The NYDN Article About Bethenny

This is the article that Bethenny Frankel saw and spoke of on Episode 4 of the Real Housewives of New York. Planted by Jill Zarin?  You be the judge.

 

Frenemies Bethenny Frankel and Kelly Bensimon may have made peace over the summer, but the cat-fighting on this season’s “Real Housewives of New York” has only just begun.  On the show, which is slated to premiere in early 2010, the Skinnygirl creator will be feuding with all of her co-stars aside from – ironically – Bensimon. This time around, Bethenny’s biggest enemy appears to be her former BFF, Jill Zarin.

The rift between the ex-besties was evident late last week during a dinner Zarin hosted for 40 friends at Saks Fifth Avenue; Frankel was the only “Housewife”  who hadn’t been invited. While guests gossiped about the chef’s noticeable absence, Bensimon – who appears to be playing both sides – took a place of honor beside the evening’s hostess, a spot previously reserved for Frankel.

But it isn’t just her close pal that the Skinnygirl is alienating herself from: Frankel has been gradually cutting ties with Countess Luann De Lesseps, Alex McCord and Ramona Singer since news that she’d get her own show on Bravo broke during the summer months.

It will become obvious to fans of the New York version of the franchise, which began filming its third season Aug. 31, that the chef is separating herself from the pack. Frankel skipped US Weekly’s 25 Most Stylish New Yorkers fete in early September (all the other ladies attended) and was absent from a night of filming at Emanuel Ungaro‘s Madison Ave. store. Even when she did join her castmates – such as at Pamella Roland‘s Fashion Week show – the atmosphere was frosty. Frankel and De Lesseps had a front-row fight which, of course, will be played out large on the small screen come 2010.

However, sources say that separating Frankel from the other “Housewives” is a calculated move by Bravo producers, who want to wean her off of the show so she can stand alone.

Frankel has been filming several scenes solo – including a party shot at Meatpacking District nightclub Tenjune – to pave the way for her solo project, the working-titled “Skinny in the City.” Says a source, “Distancing herself from the cast will make the transition away from the ‘Real Housewives’ that much more seamless.”

If it quacks like a duck…….