
It's taken most divas a lifetime before they become known by only one name. For reality television vixen Omarosa, it only took 15 episodes.
The 33-year-old, Youngstown, Ohio-native (who's full name is Omarosa Manigault) became a household name in the winter of 2004, when her sassy and often controversial antics on Donald Trump's hit NBC reality show 'The Apprentice' made people take note.
The then-married, but now-divorced former White House employee was able to stretch her fifteen minutes of fame into a thriving career in entertainment, with guest spots on the sitcom 'Girlfriends,' NBC's 'Fear Factor,' the soap opera 'Passions,' Court TV's 'House of Clues,' and Bravo's 'Celebrity Poker showdown.'
A constant on the lecture circuit, both at colleges and corporate events, the one-time pageant contestant has hosted the 'Annual Mrs. America Pageant' for the last several years, appeared on Oxygen's 'Girls Behaving Badly' and had an infamous feud with supermodel Janice Dickerson on VH1's, 'The Surreal Life.'
Omarosa and her mother, Theresa Manigault also appeared on the Discovery Health series 'Plastic Surgery: Before & After.' On that show, the former Mrs. Aaron Stallworth, in her owns words, "relinquished the title as the president of the Itty Bitty Titty Committee" and had her "negative A-cup" transformed into a "full voluptuous C-cup."
And for those who were hoping she had tendered her crown as the 'Queen of Reality Television' – think again! To people who thought she was gone, she declares: "I never left!"
So many people are saying, 'The bitch is back!' How does that make you feel?
What tickles me the most is that people don't realize that I am one of the few television personalities in the non-scripted reality genre that has worked consistently. From when we taped the first 'Apprentice' in 2003, until when we taped 'Celebrity Apprentice' in January 2008, I have worked constantly.
You didn't waste any time before you began cutting up this season.
The only way that you win money for your charity is by being project manager. The only way you win money is by putting your neck on the line. I am truly there to bring home money for my charity, Positive Vibrations in
Now contestant Piers Morgan, the British tabloid editor who's a judge on 'America's Got Talent,' told the New York Post that you wanted to have a "showmance" with him, which is basically a romance between two people just for TV. Is that true?
This man came to me and said he studied the DVD from the first season and studied everything I had done. He essentially said to me that he wanted to be BrOmarosa – the British Omarosa. It was the highest form of flattery, right? In sharing information and knowledge about past seasons with him, he wanted to know about a very famous couple from the first season, Nick [Warnock] and Amy [Henry]. From that, he made the impression that I wanted a "showmance" with him? Trust me, his yellow, rotten, disgusting teeth; his horrible, alcoholic breath; and his inability to grasp reality are all but three reasons why that would never happen! Not even to advance me in the show! I'll do anything to win, but I won't do that!
You became a "bad girl" because people say you sabotaged Kwame Jackson from the first season. But a source told me that you two actually were lovers. Is that true?
I want to know where you got that information from?
I can't tell you that. But is it true?
I am very reluctant to talk about that because Kwame has made such a career out of being the victim of the first season. 'Woe is me...look what happened to me.' I don't want to take that from him. His role as victim has been very lucrative for him. But Kwame and I had a closer relationship than what was portrayed on the show, that's all I say.
So you won't disclose if it was a sexual relationship?
I won't specify whether it was sexual, but I'll say that it was a very unique relationship that was not portrayed on the show. That's something that I think Kwame and I will have to share between the two of us, but it's not something I am willing to share publicly.
And apparently being the "victim" hasn't been too lucrative for him, because the papers are reporting that he is having financial trouble.
To hear that he is struggling and having problems makes me very sad. I am hoping he's able to overcome the financial hardships that he is having right now.
You were all over TMZ recently because of that "spoiler" video.
Did you see that spoiler? It really had legs and bounced around all over the place. I got calls from the powers that be and got into a lot of trouble. Clearly, if you watch the TMZ interview, Nely Galán and I are having a good time laughing. It was all done in jest.
And you and Nely have become friends. Who else have you befriended from the show?
Nely, Nadia Comaneci and Marilu Henner. We're inseparable! They're like the sisters I never had. Though I have one sister named Gladys that lives in
Did you experience Gene Simmons' notorious tongue before he was fired?
Carol Alt and I had his tongue rammed down our throats. Everyone around us thought it was funny, but I was terrified. He grabbed me while we were posing for a picture and felt that I needed to experience his infamous tongue. He straddled Carol Alt, grabbed her face and does the tongue thing. We both looked at each other and I said, 'I think we've both been molested.'
I hear you have a line of golf clubs coming out, but before I let you go, I have to know, if you could join any other reality show on television, which one would you chose?
