Real Housewives

Jeff Lewis was in terrible shape after coming down with COVID, saying it spread like crazy at his holiday party, but adding, "That was an epic party. It was so worth almost dying for."

First off ... not a great thing to say because people really are dying. That said, according to Jeff, the party went down December 21st ... it was a Christmas bash he threw for 30 of his employees and others.

Jeff said on his SiriusXM radio show ... a bunch of people, including himself, began testing positive in the days that followed, including his co-host Megan Weaver, his assistant Shane Douglas, "Shahs of Sunset" star Mercedes Javid Feight, actress Monika Casey and his bf Scott Anderson.

Jeff says they took precautions at the party -- held at the L.A. home of Lea Black from "Real Housewives of Miami" fame. He says "People are saying we're reckless and stupid. No we're not, f***ers. We were all vaccinated and we had a nurse there testing all of us before we even went in the door."

And, Jeff went on to say he had a terrible case ... he was delirious with a fever that spiked as high as 104.5. Weaver echoed the pain, saying, "I was in a ball, shaking, chills, body aches, the whole thing."

Lewis says things turned around after a doctor came to his home and gave him monoclonal antibody therapy. He says things turned around in 12 hours.

He says his 4-year-old daughter, Monroe, is staying with her other dad, Gage Edward.

For NeNe Leakes, Christmas will be different this year -- very different -- because Gregg won't be around.

Our sources tell us the 'RHOA' star is bracing for an extremely hard holiday for herself and her family, their first Xmas without Gregg.

NeNe's got a new man in her life, businessman BF Nyonisela Sioh, but our sources say there are no big plans for him to join the fam for Christmas.

Remember ... NeNe's new boyfriend has met her family, spending time with them at her surprise birthday party in Atlanta, which was organized by her son ... so he could in theory still join the fold.

NeNe's just now trying to move on with her life, getting back into dating some 3 months after she lost her husband of over 20 years to a long battle with cancer ... but the holidays are always tough for those who've lost loved ones.

"The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills" are getting some familiar faces back in front of cameras ... now that a trio of cast members finished their COVID-19 quarantines.

Production sources tell TMZ ... Lisa Rinna, Erika Jayne and Garcelle Beauvais are shooting scenes again after testing negative for the virus following a COVID scare, with all 3 women shooting scenes earlier this week.

TMZ broke the story ... 'RHOBH' production came to a screeching halt this month when Lisa, Erika and Garcelle tested positive for the virus ... and the shutdown lasted several days.

The good news ... we're told all 3 tested negative, opening the door for a production restart, we're told there will be a quick holiday break, and then production will kick back up.

The cast members weren't the only ones battling the virus ... as we first told you, Housewives honcho Andy Cohen is fresh off a 10-day quarantine after his second battle with COVID.

The cast members of "Real Housewives of Beverly Hills" weren't the only ones at Bravo fighting COVID, honcho Andy Cohen had the illness as well, and just finished his 10-day quarantine ... TMZ has learned.

Sources with direct knowledge tell us Cohen tested positive for COVID -- his second bout with the disease -- two weeks ago. We're told Andy quarantined at home, and has since tested negative.

Our sources say Andy was fully vaccinated, helping to reduce his symptoms.

It was in March of last year when Andy first had COVID, posting, "After a few days of self-quarantine, and not feeling great, I have tested positive for Coronavirus. As much as I felt like I could push through whatever I was feeling to do #WWHL from home, we’re putting a pin in that for now so I can focus on getting better..."

NeNe Leakes and her new man are already at that stage -- the we're close enough for some public affection stage, and they're flaunting it in Miami.

NeNe and businessman BF, Nyonisela Sioh, hit up Mr. Chow in MIA Saturday night ... and on their way out of the hot spot they were smiling and holding hands. He also had a grip on a stogie in his other hand as they were reportedly celebrating his birthday.

Her smoking hot leopard print catsuit would've drawn plenty of attention on its own -- but the PDA with Nyonisela was even more eye-catching. It's a big deal, because, as we first reported ... this is Nene's first relationship since her husband Gregg's death earlier this year.

