Bethenny Frankel has weighed in his first Real Housewives of New York City beast turned nemesis Carole Radziwillalleged previous friendship with a convicted sex trafficker Ghislaine Maxwell.
“What I do know is that Carole has been friends with a lot of remarkable women,” Bethenny, 55, told her. Instagram supporters on Saturday, February 7.
Bethenny checked her name late Carolyn Bessette KennedyHollywood manager Brad Grayher ex-wife Cassandra Huysentruyt and CNN reporter Christiane Amanpour like some of Carole’s famous friends. (Carole, 62, was married to a fellow journalist Anthony Radziwiłł whose cousin was Carolyn’s husband, John F. Kennedy Jr. Carolyn, his sister Lauren Bessette and John all died in a plane crash near Martha’s Vineyard on July 16, 1999, while Anthony died of cancer less than a month later on August 10, 1999.)
“I know Carole has taken many opportunities to swipe at me, dig me, talk negatively about me in a post-(fragment), meaning as far as the show goes, it’s fair game,” Bethenny insisted. “But in a post-show world, she’s definitely gone for it and I’m not going to do the same thing.”
Andy Cohen has been candid about his complicated relationships with the Real Housewives, especially after exiting their respective franchises, over the years. Cohen became Bravo’s VP of original programming in 2004. Two years later, he was executive producer of Real Housewives of Orange County, which premiered on (…)
The fragment The icon added cryptically, “None of my business.”
Carole’s past connections with Ghislaine, 64, resurfaced after the Department of Justice released more than 3.5 million documents obtained from a late convicted sex offender. Jeffrey Epsteinthe estate of Jeffrey’s ex-girlfriend Ghislaine was sentenced to 20 years in prison in June 2022 after being convicted on charges related to sex trafficking. (Jeffrey committed suicide at age 66 in August 2019 following his arrest on federal sex-crime charges.)
Among the new documents released by the Justice Department are casual emails allegedly exchanged by Carole and Ghislaine in September 2005. In another messageGhislaine seemed to describe Carole as “the most wonderful, the most beautiful, the smartest, the best, the brightest”.
Carole has spoken about her connections with Ghislaine in the past. In September 2025, a fan asked him via X if it was true that Ghislaine was “the photographer in his book” What Remains: A Memoir of Fate, Friendship and Lovee.
Carole Radziwill and Bethenny Frankel attend Us Weekly’s Most Stylish New Yorkers 2016.
D Dipasupil/Getty Images for Us Weekly“I knew her socially (and) I had a real camera (it was 2004 nobody carried cameras), I had had a professional photo shoot anyway, but the photos were bad,” he said. fragment alum he answered. “I asked him if he would take the picture and he said yes. In retrospect it was weird that he had a camera? I guess, but who knew?!”
Another X user asked how no one in Carole’s social circle could have known about Ghislaine and Jeffrey’s crimes.
The rise and fall of Andy Cohen and Carole Radziwill’s friendship may be fit for reality TV. Before becoming one of the faces of Bravo, the host of Watch What Happens Live With Andy Cohen appeared to have a friendly relationship with Radziwill that stretched back to her early seasons on The Real Housewives of New (…)
“Sure the rich men, the creepy people…obviously the men who were involved knew…I’m saying us social party friends, especially the girls, didn’t know. When people are doing bad shit, they hide it well. It’s very creepy,” Carole. counteracted.
He added: “The rich people I know are nice and decent. But apparently nobody knew anything about her except I guess for the FBI. They should release their report. It’s horrible. It’s so dark, isn’t it? Better to leave it to the authorities.”
Carole has denied ever knowing Ghislaine’s ex-boyfriend, Jeffrey, and said she had no knowledge of any wrongdoing.
As for Bethenny and Carole, the couple were once besties during their years fragment but their friendship blossomed during season 10. Carole left at the end of the season, with Bethenny following suit after season 11.
Carole also got into a fight with Bravo’s boss Andy Cohen when he left The Real Housewives of New York Cityalthough she confirmed to Us Weekly in Bravocon in October 2025 that they had officially crushed the beef.
“Andy and I have known each other for a long time, long before housewives. After I left, there was a bit of animosity and a bit of miscommunication. It’s a very stressful job,” admitted Carole. “We didn’t talk for a long time. In public, we were working out a little bit. I just thought, ‘Why are we doing this publicly?'”
If you or someone you know is a victim of human trafficking, contact the National human trafficking hotline at 1-888-373-7888.