It's hard to believe that many of us have been tuning into at least one of the many Real Housewives franchises for the better part of the past two decades.
What started as a concept in the area of Orange County, California has turned into a pop culture phenomenon similar to other series like RuPaul's Drag Race, Keeping Up with the Kardashians and so much more.
Since 2006, we have been introduced to over 100 of these women who have brought us endless laughter, catchphrases, dramas, fights and more that we still quote many of them on a near daily basis.
For the diehard fans like myself, a lot of our love for this reality series resonates in the women who have been with their individual franchise since the beginning. Many have come and gone, some have stayed throughout, others have left to only come back stronger than ever, but they represent a lot of what this show is all about (for better or worse).
Let's take a look at who this writer thinks are the five best OG housewives who helped catapult this idea into something even former President Barack Obama talked about many moons ago.
5. Kyle Richards (Real Housewives of Beverly Hills). The RHOBH version of this show brought it to a financial level that really wasn't shown on the previous series. It was sort of like a modern take on the show Dynasty only in a reality setting, and Kyle was an absolutely perfect choice to help with that aesthetic. Outside of her stunning beauty, she held her ground during many arguments throughout her time on the show (she's been part of it since day one), notably her epic battles with Camille Grammer in season 1 (they've smoothed things over since then), Brandi Glanville and unfortunately her sister Kim Richards which showed just how “real this show really was and is.
4. Teresa Giudice (Real Housewives of New Jersey). RHONJ was the fourth franchise to be introduced into the Housewives spectrum but based on how dramatic the first season was it could’ve started so much earlier. Teresa was a spitfire from the get-go and exemplified that New Jersey attitude that wasn’t captured too much on television in general. We all knew we were in for reality TV gold the minute she flipped the table on Danielle Staub and called her a “PROSTITUTION WHORE”, and she hasn’t really disappointed us since then.
3. Lisa Vanderpump (Real Housewives of Beverly Hills). This writer is hoping those rumors of her quitting the show that made her a household name aren’t true, but if they are… then LVP gave us 8 incredible seasons of wealth, Giggy, Ken, and general fabulosity many of us wish we could have but know that we never will.
2. Vicki Gunvalson (Real Housewives of Orange County). The OG of all OG housewives. RHOC wouldn’t be the same without Vicki. She knows that, and that’s why the “Whoop it Up” queen has stuck by the show since the beginning… even though it hasn’t always been easy. She’s fought with practically every other housewife that has come onto the show, found love, lost love, found it again in Steve Lodge, brought us into her life with some incredibly tough moments like the loss of her mother and so much more. When you think Real Housewives… she is one of the first (if not first) that comes to mind.
1. TIE! NeNe Leakes (Real Housewives of Atlanta) and Bethenny Frankel (Real Housewives of New York City).
This was virtually impossible for me to choose from so I made them a tie. Both women represent immense success stories, where they went from virtual unknowns to queens of their own domains. One has found fame in the television and movie world (NeNe) while the other has conquered the business world like no other (Bethenny).
Actually, come to think of it… they’ve excelled in both. It was their savvy, fun, inviting and hilarious personalities that brought viewers in and their charismas have made them front page news, covers of magazines kind of women that all began when that reality show camera started to record. BLOOP!
This post was created by one of our Contributing Writers and does not reflect the opinion of Instinct Magazine or the other Contributing Writers when it comes to this subject.