#3198 Crappy Hour 1/2/26: Crystal Kung Minkoff

0:21Hello and welcome to Crappy Hour, I'm Ronnie and that's Ben over there. Hello, Beno-noons. hi ronnie how's it going good how's tricks babes tricks are great tricks are great you know it's a monday days are getting a little bit longer i'm feeling great i got a nice coffee here still that i've been drinking all day long what's going on with you anything going on with you um to you know save the environment and i'm getting the cracked strawberry straw you know it just starts decomposing in your mouth. So that's where I'm at. But guess what? Today is a very special day. We've got a great guest here.

1:01And it's also the week we announce all of the nominations for the Golden Crappies. Well, you guys helped us with them. And you're going to get to vote on the first round to narrow all of this down. Those go up this Wednesday as well as live streaming tickets for the Golden Crappies. Buy your tickets. The show is February 27th here in the glamorous Hollywood, California. So grab your tickets for that. Anything you want to add before we bring on our, I was going to say mysterious guest, but we didn't even keep this as a mystery guest because we knew she would show up. What do you think about that?

1:34It's literally in the title of the episode. I know. I think there's actually a typo that we have there, which is, of course, What is it? Crystal Kung Ming Koff right? Crystal can tell us herself come on we'll find out I know this is the most professional podcast that we've ever had let's bring her up Crystal Kung Ming Koff hey Crystal what's going on I don't know if there was a typo I'm actually looking right now I think I spelled it correctly thank you very much So then I always think I didn't research your name. Yeah. Minkoff. Yeah. Minkoff. Oh, hi. It's really not my name, but so it's like someone else's.

2:24So yes, it is. Kong is now. It is now. Hi. Oh, hi. How's it going? Thanks so much for coming on. Happy to be here. It was great. Finally. It's been a long time. We first met on DM when you were on real housewives of Beverly Hills and then real life intervened. Yeah. I'm so happy to be here. Honestly, You know, I've told you guys for many years, I'm giant fans. You guys always get it right. Made me laugh. And so it's really fun to be here. Thank you. Well, we appreciate you being here. We're fans. And also, like, how appropriate that you're here when just a few days ago you made your grand reappearance on The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills.

3:06You know, you never know.

3:10Out of nowhere. Millennial softy. millennial mean cough yeah how did you feel about that because kyle was basically comparing you to amanda francis basically saying that you and amanda are like of the same like millennial class using you know buzzwords etc you know i have mixed feelings obviously because being compared to amanda is a real tough ride um but with oh my god rob just texted me they spelled it m-i-n-g-k-o-f-f so i guess it was wrong but that sounds like the chinese version ming cough right it's like so i did spell it wrong i'm sorry well if it makes you feel better i only spelled it wrong in about six places that okay great well obviously i'm listening because i said rob like you can tune in so he obviously looked it up um so there you go so ming ming cough is you can make me the Asian version of it.

4:06Rob took some, you know, Rob got a little bit of some last name. That's right. So, I mean, obviously I got pushed it. I thought it was funny. Comparing me to Amanda, I mean, Amanda and I are very different, but actually it may, I'm a self-reflective person. So I was like, oh God, if I ever sound like her, I am going to never speak again. Like I'm just going to check myself because she's really rough to watch and I don't want to like bag on her. Um, but like, it's a lot, she's a lot, but also Kyle needs to realize that if she wants her and I call it her show. Cause she like, this is her show. She loves it.

4:45It's her baby. And that's fine. Like it's, she's built the show. She needs to usher in new blood. That's a little bit younger. She really does, or it's going to die. And so So if she's always going to trash millennials, I mean, we're not that young. I'm turning 43. Like, we're not that young. I know. Get with it. We're trashing Gen Z now. Yeah. So, like, it's making her look like a golden girl. Like, she needs to not do that. And so while, like, make fun of something else because then all we have is to make fun of your age. And, like, ageism is not cool. Like, we don't do that. So, like, that's what makes me laugh.

5:23I'm not Amanda, but you know, she did have her feelings, but it's a little like she needs to just say how she feels and stop. Like she just belabors things too much. Yeah. Yeah. I mean, I think that like, you know, of course the show could go for some younger blood. I would also be up for some much older blood because I always find that to be really entertaining on these shows. A very deluded older person who comes in and says crazy shit. And that's always fun. I feel like that would actually activate Kyle in a weird way. it might like recreate some sort of dynamic with like her and Kim and Kathy.

5:57But yeah, or, you know, another good solution is that if Kyle just stops controlling the show so much, that's, I don't know. I just think that it's not like I saw it per se. You can sense it, you know, but it, it's been 15 years. So like if I was there for 15 years, I think it would be hard for me not to have any like, like you just know how it works every year. Right. to just become just sort of like your third arm. But yeah, I think she needs to figure, she needs to allow some like youth in it. Do you know any of the, do you still keep in contact with people from the show? Like are you still friends with anybody?

6:36I'm actually friends with Jennifer Tilly. People didn't know, because I didn't film with her. But if Rob's still on, Jennifer was in three of Rob's films. So they go back like 30 years. Yeah, so. Oh, so you know Jennifer. Jennifer is amazing. She's really a great, great person. She has a lot of empathy. And I'm so glad that the show reflects her kookiness. That's just who she is. But she's a very deep-thinking person, thoughtful person. But she's awesome. I still talk to Sutton. Saw her recently. It's already out there. I filmed The White Party. So I saw Erica. We texted after. kyle and i recall she didn't tell me she was gonna like you know use me on the show but look they used for three episodes they talked about garcelle it's it's like a problem like yeah it's a problem yeah do you have any relationship with garcelle right now or no garcelle no garcelle and i will text and you know i mean it's not often but yeah we're i'm good i'm pretty much that's a hundred times the relationship she has with anybody else on that show that's for sure yes do you know if it's relative she and i are best friends do you know the new uh natalie fuller almost said the new check that's not very nice but the new lady who's on there um i was actually at a party the other day and and my friend i ran into my friend and she's like oh my god my friend natalie's on it i was like oh the new girl and she's like i'm so afraid for her I was like, it's okay.

