14 Things You Didn't Know About Kyle Richards
There's so much more to this #RHOBH 'Wife than what we've seen on TV.
Kyle Richards has been a part of our lives for a long time. Not only has she been a cast member on The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills for six seasons, but many even grew up watching her and big sister Kim Richards in movies and TV shows.
But just because Kyle has been like a family member to us all for so many years doesn't mean that we know everything about her. In fact, the RHOBH wife, mom, actress, and boutique owner surprises us all the time. Here are just some of the things that will give you a new appreciation for Kyle.
1. Mauricio Umansky Isn't Her First Husband
Kyle and Mauricio just celebrated their 20th wedding anniversary this year, but believe it or not, there was a time when these two weren't together. In fact, Kyle got married to her first husband Guraish Aldjufrie when she was 18 years old. Guraish, who at one time lived in Bali, Indonesia, is the father of Kyle's eldest daughter Farrah Aldjufrie. We even saw Guraish during Season 1 of RHOBH at Farrah's college graduation. Even though things didn't work out between Kyle and Guraish, she said during that episode that they still have the utmost respect for one another.
2. She Was Engaged to a TV News Anchor
Kyle revealed last season of RHOBH that she was actually engaged when she met Mauricio. She later told Andy Cohen on Watch What Happens Live that the man who almost became her husband was Michael Tuck, a news anchor for the CBS affiliate in Los Angeles who is 24 years her senior. Kyle squirmed in her seat as she talked about her onetime fiancé on WWHL in front of Mauricio and Farrah, who were in the audience that night, but considering the fact that Kyle and Mauricio are still happily married today, it sounds like there was no harm done by this admission.
3. Kathy Hilton Is Her Half-Sister
We've all know that Kyle has two sisters: Kim and Kathy Hilton. However, the fact that Kyle and Kim have a different father than their big sister Kathy is less well known. Their mother Kathleen Dugan was first married to Kathy's dad Laurence K. Avanzino before marrying Kyle and Kim's dad Kenneth E. Richards. As the above throwback pic shows, what an adorable family Kyle has always had.
4. She Wasn't Just a Child Star
Like her sister Kim, Kyle got into show business at an early age. In fact, her first major acting role was as the younger version of Kim's character Tia in the 1975 Walt Disney classic Escape to Witch Mountain. Kyle's other memorable roles as a child star include 1977's The Car, 1978's Halloween, and a recurring stint on The Little House on the Prairie TV series in the late '70s and early '80s.
Kyle took an almost 10-year break from Hollywood when she became pregnant with Farrah at 19 years old, but she also had quite the acting career as an adult, most notably appearing in many episodes of ER as Nurse Dori. Kyle kept on acting after she joined RHOBH, too, appearing in guest spots on CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, Days of Our Lives, and Girlfriends' Guide to Divorce. RHOBH also isn't Kyle's first reality show. She also appeared in The Simple Life with her niece Paris Hilton. With Kyle working on a scripted series inspired by her childhood in the '70s, we should definitely expect to see her pop up on TV outside of RHOBH in the future.
5. She Has Acted with Many Hollywood Legends
Throughout her many film and TV roles, Kyle has been fortunate enough to work with several Hollywood heavyweights, including James Brolin in The Car, Jamie Lee Curtis in Halloween, and Bette Davis in The Watcher in the Woods (above), all before she was even a teenager. As you can see, Kyle had a more impressive acting career as a kid than most people have in their lifetimes.
6. She Did Some Modeling
Not only has Kyle acted, but she also did a bit of modeling way back when. Just check out the above pic of Kyle working it in front of the camera for a jewelry line back in the day. She could definitely give resident RHOBH models Yolanda Foster and Kathryn Edwards a run for their money.
7. She Didn't Attend College
Since Kyle was working as an actress and then had her first child at such a young age, she was never able to attend college. Even though Kyle has an incredible life these days, she once revealed on RHOBH that missing out on that experience is one of her biggest regrets in life.
8. She Has Gone Blonde
Kyle's chocolate brown hair is a signature part of her look. However, Kyle has gone blonde like her sisters a few times in the past. Though Kyle has said she's not a fan of herself with blonde hair, we think she looks pretty great no matter what hue she's rocking.
9. Her Hair Secrets Will Surprise You
Speaking of Kyle's hair, how does she keep it looking flawless every time we see her? It's surprisingly very simple, as she recently described to Bravotv.com (clip above). Instead of using a fancy, expensive shampoo, Kyle just uses good, old Pantene. She also recommends not washing your hair every day and brushing it from the bottom to the top. The most complicated part of Kyle's hair routine is probably a hair mask that's a special "concoction" she tries to put in her hair at least once a week. Armed with this knowledge, hopefully we can all have hair that's as gorgeous as Kyle's.
10. Her Beauty Regimen Can Be a Little Scary
There is one part of Kyle's beauty regimen that seems a little eccentric, at least outside of Beverly Hills. You'll often see photos of Kyle wearing these funny-looking (or should we say mummy-looking?) facials all over her Instagram feed. But as the above post shows, at least Kyle is well aware of how scary it looks.
11. She Was Really Close to Her Mom
On RHOBH, Kyle often gets a little emotional when she talks about her late mother, who passed away almost 14 years ago, so they were clearly very close. How close, you ask? Well, Kyle actually slept in the same bed as her mom until she was 15 years old, she said during a past interview with PageDaily. Now that's close.
12. She Studied Kabbalah
Kyle converted to Judaism before she married Mauricio, but like many Hollywood A-listers in the early 2000s, she also studied Kabbalah, a spiritual offshoot of Judaism, in the past. In fact, she met her RHOBH castmate Lisa Rinna more than 10 years ago while studying Kabbalah. Madonna, Demi Moore, and Ashton Kutcher were also in their study group, and they would all celebrate Shabbat together at the Kabbalah Centre. Oh, to be a fly on the wall at those shindigs.
13. She's a Big Supporter of Charity
Kyle and Mauricio are listed as members of the First Families of the Children's Hospital Los Angeles, which are individuals or families who either have a legacy of donating to the institution or hope to start a legacy by supporting the hospital with "unrestricted gifts of $100,000 or more," according to the hospital's website. As the above recent tweet shows, it also looks like Kyle will be competing to support Children's Hospital Los Angeles during her upcoming appearance on The Celebrity Apprentice.
14. She's Often in Sweatpants During Her RHOBH Interviews
Kyle always looks rather glamorous in her RHOBH interviews — on top, at least. Little did we know that Kyle is often sporting sweatpants with her elegant blouses. Well, you do want to be comfortable when you're dishing on the season's drama, after all.
It seems like Kyle has barely aged since we've known her on RHOBH. In fact, these pics of Kyle throughout the years show that she has barely aged at all during her lifetime.
