Kelly Bensimon Is Going by a Different Name These Days

Bye bye, Bensimon! Kelly Bensimon is now going by Kelly Killoren as she continues her successful writing career. 

The Real Housewives of New York City alum explained the name change while promoting her second novel The Second Course, which features her new moniker on its cover, on Good Day New York. "So my name is Kelly Killoren Bensimon. When I was at Columbia, I was Kelly Killoren. When I started writing, I was Kelly Killoren. When I started working for magazines, I was Kelly Killoren," she said. "And so when I started writing my first novel [A Dangerous Age], I was like, 'I want to be Kelly Killoren. I want to be back to my old roots.'" 

Kelly said that she's leaving Bensimon, which she adopted when she married fashion photographer Gilles Bensimon, in the past and looking ahead to being "Kelly Killoren in this amazing literary world."

Speaking of name changes, Kelly's good friend Luann de Lesseps changed her name back from Luann D'Agostino after she announced that she and Tom D'Agostino plan to divorce earlier this month. Kelly, who attended Luann and Tom's New Year's Eve nuptials, also gave an update on how her bestie is handling the split on Good Day New York. "We spent the weekend, and we spent a lot of time together, and she's just good people," Kelly shared. "I want the best for her, and sometimes things just don't work out the way you wanted them to." 

And yes, Kelly confirmed reports that Luann had a bit of fun singing "Hit the Road Jack" last weekend. "She was belting it out and [it was] amazing," Kelly said. 

Luann should take some solace in knowing that she has a great pal like Kelly in her life. "She's just an amazing, amazing woman," Kelly gushed. "She's incredibly well-educated, epic mother, an amazing friend. She is sexy, she's fun, she's charming." 

See Kelly and more Housewives hanging with Luann on her big day, below.