HACKENSACK, N.J. — They live in North Jersey McMansions, shop for expensive jewelry, clothes and furniture, drive luxury cars, religiously work on their hair, nails and tan, play tennis at the club and seriously indulge their kids — all while television cameras record their over-the-top lives.
One chats with her teenage son about opening a "high-end" strip club. Another pays cash for big-ticket items. Yet another describes her clan as a "good, old-fashioned Italian family."
No, they're not the fictional Carmela Soprano,
Rosalie Aprile ,
Gabriella Dante et al., but "The Real Housewives of New Jersey" — five women, three of them from Franklin Lakes, who star in the popular Bravo docu-soap series' fourth and latest installment, which debuted Tuesday.
These divas are
Jacqueline Laurita and her sisters-in-law
Dina Manzo and
Caroline Manzo , along with pals
Danielle Staub and
Teresa Giudice . As many who saw the sneak preview have pointed out in online chat rooms and e-mails, they are reminiscent of the wives from that HBO drama.
"I hate the stereotype that 'The Sopranos' put upon us; now Bravo is doing it, too — not fair!" wrote
Mary Nicoletti , who nonetheless plans to watch this "Housewives."
While there's no mob component in the reality series, there is a certain mystique surrounding it. The Manzo sisters are married to brothers
Albert and Tommy Manzo , who run the Brownstone in Paterson, N.J., where "The Sopranos" filmed some scenes. And as the New York Post and others have duly noted, in 1983, the brothers' 350-pound dad,
Albert "Tiny" Manzo , was found dead in the trunk of his car, having been shot four times. His unsolved murder was presumed by authorities to be a hit.
So, here we go again, some locals gripe. Just when America has started to forget "The Sopranos," along comes another TV show that casts Garden Staters in a less than flattering light.
"They're following the typical stereotype for New Jersey, which is the whole Soprano look, the whole Soprano thing," says
Laura Van Winkle , who thinks the show does not reflect the reality of New Jersey — or even the landmark Paterson catering facility. "Those guys (at the Brownstone) are great. They really are. They are the nicest people."
The "housewives" themselves say that although they're not surprised by the "Sopranos" comparison, it is off-base. "If we were the same exact people living in Oklahoma, I don't think we would have that stigma attached to us. I just think, New Jersey has a bad rap for that and if your name ends with a vowel, all of a sudden, they gotta go right back to that,"
Dina Manzo said on the phone.
She and the other "housewives" say they heard about the show through their hair salon/spa, Chateau the Art of Beauty. Owner
Victor Castro had learned through a client that the production company Sirens Media was scouting for locations for a reality show that turned out to be "The Real Housewives of New Jersey." Castro agreed to have the producers photograph his salon, and while they were there, he learned that they were still interviewing people for the cast.
"I thought of this group of fabulous ladies," says Castro.
Some, like
Donna Gormley , chalk it all up to another fantasy-based "reality" show that lets viewers vicariously experience a different lifestyle.
"People have been talking about it with a lot of excitement for a long time," said Gormley, shopping one recent day at the Hallmark store in Franklin Lakes, N.J., a stone's throw from Chateau the Art of Beauty.
As
Gretchen Piela put it in her e-mail, "How interesting would it be to watch me go to five grocery stores a week with my accordion folder full of coupons trying to make sure I don't pay too much for Lucky Charms or Tostitos or follow me around in Target or Old Navy while I hunt down a few new pieces to add to my summer wardrobe? Not very, I say!"
But others, including
Diane Dobrow , are less than amused. "I was dreading the preview and after watching it, I'm even more appalled that residents of our town are enthusiastic participants in this so-called 'reality' show," Dobrow wrote. "Having lived in Franklin Lakes for 30 years, I have had the pleasure of meeting and working with citizens who place a high value on family, education, personal integrity and volunteerism. The culture of conspicuous consumption is the exception in this town, not the rule. ... There is nothing 'real' about (these) Real Housewives."
To be fair, the three other "Real Housewives" series — set in Orange County, Calif.; Manhattan and Atlanta — were also essentially "Lifestyles of the Rich and Self-Indulgent." But
Dina Manzo said that her motivation for doing the show was to bring attention to Project Ladybug, a non-profit organization she founded to help local children with life-threatening medical conditions.
Still, what Bravo seems to be playing up in promos is the sex, the decadent spending and the catfights. (Giudice is seen angrily upending a dining table in coming attractions.) And press materials contain such lines as "The hair is big, but the drama is bigger."
Vincent Curatola , who played
Johnny Sack on "The Sopranos," thinks that if Bravo is trying to imitate "The Sopranos," they missed the point of that dramatic series. "It was Shakespearean. It was about the human condition. Period," says the actor.
What's more, Curatola says, when he was growing up in Englewood, N.J., in the 1960s, on the same street as the Johnsons (of Johnson & Johnson) and the Eastmans (Eastman Kodak), old-moneyed families didn't behave like these "housewives."
"Whenever we bumped into these people in downtown Englewood, I just said, 'Hi, Mr. Eastman,' 'Hi, Mrs. Johnson.' I found out later who they were. You'd never guess by the way they treated each other and the people behind the counters," Curatola says, contrasting that with these "housewives'" ostentatious style. "It's way out there. You talk about new rich? This is yesterday rich."
Regardless of the controversy, the "Real Housewives of New Jersey" are probably destined for stardom.
As
Gretchen Piela wrote, "After watching the sneak preview with my mouth agape for almost the entire half hour, I can't wait to see what happens throughout the season."