Will Kardashian Backlash Hurt ‘Kourtney and Kim Take New York’?

By Raechal Leone Shewfelt |

"Kourtney and Kim Take New York" is back! Timothy White/E! Entertainment

I have a confession -- make that konfession: I don't mind the Kardashians. While I roll my eyes at how willing Kim, Kourtney, Khloe, and all the rest are to constantly step into the spotlight, I admit that I'm fascinated that they've managed to turn acting like a more exaggerated version of themselves into a multimillion dollar empire. So when a friend asked me to join her for a book signing with the trio in L.A., I agreed. Part of me was curious about whether the alleged Kardashian backlash would hurt the turnout. It was sparked by a story you've heard plenty of times by now: Kim's decision to file for divorce on October 31 from NBA player Kris Humphries, her husband of just 72 days whom she wed in a super-hyped, two-part TV wedding special. More than 150,000 people have reportedly signed an online petition urging E! to stop airing "Keeping Up With the Kardashians."

Kris Humphries and Scott Disick co-star. Timothy White/E! Entertainment

But none of this seemed to have any effect on the reality stars' adoring fans, who lined up by the hundreds to have their copy of "Dollhouse" signed by the sisters. Unfortunately, Kim canceled when she cleared her schedule through the holidays, presumably because she's upset about the split. Kourtney was caught in traffic, so she arrived after the first half hour ... which was longer than we were willing to stay. However, Khloe was there in full effect, shorter and slimmer than we expected from photos, and whisked through the store with security, politely waving and cooing "hi" to the mostly tween and teen girls (and guys!) there. Some people in the crowd were clapping, a few were shrieking "Khloe," and cell phone cameras went off like crazy. I've been to plenty of book signings, but none of them had been as chaotic as this.

 

So much for the Kardashian backlash! After that experience, I don't care what people say about being sick of the Kardashians. I still think we're interested in them. And I believe that the family's latest show, "Kourtney and Kim Take New York," will be bigger than ever. The "Keeping Up With the Kardashians" season finale in September, which showed Kris proposing to Kim, was watched by more than 3.3 million people -- 9 percent higher than the season's average. The preview for the new season of the NYC show offers a peek at what went wrong between the newlyweds, so I'm just guessing that plenty of peeps will still be willing to tune in. Will you?