Mob Wives: Season 1 Finale Party at Pacha, NYC

Yesterday, the Mob Wives celebrated Season 1’s Finale of the show at Pacha NYC in Manhattan. There, to report on the events, was Kiawana Rich from Silive.  All four wives were at the event along with many guests and family. Among those attending were Junior Pagan, Jennifer Graziano’s son, Justin, AJ’s girlfriend, Sydney.



Ti Ti Renee with her dapper nephew Justin, son of Jennifer Graziano

The show has been a big hit from day one. However it was not so popular with the residents of Staten Island, who feel it portrays them in a bad light. I don’t agree with that stance. There is no particular group in New York City that defines the whole city or any section of the city. We are as big of a melting pot as there is going to be in this country. If anything, maybe the residents should be thanking the Mob Wives for advertising many of the businesses on their show and drawing public interest to their establishments? They just may be putting Staten Island on the map.

In any case, it looks like it was a huge celebration, as it should be, for it’s not only the end of a successful Season 1 of Mob Wives.  It's a beginning of another season to look forward to, the building of an international viewership.  We can't forget also the possible growth of Mob Wives franchise with p the addition of other city spin-offs.  There is really a lot to celebrate!  Click here to read Kiawana Rich's hands on repost of the Mob Wives wrap up party. Check out the video and let us know what you think?

Video credit: http://www.silive.com/



Mob Wives: Recap 109 Take This Book And Shove It

Renee tells Karen about Junior's "text messages"

We start off at Carla’s house. She is getting ready to take the kids to go pick up Joe, after he has spent the last 6 years in prison. She expects him to be different, he needs to adjust and to get to know the kids. Carla wants Joe to sit them down and tell them where he has been and why. She doesn’t know how they will take it.

Renee meets Tiffany Osborn, her former boss, from when she was doing wardrobe for 50 Cent and G Unit. They catch up on things, like Junior’s arrest in January. She gave up being a celebrity wardrobe stylist the last time Junior got out of jail, now she is ready to get back to work. Tiffany feels Renee makes Junior’s problems her problems, she is a drama Queen and it interferes with her work. But, it looks like she may be getting Renee some styling jobs in wardrobe soon.

At Drita’s house, Drita calls Carla to talk about Joe while she is driving home from the halfway house. Drita is more excited than Carla about Joe’s release. Carla says Joe looked good. Drita says they don’t age in prison. Drita wants to know if Joe put the moves on Carla. Drita is getting flashbacks of when she went to pick up Lee from prison last time. Carla says her son woke up at 6 am so excited about going to get Joe. Aleeya is happy for Carla’s kids and so is Drita. Drita feels sad for Aleeya because Lee isn’t coming home any time soon.

At Renee’s house, Karen arrives, and they have wine. Karen asks about Junior. Renee says that Junior said he was going to work on “us” and was going to get rid of all the other women. Renee tells Karen, then Junior went away for two days and, when he comes back, his phone rings twice during the night with texts from 2 women. He said he had to get up and make two calls. Renee is angry that he is making a fool out of her again and she doesn’t need that. Karen says he won’t change, it’s a pattern with him, she tells Renee that she is the one who has to change.

Carla is driving back home from the halfway house and the kids are crying because Joe isn’t coming home with them. They took the news about his being in jail good. It broke Carla’s heart to see her son cry. It’s a big adjustment on the kids, but they want Joe home and want to be a family and that’s not happening.

Drita and Karen meet for drinks. They talk and realize they have a long history as friends. Drita even lived with Karen at one time. They only really had that one fight a couple of weeks ago and that was about Lee.

At the therapist, Renee says she found a text message from another woman on Junior’s phone. The therapist answers, “and yet you can’t move on.” She tells her that she dates men who are chaotic and neglect her. Renee says she was a happy-go-lucky person and now she is disgusted and disappointed because she allowed this to happen. Renee wonders is she so afraid and insecure that she allows a man to walk in and out of her life anytime he wants? Now she says she is really done. The therapist says she doesn’t need him.

Carla and Drita meet at the gym. Drita almost seems happier than Carla that Joe is home. Drita explains how weird it was when Lee first came home and how difficult it was getting used to being home. Joe told the kids he was in a place where people get punished for doing bad things--jail. Jojo says he wants to go to jail, his impression of jail is that it is like a camp. They tell him he never wants to go there. Joe has to get used to being a father now that the kids are older. If Joe goes to prison again, Carla says she would be devastated for her kids.

