Tonight is the FINAL (and I hope I mean final) episode of Real Housewives of Beverly Hills‘ never-ending second season! Don’t worry about missing them, though! Even though we will no longer see the ladies bickering on our TV screens every week, I am most positive we will still be hearing about them in the news. The most exciting part about RHOBH ending is that it now frees my Monday nights up for The Bachelor. Don’t pick Courtney, Ben!
But I digress. Before we let these ladies fade gracefully into sunsets setting behind their palatial mansions, there’s more to discuss concerning Taylor Armstrong and that little book she wrote about her marriage. Now I know there has been much hullabaloo about whether or not Ms. Hughes-Ford-Armstrong-[insert next name here] is telling the truth concerning the domestic abuse that allegedly took place at the hands of former husband Russell Armstrong. Perhaps we are right to question her claims; perhaps not.
Taking heed from Camille Grammer and the internet, the mainstream media is starting to do a little look-see into what they perceive as some inaccuracies in Taylor’s stories. The Daily Beast, which featured a scathing exposé into Russell and Taylor’s grifter behavior this summer, decided to do a little more research on the topic of Taylor and her penchant for dishonesty.
Drawing the most attention to suspicions about Taylor’s alleged claims are Russell’s family and friends; namely his sister Laurie Kelsoe and his childhood friend Randy Edwards. Russell’s family has claimed Taylor never contacted them following Russell’s passing and that they have not seen Kennedy.
Taylor disputes that. “No one has reached out to me and said, ‘Hey, Taylor is there anything we can do for you and Kennedy? No one from his family has called,” Taylor reveals. “Besides, I am in contact with Russell’s dad. I talk with him every couple of weeks and we’ve sent letters back and forth.” Additionally, Taylor claims her attorney has contacted the mothers of Russell’s two older children because she is putting together photo scrapbooks for each of his sons, “And I kept a suit of their dad’s for each of them to have.”
This past weekend Taylor released a medical document confirming she suffered an eye injury in early June. Taylor asserts the injury to her orbital floor was sustained at the hands of Russell at the Four Seasons hotel after celebrating her birthday. According to Taylor the two were partying and when they came back to the hotel a fight ensued about her cheating on him – which culminated when Russell punched her in the the eye. She says almost immediately afterwards her eye turned turned black. “Booze always exacerbated things,” Taylor admits.
Taylor told Dr. Phil in a televised interview filmed shortly after she filed for divorce and released photos of her injuries to the media, that the injury happened at home, yet she explained to The Daily Beast that it happened at a hotel. When asked to explain the shifting story, Taylor clarified, “I just meant when we got home to the hotel.”
Interestingly, the day after the injury supposedly occurred, on June 12th (where her eye was apparently black, according to what she told Dr. Phil on national television), Taylor was tweeting poolside about the amazing weekend she was having! “@TaylorArmstrong Now we’re pool side at the 4 seasons and i am thinking of never leaving … i had the BEST birthday party ever! thank you Russell and all my crazy pals who joined in on the mayhem.” So how does Taylor explain this? Russell forced her to make that tweet! According to Taylor, he “sat next to me and told me what to tweet.”
When asked about the black eye she reportedly told Dr. Phil about, Taylor suddenly denies ever having a black eye from that injury. “No, no. I had orbital floor blowout—never a black eye from the punch.” So what of the photos she released to the media featuring a very prominent black eye? “That,” she says, “was a picture taken after her July 5, 2011, reconstructive surgery, which included inserting titanium mesh inside her orbital floor to, literally, keep her eyeball in the socket.” Umm… so those weren’t photos of alleged abuse? Taylor reportedly sold those photos for six figures under the pretense that they stemmed from injuries sustained by Russell.
So, let’s break this down. According to Taylor’s timeline, she had Lasik surgery in early June. She alleges Russell hit her on June 11, 2011 while vacationing with Russell – after a night of partying. On June 12, she was poolside tweeting. June 16th she was in Dallas visiting friends. On June 18th she was filming again, where all her castmates spent time with her. On June 22, she was at the hospital getting images related to her “Trauma and Right Orbital Fracture,” according to the medical records released this past Friday. Afterwards, the RHOBH cast went to Hawaii and Taylor was filmed talking with Dana Wilkey about wanting to leave Russell. On July 5th she had reconstructive surgery.
In the middle of all of this she was consistently filming for RHOBH and appeared at Lisa’s SUR launch where she claimed (alongside Dr. Sophy) she was “hurt” at the hands of Russell. It was previously reported that filming had to be put on hold for “a month” to let her heal from her wounds; yet during that time period Taylor made numerous appearances in Vegas and Beverly Hills – all of which were photographed. Additionally, several people saw Taylor the weekend after her eye injury and none noticed any injuries or disconcerting behavior!
Asked about the absence of any eye injury in the countless photographs and during the filming of RHOBH, Taylor claims Russell’s “half-open handed jab had caught his knuckle in her eye socket in such a way as to cause only internal injuries, not external injuries.” She said her injuries were worsened because of the Lasik surgery she had shortly before getting hit.
