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The Daily Dish The Real Housewives of New York City

This Iconic Real Housewives of New York City Moment Almost Didn't Happen

"It was like Christmas and happy birthday all in one," executive producer Lisa Shannon said.

By Laura Rosenfeld
A Scandal in St. Barths

The Real Housewives of New York City ladies have been on so many memorable vacations over the past 10 seasons. Do "Scary Island," Mexico, and Cartagena ring any bells? However, few have been as scandalous as when the ladies jetted off to St. Barths in Season 5. 

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Of course, this was the trip where the RHONY squad met a certain pirate names Tomas who looked just like Johnny Depp. After some chatter about what exactly went on between Luann de Lesseps and Tomas, the Countess made a rather eyebrow-raising phone call to her friend in French suggesting that Tomas had come back to the house with Luann. 

So how did the production team catch that now-infamous phone call? RHONY executive producer Lisa Shannon spilled the behind-the-scenes tea about her favorite moment from the series during the Tribeca TV Festival's Tribeca Talks: Ten Years with The Real Housewives of New York City event on September 23. "This sound guy of all sound guys needs an Emmy. We hired him for just that trip, and he spoke French, incidentally enough. We were actually on a break, and he was listening, as we do," she explained. "He goes, 'You need to put your headphones on right now!' I'm like, 'I don't speak French!' And he wrote down what she was saying, and he's translating it."


And so one of the most unforgettable RHONY moments ever was captured on tape. "So we ran a camera up and got it, and it was like Christmas and happy birthday all in one," Lisa said. "For everyone but Lu, unfortunately." 

One of Tinsley Mortimer's favorite RHONY moments also has to do with Luann. "It definitely was fun to meet Scott [Kluth] on the blind date with Carole [Radziwill]. That was super fun. And also, funnily, I loved when Luann fell in the bushes, but when Ramona [Singer] just was like, 'You should've gone this way,'" Tinsley shared at the Tribeca TV Festival event. "That, to me, has become my favorite line. I always say that." 

Sonja Morgan said that she loves any time she's with Ramona. "Ramona and I just running around like kids. You know, in Morocco when we went to get the dresses together, and calling her face a pizza. We trust each other; we really do," she said at the event. "And the moments we shared with her family, with her husband [Mario Singer] and daughter [Avery Singer] were very intimate." 

Dorinda Medley said that she'll never forget the moment she uttered one of her most memorable lines. "I know that a lot of people have their favorite moments about me, my crazy speeches," she said at the event. "But I truly always thought, 'I cooked, I cleaned, I made it nice.'" 

Refresh your memory of that classic moment, below.

Dorinda Medley: I Cooked, I Decorated, I Made It Nice!

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