Entertainment

Bethenny Frankel's Custody Battle Gets Emotional

by Kenya Foy

By her own admission, Bethenny Frankel's cancelled daytime talk show ran short on hijinks, but unfortunately the same can't be said for the never-ending saga between the reality star and her ex-husband Jason Hoppy. Wednesday was Frankel's first time testifying in the custody battle against her ex. Due to the ongoing drama stemming from their breakup nearly two years ago, it's not surprising to hear that Bethenny Frankel became overwhelmed with emotion on the stand.

The testimony from the former Real Housewives of New York star reveals a vindictive side of Hoppy, who by contrast appeared happy-go-lucky on the couple's post-wedding reality show Bethenny Ever After . She claims her ex declared war on her by first refusing to leave the couple's NYC home when they decided to split. According to Frankel, Hoppy then proceeded to do whatever he could to make his frustrations known by purposefully leaving the house in disarray, refusing to flush toilets (yuck) and her even insulting her in front of the couple's 4-year-old daughter Bryn.

Even though Frankel's reaped the benefits of fame with books, beverages and Bravo spin-offs among other things, I wonder if this divorce and increasingly messy custody battle makes her regret revealing so much of her life to the public? If her claims that Hoppy threatened to "ruin her" hold any truth, one has to question whether her being in the public eye serves as his main motive for taking down his ex-wife and attempting to gain full custody of the couple's child. Although we'll never know the truth, the fact that they've both resorted to public mudslinging seriously contradicts any efforts to protect and care for 4-year-old Bryn.

Since becoming a well-known TV personality is arguably the foundation of Frankel's success, this custody battle likely won't be enough for her to bow out of a career that highlights her troubles just as much as her successes. But for the sake of Frankel's daughter, the end of this sad situation can't come soon enough.