Renee and AJ go to her favorite restaurant, Il Cortile, to talk. Renee had wanted AJ to follow in her father’s footsteps at one time, but no more. She wants AJ to go to college and get away from this “life” and the bad stuff that goes on. She wants him to live a good life. Jail is not an option for AJ. AJ tells her that he never had the mindset to go into that “life” and that he is going to college and be legit and have a family.

Drita and Karen meet at a restaurant. The book is coming together, Karen says. Karen tells Drita the first chapter is finished and she gives it to her to read. She wants to see if Drita has any questions and is comfortable with what Karen wrote. Drita says she freaked out when Karen handed her the chapter and it brought back to mind their issues about Lee and the book. Drita seems stunned not knowing how to respond. Karen tells her they settled on a title, “Shadow Of The Bull.” Karen tells Drita to be honest about chapter one.

Renee is excited about getting back to work as a wardrobe stylist. GhostFace, the rapper calls and he has a video coming out. He wants Renee to do the wardrobe for next week‘s shoot. The first day of the video, Renee is driving when Nikole calls. Nikole is on the same page as everyone else about Junior. Renee is getting the same input from all her friends. Renee gets to work and looks like she has never taken a break from her career. She gets Ghost a little thank you gift. Styling is something she loves to do, coming up with a great look…and she it keeps her distracted from Junior’s BS.

At Drita’s house Aleeya is doing math, Drita hates it. Lee calls and Drita hands the phone over to Aleeya so he can help her with her homework. But, Aleeya wants to know if Lee was upset when his friend ratted on him. Lee answers that he was more upset with himself for not seeing it coming. She also wants to know when he is coming home. He had told her at the end of fifth grade and she is in fourth grade. Lee hesitates, then he says he has no idea, then he says he’ll be home soon. Aleeya answers soon isn’t good enough.

Back at Renee’s house there is a little spring cleaning going on. Renee is taking all of Junior’s clothes out of the closet and dumping them in a suitcase. He has been playing her for a sucker and she is no sucker. The girls were right, she knows what she needs to do. She packs all his things and takes them downstairs to the door. Then she leave Junior a message to come and get all his things. She says she is setting a good example for her son that she is strong and doing what is right.

At Karen’s apartment, Karen is sitting around wondering why Drita is avoiding her calls and not getting back to her about the book. Karen is confused. She says if Drita has a problem she hopes she will call and discuss it.

Carla and Drita meet for coffee and to discuss Karen’s meeting with Drita. Drita tells Carla that Karen gave her the first chapter of her book and she didn’t read it. She is afraid she will see something she doesn’t like in it. “Why didn’t she give it to Renee?” Drita wants to know, “she’s her girl.” Carla and Drita discuss whether or not Drita should read the chapter. Drita doesn’t want to know anything about what happened 20 years ago or have it come back to hurt her children. She wants to protect her children and her husband’s name. Drita feels “attack mode” coming on and she is ready for a war. Drita does not want Aleeya to know everything about Lee.

Drita is now riled up and says she doesn’t trust Karen and so she can’t trust the book. Carla adds fuel to the fire! She tells Drita, you let her in and then she turned on you. Drita is getting that “Hulk” look in her eyes and then says, “I will smash her head in and then say this is how I feel.”

Well, that was an interesting episode and here‘s my two cents. Let me start with Carla. She is the mother of the twins and I think she should have told them about Joe’s prison time instead of lying for 6 years. Instead, she makes Joe tell them in the car on the way home? I don’t get it. Also, why didn’t she wait until Joe came out of the halfway house to get the kids involved. She could have picked him up herself. Two or four more weeks would not have made that big a difference, and then they could have spent real quality time with their father instead of a short time in the car. This was a bit traumatic in my opinion. Another thing, Carla is a trouble maker. She doesn’t even know what’s in Karen’s book, but she is getting Drita more and more upset about it. Why?

Drita is bent out of shape because Karen wants to write about Lee in her book. That’s too bad. Lee was part of Karen’s life for seven years. What is she supposed to do about that? It’s a book about her life and Lee was part of it. If Lee has things to hide, that’s on him. He’s the one who did the bad things that Drita doesn’t want her daughter to know about. It’s not like Karen is making up lies about Lee to sell her book. And, from what Karen revealed in earlier episodes, Lee was not that good to her. She owes him nothing. Karen has to do what is best for her and Karina right now. She can show her daughter how she turned her life around and is earning a living and being successful despite her past. That’s her priority as a mother, to provide for her daughter’s future. From what I saw of the finale clips, this isn’t going to end well at all between Drita and Karen.