8:11I think she'll be fine because you know, I, I saw some of the girls on the show recently and they didn't say anything like negative. They didn't talk about her too much. I don't know if she makes like a huge impact. Um, but it wasn't like negative, but they did say she talked about sex the whole time. She's like, Oh, she's always like talking about her vagina and stuff. I'm like, she's kind of doing that so far. Like, okay. Yeah. That's two episodes in her. We just had our second episode. She's kind of, that's kind of her thing right now it's like i'm divorced i wear underwear to dinner and i got a happy ending get a massage y 'all they're like yeah that's what i've heard about her so i don't i don't think that stops oh is it weird watching the show back having been on it like are you able to watch it in the same way or do you sort of see do you see kind of like the the wizard behind the curtain now like you sort of like oh i bet i know what happened in the scene they probably pulled kyle to the side and said can you ask so-and-so about this and yada yada yada yeah yeah like it's it's programmatic the show, but it has to be.

9:11Like, you can't just have free-for-all and you can't just talk about whatever because that doesn't make any sense to the viewer. But yeah, for sure, I definitely, I would say while the show was airing, I couldn't watch any television. And we're like big TV people. Like, I was the kind of person that like would walk in the door, put the remote on, and just needed noise in the background. And then while I was on the show, I watched zero of any television. It just became too loud. and then now I'm starting to like enjoy it more. You're watching like the nature channel. Why are they yelling at me?

9:45What did I do? Yeah, so yes, you can see, I know what's happening now. Like I already know who's going to meet up with who and da da da, but also maybe because not just because I know the wizard, but also because I know the people on the show. So I already know the dynamics of what's happening and like, yeah, which makes it fun to watch actually because I feel like an insider now. And I've always loved Housewives unlike apparently the girls who've never seen it before but joined the show, which is such BS. But I really loved the show before and then I had a hatred for it while you're on it. It's tough.

10:23And now I can like re-love it. So yeah, I get to watch it as a fan now and that's like a really good place for me. I really enjoy it. The thing with the Housewives is that like Like a lot of times they'll be like, you were a fan. Like when, if there's like a fight or there's an issue, sometimes they pull that card. Like, well, we were here doing this work as if it's like real, like, like, oh, you're doing the work. And you came on and you were just a fan. And like, did you ever get that energy like thrown at you? Or was there like an element of like, we're the seniors in high school and you're freshmen.

10:52And like, like, we don't even believe your motives because we think you're here just to put on a show because you're a fan. No, I never got the fan thing. But I also, I was always like scared shitless all the time. So they knew, all the cats knew I was not like coming for them like that. I think what they did not know, what they were kind of confused about me is I was always like kind of nice and like this. And they're like, oh, she's manipulating us. I'm like, I'm really not. But, you know, I, and I also think that like someone like Erica, which I really appreciated, like, I think Erica kind of saw, she like felt like she, like she figured me out.

11:26And like, she's like, you're way tougher. you you know i'm sure you're a big fighter and like i just was scared to fight and she tried to bring it out in me in a positive you know like show yourself how you feel like yeah yeah exactly well erica had it rough and her erica had it pretty rough when she first came on too i mean they we talked to uh someone back then who was on the show and they were like oh god this girl's such a dud like she's not gonna we've got this new girl on the show she's a total dud she never says a thing nobody likes her because she's just you know she'll be in and out of here and then she became hugely popular because in her you know in her diary room sessions or her confessionals she was so funny and the ladies didn't see any of that you know oh interesting she didn't see how they were she was just ragging on on the ladies or commenting on everything or what she was actually thinking until they saw the show and then they had to take her a little more seriously the next year Well, by the time I got on the show, I think Erica was just such a big character.

12:26You know, she was always the one in like, you know, a lot of like what I felt like were costumes, you know, she was so theatrical. And it was my second week of filming and she's like, I'm getting a divorce. We're like, whoa. And I remember they were asking me like, because they want me to, production doesn't tell you what to say, but they're trying to find a way to integrate you into the cast, right? Immediately. you can't just sit there like hi are you married you know you can't do that it's like just immediately become one of them and so it was like ask her why she's getting divorced i'm like what it's like i don't even know this woman's last name yet you know and i'm like and she's like dressed and she looks like a you know she's wearing like the pink puffy things i'm like i'm so scared and i'm like i'm like why are you getting divorced you know it was like such because i'm like i would not ask anyone that you know like yeah but it's such a tricky thing yeah because they're going to make it like, if you do it wrong, they're going to make it look like you're an overstepper.

13:17Like, look how obnoxious the new girl just comes in and asks all these awful questions. Then if you do it right, it's like, oh my God, I love how direct she is. And like, that's a moving target. It is, it is. And it's hard to navigate when there's no playbook. But you know, you just try to figure it out. I think that's why newbies are always ushered in every year, at least every two years is like, you need people who don't know what they're doing because that's how you play against, you know, the OGs, right? Like if you just have eight OGs, it's like they're just going to run, you know, they're just going to talk about whatever they want to talk about.

