RHOBH: Weird Things About Crystal Kung Minkoff's Marriage
Fashion designer turned reality star Dorit Kemsley sent shockwaves through the "Real Housewives of Beverly Hills" stratosphere when she called fellow housewife Crystal Kung Minkoff a "child bride" after Crystal supposedly referred to the rest of the cast as "shallow and uneducated." Kemsley added, "While you were busy getting married at 12, the rest of us were building businesses, graduating college, doing things — you know — to educate ourselves," she added.
In true "Housewives" fashion, Minkoff took to social media to respond to the name-calling. In the Instagram post, Minkoff rattled off a list of what she considered the "keys to a successful marriage," along with a throwback photo of her and her hubby, Rob Minkoff, on their wedding day. (Spoiler alert: no child bride to be found.) Crystal's carefully curated list included, "Set aside quality time together," "Express love and appreciation," "Manage conflict constructively," and last but certainly not least, "Buy, don't borrow diamond necklaces for your wife." Shots fired! As you may recall, early on during Season 13, Dorit's husband, Paul "PK" Kemsley, treated Dorit to an anniversary dinner a la "Pretty Woman" complete with a flashy $5 million diamond necklace that PK had procured on loan for his bride to wear the entirety of the evening. How... sweet? But speaking of Crystal's keys to a successful marriage, hers isn't exactly without its quirks. Here's our very own list of weird things about the Minkoffs' marriage.
Crystal Kung Minkoff and Rob Minkoff share a considerable age gap
While Dorit Kemsley's assertion that Crystal Kung Minkoff was a "child bride" is completely false, it is true that Crystal and her husband, Rob Minkoff, share a considerable age gap. The couple tied the knot in 2007 when Crystal was 24 and Rob was 45. Still, Crystal is adamant that the age difference has never been a problem for her. "I was 20 and he's, like, 40, you know. But my parents were 23 years apart, so it wasn't like, that off to me," she revealed on the "Scheananigans with Scheana Shay" podcast.
However, the age gap was a problem for Rob in the beginning. According to Crystal, the couple met at a party and while sparks instantly flew, Rob told her right off the bat that he didn't date younger girls. "We would like, go out, and then he would kind of break up with me after every time, like 'I can't be with you. I'm, like, I'm 40.'" But as we all know, the heart wants what the heart wants. And the rest is simply history!
The couple's first date was at a movie premiere
There's no business like show business — just ask Crystal Kung Minkoff, whose husband, Rob Minkoff, makes a living as a big-time Hollywood movie director. (Anyone here ever heard of "The Lion King"?!) According to Crystal, she met Rob at the height of his career. "He was directing 'Haunted Mansion' for Disney, and it was, like, at his studios ... he had this huge office," she recalled during an interview with podcast host Scheana Shay.
So naturally, on their first date, Rob opted to take Crystal to a movie premiere instead of some cliche fancy schmancy restaurant. The movie? "Finding Nemo," of course. Huh... a hot first date to watch an animated film about a cartoon fish. Stranger things have happened, we suppose. Still, Crystal maintains that it was perfect. "It was so intimate, yet it was our first date," Crystal gushed to Grace Ormonde Wedding Style. "By the end of the night, I was hooked."
Crystal Kung Minkoff prefers for Rob Minkoff to stay in the background on RHOBH
While Crystal Kung Minkoff doesn't get down with the notion that reality television is the kiss of death for married couples, she has admitted that she prefers for viewers and fans only to get small glimpses of her hubby on "The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills." During an interview with Scheana Shay, Crystal said she was "very intentional" about how she approached her marriage on the show. "I'm very mindful of how we work together on the show and what we're willing to, like, open up about," she explained.
Still, there has been a time or two where Rob Minkoff has willingly inserted himself into the "RHOBH" discourse. On December 8, Paul "PK" Kemsley took to Instagram to defend himself regarding loaned diamond necklace gate. "I think she liked it ?" he penned in the caption of the Instagram post. Alas, in a rare turn of events, Rob took to the comments section and replied, "Clout chasing." Ruh roh. Later, however, Rob defended his comment, claiming that the remark was all in good fun. "Just for the record, I did not accuse PK of clout chasing. And those that think I did have no sense of humor," he wrote in response to a post highlighting the drama. Hey, the ladies can't be the only ones bringing the heat, right?!