Renee, what can I say about a woman who can’t get over her first love? And it’s not her fault. Junior knows her well and he knows what to say to manipulate her feelings for him. I hope this is the last time she gives him the opportunity to take advantage of her. However, I can’t help but be skeptical of this whole “move-in, move-out” drama. I think there is a good chance that the “move-in” was scripted because that certainly got everyone’s attention. Then, when that blows over, we have the opportunity to script a “move-out” scene. I can’t help but think that the time between the two events was brief since Junior got arrested in January and didn’t move right in and then taping ended in April. Of course, the “move-out” scenario could have been much more dramatic then it was. Let me ask you this. If your significant other went away for 2 days and came back and got two calls during the night from women, would you not throw them out right then and there? Especially since you were being mislead yet again about the relationship. Why the wait? Why discuss it with the therapist? Just kick his ass to the curb right there and then, in the middle of the night. That would have made a great scene, like the one where Carmela throws Tony’s stuff out the window. Sigh. Enough is enough!

Mob Wives: Recap Ep108 Relapses, Rats and Raccoons

Junior went out and got her pumpkin seeds. Awww

Jenn Graziano tweeted that this was one of her favorite episodes, hours before Mob Wives aired. I was already looking forward to it since they did not air an episode last week. So here I sit, at the edge of my seat, wondering what is going to happen next and prepared to tell you every detail.

Ok well let me just say I was a little bit disappointed. Though I loved seeing our Mob wives again, the “sneak peak” was really the entire highlight of the show and we already saw it. It came near the end and there wasn’t much more to it. Ok here is your recap of episode 8...

Carla and Renee go out to dinner to catch up on their lives. They toast to friendship. Carla has moved past the argument and hair pulling and put it behind her. She asks Renee about dating. Renee says her therapist told her she isn’t ready to date. Renee says she is hung up on Junior, she would rather see him than a stranger. She claims she isn’t in love with him, but he is AJ’s father. She adds, she is all Junior has, he has no mother or father. Carla tells her she thinks that Renee goes overboard with Junior and she wants to see her happy. They have known each other since they were teenagers. Carla seemed to be sincere in her concern. Renee appreciates that Carla is speaking to her like a true friend.

At Karen’s apartment a call comes in from David Seabrook. Karen tells him how much she misses their daughter Karina, and he says Karina misses her too. Karen is happy that Karina is bonding with her father because he missed out on so much of her life while he was in prison. David is adjusting to dealing with society and taking care of his daughter, with help from Karen’s mother. He feels there is a lot of responsibility to being free. Karen says she was attracted to David because he was a street guy. Karen supports him, but she can no longer deal with prison life.

Joe Ferragamo is getting out in two weeks. Carla is getting ready for him to come home by doing a little shopping with her friend Etty. They are out buying sneakers for Joe and maybe some socks, but not before Carla picks out a nice pair for herself. She shares that Joe always bought her something when he went out to buy something for himself. He was “good that way.” Of course he was using money he scammed from senior citizens, but it’s all good.

Drita meets Karen for lunch as they start to rebuild their friendship. They talk about Joe coming home and Drita wishes it could be Lee. They talk about David and his being in jail so many years that it made it impossible for Karen to keep the relationship alive. Drita can relate to what she is saying about being alone. When the men are on prison the women are suffering because there is no one there for them. Drita enjoys being with Karen and sharing a few laughs.

Renee and friend Nikole visit Dr. Klapper’s office because Renee wants more work done; her ass is flat. They take 3D pictures of her from head to foot. Renee is horrified and devastated. Renee looks at the pictures with the doctor and tells him she wants everything done: boobs lifted, a waist, a tummy tuck, and take the fat from the tummy and add it to the ass. The doctor looks stunned. That’s too much surgery. He says she will need to lose weight for the best possible outcome. Renee agrees to do whatever is necessary to get her work done, but I don’t think she will visit a gym.

At Drita’s house, her cousin Sedia calls. Drita tells her about the raccoons in the back of her house. They made a big mess with the trash. Drita is disgusted. There are 6 big raccoons out there. Drita decides she is going to get a paint gun and shoot them in the ass. Personally I doubt that would keep them away permanently. She’ll just have raccoons with orange colored asses, if she hits them.

Back at Karen’s apartment her writing coach, Carmela, shows up. Karen tells her the book deal was announced in the New York Post and there has been some backlash in the media from it. The families, of the people her dad killed, are attacking her for what Sammy did. They blame her for his crimes, even though she was just a kid, just as if she herself committed them. She is getting negative comments, some of them personal like about her weight. Some say she is profiting off the death of their loved ones. She seems hurt. Carmela says she should acknowledge the victims’ families, but she is not accountable for what her father did. Karen turned out well, and the book is about her story, not her father’s.

