Kim “D” DePaola shared the real reason behind Richie Wakile’s beef with cousin-in-law Joe Gorga – after the Real Housewives of New Jersey star claimed Richie was rude to him.
Recently, Richie’s wife Kathy suggested that Joe’s wife Melissa had ulterior motives when she expressed a desire to end their years-long feud with the Wakiles, who were once on the show.
Joe recently shared that he ran into Richie, who now lives in his neighborhood. According to Joe, Richie was nasty and rude when Joe greeted him. Joe alleged that Richie was still bitter because his family was taken off the show.
But in an interview for the AllAboutTRH podcast, Kim D. shared the real reason for their feud.
“When Richie and Kathy were asked to leave the show, Joe and Melissa never once picked up the phone after that as long as they lived,” said Kim. “It was just like, ‘See ya!’”
“Who does that?” Kim asked. “The first thing you [should] do is say, ‘Listen I’m sorry you got let go but I still have to feed my family and I’m staying on the show. It is my sister and maybe one day you’ll come back, but in the meantime, we could keep our relationship.’”
But according to Kim, the Gorgas “did nothing” to maintain their bond with the Wakiles.
“So what Richie [recently] said to [Joe] is, ‘I’m Mr. Wakile to you.’ – I think that was pretty kind and respectful in comparison to what he could’ve said, [and] what he really feels,” explained Kim.
Kim indicated that Kathy sees “right through” Melissa’s attempt to reconcile.
“It’s not gonna happen,” said Kim.
On a past episode of PodcastOne’s On Display With Melissa Gorga, Joe addressed his encounter with Richie, claiming he approached the cousin-in-law and asked, “What’s up, Wakile?”
“That’s Mr. Wakile to you,” Richie allegedly responded, before driving out.
“[He was] really rude and nasty,” said Joe. “You’re still bitter that you got kicked off the show … That’s what it is … Get over it.”
The Real Housewives of New Jersey airs Sunday nights on Bravo.