On Aug. 5, Bravo will present the fifth iteration of the 'Real Housewives' franchise (not including the spin-offs 'Bethenny Getting Married?' and 'Date My Ex: Jo & Slade').

Before it's even begun, the 'Real Housewives of D.C.' made news when Tareq and Michaele Salahi crashed a White House dinner. If that's a sample of the kind of nervy excess we're likely to see, 'D.C.' will fit right in with the other 'Real Housewives.'

We did a little review of the past few years on Bravo's 'Real Housewives' shows and compiled some of our favorite, crazy moments. Remember these?

'The Real Housewives of Orange County'
In the original series, it seemed like the outrageous behavior was an Orange County thing. How else could you explain work-aholic, smothering mother Vicki Gunvalson thinking that her son Michael would welcome her surprise visit to his Boulder college digs during a football Saturday. Vicki's meltdown was hilarious because she truly believed Michael would be glad to see her.

While Vicki's intensity was off the chart, 'O.C.' also gave us Gretchen Rossi's getting over Jeff's dying by taking a trip to party with her old chums. Then this past season we had Tamra and Simon Barney's marriage coming apart like 'Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf' and Lynn Curtin being evicted from her home because she was shocked to learn that her husband was broke. Good thing they kept the cameras rolling.

Is it any wonder the more down-to-earth, normal ladies -- Lauri Waring and Jeana Keough -- bailed on the series?

'Real Housewives of New York City'
Last week, Bravo repeated the first season of 'The Real Housewives of New York City' and it was amazing how sedate it seemed compared to the just-ended third season. What a difference celebrity makes? Jill Zarin seemed determined to emerge as the biggest star on the show this year by being a bitch on wheels. To say that it blew up in her face is an understatement.

But nothing has ever been quite as wacky on 'Real Housewives of New York City' as Kelly Bensimon's bizarre breakdown on Ramona Singer's girls-only yacht cruise to St. John's. During the reunion show(s), Kelly declared that she had been on Scary Island and a the victim of systematic bullying.

The tennis match between Ramona and Jill, which once seemed coarse and volatile, is tame in retrospect. And when it comes to 'Housewives'' nastiness, you'd be hard pressed to find a better example than Jill refusing to accept Bethenny's offer to mend fences while Luann listened in and Frankel cried her eyes out.


'Real Housewives of Atlanta'
The third incarnation of 'Real Housewives' were the ladies from Atlanta, and with them came a whole new level of nuttiness. Sheree Whitfield's egomania was blatantly on display, never more so than when she had a fashion show for She by Sheree without any clothes to show! Then there was the time she got into a screaming match with a party planner for not creating the proper atmosphere for her Independence Party!

Kim Zolciak's musical career -- 'Don't Be Tardy for the Party' -- has been quite strange since she can't actually sing. Kandi Buress can sing, but what was she thinking by doing Nene's bizarro alter-ego photo session that recreated a drunken car crash. Yeech!

'Real Housewives of New Jersey'
You have to love a show that creates an entry in the urban dictionary. Before Teresa Giudice's table flipping incident during the first season finale dinner party, table flipping wasn't an actual 'thing.' Now it's legendary. But you can't talk about the craziness on 'Real Housewives of New Jersey' without mentioned Danielle Staub.

Danielle is a paranoid piece of work who believes the Manzo family is out to get her. That's why she invited her friend, ex-con Danny, to come with her to an event at the Manzo's establishment, The Brownstone, and asked the Hell's Angels to meet them there! Can you say overkill?

There are other moments of madness on 'New Jersey,' too, even little asides like Caroline Manzo confessing that she shaves her face. Yes, she said it. It's almost as disturbing a thing as Dina's overt affection to her hairless cat Grandma Wrinkles.

Where do you think 'Real Housewives of D.C.' will rank on the crazy scale?