Photo credit: Janet Donovan
Housewife: “A woman who stays home to take care of the house, the kids, the husband and the pets. She works up a sweat, has anxiety attacks and burst into tears when a 2 year old says ‘no!’ for the 100th time that day after having to picking up dog poop from the living-room floor, washing 3 loads of laundry, washed all the dishes, went grocery shopping with 2 screaming kids, who get sick and throw up in the middle of the store. Then she comes home, cleans up the kids, starts to make dinner with both kids hanging on her leg, only to have it burn. She receives no thanks from anyone and gets no paycheck. I have no life…I am a housewife.” Urban Dictionary
Is that so? Well now, if The Real Housewives of Potomac are any indication, UD got it all wrong as could be witnessed at Bravo’s party and premiere screening at the opulent and decadent SAX in downtown Washington,DC. As Virginia Slims said back in their 1968 ad campaign: “You’ve come a Long Way Baby.”
Robyn Dixon, Ashley Darby and Gizelle Bryant
“The Real Housewives of Potomac is the show you never saw coming, and it’s going to take everyone by surprise,” said Andy Cohen who serves as Executive Producer of The Real Housewives franchise. “It’s a natural extension of the franchise. Just up the river from our nation’s capital lies a hidden gem—Potomac, Maryland. Its rolling hills, gated mansions, sophisticated prep schools and exclusive country clubs all serve to keep the area invitation-only. Sprinkled throughout this community are a handful of old-line, wealthy African-American families who have historically broken racial barriers to provide the best life possible for their children. The Real Housewives of Potomac follows the upscale lives of six intriguing, well-to-do women: Gizelle Bryant, Katie Rost, Karen Huger, Charrisse Jackson-Jordan, Robyn Dixon, and Ashley Darby, all of whom have fought for their places in this society by way of legacy or marriage. In a town where entry is granted only through class, pedigree, and lineage, how far will these ladies go to secure their spot at the top of this prestigious circle?”
The Real Housewives of Potomac
Hollywood on the Potomac chatted with a few of the ladies, but was particularly interested in knowing Robyn’s story. The background is this: While Robyn was in high school, she met Juan Dixon, a star athlete at a rival school. In what turned into a whirlwind romance, Robyn and Juan became high school sweethearts, attended college together, and eventually married. Juan went on to become a professional basketball player; the couple moved to Potomac and had two talented, athletic sons. However, being married to an athlete was not easy, and when Juan broke her heart, the couple decided to part ways. Juan now works as a special assistant basketball coach for the University of Maryland, and the couple remains extremely close, so much so they all live together under one roof and are embracing the ‘new normal.’
Robyn Dixon
Needless to say, we asked her about the new normal: “Juan and I have a very long history. I’ve known him for 20 years. I’m 36. I’ve known him for much more than, I guess, half of my life,” she told us. “I don’t know if you know his story, but he lost both of his parents when he was a teenager. We met as teenagers. Because he lost both of his parents, my family and my parents quickly became his family. He quickly became their son. Our connection is a lot deeper than just one like a man and woman, lover, boyfriend, girlfriend; we grew up together, but in growing up together, you do dumb things. There’s a lot of stuff that when you’re young and growing up you just don’t realize certain things. You have to give yourself time to grow, growing pains and bumps along the way. Those got the best of us, so that led to our divorce; but because our bonds are so tight, it was kind of hard to fully let go.”
Juan Dixon Photo credit: Creative Commons
“He came back home after we divorced,” Robyn added. “Our kids are our world. They are seven and six. I’m still not quite ready to be in any type of relationship. If there’s one person that I do want in my house with my kids, it’s him. It kind of works for now. I think that maybe at some point we might get the itch to start … you know. Do we want to rekindle this romance, or do we want to see other people? I think we’re still kind of just working on it. We have plenty of time. We honestly function as a family. We function so much better now than we did when we were married. We appreciate each other more, even better now than we did before. I feel like this might sound crazy. When you don’t have those titles, you kind of…I don’t know. The titles just really like mess everything up. We don’t have a title for each other. It’s really strange. It’s like when you don’t have the title, you don’t have that pressure to be perfect and to really make that person number one when you yourself might have somethings you want to work on yourself. We can’t really disappoint each other right now. That works.”
