All The Times Kate Gosselin Was Kind Of Horrible

From the first episodes of Jon & Kate Plus Eight, Kate Gosselin seemed controlling and quick to anger, while her husband, Jon, seemed passive and laid back. Mix that dynamic with a house full of eight kids and you get the rich stew of exploitation known as reality TV gold. Taking full advantage of the clashing personalities, the show producers masterfully constructed tension and drama out of normal situations like meals and diaper changes. There were times, however, when it didn't take a video editor to bring out Kate's true essence, which turned out to be a you-know-what-on-wheels.

Jon's type B personality was never a match for Kate's steamrolling. Watching their marriage become more and more strained over several seasons became the television equivalent of not being able to turn away from a car wreck. To say Jon had a midlife crisis and flaked out on his family all on his own would be denying the severity of Kate's overbearing ways. She came off like a relentless shrew and he came off like a gutless pushover. Jon & Kate Plus Eight ended with the couple's divorce, after which Jon down spiraled into bizarre obscurity. He's now a DJ. Seriously. Meanwhile, Kate continued making deals with TLC to keep herself and the kids on television.

Appearing on Sarah Palin's Alaska, Kate and her brood go camping with the former Governor in the beautiful, picturesque Last Frontier state. Kate's kids have a great time, playing with Sarah's kids, exploring nature, while Kate stands around complaining about the cold, the rain, and the lack of cleaning materials she needs to prepare lunch. It gets so bad Sarah Palin is left uncomfortable and speechless. This bears repeating, Sarah Palin is left speechless. Eventually Kate pulls the plug and decides to leave, even after asking all the kids if they want to stay or go, to which they unanimously replied, "Stay." Way to take one for the team, Kate. And by "take one," we mean "ruin," and by "team," we mean "your kids' fun."

Kate Gosselin constantly battles the media over allegations that she's exploiting her children on the several reality shows on which they've now appeared. Generally, Kate takes on her attackers solo, often citing that TV is her best opportunity to make a living for her family. Claiming that her oldest girls wanted to defend their public lives, Kate, Mady, and Cara appeared on Today in a now-infamous (and disastrous) appearance. The girls, both 13 years old at the time, naturally clammed up, to which a visibly irritated Kate ushered "Spit it out!" Shockingly, this didn't inspire any confidence in them. Then, Kate and Today host Savannah Guthrie proceeded to talk about the girls like they weren't even there for the remainder of the segment. The girls finally admitted they loved doing the show and would do another, but the damage was already done.

During yet another Today appearance (She should probably stay away from that show, huh?), Kate tried to passively bag on her ex-husband while defending her decision to keep her kids on TV. She said, " Jon may be accepting of mediocre for his kids, and working a regular job ... I want the best for my kids." It's not hard to see how people with regular jobs might take that as a slight, having their existence reduced to mediocrity by a woman who gets paid for having an accidental litter of children.

During her run on Dancing With The Stars, Kate's most memorable appearance was her paso doble with partner Tony Dovolani. Obviously a knock on her never-ending tabloid presence, Kate danced, stone faced, to an awkward rendition of Lady Gaga's song about celebrity photographers. While this may have been an artistic statement addressing her disapproval of her portrayal in the media, it really just looked like either her dress was too tight, or she was desperately in need of a bathroom. Whatever the case, she looked crazy enough to garner a parody by Jimmy Fallon.

Parked for a pit stop during an RV trip to the Grand Canyon, Kate freaked out on her kids' nanny over a "reserved" slice of pizza that her bodyguard didn't get. And if that doesn't sound crazy enough, when one of the kids eventually hands the rogue slice to the bodyguard, he does it barehanded! Seeing Kate's reaction to this offense, you'd think the kid chewed it up and spit it in the bodyguard's hand as she shouts "Disgusting!" and angrily stomps off. Whether there's any context that makes this seem reasonable, it doesn't matter. It's pizza. Who isn't happy when pizza is around?

Not surprisingly, Kate's turnover rate for nannies isn't great. After one couldn't take it anymore, she quit and gave a tell-all interview detailing Kate's excruciating requirements. Keep in mind, the nanny's identity remained confidential, so her allegations should be taken with a grain of salt, but she claimed Kate allegedly wrote a crazy rulebook for her to follow. The rulebook has things like walking softly through the house, a "no purses or grocery bags on the kitchen counter" policy, and a strict knife regimen including how they should be handled and washed (by hand only!). The nanny's most troubling revelation, however, was that Kate instructed her to eavesdrop on the kids' phone calls with Jon, and to report everything back to Kate. Yuck.