The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star Kim Richards has had countless personal dramas play out before the cameras. She's battled demons over the last few decades, and not just the ones we've seen on Bravo.
Category
✨
PeopleTranscript
00:00The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star Kim Richards has had countless personal dramas
00:05play out before the cameras.
00:07She's battled demons over the last few decades, and not just the ones we've seen on Bravo.
00:12In the early 90s, Richards was engaged to commodities salesman John Collette.
00:17But on October 28, 1991, Collette was tragically killed.
00:21He was speaking to Richards on a phone outside a Northridge, California deli, when a hitman
00:25shot him twice in the head, execution-style, killing him instantly.
00:30At the time, Collette was under investigation for his part in defrauding 8,000 elderly investors
00:35out of nearly $150 million.
00:38Prosecutors were able to prove that the killer was paid to murder Collette and put him behind
00:42bars for 30 years to life, but they never learned he was behind it.
00:47Collette's mother, Jan Collette, spoke with People magazine in 2010, recalling,
00:51It just tore Kim apart emotionally, and she was not in good shape for a long time.
00:55She really loved John.
00:57They were a good match.
00:59During the Season 1 finale of The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills, Kim and her sister, Kyle
01:04Richards, got into a heated argument in the back of a limousine.
01:07"...Mom had to die worrying about you and stressing about you and leave this s---- on my shoulders."
01:15After Kim accused Kyle of stealing her house, Kyle took their beef to another level.
01:20"...You are a liar and sick and an alcoholic.
01:23That's right, I've said it now and everybody knows."
01:25The fight escalated to the point where the other passengers tried to intervene.
01:29Kyle called her sister, demented, and more, but something apparently clicked.
01:33During the Season 2 Real Housewives reunion special, Kim owned up to her alcohol problems.
01:38"...I'm an alcoholic.
01:41I'm an alcoholic, and I drink."
01:45The fallout from the notorious limousine fight led to a serious rift between the two women.
01:50In a blog post written by Kyle after the scene aired, she said,
01:53"...my heart was broken and I suffered an incredible amount of anxiety and panic attacks.
01:58Next to losing my mother, this was the most difficult time of my life."
02:01But all hope wasn't lost.
02:03In December 2011, following the dramatic conclusion of Real Housewives of Beverly Hills Season
02:081, Richards checked into rehab.
02:11Kim and Kyle continue to work on their relationship, and in a 2011 interview with People, Kim and
02:15Kyle shared,
02:16"...it's a day-by-day thing that we work on, because what happened was extremely painful.
02:21It's not going to cure itself overnight, and hopefully we will grow past all that happened
02:25and move forward and get stronger and stronger."
02:27The sisters did eventually find their way back to a good place.
02:31Kim admitted that the treatment she received in rehab helped her become a better version
02:34of herself.
02:35By the end of 2013, she told People she had turned over a new leaf with her sister.
02:40"...Kyle and I really were able to put it together during this Christmas."
02:45In fall 2024, however, Richards' sobriety took a hit.
02:49In September, TMZ reported that Kim and Kyle were at a Hilton hotel when Kim got out of
02:53control.
02:54Police were called, but she refused to leave when asked, so the LAPD arrested her and took
02:58her to a hospital, where she was placed under psychiatric hold.
03:02An insider told People that Kim's battle with alcohol addiction had caused a serious rift
03:06between her and her sisters, Kyle and Kathy Hilton, driving them to their breaking point.
03:11The source explained,
03:13It particularly weighs heavily on Kyle, who has always been the worrier of the family.
03:18She does her best to take care of Kim, and essentially bankrolls Kim's life, with Kathy,
03:23but never knows where the line goes between helping and enabling.
03:27Later that month, police were called to Kyle's Los Angeles home where Kim had been living.
03:31According to TMZ, Kyle told authorities that the family wanted Kim to leave, in the hope
03:36that cutting off contact would serve as a wake-up call.
03:39Police advised Kyle that she'd have to file eviction papers if she wanted her sister out,
03:44and left Kim in the house.
03:46Kim's periods of sobriety and full-on relapse have cycled back and forth for years.
03:51While the family has been mostly quiet on the subject, Kathy did tell People,
03:54"...we love her and we support her.
03:57And that's all I can say."
03:59Richards made headlines in the spring of 2015, when tabloids caught wind of one of her children
04:04receiving psychiatric care.
04:06The Beverly Hills native has four adult children, daughters Whitney, Kimberly, and Brooke, and
04:10one son, Chad.
04:12"...I feel like I'm her caretaker because she's fragile physically and emotionally."
04:20According to Radar Online, one of Richards' kids was admitted to a psychiatric facility
04:24in the South Bay neighborhood of L.A.
04:26An unnamed source claimed,
04:27"...this wasn't an involuntary psychiatric hold, but it came very close.
04:32The individual has battled with depression for years, and it's unclear at this point
04:36how long they'll have to remain in the hospital.
04:38This is obviously very, very hard for Kim."
04:41"...I did the best I could."
04:43The news came at a difficult time for the reality star, who was struggling with her
04:47on-again, off-again relationship with her sister Kyle, and had recently come out of
04:51rehab.
