In the first part of my interview with Heather Dubrow of the Real Housewives of Orange County, we got to know a little more about Heather's personal life (http://divadebbi.blogspot.com/2012/10/heather-dubrow-real-housewife.html) In part 2, we discussed what it was like being on the show:
DD: Let's talk a little about being on the Real Housewives of Orange County. What made you want to be on the show considering how much fan scrutiny there is? It's a tough gig...
HD: Believe it or not, I never watched the show before I joined the cast. With 4 children and all of their activities, it seemed like a great opportunity to still be active in my own career and not have to be away from home. Nicely, being back on camera has sparked renewed interest in me as am actress and some interesting opportunities have opened up for me.
DD: How many weeks do you film and how many hours a day do you work?
HD: We film for at total of three months and and days can be long, but there is much more to it than just filming. There are public appearances, publicity tours and we are expected to engage our fans through social media. All in all, its about 9 months worth of work.
DD: They often have the HW's commenting on a scene long after it took place. How long after filming do those take place?
HD: The "confessionals" are done throughout the season. They put the scenes in context and offer us a chance to comment on things that may have involved us indirectly. It's nice to be able to set the record straight with my own point of view.
DD: Was being on the show more time consuming than you imagined it would be?
HD: (laughs) Yes! Isn't that always the case?... but my nature is if I commit to something, I give it my all.
DD: I can't even imagine the scheduling challenges of juggling 4 children. 1 nearly put me over the edge! It's very different from when we grew up. How do you handle it?
HD: Well, fortunately, I do have good help. Much as I'd like, I can't be four places at the same time. We have to stay really organized. When I hit the pillow at night, I hit it pretty hard!
DD: It seems that in general, that fighting has increased on all the HW franchises among the women. Is that behavior encouraged by Bravo for the ratings?
HD: No! Absolutely nothing is scripted. What you see is what really happened and we have all learned that there are no retakes or do overs. If you say it, you must own it. They don't lead the story line as it's happening, but shape it to keep it interesting for the audience when they edit and put it together. For every 30 hours of film only 20 minute is used.
DD: Things got pretty emotional on the Costa Rica trip between you and Alexis. I for one, thought you were doing her a favor by constructively trying to tell her that her incessant "brand" dropping is unnecessary (and frankly maddening). It escalated to the point of the "B" word being bandied about. What is your point of view?
HD: (laughs) ahh...the "b"ullying. I think that term is getting greatly overused on all of the shows. We are all grown ups and we know what we signed up for. We express our opinions and don't always agree with what's been said. How that constitutes bullying, I'm not sure.
DD: How has being on the show impacted your personal friendships?
HD: Mostly it's been fine, I have really great, supportive friends. I did have one close friendship that soured. It was disappointing. It's interesting but in some ways you see people's true colors more when everything is going well. It's and eye opener!
DD: I couldn't agree more and it does hurt when people who you thought would cheer your success, don't.
DD: We got to see your magnificent home when you hosted your "name change" party, Congratulations btw! I couldn't help but think, "it is so white and pristine...where do the children live" lol. Well...where do the children live?
HD: (laughs) Well thank you. Of course the filming only showed one area of the house. The kids all have rooms near one another upstairs and share a common room with one T.V. We like the kids to hang out together, so they have to suffer through each others shows sometimes. We also have a finished small --Upstairs common room one television so the kids all hang together, play rooms basement rec room.
DD: Are you friendly with the cast outside of the show?
HD: It's hard to get together with everyone's busy schedules, but we did have dinner at my house recently and it was a lot of fun.
DD: You were such a breath of fresh air to the the OC cast. You handle yourself with style and grace. Can we look forward to seeing you next season?
HD: Believe it or not, at this moment we don't even know if the show was renewed! I really enjoyed the experience and hope to be asked back. It would be a little easier with the learning curve behind me...fingers crossed!
DD: I hope so too! It's been a pleasure getting to know you.
HD: Thanks! You too.
So there you have my lovelies. This was so much fun for me. I look forward to interviewing other celebs and Housewives in the future. Let me know if you enjoyed it as much as I did.
xox,
DD
No comments:
Post a Comment