13:51It's not going to feel authentic. Yeah. You know, so. They also need someone to rag on. I mean, this season really is starting to finally take off. It's showing signs of life because they're finally on to Amanda. And, you know, you've got people like Rachel So and Boz who are both like, uh-uh. yeah like this girl's full of shit and so finally they're coming back to life because they won't do anything i don't think if it was just left up to them you know they know how to protect themselves and their own their own storylines and stuff i'm sure they felt it from day one i mean someone like amanda when you hear her talk like you kind of get annoyed with her immediately like she would annoy me but you also have to be careful like you can't just say that out of you know because you're you are doing a show and you're like okay well this person is here for the next 14 weeks so like there is a process in which you have to get to know someone better like if i met someone like that in my real life they're like well i'm not going to have dinner with that person again you know like that's a person and you don't need a rag on them you're just like i don't vibe with that person in this scenario you have to so i you could feel them waiting you're like hoping she turns a corner and doesn't act weird and then she just keeps this person heals emotionally before i have to see her again yeah it would have been funny if i was there i don't know i would have been she would annoy the shit i would have been great actually i think i don't know like it the thing is with amanda like there's a weird relationship i feel like we have with her in the sense that on the one hand she's totally insufferable on the other hand it's hilarious watching her annoy everyone and i'm like i'm going back and forth on whether or not i want to hate her or love her for what for being such a disruptor and because it is fun to watch some of the cast members especially the veterans who've been there forever who who are like clearly want to just control what they want to talk about.

15:34It's fun to watch them squirm and get annoyed. I still remember, I think, was it your first season? It was the whole, it was the thing that they just brought up last week, the whole thing about violated. And it felt like every time you were trying to put that to bed, Kyle would like just open it back up again and be like, well, she talked about being violated. Maybe we should talk about it again. And they like sat you down. It was like 10 episodes in a row. And I always felt like that was so obnoxious. It was so annoying. And it was tiresome. And it also was like not fun for us because it was like, there were like, Kyle was like forcing this.

16:04It was not fun for you. This thing. It was fun for me. I loved it. Maybe it was, I don't remember, but in retrospect, I'm like, but yeah. Fans. I feel like when you talk about like cast members who are fans or like fans today are different than like when I was a fan, because I was a fan pre-social media. I didn't follow I don't follow celebrities I don't follow um reality people so I I watched it and turned it off I didn't I didn't really look deep into how the show worked so the people who are super fans know that that's the program right it's going after someone did it how it works I didn't know how it worked I just liked watching it I was like oh I think I've seen Kyle at some parties oh I know Kathy obviously I've known Kathy for almost 20 years so like I'd see Kyle at her house randomly.

16:55Like I, but I didn't know how it worked. So it, so every time, and I, it's so funny when the audience is like, Oh, Crystal keeps bringing it up. I'm like, I'm really not bringing it up. I, every time I would walk into like a lunch, I'm like, please God, don't talk about it. And I wish I knew, I wish I knew that was coming because I would have known how to shut it down. Like housewives know how to shut it down or keep it going. I just was always like, and I was just a fucking idiot the whole time like oh god they're talking about it again why and so you just find out like that's what it's about and so when it comes to amanda like i do have mixed feelings because she would annoy me so much yes i filmed with her however no one's annoying anybody else at this time right yeah everyone's happy with that's why it's like so i think you know i probably good for she's the only person people are talking about right now right and that's why it's like you know after kyle was like and others it's not just kyle but they were like constantly putting you in the hot seat i just always enjoy it when it gets turned around on them and they're like made to feel uncomfortable and they can't kind of have the experience that they want you know it gives me like a weird joy that i should talk to my therapist about well i wish you called me in the beginning and then i could have figured that one out earlier it's time for a commercial it's time for a crappin's commercial so xavier is asking in the comments or xavier i guess i should say pardon me is asking what it was like to film ultimate girls trip i didn't know that you did how did that go yeah so nor i wouldn't really talk about it but pictures are out so i guess i will um it was actually really fun i wasn't when i first got the call i was reluctant because i'm like, I don't know if this is really like how I want to go back or if I want to do it, but it sounded fun and they told me who was going.

18:49And so, um, like Eileen was going, who I really, I should text her. I really connected with her with, um, like I, we were talking the whole night of like, God, it would have been so great if she and I were on the same season together. I mean, but she was on so long ago, but, um, I really enjoyed her. I really liked Camille. Um, and so they gave me the, I asked for the list. I said, and who's the current cast. And it was really just Kyle, obviously, Sutton, and Erica. So I was like, okay, well, I could be in the room with anyone, but I was like, okay, this is like a group that I would actually have fun with.

19:25And I had such a good time because no one's telling you to fight. You're just going there to look pretty and have fun. And yeah, so it was awesome. What is it like having your podcast humblebrag? Is it awkward for you talking about all the headlines and all of the Bravo stuff? have you gotten in any trouble with anybody for doing that? So, no, I haven't gotten any trouble, which shocks me, because I really, really toe the line of revealing production secrets and stuff. But, you know, I also respect it, so I don't ever cross it. You know, I toe the line, but I don't cross it. In the beginning, when I first started it, the podcast, I was a little uncomfortable.

20:04But it was helpful because Cynthia, my partner, was an active cast member, and she still is on Atlanta. So she could really drive conversations that I wasn't really ready to go there yet because I was just feeling very sensitive, a la Amanda, in my experience at the time. But now it's been over a year and all hell is broken loose. I don't really care. I don't care if I'm in the headlines. I don't care if anyone's mad at me. People message me, like housewives all the time. I got one a day. I'm like, okay, go on. stuff. I don't care because I don't have to be in that world. And even if I went back in the world, I'm like, I never say things to be hurtful.

