A commenter on reality tea made a good point about how these shows started off being about these well off women, who just lunched, and went to parties; based off that premise what the hell do these women need raises for. Honestly I enjoyed Season 5 but at this point I wouldn't care if they scrapped the entire cast.

Update on NYC stand-off:

http://www.deadline.com/2013/05/real-housewives-of-new-york-want-weekend-to-decide-on-bravo-contracts-after-todays-deadline-will-there-be-raises-or-recasts/

Honestly, when I think about it, they shouldn't be on the same pay scale as the other cities. Just like any other job in America, your salary should factor in the cost of living. Therefore, I wouldn't expect a 3-season NJ Kathy who lives in the suburbs to make the same as a 3-season NYC Sonja who lives in the city. The pay and resulting expenses to shoot the show are nowhere near the same, so just because they've been on the same amount of seasons doesn't mean they should make the same $$. I get that NJ has higher ratings so they should get paid more, but you still have to do it on a scale.

Unfortunately, the RH franchise has built itself to the point where they can't just sit around and be moms and lunch. They've all taken it to this place where they have to be lavish, go out and host events, start businesses, go to the most expensive places to wine and dine, etc. To stay at the bar the franchise has set itself, the NYC ladies have to film out and about, and their expenses are WAY more expensive than the suburbs of NJ, Atlanta, or the OC.

So if I think about it logically and from a business perspective, the NYC ladies probably have a legitimate case here.

Edited May 11, 201312 yr by alwaysAMC

But at the end of the day, some of these women may be fronting like they have more money than they actually do. You should walk away from the franchise if you know you do not have the money to keep up. Lots of HWs have been guilty of doing this (including my girl Teresa) and they are being ridiculous if you ask me. Ramona is only asking for $1 million because she sees that's what NeNe is getting and she thinks she is on the same level as her because they've been on their respective shows for the same amount of years. She is the one leading this strike, and it all comes down to being petty and jealous. Sonja and LuMan are broke, and I am sure their asses has already caved. These women need to walk away if they can not keep up as I am sure there are PLENTY of women in NYC who can keep up and would provide more interesting entertainment than some of these ladies.

NJ and ATL bring in the ratings and the ad dollars, they deserve more money than the New York ladies period.

ETA:

The Real Housewives of NYC are so sure Bravo will meet their new salary demands that two of the ladies have left town.

Carole Radziwill is in Los Angeles and Sonja Morgan is in Paris with her toy boy boyfriend, leaving the negotiations to their lawyers.

“Ramona agreed to her salary and shook hands, but then changed her mind at the last minute,” one insider tells Naughty But Nice Rob. “Carole and Sonja are not returning to New York until next week and LuAnn and Aviva have refused to film until they have agreed on compensation. So no filming is going to happen this week.”

The entire cast are feeling very confident, believing that no-one who is anyone in New York wants to do the show anymore, making casting a nightmare. It sounds very easy to cast a reality show, until you start looking!

Bravo is threatening to pull the show or recast it if ALL the ladies do not sign their contracts by tomorrow. However, the girls refuse backdown.

“Ramona and Sonja are not talking after Ramona went behind Sonja’s back and negotiated her deal without her. Plus, good luck trying to reaching Sonja in Paris to get her to sign a deal,” laughs one insider who adds that Aviva will be a 30 Rock tomorrow morning – alone.

Now, this is a show I would watch!

A rep for Bravo had no comment.

http://www.naughtybutnicerob.com/the-real-housewives-leave-nyc-carole-radziwill-in-l-a-sonja-morgan-in-paris/

Edited May 11, 201312 yr by Eric83

Old article, but I just found this... click on the image. I'm still so amazed at how last second Fernanda was cut as an OC S6 housewife. She's literally the front and center star of this promo shot, which I find so interesting.

http://www.my-hometownrealty.com/even-%E2%80%98real-housewives%E2%80%99-have-%E2%80%98real-estate%E2%80%99-challenges/

(sorry, not sure how to embed photos, or else I'd just do that instead!)

Edited May 11, 201312 yr by alwaysAMC

AlwaysAMC, you know thats a good point that I didnt even consider (about socializing and living in NYC being alot more expensive than some of the other cities)

btw, here's that pic:

I liked Fernanda and its a shame she wasnt added as a full houswife

Edited May 11, 201312 yr by Cheap21

I think that Fernanda was good casting choice too. I thought she was WAY better than dull a** Peggy.

And Cheap, you need to be beat for that avi! Sister Patterson! Now if Bravo or VH1 did a show with these heffas, I'd watch!

I think that Fernanda was good casting choice too. I thought she was WAY better than dull a** Peggy.

And Cheap, you need to be beat for that avi! Sister Patterson! Now if Bravo or VH1 did a show with these heffas, I'd watch!

