For nearly 10 years, Carl Radke has lived his life on Summer House.
The Bravo series has captured high and low moments from the medical-equipment-salesman-turned-sober-café-entrepreneur —career ups and downs, on-again/off-again/on-again friendship and business relationship with Kyle Cooke, doomed engagement to Lindsay Hubbard, loss of his brother, sobriety milestones and so much more.
But the cameras didn’t get everything, as Carl details in his new book, Cake Eater (a Pittsburgh-area term for a privileged upper- middle-class person who is handed everything).
Here are five things we learned about Carl from the book.
‘Summer House’ Wasn’t His First Foray into Reality TV
Shortly after graduating from the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University in 2007, Carl worked as a production assistant for World of Wonder, the powerhouse producers of shows including Million Dollar Listings and RuPaul’s Drag Race.
“The job at World of Wonder was far from glamorous, but it gave me my first taste of the industry,” he wrote. “I was running scripts to Tori Spelling’s house in Beverly Hills, picking up tapes from Bravo’s offices, and getting a behind-the-scenes look at how TV shows were made.
“It was exciting, don’t get me wrong, but I was making about $25,000 a year in one of the most-expensive cities in the country. When I ended up on Bravo years later, some of the people I met back then were still working the same job. One guy I kept in touch with from those days told me recently, ‘I cannot believe that skinny kid with the surfer hair hustling around the office is now on our network.’”
‘Summer House’ Cast and Crew Rallied Around Carl When He Lost His Brother
While filming the COVID-19-impacted fifth season of ‘Summer House’ in 2020, Carl learned that his older brother, Curtis, whose struggles with addiction had been mentioned on the show, had died. He quickly found support from his housemates and producers.
“I had to get outside and move, so I stepped out and called our executive producer,” Carl wrote. “She got it — her brother had his own problems with addictions. She came right over, and we just sat on the porch, crying together. No cameras, no bulls**t, just two people dealing with something horrible.
“The production team was exceptional,” he continued. “They shut everything down right away and focused on making sure I was okay. They never once tried to turn this into some storyline or content, which means everything to me. You hear about reality TV exploiting people’s worst moments, but these people actually gave a s**t about me as a human being.”
Filming Season 6 as a Newly Sober Person Wasn’t Easy
Following the death of his brother, Carl’s own addictions worsened. As ‘Summer House’ fans would later learn, he used alcohol, cocaine and Adderall to cope with stresses and insecurities that were only heightened by becoming a reality TV star.
In January 2021, he took his first steps toward recovery and returned to filming six months later sober, which brought new challenges.
“There were nights I lay awake, listening to the ongoing party downstairs, fighting the urge to join in ‘just this once,’” Carl wrote. “There were social events where I felt awkward, out of place, and unsure of how to navigate without the social lubricant of alcohol. Some conflicts were harder to brush off without the numbing effect of substances.
“But for every difficult moment, there was a corresponding benefit,” he continued. “The mental clarity. Emotional stability. The physical health improvements. The authentic connections. The memories — actually remembering every conversation, every beautiful sunset, every meaningful interaction.”
Ending a Relationship on TV Was One of the Hardest Thing He’s Experienced
Just after filming for Season 6 wrapped, Carl began dating ‘Summer House’ castmate Lindsay. The pair got engaged at the end of Season 7 and were due to get married at the end of Season 8.
Just months before their Mexico wedding, Carl called it off in front of cameras and quickly became a reality TV villain as the breakup reached near-Scandoval levels of interest.
“The hardest part about a public breakup isn’t the breakup itself; it’s everything that comes after,” he wrote.
“When two people in a normal relationship break up, they typically have the opportunity to process it privately. They can take time to heal, reflect, and move forward without scrutiny. But when you break up in the public eye– especially when you’ve canceled a wedding that was supposed to be just months away– you’re suddenly thrust into a storm of speculation, accusations, and judgement.
“I’ve experienced a lot in my life,” he continued. “I’ve lost my brother to addiction. I’ve fought my own battles with alcohol and cocaine. I’ve hit rock bottom and clawed my way back to recovery. However, the two months following the end of my engagement had been some of the most challenging in my life.
“Not because I regret the decision (I know it was the right one), but because of the narrative that has been created around it.”
After All He’s Experienced, He Still Sees Benefits in Being on TV
Carl’s now filmed two seasons of ‘Summer House’ with Lindsay since their relationship ended. In that time, she’s welcomed a daughter with her former boyfriend Turner Kufe. Dealing with challenging relationship dynamics, launching a business and facing public scrutiny have made Carl question if remaining on ‘Summer House’ is the best thing for him.
“I won’t pretend it’s been easy,” Carl wrote. “There have been days when I questioned whether the public eye was the right place for me and whether the benefits of my platform outweighed the costs to my mental health. There have been moments when I longed for anonymity, for the ability to make mistakes without millions of viewers analyzing every decision, every expression, every word.
“But then I remember the messages I receive from people who have been inspired by my recovery journey and who have found hope in seeing someone navigate this path while maintaining a public life,” he continued. “I remember the conversations I’ve had at events where someone quietly pulls me aside to share their own struggles with substances, their own fears about getting sober, and their own questions about what life looks like on the other side of addiction.”
Cake Eater is now available from Rising Action Publishing Co. Order it with The Ashley’s Amazon Associate link!
Season 10 of ‘Summer House’ debuts Feb. 3 on Bravo. Check out the trailer below.
(Photos: Instagram)