20:45I just say things that are true and I can stand by them. And I have just insider information and insider perspective that I can give. So when people want to know, they have a question about how things work, I can just give it without, you know, without adding any sauce to it. It's just really just like how it is and take it or leave it. But I don't hear from production because I don't lie. That's what I say. Do you feel like it has kind of given you a voice in a way? Like has it helped you kind of come out more as yourself? Yeah. I'm a pretty chatty out there person. It's just that experience made me uncomfortable.

21:24So I wasn't inauthentic. I was just authentically freaked out in the experience. But now going back when I went, you know, when I did Ultimate Girl Strip, It was such a great like toe back in and everyone's like, oh my God, you're like so different. I'm like, no, this is how I am. I just don't care anymore, you know? And that was really fun. But yeah, like I just love doing my podcast and I just, it's just been like a dream because I get to be myself. And I'd always said like, if you don't like me for who I am, I'm fine. The problem was on the show, people hated me for the edit and I'm not blaming the edit, Just meaning whatever you got to pieces that you got to see of me, that was hard to like defend.

22:06I had to defend, you know, those kind of snippets and moments where now it's like, I'm just saying, however, I never edit my pod. It's like, if I say crazy things, I don't really care. I'm like, whatever, this is who I am. I take it or leave it. And so that's been kind of an amazing, it's very cathartic to be honest. Well, I remember your first episode of Beverly Hills. I don't remember specifically what you said, but you said something that was like really snotty, like right out the gate. And I thought it was hilarious. do you remember i know yeah i do i do i said um if i think it was about dorit if you don't know her she's not worth knowing yeah you were just saying things like i have like i have this i have that like whatever it was just it was so funny and we're like oh my god i love that they cast a brand new fresh asshole um but then what was what was funny was that actually that was not really what your persona was for like your duration of it, which was, that was the surprising part.

23:01But it's interesting too, cause you were like, you're very like outspoken, you're very chatty. And I do feel like they presented you like to be much quieter and maybe, maybe it was also a different time in your life. And like, do you think that if you went back to the show that you would have been, you would be like more in the mix in terms of like, in these certain, these conversations, Like you were just describing how like, like just stepping in and being like, oh, so why are you getting divorced? It was an awkward position for you to be in as a newbie. But coming in sort of as like a returning veteran, do you think that you would have a different energy or different approach?

23:37Yeah, I think that my personality on the show, like I said, it's not not real. And it wasn't sort of a fake edit of me. It was circumstantial. I was going through a loss of many friends because I did the show and so I remember feeling like oh now I'm I'm doing this show about you know friendships wealth all like these things that are very showy and I'm really like not that kind of person I have like a life that might look showy but I'm not a showy person and then I'm also over here with my friends that are like dropping me because I'm doing a show. I just was under so much pressure. What was that?

24:19What was that about? Was it some, because the rumors were that somebody, you were friends with somebody who was trying to get on the show and then you didn't tell them you were trying to get on the show and then you got on the show and they got mad because they didn't know you were even auditioning for the show. Yeah. So if you go to Humble Brag, you will listen to the episode 14 Friends. I give the entire detail. Oh. So it was not, but I think that's what it is. It sounded more interesting that the person wanted the show when I took the show. No, the person was offered the show many, many times.

24:50This was a friend of mine, a very good friend. And her family didn't want her to do it. And, you know, with this show, unless you're a friend of, you need to show your whole family. And so every year she couldn't do it. And so I would support her as her friend. Like, don't worry, you don't need the show. And just like, it's not a big deal because it made her sad. And that's what it was. That show sucks anyway. You don't want to do that show. Yeah, that show sucks anyway. that's what it is you know and then they offered me the show and i remember calling her i was like here's the deal and it's like well why is it good enough for you i'm like this is not about good enough this is about like they offered it to me and i think that this is the right thing for me right now and then the friendship dissolved and then oh that's interesting so that's like when somebody is dating somebody that they're always complaining about and then you're like well fuck that guy and then they get back with the guy and then they're mad at you for saying bad things about the guy yeah so i said the bad things about the guy and uh and then it became sort of like whose side are you on so that's really what happened and it was so that was happening in real time while i'm filming and i'm supposed to be like snarky and da da da and it was just so it was so overwhelming for me because i just didn't want my friends who are deciding if they're my friends anymore to look at me like i'm being a bitch you know what i mean yeah I was trying to be like, you're trying to impress two groups.

26:16Yeah. So I was really focused on my real life. Oh, that's interesting. So were you friends with them? Most, but not. And to clarify something, was this group the same group or associated with the famous mom group that was just in the news from Ashley Tisdale? And I'm only half joking because people are asking. And also, didn't you? I think you actually tweeted at us or something like that about you actually know some of the people in that group or what? So that's not the group. But I made a joke because when Ashley Tisdale did that article, it's like, oh, well, that's so 2021. Like I did. I lost all my friends before.

26:56But so that is not my group. I don't know Ashley. But ironically, I do know the other girls. So I feel very conflicted in the situation because I'm friends with the other people. Yet I'm the Ashley Tisdale group. so yeah so that's really what happened um but i kind of made a funny comment but i texted my friend who's in the group i was like because it was on tmz that's when it started and i said it was not on my 2026 bingo card that you be in tmz before me for losing friends um but no i was that's not part of the group but i yeah it happens like this is the thing is that it became such a big storyline be for me because I was too like, cause I was in it.

