“Real Housewives” stars come to Benton, IL
BENTON, Ill. (KBSI) – Two reality TV stars from “The Real Housewives of New York” came to Benton on Wednesday to begin filming a new show.
The two stars are Sonja Morgan and Luann Lesseps. Both played main roles in the Real Housewives of New York series.
The show will be based in the small community of Benton, Illinois.
Many gathered from across southern Illinois to welcome them.
The executive producer, Russell Staglik, is a Benton local. Staglik is a Southern Illinois University Carbondale (SIUC) alumnus and encourages people to pursue their dreams.
“The man behind this is a SIU alumnus so it’s just kind of exciting to not only interact with someone who’s working in the actual industry and getting things done but also seeing someone represent our area,” explained Brock Mills, a SIUC student.
The stars and the crew will stay in Benton for the next month and will explore the southern culture. The show is also expected to show off the Benton community.
“So, I’m figuring that people will come in just to see the celebrities and when they come to town they’ll be in our restaurants and shopping in the stores what we hope to see is that people will see what a wonderful community this is,” said Lennie Shelton, Executive Director of the Benton Chamber of Commerce.