The ex-Real Housewife and the couture suit company owner first turned heads last week at her birthday party in ATL, where they were dancing together and clearly getting close.

We're not sure when exactly they started dating, but we know Peter Thomas played matchmaker for them. Peter and Nyonisela know each other from North Carolina.

Angela Simmons is NOT joining the cast of "Real Housewives of Atlanta" -- despite some signs pointing to her shooting scenes for the reality show ... TMZ has learned.

Our production sources tell us reports of Angela coming onboard 'RHOA' and getting in front of cameras to film are simply not true.

While Angela popped up at Marlo Hampton's party at Le'Archive in Atlanta, which was crawling with 'RHOA' stars, we're told she wasn't there to shoot scenes for the new season.

Still, her coincidental appearance led to wild speculation she was joining the cast.

Sources close to Angela tell TMZ ... she moved from New York City to Atlanta, but it's not because of 'RHOA' and she's still working on her other reality shows -- "Growing Up Hip Hop" and "Just Angela."

So, she's out ... but we're told the cast for the upcoming 14th 'RHOA' season will include Kandi Burruss, Kenya Moore, Drew Sidora, Sheree Whitfield, Marlo and Sanya Richards-Ross.

NeNe Leakes is giving dating another shot after tragically losing her husband to cancer.

"The Real Housewives of Atlanta" star is dating a businessman named Nyonisela Sioh ... sources close to the new couple tell TMZ. We're told NeNe's new man owns a couture suit company in Charlotte, NC and he hails from Liberia, Africa ... though it's unclear how long they've been dating.

It's interesting... our sources say, Peter Thomas, the ex-husband of fellow 'RHOA' star Cynthia Bailey, played matchmaker here ... introducing NeNe to Nyonisela.

NeNe sparked dating rumors this week when she was pictured standing next to a handsome man at her birthday party in Atlanta.

The birthday bash, a surprise organized by her son Brentt, went down at NeNe's Linnethia Lounge in Georgia and she was surrounded by family, friends and celebs like Keke Wyatt and Porsha Williams ... plus Nyonisela, the fella in the purple suit.

NeNe's foray back into the dating scene comes 3 months after she lost her husband, Gregg, to a long battle with cancer. They were married for over 20 years.

Kathy Hilton is finally back in front of 'RHOBH' cameras -- after holding out for more money -- getting a deal done just in time to guarantee she'll appear on season 12.

Kathy had previously refused to film anything for the franchise's new season because she felt she was being undervalued by show producers. It took several weeks, but both sides were able to come to an agreement that will see Kathy as a friend of the cast, making regular appearances on the show.

We spoke with Kathy's sister, and full-time cast member Kyle Richards last month about KH's absence as the rest of the women were seen shooting across town. Kyle told us Kathy had just been busy planning her daughter, Paris Hilton's wedding -- but our sources say the real hang-up was money.

Kathy is expected to begin filming with the Bev Hills cast just after the holidays. As we reported, production had been suspended late last week when 3 members -- Lisa Rinna, Erika Jayne and Garcelle -- tested positive for COVID-19. Fortunately, we're told all women were vaccinated and have had mild symptoms.

As for everyone else who tested negative -- we're told production will resume at some point this week.

"The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills" can't catch a break -- a new crop of cast members are positive for COVID-19, and that's forcing production to shut down again in what seems to be Hollywood's new reality.

Sources connected to the series tell TMZ ... late last week Lisa Rinna, Erika Jayne, Garcelle Beauvais and a member of the crew all tested positive, causing producers to suspend all filming. Thankfully, we're told symptoms are mild for all involved ... and they've all been vaccinated.

We're told the show will be on a brief hiatus for at least a couple weeks -- SOP for when a positive result comes in -- and they'll reevaluate everything then. Our sources say everyone will be tested multiple times before coming back to work ... which was already happening anyway.

