Gary Owen hits out at his ex-wife's shocking child support demands, months after she claimed she needed a new man in her life
Comedian Gary Owen is once again bringing his private life to the forefront in connection with a legal dispute with his ex-wife Kenya Duke.
The Ohio native released a video of his material during his show at the Helium Comedy Club in Philadelphia on Wednesday, September 18.
The clip begins with Owen, wearing a black Patriots T-shirt and a black cap, saying, “At one point, my ex-wife was asking for $44,000 a month in alimony.”
Comedian Gary Owen believes his relationship with ex-wife Kenya Duke would be better if she had a man in her life. (Photos: @garyowencomedy/Instagram, @trulykenya/Instagram)
“That’s a lot,” he added, before the crowd quickly responded with loud “Ohh!” across the room.
Owen told Shannon Sharpe on “Club Shay Shay” that he filed for divorce from Duke in Ohio in 2021, before she filed for divorce on the grounds of infidelity in Los Angeles shortly thereafter. About two months later, Duke filed additional documents demanding $44,000 in spousal support from Owen to financially support her and their children.
Responding to his audience, Owen said, “I would never do that. If the roles were reversed and she made more money than me, I would never say, 'I want $44,000 a month. No.'”
At some point, Owen realized what some women in the audience were saying, because the clip cuts to a point where he addresses one of them: “Why did you say I was lying?”
He went through the scenario again, describing step by step what had happened. “I heard you say it was $44,000. I would never ask for that much. And you said, 'You're lying.'” He then asked the woman, “Do you think I would do that?” to which she replied, “Yes. I think a man would do that, yes.”
The clarification that the woman was talking about men in general seemed to give him some relief. He said jokingly: “A man, yes – I wouldn't do that.”
But another woman continued to challenge Owen, saying, “Yes you would,” to which he responded, “No, no, no, no, I wouldn't.”
The father of five children ended the conversation with the witty remark: “There are some really sour-faced women here in Philly. I'm going to tell you that shit now.”
Addressing the men in the room, he said, “Damn, boys. What the hell is going on with women in Philly?” Before he left, he said, “Damn women here. Stop being so mad. Go to McDonald's and take your baby with you.”
Gary uploaded the short clip to his Instagram and deleted it within two hours. The clip is still available on YouTube, where commentators had a lot to say about the heckler in the audience.
One person said: “How is she going to tell you what YOU would do? …she's wild!”
Another said: “Damn, she's angry at the world.”
The last time Owen made comments about her or their children, Duke attacked her ex-husband online, but it is unclear whether she encouraged him to delete the Instagram post this time.
But it's clear the Meet the Blacks actor often uses his real life as inspiration. At a comedy show in July, an audience member asked if he and his ex were on good terms. Owen claimed they were “cordial. But yeah, I wouldn't say we're best friends.”
“I just need someone to fuck her. I think that's enough,” he said, suggesting what might help ease the tension between the two. “Like giving her a blowjob. She'll probably ask, 'How are you, Gary?'”
The former couple were married for 18 years. Since the divorce, Owen has been estranged from his two adult children, daughter Kennedy, son Austin and Duke's older son Emilio, whom the comedian adopted. His ex-wife has repeatedly claimed that Owen is a “good-for-nothing” who abandoned her and their children and stopped taking care of them financially in April 2021.
#DivestTwitter gets another “L”😭😭😭
Kenya Drake:
Gary Owen is a financially abusive and work-shy father who used “Us,” his “Swirly” mixed-race family, for punchlines.
Gary Owen: pic.twitter.com/mZxMJvAyNX
— #FirstThem NEWS🇺🇸 (@FirstThemNEWS) June 8, 2021
Duke has also hinted that the Think Like a Man actor has cheated on her multiple times, which he has admitted to, and he knows exactly why his children want nothing to do with him.
But Owen has since moved on and has given birth to twin sons Royal and Rome with his fiancée Brianna Johnson.
Duke seems to have little to no regrets about her divorce from the “Comic View” stand-up comedian. She told Hype Comedy: “His cheating or whatever he did out there, that had nothing to do with me. That was on him. So I never felt responsible. Like someone could say, 'Maybe you should have left sooner.'”
Duke further admitted that she could have managed her money better during the marriage, too. In the child support documents, she said, “Twenty-three years ago, I gave up my promising career as an account manager to solely support Gary and his career.”
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