04:52Richards is no stranger to a pair of handcuffs, and we're not talking about the fur-lined
04:57kind.
04:58In April 2015, she was arrested for drunken disorderly conduct at the Beverly Hills Hotel.
05:02"...Did you try to kick a police officer in the groin?"
05:05"...I don't remember that.
05:07Honestly, there were eight of them."
05:09She ultimately pleaded no contest to resisting arrest, leaving her with a three-year probation
05:14sentence and an embarrassing story to tell.
05:17In addition to her probation, a judge ordered her to attend Alcoholics Anonymous meetings
05:21for one year and perform 450 hours of community service.
05:25On top of all that, she was banned from the hotel for the foreseeable future.
05:29Richards claimed she was over three years sober at the time of the arrest, at least
05:33until earlier that evening.
05:34According to what she told Andy Cohen on Watch What Happens Live, she was driving home after
05:39having a drink at her daughter Brooke's house when she stopped at the Beverly Hills Hotel
05:42to rest for a little while, until she sobered up.
05:45Unfortunately, she refused to listen to the hotel employee who told her they were closed,
05:50and in her words,
05:51One thing led to another, but if you think Richards learned her lesson, think again.
05:55Later that August, she was arrested for stealing from Target.
05:58According to the incident report obtained by TMZ, Richards attempted to get away with
06:02two shopping carts full of goods from the dollar section before she was caught.
06:06A security guard grabbed her in the parking lot with $600 worth of stolen goods including
06:11dozens of toys and beauty products.
06:14Richards pleaded guilty to petty theft and was sentenced to 36 months probation, 52 hours
06:18of Alcoholics Anonymous, and an additional 300 hours of community service.
06:24Richards appeared on Dr. Phil shortly after her first arrest in 2015, but it probably
06:29didn't go the way she expected.
06:31She, of course, talked about what happened leading up to the Beverly Hills Hotel arrest,
06:35and some of her children asked her to go back into treatment for alcohol.
06:39But Richards wasn't up for a program that wasn't to her liking.
06:42Would you be willing to do a 60-day program?
06:44Not more than 30 days.
06:46That's when the interview went off the rails.
06:49After two of her daughters and her son admitted they didn't want her mother to come home in
06:52her current state, Kim asked,
06:54Is this an intervention?"
06:57Her kids tried to make her understand that they loved her and had her best interests
07:00at heart.
07:01But Richards wasn't having it.
07:03I just want to stop now.
07:05We'll help you.
07:06I'm done.
07:07I don't want to do it anymore.
07:08I'm not interested in your diva needs.
07:12When Dr. Phil told her he'd set up a treatment program near her home, as she'd requested,
07:16Richards shot him down and stormed out.
07:19I have a lot of anxiety right now.
07:21Okay, just relax.
07:22No, I don't.
07:23I have a lot of anxiety.
07:24I'm sorry.
07:25I can't.
07:26Sit down.
07:27Months after the episode aired, Kim checked herself back into rehab.
07:31She'd originally gone there after her 2015 arrest, but left against medical advice to
07:35attend her daughter Brooke's wedding.
07:37According to what Richards told Entertainment Tonight, the event was super stressful, and
07:41she doesn't quite remember what happened.
07:43I looked on the ground and there were like two half little margaritas, and I think I
07:50drank one.
07:51Richards was again faced with tragedy after losing her ex-husband to cancer in 2016.
07:56She married actor and writer Monty Brinson in 1985, but they split up three years later.
08:01They remained on good terms, however, as they co-parented their daughter Brooke in the years
08:05that followed.
08:07Monty's definitely was the best friend I've ever had in my life.
08:13Brinson was diagnosed with lung cancer in 2014.
08:16He went in for a checkup and came out with a terminal diagnosis.
08:20In a blog post, Richards described learning the news and what happened after, writing,
08:24"...the words you never want to hear, and the thought of telling our daughter.
08:28Over that week we decided to have a wedding with just our immediate family, so that we
08:32could be sure that Monty would be able to walk Brooke down the aisle."
08:36I was glad he was going first, because he didn't think he could bear if it were me,
08:40and then he had to be left here.
08:43Richards remained by Brinson's side up until his death two years later, often posting photos
08:47with him to Instagram and expressing her gratitude for the time they spent together.
08:51In one, she wrote,
08:52"...having you here, Monty, is the best gift of all.
08:54I love you so much, Monty."
08:56As for Brinson, he kept his positive attitude throughout his treatment, grateful for the
09:00amount of love and support he received by way of his ex-wife's life in the spotlight.
09:05In 2015, he took to Instagram to post,
09:07"...I've felt love from all over the world and it's made my heart stronger than ever
09:12before.
09:13So, I'd like to thank God for letting me experience this journey and hopefully it will help others
09:17through my experience to live life with love."
09:20Brinson died on January 24th, 2016, at the age of 58.
09:25If you or anyone you know needs help with addiction issues, help is available.
09:30Visit the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration website or contact
09:34SAMHSA's National Helpline at 1-800-662-4357.