Seriously that would be a crazy mess if they brought all 5 women together for a series. Id kill for that ratchet mess. Old ass ladies acting a damn fool...lol

LOL yall just made me think about Frankie and Neffie's ratchet ass spinoff.

In boring news, all of the NY Housewives took what Bravo was offering and are signed on for Season 6, YAWN!

Per Deadline

LOL yall just made me think about Frankie and Neffie's ratchet ass spinoff.

In boring news, all of the NY Housewives took what Bravo was offering and are signed on for Season 6, YAWN!

Per Deadline

Dumb ass hos. They actually thought they had power. I wish they had stuck to it and Bravo canned all of them. The NY HWs dont do it for me like the other franchises. I like and watch the show but ever single one of them is replaceable IMO

I knew those heffas were going to sign on. LuMan & Ho-nja need the money BADLY. Ramona knows that she won't get another platform like this to hock off her merchandise. Aviva will go back to being irrelevant along with Heather & Carole. These women aren't stupid. IMO, the should've took what Bravo offered originally, which is a LOT compared to what many of us are making, showed out this season (making it the best) and made Bravo eat their words and gladly offer them just as much money the next season.

Thanks for posting that OC picture, Cheap!

It looks like Bravo did modify the contract to pay for additional expenses related to hair/make-up, etc... so I guess they got a LITTLE more than they hoped for.

http://www.deadline.com/2013/05/real-housewives-of-new-york-want-weekend-to-decide-on-bravo-contracts-after-todays-deadline-will-there-be-raises-or-recasts/

I wonder if this was all a publicity stunt to get the show buzzing again since it's been MIA for much longer than usual...

Edited May 12, 201312 yr by alwaysAMC

Thats a really good point about NYC....its definitely not cheap to live there. And all the socializing that they do does come with a price.

As for Ramona I know she's not as huge a deal as Teresa or NeNe but shes outlasted all of the original HWs on that franchise (aside from Sonja) and frankly she's the one who's usually at the center of the drama/attention. If I were Andy I'd give it to her cuz she truly has earned after all the years of work she's put in....

I mean Turtle Time alone and her obsession with Pinot Grio is worth it lol

I don't know whether to laugh or cry at those gifs of Andy twerking...he looks funny in some of em and then pathetic in others....

EDIT: Just saw that they all resigned...good news!

“I still haven’t decided. Payscale is ridix + it irks me to be given ultimatums. Just ask my last 5 boyfriends.” - Carole --> LOL

Edited May 12, 201312 yr by ThePrinceOfSunspear

It saddens me to see the lack of interest in NYC. Even the hubby doesn't really care about the Big Apple ladies (although he cares more about OC than I do so it balances out) but I can understand why, after the dark season 4 and overall disappointing season 5 (which I turned out to love after the first few lackluster weeks). Seasons 1-3 are basically the epitome of this franchise and anything afterward is just trying to hold onto and/or recreate buzz around this group of ladies.

Still, I'm excited to see Pinot Singer trotting her loudmouth, inconsiderate self all over NYC for some turtle time and snarkfests, along with all the other wonderfully self-entitled but low-paid dames.

Season four of New York wasn't bad and I think it was a huge mistake to accept defeat the way they did. I think they should've added the three new ladies, but kept them as friends and see which ones really popped and then add one or two as the main housewives. They should've just dumped Sonja and Kelly for lack of story. Yes Jill is difficult, but you can't overlook the importance of those familiar faces, especially the ones that get lots of press.

With season four you had Bravo announce the series, then pull it which immediately put a dark cloud over the series, but still ratings were good. Then they overreacted to the fan complaints about the women being too mean and drastically fired half the cast (including two stars). Then for their big reboot they tried to get Alex back after firing her which revealed the new ladies obviously weren't working out. Then they kept extending filming so much that it was still filming as it was airing, which obviously meant they didn't have enough good material. It was obvious watching the season that things didn't get interesting until halfway through. Then the reunion was snoozeworthy. Now they've delayed things over a year and are fighting to bring back the same cast that couldn't bring ratings last time.

Makes.No.Sense.At.All. NOW is the time they should've done a reboot. Bring on Jennifer Williams or another black women. Seek out interesting minorities whether it be a Jewish or Muslim housewife or a black or asian one. Or go back to Brooklyn and find somebody to represent a more relatable side of NYC. Then you can freshen the series up with cheap new wives and be able to afford to pay Ramona, Carole and Heather, the only ones who really deserve to return. offer Aviva, Sonia and LuAnn much smaller paychecks in case one of the key three didn't return, but tell them to "take it or leave it." That worked wonders with OC this season and Alexis took that deal.

Would they really factor fan complaints in with their decisions? I kind of wondered if some of the women were fired because of behind the scenes issues.