Back at Drita’s house, Aleeya is telling her mom about school. She had a good day and her science project was good. Drita says she never told Aleeya that Lee wasn’t coming home soon. Aleeya asks about Lee’s first time in prison and Drita said he went away because of a “rat.” Aleeya asks, “what’s a rat?” Drita explains that it’s the person who tells on everyone else so they don’t get into trouble. They ruin everyone’s lives by telling. Aleeya says that Lee made good choices by not telling. Drita corrects her and says, no, if he made good choices he wouldn’t be in jail.

Renee and Karen meet for a bite to eat. Karen tells Renee not to get more surgery. Renee is still going to have it done. They look at some newspapers. Karen says that she is always being judged by what her father did. Renee supports Karen and her book. Renee feels Karen has always been loyal. Karen appreciates it.

Lee phones Drita. She tells him the raccoons are back and he laughs. The trash is everywhere. She tells him her plan to shoot them with a paint gun. He tells her that will make a big mess. She wishes he was home to help her. He asks about Aleeya and she tells him that Aleeya said she would rather that her father be in jail than be a rat.

Junior walks into Renee’s house. He doesn’t feel good and asks for chicken soup. Renee makes him some. Renee says that Junior is sending her mixed signals and she is confused. AJ comes home. AJ doesn’t like that his mom and dad are spending so much time together. He has probably seen his mother hurt many times over the years. He tells his father he is going to hang out with a girl. Renee says he is too young to have a girlfriend. Junior has to talk to AJ about his going to jail. He tells him he will take him to go get his car and make sure he has everything he needs while he is away. Junior tells him he can come visit him with the car. Aj smiles and says, “Of course.” Junior likes the soup.

Carla goes to Drita’s house to help her with the raccoons. Drita has a huge paint gun, and she gives Carla a flashlight and tells her to watch her back. They go outside. There is a raccoon on the trash can. Drita shoots and misses. Orange paint is on the can. They go back inside and talk about how hard it is being a single mom and how they really need to have guns to protect themselves.

At Renee’s house the drama finally starts. Her friend Nikole is on the phone and Renee pours her heart out about Junior. She tells her that Junior stayed over, but it was not physical. They did sleep together in the same bed and the wedding album came out. They told each other they love each other. Renee is very emotional, she is willing to put everything in the past aside to put her family back together. She is falling in love with Junior all over again and it’s affecting her badly today. She forgives him for everything, She loves him. She can’t move on because she doesn’t feel like it’s over.

Carla is on the beach with Joe and Carmen, the twins. She tells them that daddy is coming home in 11 days. The kids are excited, they are doing a calendar countdown. They still don’t know he was in prison. Joe needs to tell them. They are going to get lots of hugs and kisses from their dad. Carla just wants them to know about his prison time and to hear it from their father.

The four mob wives go to brunch. They no sooner sit down when Renee has an announcement. She is allowing Junior to move back in with her until he goes to prison so he can spend his remaining days with AJ. None of them thinks this is a good idea. They all know she still loves him. She tells them one night , when he was tipsy, he went out to buy her pumpkin seeds. Everyone is like “so what, big deal about pumpkin seeds?” But Renee explains the significance of the pumpkin seeds. The seeds mean he is sorry. The seeds are something he remembered from an early time in their relationship, something she liked. He has been telling her he loves her and other things. She slips in that they “slept” together and that he has already been staying there. The others all flip out. None of them believes this is about AJ. Renee wants her family back. Renee says Junior is trying, he made breakfast and says he doesn’t want to be with anyone else. They are angry for all the hell he put her through and then, when he is in trouble, that’s when he comes back. That’s why she can’t get over him.

Karen says people come back when they are in trouble, and she understand why Renee wants him back. Carla says, what’s wrong with her trying? The others say she will get hurt again. Renee says, she is standing by Junior, she loves him, she is loyal and she really doesn’t care what anyone else has to say.

Ok now I’ll have my say. Not much happened this episode. We were already shown the “piece de resistance” in a clip and there wasn’t much more to it. While I enjoyed watching all four of them again, this episode was a let down for me.

