The Real Housewives of New York City

**The Real Housewives of New York City** (abbreviated **RHONY**) is an American reality television series that premiered on March 4, 2008 on Bravo. It is the second installment of The Real Housewives franchise. It focuses on the personal and professional lives of several women residing in New York City.

The success of the show has resulted in the spin-offs Bethenny Ever After and Bethenny & Fredrik.

## Overview

### Season 1-4

While in pre-production, the show was initially titled Manhattan Moms. It was later rebranded to become the second installment of the then-now Real Housewives franchise.

The first season premiered on March 4, 2008 and starred Bethenny Frankel, Luann de Lesseps, Alex McCord, Ramona Singer and Jill Zarin.

The second season premiered on February 17, 2009 and Kelly Killoren Bensimon was added to the cast.

The third season premiered on March 4, 2010 and saw the addition of Sonja Morgan as a main cast member, along with Jennifer Gilbert in a recurring capacity. In August 2010, Frankel left the show in order to expand her Skinnygirl product line.

The fourth season premiered on April 7, 2011 and Cindy Barshop replaced Frankel. After the season, McCord, Zarin, Killoren Bensimon and Barshop were effectively let go from the show.

### Season 5-8

The fifth season premiered on June 4, 2012. In April 2012, Bravo announced a revamp to the cast, integrating Aviva Drescher, Carole Radziwill and Heather Thomson into the main cast. Production for the sixth season was set to begin on May 8, 2013 but the cast instead chose to go into salary negotiations with Bravo, effectively delaying shooting. Drescher, Morgan, Radziwill, Singer and Thomson renewed their contract in May 2013, while de Lesseps was demoted to a recurring role.

The sixth season premiered on March 11, 2014, a year later than planned with Kristen Taekman as the latest housewife. Drescher was dismissed after the season.

The seventh season premiered on April 7, 2015, featuring the return of Frankel and the addition of Dorinda Medley, while de Lesseps returned in a full-time role. Taekman and Thomson exited the series after the season ended.

The eighth season premiered on April 6, 2016. Jules Wainstein was added to the cast, while Thomson returned in a guest appearance, Taekman did not return. Wainstein left the show in September 2016 for personal reasons.

### Season 9-12

The ninth season premiered on April 5, 2017. Tinsley Mortimer joined the cast, while former housewives Thomson and Zarin appeared as guests.

The tenth season premiered on April 4, 2018 with the cast of the ninth season returning. Thomson and Zarin both appeared as guests. It served as Radziwill's final appearance on the show.

The eleventh season premiered on March 6, 2019. Barbara Kavovit joined as a 'friend of the housewives' and Zarin appeared as a guest. Frankel departed the series after the season for a second time.

The twelfth season premiered on April 2, 2012 and featured Leah Sweeney as the newest houswife. Zarin and Thomson appeared as guests. Mortimer and Medley announced their departure from the series in June 2020 and August 2020 respectively. Mortimer coincided her announcement with her relocation to Chicago, to pursue her romantic relationship with Scott Kluth, while Medley later stated she was fired from the show.

### Season 13-present

The thirteenth season premiered on May 4, 2021 with Eboni K. Williams joining the series, and Thomson and Bershan Shaw appeared as 'friends of the housewives'.

## Timeline of Cast Members

### Main Cast

* Ramona Singer (Season 1-present)
* Luann de Lesseps (Season 1-5 and 7-present; friend in Season 6)
* Sonja Morgan (Season 3-present)
* Bethenny Frankel (season 1-3 and 7-11)
* Carole Radziwill (Season 5-10)
* Dorinda Medley (Season 7-12; guest in Season 4)
* Alex McCord (Season 1-4)
* Jill Zarin (Season 1-4; guest in Season 9, 10, 11, 12 and 13)
* Tinsley Mortimer (Season 9-12)
* Kelly Killoren Bensimon (Season 2-4; guest in Season 6 and 7)
* Heather Thomson (Season 5-7; guest in Season 8, 9, 10 and 12 and friend in Season 13)
* Aviva Drescher (Season 5-6)
* Kristen Taekman (season 6-7)
* Leah McSweeney (Season 12-present)
* Cindy Barshop (Season 4)
* Jules Wainstein (Season 8)
* Eboni K. Williams (Season 13-present)

### Friends of the Housewives

* Jennifer Gilbert (Friend in Season 3 and guest in Season 5)
* Barbara Kavovit (Guest in Season 3-6 and 8-9; friend in Season 11)
* Elyse Slaine (Guest in Season 9-10 and friend in Season 12)
* Bershan Shaw (Friend in Season 13)