Russell Armstrong's ex-wife Barbara is talking exclusively to INSIDE EDITION to defend him against claims of abuse made by his widow, Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star Taylor Armstrong.
Before Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star Taylor Armstrong was married to Russell, he was married to a woman named Barbara.
Now, Barbara is speaking out exclusively to INSIDE EDITION, blaming the show for Russell's suicide in August.
"He said, 'Barbara, they're going to crucify me,' " Barbara told INSIDE EDITION's Jim Moret.
Barbara, who was married to Russell Armstrong for two years, says he told her he was upset that he was looking like a villain on the show.
Two days before he hanged himself, he sent her this chilling e-mail: "I'm getting destroyed! Help!"
"I started crying when I read it and he was very worried about how they were going to portray him on the show," Barbara said.
She immediately called Russell because, despite their contentious divorce, they remained close friends and they shared a son, Aiden, who is now 14.
"You talked to Russell two days before he died, did you have any sense about what he was going to do?" Moret asked.
"I knew he was upset and I knew that he was really worried about his finances [but] I didn't know it was this bad," she told Moret. "He was telling me that the show had just done him in. He said, 'I don't know what I'm going to do, my business has really taken a hit.' "
After Russell's suicide, Taylor went on a publicity spree, claiming he beat her up and gave her a black eye.
But Barbara is calling Taylor a liar.
"Was Russell, in your view, an abusive person?" Moret asked her.
"Not to the extent that she is claiming, absolutely not. I'm repulsed by it. Obviously she didn't love him," Barbara said.
"Did she ever call and say, I'm afraid?" Moret asked.
"No, not once," said Barbara.
"Did she ever call and say, I think your son's in danger?"
"No," she said.
There were two memorials for Russell, a service at Hollywood's Forest Lawn cemetery and a private family funeral in Texas, which Taylor didn't even attend.
Moret asked, "She didn't come to the funeral?"
"Not in Texas, no," said Barbara.
"But this was Russell's funeral."
"I think because she had her own service here," she explained.
"For the cameras?" asked Moret.
"Mm-hmm."
Life is going on for Taylor and the rest of the Beverly Hills housewives. On the show, they continue to live their lavish lifestyles, flying on private jets, and as always there's drama galore.
Barbara doesn't want the footage that was shot of Russell before his suicide to be used on the show. She's asking Bravo to leave him out of the current season.
"Let him rest in peace," she said.
A representative for Taylor Armstrong said Barbara's interview is full of misinformation and falsehoods.