So what do folks in your community think about that? There must be a lot of gossip……”People are confused. They don’t get it. They don’t understand. Once they meet us, see us together, and see our kids though, that’s when they get it. They’re like ‘how could you not want your kids to be around the father of their children?’ Honestly, Juan is a very handsome man. He’s a very intelligent man. Right now, he’s a very ambitious man. We kind of are helping each other along right now. It’s like how could you not want that? They get it once they see it in our team.”
We also asked Robyn to describe life in Potomac in one word: “I give it affluent,” she said. “When I say affluent, it’s not even about how much money’s in the pocket, how you spend your money, and the material things you have, it’s how they carry themselves. It’s not just the woman. It’s the community in general, just high standards in Potomac. The schools are excellent. It’s beautiful. You don’t see trash everywhere. It’s well kept. Everyone’s respectful. I’m going to say affluent.”
Charrisse Jackson-Jordan
We chatted with Charrisse Jackson-Jordan, known to throw extravagant parties and events – the ultimate social butterfly who connects the Who’s Who of the DC area. We asked her how she was selected to be one of the Real Housewives of Potomac. “It was a combination of things, actually. A mutual friend of mine referred me,” she answered. “I was contacted by my friend’s brother, who I didn’t know. I thought it was my friend playing a prank. I called him, thinking it was my friend, and it ends up being a real casting director. He asked me to be on the show. I wasn’t so sure about this thing so I offered to help him cast the show. I thought I was like the junior executive casting director, that I appointed myself as. I called some people that I thought would do the show. Living in Potomac, I actually live there, it’s very conservative and people who live in Potomac, people with wealth, they’re very private. This is not something that people who live in Potomac would do. It was kind of hard trying to cast the show because they’re so private. I’ve been living in Potomac for eleven years. I came here via my husband who used to coach the Washington Wizards. His name is Eddie Jordan. That’s how I ended up here. We moved to Potomac. One of my friends lived here prior to me. When I came to Potomac to visit her, I said, ‘Once his career’s over, this is where I want to live.’ But, he ended up getting a job here, and I’m like, ‘Yes, I’m moving to Potomac.’ I’m still here.”
If you can do it in one word, how would you best describe living in Potomac? “It’s hard to do in one word, but … one word for Potomac … Potomac…. one word. I’m thinking about a good word for it. It’s just ………” Charrisse wasn’t able to describe it in one word, so we asked her if she thought she would end up like the Kardashians. Are you worried? Or would you like to be like them? “You know what? I actually like the Kardashians,” she responded. “You know? I admire Kris Kardashian. I think that she’s done a phenomenal job. They’re all over the place and they’re doing amazing things, and one thing I will say about their show is that it’s not really negative. It’s funny. It’s entertaining. It’s not trashy or anything like that. I can respect that show, and I love it.” We also wondered if she had watched the original Real Housewives of DC and what she thinks they did or didn’t get right. “I didn’t study it. I actually know them, they’re my friends. Most of them I know, except for one. I didn’t know Cat, but the other ones I knew prior to them taping. I’m friends with them. They’re amazing people and I love them. They’re still my friends to this day. They’re amazing people.” We suggested they bring them in to do some walk-ons. “That would be great. We can do that. Yeah, they’re great. They’re really great.”
Ashley Darby (second left)
Ashley Darby is the youngest housewife. This is her story: Ashley met Michael Darby, an Australian real-estate millionaire, who is 29 years her senior. Sparks flew, and Ashley was introduced to a world she never knew existed. After four years of dating, the couple married, and Ashley went from 22 and single to wife and stepmother of Michael’s 21- and 24-year-old children. In a classic Cinderella story, Ashley is now constantly attending galas and charity events. She wants to make a name for herself in the food industry, so with the help of her husband, she opened a restaurant with an emphasis on fresh and wholesome ingredients. She now owns a restaurant in Arlington called Oz, which is an abbreviation for Australia she told us.
Ashley Darby (second from left)
We asked her what was her relationship to Potomac: “I grew up in Sandy Spring, Maryland which is maybe about 20 minutes from Potomac and I’ve always wanted to live there so my husband and I are thinking about starting a family next year, fingers crossed, and that’s hopefully where we’ll relocate.They (the producers) knew me through the philanthropic circuits and I was Miss D.C. so I have a presence here in the city. Also, I do a lot of charity work so through the charity circuit they learned about me, learned about my age gap relationship with my husband, the restaurant that we opened – all the things that were happening in my life and honestly to have the opportunity to meet these women is actually really exciting for me. To meet women who are family oriented, remain ambitious, I was really excited, and since they are African American women too, it’s just la la land. I am the youngest one, I’m 27.”
