Kathy Wakile

Katherina Wakile (née Pierri; born October 4, 1965) is an American reality television personality. She starred in the Bravo series The Real Housewives of New Jersey, which features the lives of her and her family members.

Kathy Wakile
Born	Katherina Pierri (1965-10-04) October 4, 1965 (age 57) Paterson, New Jersey, U.S.
Occupations	Television personality entrepreneur
Years active	2011–present
Spouse	Richard Wakile ​ (m. 1993)​
Children	2
Relatives	Teresa Giudice (cousin)

Early life

Wakile was born October 4, 1965 in New Jersey. She has a younger sister, Rosie, and three brothers.

Wakile resides in Franklin Lakes, New Jersey with her husband of over 20 years, Richard Wakile, an owner/operator of NJ gas stations, and their two children, Victoria (b. 1994) and Joseph (b. 1996).^[1][2] Kathy and Victoria frequently participate in events that raise awareness for brain cancer, an illness they take close to heart, as Victoria underwent two operations to remove a benign brain tumor.^[3][4][5]

Career

Wakile joined the show's third season in May 2011.^[6] She was put in the middle of confrontations between her cousin, Teresa Giudice and her cousin-in-law, Melissa Gorga. The show mainly shows how Wakile deals with her kids' growing up, daughter’s health issues, and her wish to open a restaurant one day. In Season 3, Wakile feuded with Cousin, Teresa and also had difficulties getting to know Caroline Manzo due to the latter’s allegiances with the former. In Season 4, Wakile still argues with Teresa. Her sister, Rosie, who is gay, has also been featured on the show and gained a following due to her story of being different and coming out.^[7] Wakile also appeared in the fifth season of the show and this season saw the repair of many friendships including the relationship between Wakile and Teresa.^[8] In May 2014, it was announced Wakile would not return for the series’ sixth season, but would make periodic appearances throughout. She was credited as a ‘Friend of the Housewives’ for the show’s seventh season too.^[9][10]

Aside from appearing on the series, she has introduced three product lines since joining the show, including Dolci Della Dea, which includes a cannoli kit,^[11] Goddess Eye Jewelry, a jewelry line which gives portion of the sales to the National Brain Tumor Society,^[12][13][14] and Red Velvet Cosmo, a ready-to-pour cocktail. Red Velvet Cosmo is based on one of her favorite desserts, red velvet cake.^[15] The drink won a medal in a national tasting competition.^[16] Wakile has also written a cookbook Indulge: Delicious Little Desserts That Keep Life Real Sweet.^[17]

In May 2017, Wakile announced she would be opening up a restaurant in Bergen County, New Jersey, alongside her husband Rich. Titled Pizza Love, it will specialize in pizza, Italian and Mediterranean food, as well as desserts.^[18][19] It opened in September 2017.^[20]

Bibliography

• Indulge: Delicious Little Desserts That Keep Life Real Sweet (St. Martin's Griffin, September 2, 2014) 978-1-250-05126-4

References

1. Shaw, Sydney (January 4, 2016). "'RHONJ' star Kathy Wakile offers virtual tour of new Franklin Lakes home". NJ.com. Retrieved April 13, 2017.
2. Vera, Jocelyn (January 4, 2016). "Kathy Wakile Is Ready to Make New Memories in Her New Home". Bravo. Retrieved April 13, 2017.
3. Rosenfeld, Laura (September 28, 2016). "Kathy Wakile's Daughter Victoria is "Celebrating Life" After Her Latest Health Scare". Bravo. Retrieved April 13, 2017.
4. Rosenfeld, Laura (May 16, 2016). "Kathy Wakile's Daughter Reflects on Past Health Scare After Graduating College". Bravo. Retrieved April 13, 2017.
5. Imest (May 18, 2017). "Kathy Wakile's partnership with PalaCasino.com benefits Children's Brain Tumor Foundation". NJ.com. Retrieved May 22, 2017.
6. "Real Housewives of New Jersey Returns – with New Ladies!". People. April 13, 2011. Retrieved December 12, 2016.
7. "The Real Housewives of New Jersey, Season 4". iTunes. Apple Inc. Retrieved December 12, 2016.
8. Takeda, Allison (April 3, 2013). "See The Real Housewives of New Jersey's Cast Picture From Season Five". Us Weekly. Retrieved December 12, 2016.
9. Becker, Tierney; Sobol, Beth (May 14, 2014). "Real Housewives of New Jersey's Kathy Wakile Breaks Silence on No Longer Being a Housewife in Season 6". E! NBCUniversal. Retrieved December 12, 2016.
10. Hendricks, Jaclyn (May 24, 2016). "Teresa Giudice slings insults in 'Real Housewives' return". New York Post. Retrieved December 12, 2016.
11. "Dolci della Dea 24-piece Gourmet Cannoli Kit". QVC. Retrieved April 13, 2017.
12. "Bio". KathyWakile.com.
13. . bravotv.com. Archived from the original on November 5, 2013.
14. "'Housewive'[sic] Sighting: Kathy Wakile unveils new charitable jewelry line at Raffsonni Galleries in Hackensack". bergen.com. Retrieved July 5, 2012.
15. . bravotv.com. Archived from the original on November 5, 2013.
16. Fabrikant, Mel (February 28, 2012). "Red Velvet Cosmo Introduced By Kathy Wakile of 'The Real Housewives of New Jersey'". Paramus Post. Retrieved July 5, 2012.
17. Connelly, Sherryl (August 31, 2014). "Kathy Wakile of 'Real Housewives of New Jersey' pens a new dessert cookbook". New York Daily News. Retrieved April 13, 2017.
18. W. Curley Jr., Michael (May 6, 2017). "Real Housewives star to open restaurant in Bergen County". NorthJersey.com. Retrieved May 6, 2017.
19. Hyman, Vicki (May 8, 2017). "Hold the drama: Former 'RHONJ' star Kathy Wakile opening Italian restaurant". nj.com. Retrieved May 8, 2017.
20. Kuperinsky, Amy (September 28, 2017). "Reality bites: Former 'RHONJ' star opens N.J. pizza restaurant". nj.com. Retrieved September 29, 2017.

External links

• Official website
• Kathy Wakile at IMDb