There are three shows that I am addicted to that I would love to be on. I would love to be on 'Dancing with the Stars.' I am addicted to 'The Amazing Race.' And I would love to do 'Big Brother.'
******
For details on Omarosa's 'Celebrity Apprentice' charity Positive Vibrations go to www.TAMUSEUM.org.
For more information on Omarosa, visit her online at www.Omarosa.com.
Comments: (255)
Add a comment
By: YouGOGirl!! on 1/31/2008 4:22PM
This is one tough sister!! I try to teach my daughters that they have to be tough. The world is not going to give you anything! You got to go out there and take it!! Omorosa really should start a program to teach more women how to be strong. I love what she is doing for those kids in Compton. I like that she gives back to the black community. Way to go O! me and my girls are rooting for you sistah!!
Reply to this Comment | Report This
By: Brandi on 2/01/2008 10:33PM
She's just nasty. Whom ever writes her script - and I'll bet she does have one for every word that leaves her mouth- should win the big prize because they have kept her around when she wouldn't be able to do it by herself. I'll just be glad when she's gone again. Nothing worth hearing coming from her. She's a want to be.
Reply to this Comment | Report This
By: Disgrace on 2/02/2008 12:30AM
Black People we are SO PATHETIC, we sit around complaining about Omarosa because she's tough. But then support "Ms. New York".
Let's be honest may "animalistic NEGROS", Omarosa is NOT GHETTO ENOUGH. If she was not articulate, and educated, but LOUD, GHETTO FABULOUS, and GANGSTA we would say "you go girl, tell em".
Omarosa is a TOUGH AS NAILS business woman, with many ACCOMPLISHMENTS, and our community CAN NOT RELATE TO HER, at least the LOW STANDARD "NEGROS".
BE HONEST, then Black Woman complain about our image, "shut the hell up", would Ms. New York have gotten on Donald Trumps Show?
Sometimes I'm so ASHAMED.
Reply to this Comment | Report This
By: danni on 2/02/2008 7:15AM
Omarosa and New York are not really that way. I think they did it for the publicity alone. And hey, I ain't mad at 'em.
Reply to this Comment | Report This
By: Laiconna on 2/02/2008 7:53AM
Omorossa and New York are two separate individuals. New York is vulgar and loud. (I have enjoyed watching some of the clips from I Love New York on VH1) Omorossa is indeed articulate and pushy. But her pushiness is one that I can endure because of her ability to speak without using profanity with every sentence. I hope her much success in whatever endeavour she pursues. I admire a confident women who is also intellligent.
Reply to this Comment | Report This
By: Loretha on 2/02/2008 8:49AM
I have always admired Omarosa from the 1st episodes of the apprentice.Those caucasian girls were out to get her from day 1 because they were too weak to deal with such this kind of woman.Omarosa knew the deck was stacked against her intentionally when they had no sistas she could relate with, but a bunch of thers that were probably not used to dealing with a black woman especially one with a strong backbone to take on all of them.They were all huddled in a room and agreed that her personality was too dominant and they said "we are gonna have to get rid of her,she's gonna be a problem" so they jabbed at her any way they could til her claws got deeper under their skin.Omarosa is nothing like Ms New York.She carried herself with respect and demanded it in return.New York do what she feels she need to do to make money and although it makes her look tacky thats her business and she has to deal with that at the end of the day until she wants to be a better woman.Remember there are white reality shows with white females just as tacky and being freaks,so while attacking one race of women for this disgraceful behavior remember other races are doing the same thing in the name of Reality TV.Its not a racial thing its a disgraceful thing across the board and across all racial lines.
Reply to this Comment | Report This
By: BIG KEV on 2/02/2008 8:56AM
Coming from a Blackman "WHO THE HELL IS OMAROSA?"!
Reply to this Comment | Report This
By: emil phillip jones on 2/02/2008 9:02AM
Omarosa is the bomb.... I would love for my daughter to be like her
Reply to this Comment | Report This
By: Eve on 2/05/2008 6:16PM
You are lokking for more publicity cuz yours is dead already, one does not allow something one does not want, why now omarosa?, why didn`t you sue the crap out of him. Your 15 minutes of fame is over and Miss. New York is next your no real actors, drama queens are what your about. hope to not hear about you again.
Reply to this Comment | Report This
By: D, Palmer on 2/16/2008 12:43AM
You are alright with me,MS Omarosa.Whites do not know how to take you,they think that African- Americans are inferior,and when it is known to them that we are not, then they need to do anything possible to put us (as they call it) in our place. So to the other Ms O do your thang, girl.
Reply to this Comment | Report This