Of course, this is far from the first and certainly won't be the last TV or film production to be impacted by COVID. Thankfully, the vaccine seems to be doing what scientists said it would ... lessening the effects for those who catch COVID.

We broke the story ... 'RHOBH' filming was halted late last year, when Kyle Richards, Kathy Hilton and Dorit Kemsley tested positive. Now, it looks like they're gonna have to do it all over again to deal with the latest batch.

Dorit Kemsley has some thoughts on her husband's DUI bust as well as the fatal shooting that befell Clarence Avant's family -- and her reaction to both is ... regret and sadness.

The 'RHOBH' star ran into paps Tuesday night, and there were two relevant topics to ask her about -- the fact her hubby, PK, had been hauled to jail over suspected drinking and driving ... and the recent break-in in town that cost Jacqueline Avant her life.

Luckily, Dorit was in a chatty mood ... so she opened up on each, first addressing Paul's arrest. Sounds like Paul wishes it never would've happened -- and Dorit expresses that quite clearly here.

She also kinda goes to bat for him a little -- explaining that Paul wasn't necessarily smashed ... even though he probably shouldn't have been behind the wheel. Good balancing act here!

As for the Trousdale Estates tragedy -- where Jacqueline was shot and killed by a home intruder -- Dorit is the perfect person to speak on it ... seeing how she too went through a frighteningly similar situation just last month.

It's interesting ... Dorit seems to make a distinction between the Avants' predicament and hers, saying she's still here ... highlighting just how dangerous the whole thing was.

Paul "PK" Kemsley, husband of 'RHOBH's Dorit, is dealing with the law again -- this time on the wrong side -- he was busted for DUI, just weeks after burglars invaded their home ... TMZ has learned.

According to the California Highway Patrol ... officers stopped Kemsley in the early hours of Nov 23, after they saw his grey Bentley weaving in traffic on L.A.'s 101 freeway.

PK, who was driving alone, was arrested and the officers say he was cooperative during the stop. We're told he agreed to submit to a breathalyzer test once they got him back to the station.

The last month has been a rough one for Dorit and PK -- in late October, while Paul was out of town, 3 masked men broke into their home. Dorit was home and came face-to-face with the suspects.

The men made off with more than $100k worth of their stuff, including jewelry and expensive purses.

Dorit's called the home invasion a terrifying incident ... during which she begged the suspects not to kill her.

Getting arrested is never a good thing, but PK's timing is particularly awful ... all things considered. We're told he was cited for DUI, and later released on his own recognizance.

Joe Gorga might be great on reality TV, but he is definitely NOT killing it with his stand-up comedy routine ... at least not during a recent NYC gig.

The 'Real Housewives of New Jersey' star bombed during a comedy set earlier this month at the Governors' Comedy Club, where Joe took the mic at one point and things went south quickly.

Check it out ... Joe tried telling a joke/story about some guy he knows, but it came out pretty incoherently -- and more importantly, not really funny at all. He ignored some light jeering and rolled on with his act.

It looks like the audience was trying to cut him some slack ... entertaining his repeated "Are you guys ready?" line, which he used to ad nauseam, but never really paid off with an actual punchline.

We're told the crowd eventually turned on him when he started to curse at them, which you can also hear in the video. One of his pals tried pulling him off stage, but Joe wouldn't go -- that is ... until his wife, Melissa, came on and gave him the hook.

She had a message for the crowd on their way out, and all seemed mostly forgiven in the end.

Braunwyn Windham-Burke might be an OC girl, but she sure does look good in Florida ... especially in the arms of this beauty.

The 'Real Housewives' alum was enjoying the rays of Miami Beach this week, splashing in the waves alongside a woman she was more than happy to embrace in public. More than just that ... they were putting on a full-blown PDA clinic.

We've figured out her mystery playmate is Victoria Brito, and sources tell us she and Braunwyn have been dating for a month. They met via mutual friends and they've been talking on IG.

We're told they're keeping it pretty casual for now, although Braunwyn is apparently smitten ... which is obvious in the beach pics.

