long way, leave them wanting more. Leave when the party’s over, and leave them wanting more. I don’t want to overstay my welcome.”