27:42I couldn't talk about it. You know what I mean? And it was about the show. So it was all fourth wall. It was like, I'm, I'm not talking to my friends because I'm here. Like that doesn't work. And so, um, it was a really kind of elusive, challenging topic, but I really, I would kind of wish we could have flushed it out if I was like really ready to, because look what happened with Ashley. It's like, it is a very common thing um you know it represents the world yeah one of the comments in here says ah who hasn't been kicked out of a mom's group their emojis like what were the reunions like for you what was that process like i mean it always looks incredibly scary and difficult oh it's just horrible well first of all physically you're so uncomfortable because you have to sit like at the edge of the chair and by the way that's all filming like you can't just like slump back and like you know look like a bear like who care you know you have to sit on the edge with your legs crossed and like so I just would copy everyone all the girls and because they're always like you know looking perfect so like sit you know like you know and then because like I sit crisscross and like whatever so um but like already so you're just constantly like uncomfortable and taped up and whatever and you sit there for what feels like I think it's like 14 hours and like that.

28:58Um, and you know that there's going to be packages, right? It's like the crystal package. And it's like, they run through all your hell. And then it's like crystal. You're like, so it's super stressful. You already, you can, I, my first season, I mean, I'm like a student. So I prepared, I had maybe 30 pages of notes. It all goes out the window because you don't know what the other person's going to say. You can assume, but you don't really know where they're at months later. So, you know, you just especially when they're setting god knows what's going to come out with her so i don't think i predict that setting is so unpredictable i mean we're good but man i'm always like a little on edge like okay what's gonna happen um right but i that's she's the kind of person you have to accept that right that's like what is going to happen with you when you're with her you know it's always a little you know um but yeah it's really scary and it moves slow and fast at the same time you know it's like when it's your package it's like you you just don't know what's coming and it's it's just absolutely awful and then everyone gets up for break everyone goes to their corners it's like you're boxing no one looks at each other it's very unfriendly and um yeah your sad little boxed your sad little salad that they got you from there yes but my first season reunion i ended up having dinner with kyle rina it was like so weird like am i on this side of the couch you know that kind of thing like you know but yeah i was always a deer in headlights but it was um someone is saying oh go ahead oh no just gonna say i'm always impressed with the way everyone has recall of the specific things that people say at the reunions like i cannot remember anything anything that happened last week.

30:45Like I am like, I'm like, remember there was an episode with Crystal. There was something about the esophagus and Anna Marie. Like it's like a haze for me. And the way that everyone's able to pull out all this information at a reunion, I would do it terribly at a reunion. No, but I'll tell you, it feels like you have to really recall the whole season. You don't. It really is bullet points. And they focus on really major things. And like, unless it's like the first half of the season, something major, you don't really go through all those things because it's really about where you guys are now.

31:17So you kind of reference them, but then it's all about the current fight. And they remind you. I mean, you watch the pack. They have the video screen. You watch the package. And then it's not as challenging. That's why I was prepared too much. I just stopped. But it's really like you don't know what's coming that's new. Yeah. What new stuff you're going to fling out at you. Yeah, that's the stuff that you're like, Like, oh, when someone brings like the envelope, you're like, what the fuck's in that envelope? You know, Doha in here is asking, does Kyle Richards force them to give her first seat every time?

31:52Is that contractual? I don't know. I don't know how you would, but I thought it was a funny question. So I wanted to read it. Do you watch Traders? Oh, sorry. Go ahead. No. Oh, my God. No, you just got me excited. I love Traders. You do? So good, right? So how do you feel about Housewives performance this year? And by the way, if anybody is watching Traders, there could be spoilers. Go fast forward for five minutes. I'll keep a timer on. So stop listening for five minutes. I don't want to hear it, okay? We are probably going to talk spoilers. Okay, go for it. So I caught up last night because I was away all weekend.

32:26And Zoe, my 10-year-old, is obsessed, obsessed. And so we need to watch it together. And I'm not going to watch it in a random hotel. I need to sit in front of the TV and watch it. So we watched it last night. I love Candace like already before I know Candace and like I literally texted her because Zoe goes can Candace be my auntie and so I text her and Zoe she's like yes and like she's crushing it and you could really appreciate Rinna like this is a perfect space for Rinna to be in and I think that you know she had a very tough couple years the last few years on Housewives when I was there. And, you know, watching her emotional and stuff like that.

33:07It's like, I've seen a lot of good side of Rinna. And so that was really fun, like, nice to see. That's the thing. That's what's so interesting is like, I have, you know, a closer lens to these people that I used to be fans of, you know, and now I'm like, oh, wow, like, I know what she's talking about, or I can read between the lines and whatever. So I do not like Colton. I've said it many times. I know it's just a bag on him, but I just cannot stand him. I find... Oh, fuck that guy, yeah. Yeah, his eyes are... He has crazy eyes. He does. His whole... He has this, like, evil joy. And he's smiling when he does it.

33:43The smug. Oh, I hated that he was right this week. I hated it so much, because it's just, like, you were right, but, like, it's just, like, I don't want to give you credit for that. Like, it's like, you happened to be right. And then now he's already... He's ready to be wrong again, and he just, like, keeps going at it, and he just... He... Ugh. I actually, I'm going to, I'm going to, I'm activating myself and I need to like calm myself down. I'll wait till like later this week, but I get myself very fired up talking about Colton. Yeah. And he was not even in it that much, but the smugness and it's like, yeah, his, he has like evil eyes.

34:16And I know that there's the counterpart where people say, oh, well, he's just playing a game. I think that there really is a distinction. Like, I think there's really good game players and there's people that like, I just, I just wouldn't want to hang out with this guy. I just don't, I can appreciate if you, like, I know Cynthia and I always talk about, like, if we were on it together and like, she's like, I could never kill you. I'm like, I would kill you. I would kill, I would keep you close to me. I'd kill you so fast. And it's like, not because I'm evil. It's because we have to play a game.

