Tuesday, June 28, 2011

Get Ready for Big Rich Texas on the Style Network!

We are about to be hit with a bevvy of new "reality" shows filmed here in Dallas.  The first one out of the gate will be Dallas Divas and Daughters, Season 2  Big Rich Texas.

Earlier this year, I brought you the news about this new docu-series.  Since that first post, there have been changes to the original cast.  

The cast of Season Two was initially told that the premise of this season would be a "Mother/Daughter show to showcase different parenting styles" and that it would be "completely different from last season's show" - hence the change of title - but it appears that the producers pulled a fast one and once they started filming it became apparent this was not the case.  It looks like this season will be just like Dallas Divas and Daughters, Season One, focusing on the interaction of the women, with little focus on their daughters, much less their parenting abilities.

I hear the cast was brought together before they started filming to meet each other and at the end of the day were told they were not allowed to exchange phone numbers or emails.  The producers wanted ZERO interaction off-camera from the cast.  But wait, the show makes it look like they are all friends who already know each other...

Are we really shocked to learn that reality TV is not always so real?  Hmmmm.





Seems a few of the ladies were upset about the lack of "reality" in this show and bailed completely or asked to have their roles lessened to make them less visible. 

So where's the shake-up?  Seems "Queen Bee" Dena and her daughter, Jade couldn't get outta this cast fast enough.  Southern Belles Paula, her daughter Shanelle and mom Althean also made a hasty retreat.  This left the show's producers scrambling for replacement families. And WOW!!!  Did they ever get a great replacement. Looks like they talked my favorite duo from DDD/Season One, Pamela Martin-Duarte and her daughter, Hannah, into coming back for more abuse screen time.  I know nothing about Leslie and Kayln. Will have to dig around...

Here's your final cast:

Bonnie
Bonnie has a PhD and three novels to her credit.  She was born into Dallas money but rejected the rules of a high-society lifestyle early on. Now a self-made millionaire, she wants back in, but she still wants to do things her way – along with her rebellious daughter Whitney.  They are quite a team, shopping and undergoing mother-daughter plastic surgery together.


Melissa
Former model Melissa is approaching 40 and hoping to get back on the catwalk.  15 year-old daughter Maddie is determined to have a say in her mother’s life including who she dates, and will do anything to get her way.  It’s a battle of wills between this mother-daughter duo as Maddie constantly tests her mother’s limits.

Connie
Recently divorced Connie is out to prove herself as an independent business owner with her designer consignment boutique business.  Her daughter Grace, a trendsetter and rule breaker, is determined to become the head cheerleader on one of the nation’s most prestigious high school cheerleading squads.  This pair likes to consider themselves more as best friends rather than mother and daughter.

Leslie
Leslie is Connie's cousin and a jet-setting pageant coach. She owns homes across the country but has recently moved to Dallas to take on the pageant capital by storm and launch the pageant career of her goddaughter, Kalyn.

Leslie is an unabashed, undeniable cougar, having dated the much younger Anthony Dorsett Jr., and an even younger golf pro at the club named AJ (who I am told isn't really even a golf pro, but was just cast for the show) . These aren't exactly the lessons Leslie wants to teach Kalyn, who has her own issues fitting in with the Texas elite.

Pamela
Married to a gorgeous, successful husband and mother to two beautiful daughters, Pamela calls it like she sees it...and calls it bluntly. She is an accomplished author, chairwoman of the Luxury Marketing Council and the epitome of southern class. Her connections and influence make her a center of power at the club, and she's determined to ensure her daughter Hannah follows in her footsteps.

After finishing her first year at college, Hannah is home for the summer and Pamela has decided to make Hannah her assistant. What better way to increase her daughter's profile in society - and keep a watchful eye on her. This duo should be familiar to Style viewers as they were last seen on the network's series Dallas Divas & Daughters.

"Big Rich Texas" begins airing Sunday, July 17 at 9:00pm ET/PT on The Style Network.