Victoria Gunvalson (born March 27, 1962) (

née The birth name is the name of the person given upon their birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name or to the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a births registe ...

Steinmetz; formerly Wolfsmith) is an American reality television personality and

businesswoman A businessperson, also referred to as a businessman or businesswoman, is an individual who has founded, owns, or holds shares in (including as an angel investor) a private-sector company. A businessperson undertakes activities (commercial ...

. She is best known as an original cast member of the

Bravo Bravo(s) or The Bravo(s) may refer to: Arts and entertainment Music Groups and labels * Bravo (band), a Russian rock band * Bravo (Spanish group), represented Spain at Eurovision 1984 * Bravo Music, an American concert band music publishing compa ...

reality television series ''

The Real Housewives of Orange County ''The Real Housewives of Orange County'', abbreviated ''RHOC'', is an American reality television series that premiered on Bravo (American TV network), Bravo on March 21, 2006. It has aired eighteen seasons and focuses on the personal and prof ...

(RHOC)'', featuring in 16 of the 18 seasons since its 2006 premiere. She is the founder and CEO of Coto Insurance.

Career

She is one of the original cast members of

's reality television show ''

.'' In January 2020, Gunvalson departed the franchise but she has made guest appearances in season 17 and in season 18. In June 2022, Gunvalson starred in the second season of ''

The Real Housewives Ultimate Girls Trip ''The Real Housewives Ultimate Girls Trip'', abbreviated as ''RHUGT'', is an American reality television series that premiered on Peacock on November 16, 2021. The series follows several women from ''The Real Housewives'' franchise as they vacat ...

'', a spin-off featuring various women from ''

The Real Housewives ''The Real Housewives'' is an American reality television franchise that began on March 21, 2006, with '' The Real Housewives of Orange County''. Each installment of the franchise documents the personal and professional lives of a group of afflu ...

'' franchise, which premiered on

Peacock Peafowl is a common name for two bird species of the genus '' Pavo'' and one species of the closely related genus '' Afropavo'' within the tribe Pavonini of the family Phasianidae (the pheasants and their allies). Male peafowl are referred t ...

. She was set to star in the fifth season of ''The Real Housewives Ultimate Girls Trip'', which was set to premiere in 2024. In 2020, she hosted a podcast titled ''Whoop It Up with Vicki''. Gunvalson owns an insurance agency in

Coto de Caza, California Coto de Caza (Spanish for "Hunting Reserve") is a census-designated place (CDP) and guard-gated private community in Orange County, California, United States. The population was 14,710 at the 2020 census. The CDP is a suburban planned community ...

Personal life

Gunvalson is one of five children. Her father owned a construction company, and her mother was a housewife. According to Bravo, when Gunvalson was 5 years old, she was diagnosed with an inner ear tumor called

cholesteatoma Cholesteatoma is a destructive and expanding growth consisting of keratinizing squamous epithelium in the middle ear and/or mastoid process. Cholesteatomas are not cancerous as the name may suggest, but can cause significant problems because of the ...

. She underwent surgery which removed the tumor. She lost 50% of her hearing in her right ear after the surgery. By the time she was 25, she had undergone 5 more additional surgeries and completely lost hearing in her right ear. When she was 32, the tumor had grown back and wrapped around the facial nerve, pierced through her skull and started creeping up towards the right side of her brain. She underwent one last surgery which could have had facial nerve damage ramifications, she fully recovered but still has no hearing in her right ear. She married her first husband Michael J. Wolfsmith at the age of 21 and they had two children. At the age of 29, they divorced and she began a part-time job at her father's construction company. In 1991, after her father's death from

Alzheimer's disease Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disease and the cause of 60–70% of cases of dementia. The most common early symptom is difficulty in remembering recent events. As the disease advances, symptoms can include problems wit ...

, she joined the health insurance business. In 1994, she married Donn Gunvalson and founded Coto Insurance and Financial Services, after obtaining her insurance license in

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

. Vicki and Donn divorced in 2014. During the tenth season of ''

'' in 2015, Gunvalson dated Brooks Ayers. It was revealed that Ayers' claim that he had cancer, which was a story line throughout the season, was untrue, and that Gunvalson was conned. Ayers admitted that he had fabricated "documents to 'prove' to the world that I, in fact, have cancer." Vicki was engaged to Steve Lodge, brother of

Roger Lodge Roger Lodge (born August 19, 1960) is an American TV game show and sports radio host and actor. He is known for hosting the syndicated dating show ''Blind Date''. Lodge's acting credits include appearances on the ABC sitcom ''Full House''; CBS's ...

, from April 2019 until September of 2021. In November 2021, Gunvalson revealed she had recently battled cancer.

Filmography

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Gunvalson, Vicki 1962 births American businesspeople in insurance Businesspeople from California California Republicans Living people People from Cook County, Illinois

Career

Personal life

Filmography

See also

References

External links