34:45I love you, but I'm, I will kill you. But like, he plays very differently and I don't like that. Yeah. I think. And justice for Ron. Is it Ron? Yeah. Yeah. Well, I think the thing with Golden that was like so frustrating for me and for so many other people was that like he was wrong two times in a row, stridently so. And his takeaway was not, oh, I should probably rethink how I do this or take a step back. His takeaway was like, well, I'll keep on doing it because I don't have to keep on doing it. Yeah, no, I don't like that. It was like the privilege that was sort of like underneath that I think has really affected a lot of people.

35:21Even when he's right, we don't care that he's right or being actually a decent faithful because it's about something deeper for us. But it's also interesting, the inside of getting to see, the cast clearly is on his side still, though. They don't see what we see as an audience. So I wonder what he was like in the house. And that's the thing where I'm like, okay, I don't like him when I'm watching him. but also i've been on that side i've been cold behind the screen and there's 99 of content we don't get privy to so i'm like and they all seem to be listening to him and they respect him and so i'm like i'm trying to be a little more balanced just i'm being wishy-washy right now that like i'm hating on him even though maybe he was likable maybe there's something well i think people just didn't know anything about him and so he comes in as the bachelor one they're always dopey you know they're always just dopey cute guys and they seem kind of harmless you know so i think they just figured out you know it's some new gay with with a really orange spray tan and some highlights you know like maybe we should just support him because he's obviously new and they're just kind of not paying that much attention to him i think they're paying more attention to the bigger personalities he's just kind of a little gnat you know but also like the the i think the the big takeaway that we have uh gotten from being bravo podcasters is that like ultimately you just have to respond to what you see on screen and you treat it all as ronnie always says like cartoon characters because almost across the board almost every single person we've met from bravo or other shows has been totally cool has been a very chill fun person i mean yes maybe they put on something for us because we're podcasters but generally speaking most people are pretty chill so like whenever we are like oh god i can't stand colton really the what's implied is for me is like what we're seeing of colton yeah then we can go and meet him and then he's like this nice guy and i'm like oh no i feel bad i know i know so that's why we have to just that's a disclaimer like i don't like what i see on camera and i'm sure he was fine but like i just yeah just don't like i don't like what i see on camera yep same same sister by the way you have a cookware line you were just starting to tell us that right before we went can you tell me and this is not even to be like a commercial for you i'm like actively interested in this because i love to cook thank you yeah i it came out um around christmas it's only been a month and um we are almost sold out which is crazy but i have a whole another round coming in February, but you can find on Amazon.

38:05So I actually went to culinary school and back, yes, in my 20s. And, you know, I co-founded Real Cocoa Coconut Water. And that's been our business, you know, the last 13 years. And so the food space has been really my career. And I've always thought about doing a cookware line. And I finally did, which is funny because no one knows that from the show. um but that's fine uh but i why is that i actually filmed a lot i actually filmed a lot of my business and nothing because the water was never shown and people think that that's because of the bethany clause or whatever where bravo would take a portion of your proceeds or whatever your profits or whatever but is that why it was that they never showed it so i will say bravo has no piece of my company because why would I give them a piece of my company yeah that's that's it was around for you know 10 years prior um but I did film it they didn't air it so if that was part of it that's not on my side do you know I mean like yeah they didn't tell you that like you give us your money you give us your money for protection you don't get exactly so I filmed it and um and for me it wasn't really about the promotion because I remember at the time it was like oh I'm gonna to i don't want to be like the ramona toaster oven like you actually have to be careful like the business is is that what it is oh sonia yeah yeah same to me um but like you have to be careful it's not like every business that goes on housewives is going to be positive so it's not like you want to push i mean this company has existed for a very long time so i was a little bit reluctant you know but like that's probably smart actually yeah you have to because you see how people get if they don't like something you said on tv and then they'll go on your yelp or whatever and be like her water sucks anyway it's poison my child you know exactly so um but you know it is what it is but anyway so i started this cookware line and it's been um amazing it's uh all ceramic there's uh it's really really safe to use there's no toxic chemicals um and it comes with, it's a 14 piece collection.

40:19It's like$219. I wanted it to be super affordable. And it's, yeah, it's all five-star reviews on Amazon. So I'm really proud of it. Um, but it's made, it's a, I partnered with Bach and Swiss, um, European company and in Europe, their standards for safety are just much higher than the States. And so that was important for me, you know, like You think about as a mom and when you have kids, you're so picky about what you give your kid. Everyone reads labels. But then as you grow up, as an adult, you don't do that for yourself. And it starts from what you put in your body, your food. So I'm like, why not have a cookware line that you're cooking for your kids, you're cooking for yourself.

41:01And there's so much microplastics in the world. There's so much toxins. And I mean, the food that we eat is really, you know, it can be a problem. though I do love my McDonald's fries. I was going to say at least Domino's is organic. Yeah, exactly. But it starts from the home and it's really an inexpensive way to start in a healthy way with your body for the day. And so that's why I did it. And I just cooking for me, coming from a Chinese family that ate dinner at the table every single night. My dad was a doctor, came home. My mom had Chinese soup or something for him to eat every night. And that was a great upbringing for me.

41:45I have a lot of great memories for that. And I always cooked with my grandma. And so yeah, that's my cook early. Yeah. I've always enjoyed your cooking videos on Instagram. I remember you once did something like tofu with a sizzling oil on top and herbs. And I was like, I would like to make that, please. Yes. So I love that. I love that aspect of you. I'm sorry that it wasn't on the show. That's such a bummer. It's okay. You know what? But that's the beauty of Housewives and being on this platform is that it really doesn't end. I remember feeling like when it was over, I did that video of like, I'm leaving.

