Dina Manzo: Why I Left Housewives

Dina Manzo, the former Real Housewives of New Jersey cast member, revealed Wednesday to Life & Style magazine that the reason she left the show was because, she alleges, her on-air nemesis Danielle Staub tried to have her daughter taken away. Manzo, the 40-year-old mother of now-14-year-old Lexi, says that during the show’s first season, which filmed in 2008, she and her daughter’s father, Manzo’s ex husband, were both required to give permission for her to appear on television. "My ex-husband was well aware of Lexi's involvement in the show," Manzo told the tabloid. But once her ex saw the show, he reportedly decided he did not want his daughter on it. At that point, Manzo claims, Staub began spreading rumors in an effort to turn Manzo’s ex against her. "She told my ex's family that I'd actually forged his signature on the contracts, which I did not," Manzo says. "She supplied him with every phone number of everybody he'd need to follow through with a lawsuit." Though he did not believe Staub, Manzo was still hurt. “I could lose custody," Manzo says. "She just wanted to hurt me." Manzo also claims Staub is now saying that her current husband left her for someone younger. The former reality-TV star says, however, “Things are better than ever.”