You don't have to be Danielle Staub's prostitution-whore drug dealer to know that Bravo's Real Housewives franchise takes all kinds -- aristocratic and stuffy, desperate and nouveau riche, and even so annoying it hurts, sometimes. The Salahi family, who allegedly crashed a White House state dinner while Bravo cameras followed them in consideration for a new Housewives series, might have severed (or escalated) their chance at stardom with this ballooning fiasco. After the jump, video of their talk with Matt Lauer and a thorough inspection of their telegenic goods.
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There's something about the Salahis that smacks of The Real Housewives of NYC's Alex McCord and Simon van Kempen, particularly that epic entitlement that begs for a six-episode arc and a finale full of comeuppance. It only took a climactic dinner to make the first season of The Real Housewives of New Jersey watchable, and I imagine these sociopath socialites will lend enough cud for even the lamest cast member to gum. As for the Today video, these two have the most watchable Housewives element of all: self-seriousness. I'm Team Bethenny as much as anyone, but no can deny that the humorless self-absorption of Kelly Bensimon is twice as compelling and unpredictable. What if Kelly Bensimon felt important enough to crash Balenciaga runways? That would transcend entertainment and enter the realm of legend. The Salahis give Bravo a fancy dinner ticket into mythology, and not just syndication. Hail to the confessionals!