Kelsey Grammer’s daughter recently shared the ‘meanest thing’ her father ever said to her.
During a recent episode of the Pretty Basic Podcast, Greer Grammer, who is 33, discussed her relationship with her famous father.
Kelsey Grammer separated from Greer’s mother when Greer was just four. Their reconnection happened during her teenage years.
Greer recounted an encounter during her community service when her father approached her for an introduction.
“He came up to me and said, ‘Are you Greer?’ And I said, ‘Yes, I am,'” she recalled. “Then he went, ‘I’m…’ And I was like, ‘I know who you are. Duh.'”
They later met for lunch, and Greer shared: “That’s kind of what started our relationship. It took a couple of days to call him, because my mom was like, ‘Give them some time’. I was ready to call him that day, like, ‘Let’s do this thing. I got a dad now, woohoo!’ She was kind of like, ‘Take some time to think about it over the weekend. Let them process it as a family and then call.'”
In October, Kelsey celebrated the arrival of his eighth child with his fourth wife, Kayte Walsh.
The couple, married for 14 years, already have three children: 12-year-old Faith, and sons Gabriel, 10, and James, eight.
Kelsey is also a father to Spencer, 41, from his marriage to his first wife, Doreen Alderman. In addition to Greer, he has two other children, Mason, 23, and Jude, 20, with ex-wife Camille Grammer.
While Greer has mentioned that their relationship is now positive, she revealed what she considered the ‘meanest thing’ Kelsey ever said to her.
“[Grammer] was always my last name. I guess my dad did ask my mom — he told me this later — but he was like, ‘I told your mom… I said it might be better for you to not have my last name. It would be easier for you growing up.’
“I think I was like 19 when he told me that and I started sobbing, because to me that was like the meanest thing you could ever say to somebody, like… ‘I knew I wasn’t gonna be in your life, so I told my mom it would probably be easier for you to not have my last name.'”
Despite this, Greer acknowledged the suggestion was ‘fair’ and conceded that her father wasn’t ‘wrong’ in his reasoning.
Earlier this year, Kelsey spoke about his role as a parent, expressing his efforts to mend relationships with his older children after periods of ‘neglect.’
“I have neglected a couple of the kids in my life, especially the first two,” he shared with PEOPLE. “I’m trying to make up for a little of it now. I’m still their dad, so you can always have [a] chance to show up. I probably should have been a little more clear and maybe less tolerant with the older ones.
“I’m pretty tolerant with the young ones, but I’m clear about how there’s certain expectations and certain ways to navigate through a social situation: keep it close to the vest and play it straight, and you’re going to be well-served in your life.
“I’m a little more specific with them about doing their studies and being prepared. [I tell them], ‘What’s your job in life? Showing up.'”