Bethenny Frankel: Snapshot

Name
Bethenny Frankel
Date of Birth
November 04, 1970
Birth Place
Long Island, N.Y.
Bethenny Frankel has called herself the "queen of too much information," but her no-holds-barred personality, trademark snark and business prowess have made her one of Hollywood's richest and most beloved reality stars.

The only daughter of legendary horse trainer Bobby Frankel and his wife Bernadette, Frankel tapped into her inner drive to break free of her volatile childhood and personal demons. After appearing on The Apprentice: Martha Stewart, Frankel became the breakout star of Bravo's The Real Housewives of New York City – as the sole single girl whose vulnerability and candor endeared her to audiences.

Behind the scenes, Frankel was building her healthy-foods empire, which includes best-selling cookbooks, supplements and a recipe for a low-calorie margarita. Frankel's Skinnygirl Margarita made her a multimillionaire, and she soon left RHONYC behind for her own spin-off, Bethenny Getting Married? (later renamed Bethenny Ever After).

But her fairytale came to an end in 2012, when after almost three years of marriage, Frankel announced she and husband Jason Hoppy were splitting. In addition to daughter Bryn, Frankel is now focused on her other baby: a new talk show produced by Ellen DeGeneres.

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Bethenny Frankel:From the PEOPLE TV Archive

Bethenny Frankel: Five Fun Facts

  1. While pursuing acting in Los Angeles, Bethenny Frankel worked as a personal assistant to Kathy Hilton and would chaperone her celebutante daughters Paris and Nicky to school.
  2. Bethenny Frankel is thrilled her beloved dog Cookie liked daughter Bryn: "Having to give the baby away would have been very difficult," she joked on The Ellen DeGeneres Show.
  3. Bethenny Frankel starred as a teenage killer in the 1994 straight-to-video thriller Hollywood Hills 90028.
  4. Right before walking down the aisle on her big day, Bethenny Frankel peed in a bucket – while wearing her wedding dress – at New York's Four Seasons restaurant.
  5. As a healthy-food chef, Bethenny Frankel has served meals to famous clients like Mariska Hargitay, Alicia Silverstone and Denis Leary.

Bethenny Frankel: Biography

1970

Bethenny Frankel

November 04

Rocky Beginnings

Legendary horse trainer Bobby Frankel and his wife Bernadette welcome their only child, Bethenny. "I never had a true childhood," Frankel later recalls in a 2010 PEOPLE cover story. "There was a lot of destruction: alcohol abuse, eating disorders and violent fights." When she is four, Frankel's father walks out, and she resides with her mother, who marries another horse trainer, John Parisella, whom Frankel calls "the only father I've ever known."

1983

Bethenny Frankel

Troubled Teen

After moving seven times in 10 years, Frankel's unstable home life with her mother and stepfather leads to Frankel's own issues, particularly with food. "I was owned by dieting," she tells PEOPLE. "I hated myself. I was completely obsessed and consumed."

1992

Summer

Career Auditioning

Frankel graduates from New York University with a degree in communications and psychology, and heads to L.A. to pursue acting. When her movie career doesn't take off, Frankel tries her hand at events planning and, later, a pashmina company. "I didn't know what I was doing; I was broke," Frankel tells Forbes. "I was eating cartons of takeout rice two meals a day."

Read More on Bethenny Frankel's Life

Photo Credits

Top Left: Adam Olszewski/Bravo

BIOGRAPHY (top to bottom): Courtesy Bethenny Frankel; Courtesy Bethenny Frankel

Edited by Julia Wang

Bethenny Frankel

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