HERE YOU GO, LADIES!! The newest OC Housewife!!
Tuesday, July 14, 2009
Meet the newest 'Real Housewife of Orange County'
Alexis Bellino of Newport Coast joins Bravo's reality TV series.
By RICHARD CHANG
The Orange County Register
Just when you thought it couldn't get any blonder, "The Real Housewives of Orange County" just has, by adding a "spicy blonde" as its newest cast member. That makes four blondes out of five now, if you're keeping track.
Alexis Bellino, 32, of Newport Coast is a stay-at-home mother of three and the brand new housewife in Bravo's popular reality TV series. She will make her debut on the program later this year, when Bravo premieres season five of the unscripted Orange County-based show that has spawned a number of successful spinoffs.
Bellino will essentially replace original housewife Jeana Keough, who did not renew for a full season. In an interview with the Register earlier this year, Keough said she wanted to pursue other interests and found the opulent lifestyle depicted on the show "a little embarrassing" to shoot during tough economic times.
We caught up with Bellino for an exclusive interview, and asked her what it's like to be on the verge of reality TV stardom Orange County style.
Orange County Register: Did you audition for the show at a casting call? They had one at South Coast Plaza, and a lot of women showed up.
Alexis Bellino: No, I did not. I've known quite a few of the cast members from social events and the Newport Coast circle. Gretchen (Rossi) and I have run around in the same circle of friends for the last few years. I've seen her at the last few events.
OCR: What are your thoughts, now that you know you're the newest housewife?
AB: I'm pretty excited. It's an amazing opportunity.
OCR: What do you think of the show?
AB: I'm an addict. I watch every single "Housewives of Orange County." I've always been very aware of it, very into it.
OCR: Where were you born? Where did you grow up?
AB: I was born in Hannibal, Mo. That's where I grew up my whole life. Kansas City is an hour and a half west. St. Louis is an hour and a half south. Mark Twain and his stories, that was all about Hannibal. As someone from the Midwest, I do feel like I have a little bit of a different value system. We're kind of old fashioned. But once I got off the plane in San Diego and Orange County, I discovered that I'm a California girl at heart.
OCR: How long have you lived in Orange County?
AB: Five years. Eight years in Southern California.
OCR: What does your husband Jim (47) do? How did you meet him?
AB: He's an entrepreneur. He does "spec" building: He finds a home that needs fixing up, he buys it and flips it. He also does pawn loans. He got his pawn license. He used to own a pool-table business. That was an $8 million-a-year-profit company.
We met in Palm Desert, at the Desert Springs Marriott. We haven't spent a day apart since.
OCR: Was it love at first sight?
AB: Maybe. I was a little harder (to convince). I was just getting out of a relationship (her first husband). Once you're divorced, you never want to get married and divorced again. He was persistent but not overbearing. So I fell in love.
OCR: How long have they been shooting you at home with your three kids (James, 3, Melania and Mackenna, both 20 months)?
AB: For a couple weeks, a few weeks maybe. They've been shooting at the house and at some of the other women's homes. We all went to the mall, South Coast Plaza, and shot there.
OCR: What has it been like meeting and interacting with the other ladies? There has been some drama with the new housewife in previous seasons.
AB: It has been amazing. I already knew Gretchen. Lynne (Curtin)'s a sweetheart. She doesn't have a mean bone in body. Vicki (Gunvalson) and I joked and laughed and had a good time. But there's drama anytime you get five women together.
OCR: Wasn't Vicki a little reserved or cautious about meeting you? She's been like that with the newest housewives.
AB: I sensed some reservations. But I didn't feel afraid or timid or anything like that. Even if there is drama, I haven't experienced it yet. I'm still getting involved with all the women.
OCR: What do you think about giving up your privacy?
AB: It's always a concern I have. We live in a gated community. But we've always been out and about. We know five or 10 people in a restaurant when we go out. We're always out on the social scene. We don't stay home a lot.
OCR: Are you nervous about how the show is going to portray you when it airs?
AB: Yeah, I'm a little nervous about how the show's going to portray me, of course. But anything to help me be a better person. The cameras are going to be right in front of my face. I'll try to be the best person I can be.
OCR: What do you hope to get out of the show?
AB: I have been a stay-at-home wife and mom for five years, and I'm now ready to have something on my own outside the home. This show is perfect because it is an interesting and fun outlet for me, but it still allows me the opportunity to spend the majority of the time with my husband and kids.
OCR: So what do you think about being yet another blonde on the show?
AB: I was actually shocked they picked a blonde again. But California is like, 80 percent blondes and 20 percent brunettes. I'm actually a natural brunette. So if I make it to a season six, I might become a brunette again.
~
What bothers me about this is that Bravo had a huge audition for the newest housewife and many came out to the South Coast Plaza in Costa Mesa to audition AND then they end going with a friend of Gretchen's. 
. As a matter of fact, I thought Allen kind of looked like Donn.
!!!!!!!
