Bethenny Frankel

Bethenny Frankel is a reality TV star best known as an original cast member of The Real Housewives of New York City. She starred on eight of the show’s seasons. Frankel graduated from New York University before moving to Los Angeles in 1992 with the hopes of becoming an actress.

In 2003, Frankel started her baking business BethennyBakes. She went on to quickly build a public presence and was featured on The Apprentice: Martha Stewart, where she came in second place. She later authored books including Naturally Thin (2009), The Skinnygirl Dish: Easy Recipes for Your Naturally Thin Life (2009), A Place of Yes: 10 Rules for Getting Everything You Want Out of Life (2011) and Skinnydipping (2012). She is also the founder of Skinnygirl, a lifestyle brand, and BStrong, a disaster relief initiative.

Frankel joined the cast of Bravo’s The Real Housewives of New York City in 2008. As a result of her success on RHONY, she earned her own spinoff series titled Bethenny Ever After (2010) and Bethenny & Fredrik (2018). She also hosted the short-lived talk show Bethenny (2013 to 2014) and the HBO Max reality competition series The Big Shot With Bethenny (2021).

Frankel was briefly married to producer Peter Sussman from 1996 to 1997 before marrying Jason Hoppy in 2010. Less than two months later, she and Hoppy welcomed their daughter, Bryn. Frankel and Hoppy separated in 2012, finalizing their divorce in 2021 after a long court battle.

She went on to date the late entrepreneur Dennis Shields, who proposed to her in 2018 but died months later. Frankel moved on with Paul Bernon later that year. The couple announced their engagement in 2021 but split in 2024. She later began dating businessman Tom Villante and then investment banker Shane L. Campbell.