On June 16, Taylor and Russell visited friends in Dallas. Russell’s friend Jim Philips, his girlfriend Katrina and Randy saw Russell and Taylor that weekend. Granted these are close friends of Russell’s and vested in defending their friend, but both Jim and Randy claim to have an amicable relationship with Taylor. “My girlfriend was with me, and a bunch of people saw her [Taylor], tons of people, there were no bruises,” Randy said. “I’m not saying Russ (was) a saint. I know he wasn’t perfect … but he was not the person Taylor says. She is a liar.”
All three mention Taylor had no complaint about her eye and nothing looked amiss. On June 18, Taylor and Russell were filmed in a limo headed to Kyle Richard‘s White Party, allegedly returning from Vegas (not Dallas), and no injuries were apparent.
In the her memoir, Taylor describes having her jaw dislocated after Russell hit her following a 2011 Superbowl party in Dallas. On last week’s reunion, Taylor described popping it back into place over a toilet in the guest bathroom of a friend’s home, where the couple was staying during the visit. In her book, Taylor recounts “massaging it into place” in bed. No mention of a toilet.
Many are shocked by the allegation that Taylor would suffer from a dislocated jaw and have no visible injuries in the days and weeks following. She also states she did not seek medical attention. Taylor declined to give the names of the friends she was staying with when the dislocation occurred so The Daily Beast could verify her account.
A few days after the dislocation supposedly happened, Taylor and Russell were photographed on the Red Carpet for the Women’s Network of Music Celebration. No bruising or apparent side-effects (swelling, drooling, difficulty talking and smiling) were present, and she was smiling in photos. Photos of Taylor at that event are below.
Taylor is now recanting that her jaw was ever dislocated, saying it was “out of place.” She claims producers at Bravo asked her change her story! “I mean the ‘dislocated ‘ word—I mean, I think I described it as ‘out of place’ and in the editing they thought it was confusing so they used ‘dislocation.’ There was no medical diagnosis for that. But it really hurt! It was more painful than my eye.” Taylor also denied “exaggerating” the extent of her injuries.
Speaking out in defense of Russell is long-time friend Jim Phillips, who met Russell in college. “I’m the only person who knows all the bodies, all the personalities surrounding Russell … I knew Russ 30 years,” Jim explains. “As he got older he did a much better job of not getting mad. He was volatile in the past and he was always attracted to women of a similar nature.”
Indeed Russell’s past indiscretions with the law and with domestic incivility has been well documented. His ex-wife called the police over Russell’s abusive behavior (although she interestingly also believes Taylor has fabricated many of her allegations) and Russell’s ex-girlfriend filed a restraining order against him. Russell enrolled in treatment and therapy to control his anger, and both women had a good relationship with the man who fathered their children and have spoken out defending him in the press.
Moving on to another person who questions Taylor’s claims, Brandi Glanville took to her Bravo blog to discuss last week’s reunion and give her perspective. As always, we can count on Brandi to tell it like it is!
“I had absolutely no intention of fighting with Taylor,” Brandi insists. “I have tried to stay out of her business this whole season because I thought nothing good could possibly come from her situation. However when she brought up my personal business, which had nothing to do with her, I fought back.”
“I try and do the right and moral thing as often as possible, but I do have a temper and no one is perfect. I have my own opinion on the Russell/Taylor situation, but I have nothing against her personally. I honestly hope that she can find some peace in her life.”
“I think the Richard sisters have a hard time accepting responsibility for their actions. Excuses and placing blame seem to be their answers to most of life’s problems,” Brandi added. “Looking forward to next week where Kim blames all of her problems on me,” she concludes.
And speaking of the Richards sisters, tonight Kim Richards will speak out about her battle with substance abuse and her decision to enter treatment in the third segment of the RHOBH reunion. Kyle will join Kim for a portion of her interview where the two talk being sisters and dealing with difficult situations. Tonight’s segment will also feature the househusbands and some manufactured drama about Brandi’s supposed sexual interest in Ken Todd. A video clip is below!
The final segment of the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills Reunion airs on Bravo at 9/10c. A preview clip is below!
[Photos Credit: WENN]
IS THERE SOMETHING SUSPICIOUS ABOUT TAYLOR’S STORY? DOES THE TIMELINE MAKE YOU QUESTION SOME OF HER CLAIMS? IS IT WRONG FOR US TO QUESTION TAYLOR’S ALLEGATIONS OF ABUSE?
CLICK THE CONTINUE READING BUTTON FOR PHOTOS OF TAYLOR AT THE WOMEN OF MUSIC CELEBRATION & A PREVIEW!
Taylor and Russell at the February 2011 Women’s Network of Music Celebration.
A close-up of Taylor at the same event. Smiling through a dislocated jaw?
Taylor at the Critics Choice Awards on June 20, less than ten days after the Orbital Floor Injury.
