BravoCon 2022: Summer House in Autumn
One thing is for sure with this cast, just like when BravoCon comes to Las Vegas this November, all bets are off.
(Summer House cast members appear from left to right: Kyle Cooke, Amanda Batula, Paige DeSorbo, Ciara Miller, and Danielle Olivera. Photo: NBCUniversal)
With BravoCon 2023 heading to Las Vegas this fall, it’s time to take a look back at last year’s convention.
Part One of the BravoCon 2022 series:
Too often, Bravo stars are reduced to their most famous one-liner: Think Kenya Moore’s "Gone with the Wind fabulous," Tamra Judge screaming "That’s my opinion," or Sheree Whitfield’s "Who gon’ check me boo?"
For Summer House’s Lindsay Hubbard, there’s no other line that comes close.
"How many sandwiches have you made for me?"
That’s what she yelled at her season five boyfriend, Stephen (a.k.a. Stravy), during an argument.
While that moment will live in reality TV infamy, I feel for Lindsay, who can’t make a public appearance without being asked about how many sandwiches her fiance, Carl Radke, has made for her.
BravoCon 2022 marked the first time the gang reunited since filming season seven.
Without giving much away about the then-yet-to-air season, the cast teased it would be dramatic, and they didn’t disappoint.
Seven years of Summer House
Looking back on seven years of Summer House, the stars of the show never imagined they would become Bravolebrities overnight.
"My friend, who had a house in Montauk, sent me an email, and he's like, ‘If anyone's going to ruin the Hamptons forever, it should be you." Kyle Cooke told attendees:
With Bravo being widely known as the "Real Housewives network," Summer House wasn’t exactly the prototype for the cable network.
"I actually knew nothing about Bravo," he admitted. "I thought surveillance 24/7 was totally normal."
Asked about his freshly-grown mullet, Kyle revealed the real reason for his new hairstyle.
"I actually just woke up on Jan. 1, and that was my New Year’s resolution," he said, adding he doesn’t know how long he will let it grow. As of press time, Kyle’s still rocking the mullet and says Amanda will likely end up cutting it off while he’s sleeping.
Asked about anything he regretted doing on the show, what came to mind for Carl Radke wasn’t cheating on Lauren Wirkus or any of his other drunken antics in the early days of Summer House.
What Radke regrets most is... brushing his teeth with a comb.
(Almost) burning down the summer house
One incident that never quite made it to air was the time the housemates nearly burned the summer house to the ground.
Luke Gulbralson, the maple syrup-making and motorcycle-driving Minnesota hunk, is known to make fires in the backyard.
But one night, he says, he was lying in bed when he heard people yelling and running around the house.
It turns out the wind blew a plastic chair into the fire — right outside of Kyle and Amanda’s bedroom window.
Because they had the primary room, they heard the hissing and popping of plastic exploding.
"Kyle and I are running around the house trying to put out this fire because there is a chair literally exploding into flames outside of our bedroom," Amanda recalled. "And we slept through the whole damn thing."
Fortunately, no one was injured, and production continued uninterrupted.
Confessionals
For Paige DeSorbo, fashion icon and podcast co-host, the best part of filming the show is the confessionals.
"When you can be your true self, you can say funny things and be self-deprecating," DeSorbo said. "That, to me, is how you really get your personality across."
While Paige might enjoy confessionals, not everyone feels the same way.
"We can’t get over last summer until we’re done with our confessionals," Hubbard said, "which is basically the next summer."
Special appearances
While Luke and Andrea Denver didn’t return to Summer House for season seven in a full-time capacity, they made special appearances in the Hamptons.
"I did make a point to get out there and see them," Luke said. "There’s some special things that happen throughout the summer."
Meanwhile, Andrea revealed he brought his girlfriend Lexi to meet the housemates for Carl and Lindsay’s engagement celebration.
Season six of Summer House captured Ciara’s tumultuous and short-lived relationship with Southern Charm cast member Austen. That relationship, according to Ciara, isn’t just dead and gone — it’s "underground."
A broken friendship
At the end of the panel, a fan took to the microphone to ask about the status of Lindsay and Danielle Olivera’s relationship.
"I’ll just use one word: unfortunate," Danielle replied.
"Same," Lindsay chimed in.
A few words were spoken, but for the thousands of fans in attendance at BravoCon, there was no room for interpretation.
With the Summer House season seven reunion set to air beginning on Monday evening, fans are clamouring to learn the fate of Lindsay and Danielle’s friendship, find out when Carl and Lindsay will get married, and get the juicy gossip on new couple Sam and Kory.
One thing is for sure: just like when BravoCon comes to Las Vegas this November, all bets are off.