Kelly Bensimon On Feud With 'Insecure' Bethenny Frankel: She 'Was Just Looking For Attention'

Kelly Bensimon is getting candid about her tumultuous relationship with her former "Real Housewives of New York City" co-star Bethenny Frankel.

The 53-year-old discussed her feud with Frankel, 50, in Dave Quinn's new tell-all book "Not All Diamonds and Rosé: The Inside Story of the Real Housewives From the People Who Lived It."

Bensimon claimed she believes her success, both on and off the Bravo show, made Frankel feel "insecure" and "threatened."

"Bethenny was just looking for attention. She was so insecure," Bensimon said in the book, according to People. "Remember, she was the old guard and I was the new, pretty, fun girl. She didn't have kids. I was a mom with young kids. She was struggling in her career, I was accomplished."

She continued, "There were just so many things about me that — and I don't like to use the word 'threatened' because I don't like it when women talk about each other in those kinds of terms — but she felt a certain way about me that I somehow became her nemesis, immediately."

Bensimon also claimed that their bad blood started before she joined "RHONY" Season 2 in 2008. She recalled Frankel, who was dating a photographer Bensimon knew at the time, coming to an event held at her home but claimed she "didn't even really notice" her then-future co-star.

"[Frankel] didn't make an impression on me, bad or good — and I don't mean that in a nasty way, I mean that in a genuinely honest way," Bensimon claimed.

Frankel declined to speak with Quinn for the book, but Jill Zarin claimed the Skinnygirl mogul "hated" Bensimon before the show because she felt she'd been snubbed at that party. According to Zarin, Frankel became even more upset when the two met again on the show and Bensimon "had no idea who she was" or that Frankel had been at her home.

"But Bethenny was very offended and treated Kelly very badly because of it," Zarin claimed.

Frankel did not respond to a request for comment, according to the outlet.

During Season 2 of the Bravo show, Frankel was heard calling Bensimon "Madonna" under her breath while discussing a charity function. They later sat down for a meeting in an effort to try and get on the same page, but Bensimon told Frankel they were not friends and implied that she was below her.

They continued to feud in Season 3, where the two women had a fight during the "Scary Island" trip. Bensimon claimed at the time that she couldn't sleep because Frankel was "trying to kill her."

Bensimon departed "RHONY" after Season 4. Meanwhile, Frankel, one of the original cast members of the show, left after the third season for a spinoff and talk show. She returned for Season 7 but exited for good in 2019.

"Not All Diamonds and Rosé: The Inside Story of the Real Housewives From the People Who Lived It" is now available.