Basically, Karen needs to accept the fact that she is living in her father’s shadow. As long as she bears the name Gravano and writes books and appears on television programs promoting the mob, she is going to be paying for his sins and hers. The public is not kind to anyone. What she needs to realize is that it really doesn’t matter what strangers think or feel about her. She doesn’t answer to them, she has to answer to herself, to her daughter, to her family and maybe friends. She has to be able to look herself in the mirror and be happy with who she sees. The timing of her book is a perfect way to capitalize on her new found fame. Once the story is out and people realize it’s her story, not Sammy’s, maybe they will quiet down.

I still feel Carla should have told the twins their father was in prison once she agreed to do the show. How she managed to keep it from them this long is amazing. I wouldn’t have taken that chance. I would have worried that somehow they would have learned the truth from someone else. Anyway, they will know soon enough, if they don’t already.

Drita’s raccoons were funny. It would have been great had she really hit one. They seemed to have given up their hunt very quickly. I don’t think it was too wise to try and attack wild animals. They carry many diseases and they can be vicious. I would have called a professional exterminator who specializes in “varmints” of this type. See what they have to say about keeping them away. Maybe metal garbage cans or bins, that they can’t break into, might work. Then they can go and chew on her neighbor’s garbage.

As for Renee, my heart goes out to her. She will not admit that she is still in love with Junior. All she will say is that she loves him and he is AJ’s father. She is in denial. Junior takes advantage of her feelings, that is how it comes across. He knows he can always go back and she will take him in no matter what he has done. And, as long as she maintains close contact with him and keeps her hopes alive, she will never be able to move on. Someone has to make her see that the only way for her to move on is to really break off ties, unless there is an issue with AJ, and little by little, over time, she may get over her feelings. She says she is loyal to Junior, but loyalty is a two way street. You have to earn loyalty and respect. We don’t know everything that happened in their relationship, but those are the things Renee needs to consider, especially while Junior is away.

P.S. Renee is too young for all that surgery. That kind of work doesn’t last forever and over time she may end of looking worse than had she waited till later or not had it done at all. As great as her doctor is, no one can assure her of the outcome or how long the results will last. Please think about that Renee. All you really need is a decent diet and to walk 30 to 60 minutes a day. Get a treadmill at home and watch Mob Wives while you walk. If you do that for two to three months, you won’t need surgery and you can use that money to take a cruise and meet Mr. Right!

Mob Wives: Jenn Graziano, JustJenn Productions

Jennifer Graziano, creator and executive producer of VH1’s new Mob Wives show, is no longer on speaking terms with her father Anthony Graziano, who is currently serving time in prison in North Carolina for racketeering crimes. The reason for the rift is her new business venture. Jennifer is also the sister of Renee, one of the four women featured on the show. Anthony Graziano is not happy with his daughters involvement in a show that talks about mob life.

Jenn Graziano is said to be a graduate of New York University with a Master’s degree in Business. It is nice to see that she is putting her education to good use these days. Unfortunately, this wasn’t always the case.

Prior to starting up her production company, Jenn has had her own brush with the law when she was 28. Documents, from the United State Court of Appeals indicate, her legal issues occurred around the year 2000, while Jenn was a graduate student. She was allegedly charged with being involved in a marijuana distribution ring, allegedly run by Renee’s husband and her brother in-law, Hector “Junior” Pagan. DEA Agent, Michael Cline, is reported to have documented various incriminating acts, in the arresting complaint, implicating Jenn. Some of these alleged criminal acts include details, gotten from overheard conversations, “discussing pickups, work schedules, and paydays of runners who delivered pot to customers around the city.” (http://www.ipsn.org/)

Jenn started her career at Sony Entertainment in 2001 and worked in their Artist & Repertoire department. She left Sony to manage an R&B/hiphop artist, Frankee. Jenn is said to have written her number one, hit single, F.U.R.B. (FU Right Back) for her (links below). Her last position was director in the consumer lifestyle marketing department of MWW Group while also heading up her own company, Bounce Marketing, which paired artists with brand names such as Sony and Dodge.

JustJenn Productions is a new company and Mob Wives is its first production. It appears that Jennifer pitched the idea to The Weinstein Co (TWC) and Ben Silverman’s Electus production companies, who are credited as producers of the show along with JustJenn. The producers may have then pitched the show to various cable stations and it was picked up by VH1 with a commitment for a 10 episode series. Taping began around Thanksgiving 2010. The first episode aired on April 17^th, 2011 and was watched by over 2 million viewers. JustJenn is currently operating out of TWC offices in LA and New York.



F.U.R.B. Official Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B1K0pUSSFUo

F.U.R.B. Profanity version: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u_eVRqCH_Bk