42:19It was like, your invisible cloak suddenly goes on top of your head and you're like gone forever and you're just not. And I think that was really nice about Ultimate Girls Trip. It's like, wow, it's really not many. I think there's 22 Beverly Hills Housewives ever 23 maybe and so you're like oh wow this is kind of a special existence and a special experience that only so few of us have and with that comes like how we really know each other through jeff lewis and stuff like that you know we got to be on a show and you know and it just the connections don't end you know it just keeps going so that's that's great right on well it's so good to talk to you i know you have to get out of here and go to dinner and soccer pick up yeah exactly so have fun it was great finally meeting you this was so cool can't wait to reconnect with you again after this and have the best time tonight and yeah we'll catch you in the future yeah great to talk to you Crystal we'll see you later bye Crystal bye everybody check out Crystal's podcast Humblebrag find her on Instagram at Crystal Kung Minkoff spelled the correct way without a G like me it's fixed I did I fixed that one but I had to call it up because I knew people would say, you guys have a typo.

43:35And I was like, let me address it. The elephant in the room. Otherwise. Thank you. I am the elephant in the room. You're both the elephants. Well, that was cool to talk to her. I know. She's so awesome. We, you know, she's sent us messages over the years and she's always been super cool. And we're so excited. We didn't even, I don't, did we mention, did you mention at the top of the show that Crystal will be joining us for the Golden Crappies later this month, which is very cool. so we'll see her again shortly.

44:10There's still so much Bravo gossip to talk about. So much stuff. And why don't we just start right away with the big news that dropped over the weekend that the original Roni cast is basically signing a deal with E to do a show. And I think the details, Ramona has been teasing on Twitter today Whoa, you're going to find all the details tomorrow. Okay. What say you, Ronnie? How do you feel about this plan? Who do you want to be the sixth housewife? Everything. Just lay it all on me. Well, E is so crazy. Are they redoing E? I think they must be overhauling E or something, right? Has there been a show on E?

44:52What's on there? Is that what those new girls, what's their name? The Nader girls? Is that what they're on E? I don't know. So, I mean, so there's an interesting thing happening with NBC Universal at large, which is that they've spun off all of their basic cable offerings, but kept Bravo. And they spun it off into this other entity. And it's a way to cut losses. But I'm like, are they still linked? So is this new show on E? It might not be Bravo, but is it still part of the family? Actually, I don't really know. Nader Girls on Hulu. Thank you, guys. Go ahead, Ben. Oh, thanks, everyone. But I think this is a smart play for E.

45:29And I think it's because whether you felt like these women should have been fired, whether you felt like some of them should have been on the reboot, some of them shouldn't be, whatever it is. The point is that like these women have all been in our in our community's consciousness for a few years now. And he is like, you know what? We'll just scoop him up and we'll do our own show. My only fear is that he sometimes does really schlocky shows and I would really hate for it to be a schlocky one. well i'm sure that they're gonna run ramshot over whoever's trying to do it anyway and kind of do what they're used to doing but we'll see um right now it's luann sonia jill kelly and ramona kelly what jill i don't know um no dorinda no you know obviously no bethany i think dorinda is rumored to well not rumored i guess we know now that she's doing her um show in the berkshires whatever that's going to be she's got her own show coming out about her right berkshire's place so she's not doing it um so that's weird and then the addition of kelly and i guess jill we've seen jill with them so you know jill's still thirsty enough to to try and make some some good tv but um i don't know can i say something so i was um i was going around in my drop box yesterday and i I found the Jill interview, which is on our feed, where Jill Zarin came on as a guest to watch What Crap happens, like episode 39, like a long time ago.

46:57And to record it, we had to do a screen record. And it was, you did the screen recording. And so this whole, you hear the whole episode, but it's like a video of you, Ronnie. And it is the funniest thing because you're sitting there the entire time being like, and you're like on your side and you're like and you're like annoyed and you're like and you're doing all these faces and you're readjusting and you're like bored to tears just like uh-huh and you just hear her being like I mean it's actually crazy it's crazy oh like oh here comes Allie look at Allie she looks gorgeous my dog is gorgeous no way she's the most gorgeous girl you've ever seen okay and there's Ginger Ginger she's such a beautiful dog okay so anyway with Hamptons you know the thing is the producers they don't have they don't respect our time they never do they never have been and you're just sitting there like I have never to this day.

47:43And that was right when we started. I've never to this day been that annoyed again, doing this podcast. No one is ever annoying. I was, I had no idea. That's a screen recording. We put it in our Dropbox. Cause I have to see that. Yeah. But the other thing that's so funny is that like, you're also like trying to get comfortable too. Like it's clear that you're like uncomfortable in your position. Cause I'm in my mom's, I'm in my mom's guest room, right? I think I'm in a bed. I remember it being when I was at my parents' house and I was in their guest room and I was lying on this bed trying to get comfortable.

48:12So I kept moving over and I have the mic in my hand and she was just going nonstop. And we ended up being on the phone with her. Like the interview was maybe 30 minutes and we were on the phone with her for like an hour and a half because when it, when the, when it stopped, we kept talking. It's like, here's what you got to do. The bloggers. That's what it's all about. It's all about the bloggers. You got to get me back. You got to get me back on. What are we going to do boys? And then she started just going on. And then that's when she really started telling us all the gossip and stuff and stopped talking about our fucking dog and our daughter wait hold on i'm gonna i've just got to show a little clip of it a little clip here it is 14 years ago see yes that is my the bed in my mom's guest room i'm lying you're not even listening listen to her i'm just gonna see i can't hear her i don't think the sounds coming through oh i'm no i'm sorry i just see myself you know what you like good because oh like here's another shot of you

49:19oh my god if you could only just hear i mean she's and she's literally prattling on like

49:28now if we were if we were to be in new york would and we popped into zarin fabrics would Do we see you working behind the counter? Are you not there anymore because you're so busy? Someone else. Bethany, I brought on the show. And Alex, no one knew. She was cast for another show that didn't happen. So they moved her into this show. And that's why she was the outsider for many reasons. Not only did she live in Brooklyn, she was much younger than us, but she also didn't fit in. I'm just reading. I'm like reading my phone at this point. It was easy for it to be four against one. but now you've got these three girls against three singles who are not friends.