As for VB, she's coming up in the game -- having recently shot a campaign for PUMA.

Of course, we know what you're thinking ... has Victoria met Braunwyn's kids with Sean??? Our sources say not yet, but Braunwyn plans to introduce Victoria to her kids around Christmas when they travel to CA together.

Jen Shah wants the judge in her upcoming fraud trial to dismiss the criminal case against her, saying it's all because of what federal agents chatted about to Hulu cameras.

According to new legal docs, obtained by TMZ ... "The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City" star says the streaming service interviewed two specials agents from Homeland Security for a new documentary, where they gave out details about the investigation that weren't publicly available and opined on Shah, offering lots of commentary on the "lavish lifestyle" of "fraudsters."

Jen claims Agent Rick Patel specifically commented on the circumstances surrounding her arrest ... and says Agent Agnieszka Norman made "highly prejudicial" statements about her allegedly hiding money in offshore accounts, even going so far as to suggest the origin of the case against Shah came from an investigation into a narcotics smuggling ring.

As we reported ... Jen was arrested back in March for allegedly targeting and scamming folks out of their money, with the feds recently accusing her of "greater culpability" in the scheme. The trial is scheduled to get underway in March, and she's claimed total innocence and pled not guilty.

In the docs, Jen says the agents' statements on the ABC News doc "The Housewife and the Shah Shocker" destroyed any chance of her getting a fair trial by tainting the jury pool because the program is full of opinions that will lead people to presume she's guilty.

Sheree Whitfield's boyfriend isn't talking to her, but he wants a chat with the folks at Bravo ... because he's pissed off about his past appearances on his girl's reality show.

The "Real Housewives of Atlanta" star's BF, Tyrone Gilliams, had his legal team fire off a cease and desist letter to the TV network ... claiming the show's been using his name and likeness without his permission.

According to the legal threat, obtained by TMZ, Tyrone says he never gave the green light for him to become a recurring 'RHOA' storyline back in the day. Even when he wasn't actually on camera, he was often discussed by cast members, and he says the network's been profiting off him without permission.

In the docs, Tyrone is threatening legal action if Bravo doesn't stop using his name and image STAT ... and he's going even further, demanding the network scrub every trace of him from 'RHOA' footage and social media posts, as well as putting the brakes on any marketing or advertising involving him.

Tyrone's been upset lately ... as we first told you, he's not on speaking terms with Sheree because 'RHOA' filming almost put him back in prison due to Sheree's plans to shoot scenes with him at a restaurant. That would've been a huge problem because he's currently sentenced to home confinement.

Sheree Whitfield is not on speaking terms with her boyfriend Tyrone Gilliams ... because her reality TV career almost cost him his freedom.

Sources with direct knowledge tell TMZ ... the 'RHOA' star and Tyrone -- who's currently sentenced to home confinement -- have not spoken since a November 6 incident, when Sheree told Tyrone she was leaving NYC to go visit him in Philadelphia.

The trouble started a few hours before they were scheduled to meet ... because Sheree told Tyrone she would have an 'RHOA' camera crew with her when she got to town.

We're told Sheree wanted him to come film a scene with her in a restaurant -- but, obviously, that would be a huge no-no for Tyrone due to his home confinement. To put it plainly, a judge could've thrown his ass back in prison ... if he'd gone.

That's why he passed on shooting, and production told his attorneys they'd simply edit the show to make it look like Tyrone stood her up.

Making matters worse, this photo started circulating online ... showing Sheree sitting alone at a Philly restaurant. Eagle-eyed fans noticed 2 menus on the table -- not to mention the camera crew -- and assumed Tyrone was there shooting scenes.

Although he wasn't, he was worried about the optics with the courts.

As we first told you ... when Sheree returned to 'RHOA,' she made it clear she wanted her relationship with Tyrone to be a big storyline -- but that seems derailed now. Since the incident in Philly, we're told they have not spoken, and there's been no apology from either side.