Oz Restaurant Photo credit: Courtesy of Oz
“Although I am the youngest housewife, I have my own business,” she pointed out. “I’m an entrepreneur, I’m learning about that. I’m evolving, I’m growing into a woman, I don’t even know who I’ll be in the next 3 years when I turn 30 but I learned a lot from them even if it wasn’t as easy when we first met each other for sure. Yeah, I came off a little strong in the beginning and it took some time for them to get to like me but I like to prove myself without a doubt. Oh, and I can. Yes I can. It depends on the circumstances.” We asked her if she likes so much notoriety. “Having been Miss D.C. I’m used to being the spotlight, I’m ready to handle it. I have a very supportive husband, very supportive family so I’ve got a really nice team behind me.” Her one word for Potomac is eccentric. “I would say Potomac is eccentric. I would just say it’s eccentric because people think it’s one thing but in actuality there’s so many facets, it’s multicultural. The women are very fun, they’re ambitious, they’re family oriented, there’s so much more to Potomac than just being a suburb of D.C. It’s so much more than that, you know, and I know that from being a local girl myself.”
Karen Huger with her BFF Vivien
Karen Huger was there with her BFF Vivien. She seemed like the Big Bang, the Mama Bear or the Diva, if you like. Is that the way you see yourself we asked her. “You know what? I believe the term diva is bestowed upon you by your peers, and I humbly accept. Life is fun, I fully embrace life, I live it. You got it right. I am a huge mama bear. I fully understand that I have a huge personality, but I do it in a positive, intelligent, powerful way that the women get it. We’re all bright, intelligent, independent women who at the end of the day are five friends on this journey, so I’m betting on that friendship is carrying them through all my terms of being a diva or a grande dame, if you will. It is what it is. Whatever the term of endearment, as long as love is behind that term, I got it.” How has your family reacted to the show? “I’m a grown woman. My family is fully in support of me. I’m totally going to get into Karen. I think the Kardashians are fabulous, but there’s a Karen out there that’s just waiting to be birthed. I think women in my position, at this stage in their lives, empty-nesting, will be able to identify with that. I’m an original, I’m myself, and I own everything that makes me. I think that the viewers will find a sense of humor in me, as well as a driven, successful woman and a fantastic mom. We’ve got to pat ourselves on the back. I raised 2 adult children and I’m so proud. I’m proud.” Her one word for describing Potomac: enriching. Totally enriching culturally. That’s 3 words. Okay, so enriching. It’s culturally diverse. I can’t describe Potomac in one word because it’s a wonderful town. It’s a jewel of a town. It’s culturally diverse, the educational systems are in place, and it’s a wonderful place to raise your children. It has been very kind to my family, and I hope to represent them well.” Karen reigns supreme as a grand dame of Potomac.
BFF Vivien with her husband George
BFF Vivien told us she was excited to meet the other Housewives of Potomac: “I’m getting to meet some of them today. I met a couple of them before through my very good friend Karen Huger. She is a bestie. I’ve known her for the past 11 years. Our kids went to school together in the area. I don’t live in Potomac, but I’m just 10 minutes away. Our kids went to the same school, elementary school, and we’ve remained friends since then.” She’s the diva one, isn’t she? “That’s the feeling I’m getting, but that’s not how I know her. She’s a very sweet. Incidentally I am her designer. I designed the outfit she’s wearing tonight. The name of my label is Anya by Vivien.” Karen seemed to have lots of friends there to support her.
Just before the show started we met Karen’s daughter who didn’t mind that we called her mom a diva. Are you afraid you’re going to become the Kardashians and get dragged into this whole thing? “You know, I’m not,” she said. “I don’t know. You know what? If that’s what it turns into, that’s great, but I’m not afraid of anything. I’m definitely not worried. If that’s what it turns into, that’d be awesome. She’s a TV personality for sure. She gives people stuff to look at for sure, but no, I’m not worried. My dad is definitely excited. He’s so excited. He loves the process. He thinks it’s great. It’s nice.” “I’m getting butterflies. It’s like my wedding day,” Karen chimed in. “More like a wedding night.”
The Real Housewives of Potomac can be seen on BRAVO. Sun 9/8c