50:04It would have been okay if the three singles were friends with each other. Then it would be three friends against three friends. Can I ask you one question? Go ahead, Ben. We're going into hour two, right? No, hour two. I was going to say this, then Matt, you can ask your question. So anyway, that was when Matt was with us, our third co-host. And going into it, because I think this was like our first person that we ever interviewed or second maybe second but we you know we'd never we didn't know you know we were just doing this for you know for free for fun to publicize our blog on uh fucking ipods okay that's what we were doing yes and so we didn't really think about it but before we were like okay how do we do an interview you know let's take turn asking questions and let's not go easy you know like we don't have to be hard-hitting and matt's like yeah we're not gonna go easy this is where journalists or whatever and then we press record and matt's immediately like oh my god i love you what if we came to jill's and fabrics what if we came to your house like that was the funniest thing matt was so funny he's like well and we really did have that conversation but that was when i came across that video i was dying because she's just going and at one point you do hear ali in the background of the dog is going off and you were just sitting there so like disinterested like i don't want to be here that's where the term shut up mountain came from because the next day we were going i was going off i was like shut up i mean after that whole conversation i was still the next day all out of sorts and i hadn't worked on my temper at that point believe it or not this is a healed this is a healed-ish me okay this is like version 10 of me um anyway that's hilarious wow it was so funny um just just one thing to add to the uh the roni the roni situation is that uh bethany apparently chimed in and she's like you know what i think i think it's savage i think it's savage i think they'll kick ass bethany seems to be actually very much in favor of this and she loves that the girls said fuck bravo we're gonna do it on our own i actually kind of love it too i'm not gonna lie i think it's great why is it around begging for someone to to validate your self-worth and just go to another network and do a new show.

52:11Why not? That's true. But it is also an NBCU show, right? So I think what Bravo is doing is like, we'll get in trouble if we put you back on the air. So why don't you go over there and then we can still put it on Bravo. You know how they do with E shows. They're like, oh, watch House of Villains or whatever. So that's probably what they're thinking. Yeah. She said, wow. You know what? I think it's fucking fantastic. E came in savage, Barracuda style. And they said, these bitches aren't expired. So you know what? Let's put them back on the fucking shelf. Do it. Do it. So if anyone ever wants to have food at Bethany's place, you know what?

52:47This food is still good. Put it back on the shelf. Like it was in the trash. No, put it back on the shelf. I like that Bethany thinks she's complimenting something but makes it sound like dollar store vegetables. You know what? It's got about 30 seconds left to live. Sell it. Someone will buy it. Discount it. Discount it. Oh, man. What else? Fun times. Let's see here. There was a lot. Something crazy was Garcelle Beauvais was swatted. Did you read that? Yeah, awful. Fucking crazy. There were gunshots reported at her house, which was bullshit, and she got swatted. That's crazy. Oh, another Bethany.

53:25You know, I have to hand it to Bethany for keeping herself in the news no matter what. She's got the best PR person because it's always – every time we do this, there's like three Bethany stories. and I have to put some in because they're just so funny. Bethany Frankel celebrates launch of new private dating platform, the core. Everybody wants everybody else to win. You know what? It's a core. That's it. Dating is broken and I'm fixing it. What are you talking about? You're fixing it. You're broken. Yeah, I am not. That's like asking a broken toaster to fix an oven.

53:59Like, that's exactly right. I mean, I'm just not turning to Bethany Frankel for relationship advice. You know what? I would actually, I would rather have a show that Ramona leads than Bethany because Ramona was right about Bethany and her relationships on the Brooklyn Bridge. And so at least she has that level of EQ that she can at least sense how a relationship will go. But Bethany, I just don't, I don't know. Like I cannot, I can't take dating advice or stewardship from Bethany. It's odd. So the core, it's a private dating membership site designed to connect people seeking intentional aligned relationships with the goal of finding a life partner.

54:40Because operating more like a private co-op or a members club than a traditional dating app. The platform emphasizes community. Okay. We're going to find you a man and we're going to remind you to put your trash cans behind the curb before Tuesday. Okay. What are you, my dating HOA? Get the hell out of here. I know. Like, it's fine. It's still just going to be guys just trying to hook up with girls. Like it'll be, you'll have some women on there who are like, I am the CFO of a major corporation and I'm looking for a man who can match my energy. And the guy will be like, here's a dick pic. You just know that's what it's going to be.

55:11Like, it doesn't matter what Bethany says. Guys are just going to be ridiculous. Yeah. So, you know what, guys, as you go forward in your week, remember, it's going to be okay. Bethany's got your back. Give your heart to Bethany Frankel and the core. Core. Core four. All right. Thanks so much to Ms. Crystal Gong Mingol for joining us tonight. Don't forget to get your tickets for the crappies February 27th at watchwhatcrappens.com. And also go there for Wednesday's release of the first ballot, first round of voting for the Crappy Awards. That's also when we will be releasing streaming tickets. Guys, thank you so much for being with us.

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