Tinsley Mortimer‘s reality show, “High Society,” debuted last night on the CW network — but not everyone in her family is thrilled about it.
While giving an interview to the new women’s fashion site The Gloss, fashion designer Minnie Mortimer Gaghan, Tinsley’s sister-in-law, froze when asked if any of her pieces would appear on the new show, given that she had previously named one of her dresses “The Tinsley.”
Tinsley is still technically married to Minnie’s brother, Topper, although the two are separated amid reports of increasing family tension. Minnie, who is married to “Traffic” screenwriter Stephen Gaghan, responded, “The Tinsley dress? That was my first season. Yeah. That was a year ago,” before swiftly changing the subject.
PHOTOS: ‘HIGH SOCIETY’ PLAYERS
Then, shortly after the interview, a publicist for Minnie sent editors at The Gloss a flurry of e-mails seen by Page Six which tried to kill any mention of Tinsley and “High Society” from the story.
“It’s really important to her [Minnie], and if it can’t be done, we are going to need to pull the story,” said one e-mail. After being told that the site wouldn’t drop the interview, the publicist e-mailed, “I am not asking you to censor the pieces [sic]. I am asking you for legal reasons to respect Minnie’s wishes.” The “legal reasons” were never explained.
A third e-mail read: “Did you decide to pull the story or exclude ‘High Society’ in the post?”
The Gloss editor Lilit Marcus tells Page Six, “We thought Minnie was very nice, and also enjoyed her collection. It’s unfortunate that her publicist tried to turn a molehill into a mountain.”
Asked to explain why her client had an issue with Tinsley and her show, Minnie’s publicist, Denise Vizcarra, had no comment. Tinsley didn’t get back to us.