Fashion designer Heather Thomson is one of three new women on "The Real Housewives of New York"

GOTHAM'S NEW GIRLS: Everything is bigger and better in New York City, including the socialite circle. This scene is filled with multimillionaires, royalty's distant relatives, business moguls and a slew of beautiful people -- it offers great potential for reality TV.

Three New Yorkers will soon reveal what gives them star power as they join the cast of Bravo's "The Real Housewives of New York City" for the show's fifth season, which premieres on Monday, June 4.

The network recently announced that Aviva Drescher, Carole Radziwill and Heather Thomson have joined the remaining three cast members -- LuAnn de Lesseps, Sonja Morgan and Ramona Singer -- for the new season.

Drescher is the first cast member to be born and raised in the Big Apple. Having lost a leg when she was a child, Drescher now works as the national spokesperson for the amputee organization One Step Ahead. She lives with her husband Reid and their four children on the Upper East Side.

Viewers may recognize Radziwill from her time working as a journalist for ABC News. She was married to fellow producer Anthony Radziwill, who lost his battle with cancer in 1999. Now, she is a best-selling author and contributing writer for "Glamour" magazine.

Thomson is a very successful businesswoman who is best known for her Yummie by Heather Thomson line of shapewear. She previously worked with Jennifer Lopez and Beyoncé Knowles and was also the design director for Sean "Diddy" Combs' clothing line, Sean John, when it first launched.

Fans will get a taste of the new dynamic as the six women get to know each other at a party in the season's 90-minute debut episode. Drama gets stirred up right away when Drescher learns that a couple of the ladies were once connected to her ex-husband, and de Lesseps continues to fight with Singer.

THE RACE AND RACISM: Before the Second World War had even begun, an American hero dealt the Nazi regime a slap in the face. To add insult to injury, the blow was made by a black athlete, who left his Aryan competitors in the dust while racing them in their own nation's capital.

The story of Olympian Jesse Owens is one of triumph, bravery, focus and strength, and it is being celebrated in a new film that airs this week as part of PBS's "American Experience" series.

Premiering on Tuesday, May 1, "Jesse Owens" highlights the track and field star who became the first black athlete to ever win four Olympic gold medals. The fact that this was all achieved at the 1936 Berlin Games makes Owens' story that much more remarkable.

"He is the quintessential Olympic hero. He stood up to racists in Germany, he stood up to racists at home, and he did it with a grace and a genius that have not been equaled," said Jeremy Schaap, an ESPN reporter who participated in the film and also authored "Triumph: The Untold Story of Jesse Owens and Hitler's Olympics."

The film examines Owens' success at the college level before the Olympics, his unlikely bond with German competitor Carl "Luz" Long, and how he survived after being banned from sanctioned amateur sporting events in his home country.

"Jesse Owens was able to carve out his own path and sustain himself, his family and his legacy during very troubling and limited times for black men," said Laurens Grant, the film's director and producer. "There were no endorsement deals for black athletes. It's incredible that he was able to achieve, survive and remain positive through it all."

Grant won an Emmy for the 2010 documentary "Freedom Riders" alongside filmmaker Stanley Nelson, who also produced and wrote "Jesse Owens."

I DO, MAMA: Countless teenage girls tuning in to "Saved by the Bell" had crushes on A.C. Slater in the '90s. Soon, their jealousy will peak when the show's former star, Mario Lopez, ties the knot with his fiancée, Broadway performer Courtney Mazza.

The couple has partnered with TLC for a new special that will chronicle every detail of the wedding preparations and will also include coverage of the ceremony. The air date and title for the special have not been announced, but the network hinted that it would premiere shortly after the wedding takes place.

Lopez and Mazza met while working together in a revival of "A Chorus Line," which marked Lopez's Broadway debut. They have since welcomed their first child together, daughter Gia, in September 2010, and they are excited to work with TLC as their wedding day approaches.

"Courtney and I already feel incredibly blessed to have found each other, and thank God for our beautiful daughter Gia. Our family is looking forward to celebrating our wedding later this year," said Lopez. "TLC is the perfect partner to help us share our love and our special day with the rest of the world."

TLC is known as the go-to network for celebrity wedding specials. Not only did it broadcast high-profile nuptials in "Nick and Vanessa's Dream Wedding" and "Niecy Nash's Wedding Bash," but it's also known for such hit wedding-themed shows as "Four Weddings," "Say Yes to the Dress" and its spinoffs.

Since "Saved by the Bell" ended, Lopez has found continued success with roles in "Pacific Blue," "The Bold and the Beautiful" and an eight-episode arc on "Nip/Tuck." He also competed in Season 3 of "Dancing With the Stars," has worked as a correspondent for celebrity news show "Extra" and currently hosts MTV's "Randy Jackson Presents America's Best Dance Crew."