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Bryan Callen is an American entertainer who has shown prowess as a stand-up comedian, actor, writer, and podcaster. He is best recognized for his comedic talents on the MADtv sketch comedy series where he has accurately impersonated people like Bill Clinton, Al Gore, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Robert De Niro, and Steven Seagal since the show premiered in 1995.
On the acting front, he is noted for his appearances in projects like 10 Rules of Sleeping Around and The Hangover film series amongst many others. More so, as a podcaster, he has gained popularity as the co-host of The Fighter and the Kid with Brendan Schaub. But amidst his very remarkable career heights, Callen is also known to have had his own share of failures when it comes to relationships. His 11-year marriage was terminated in 2020 but that was far from the worst thing that happened to him as the comedian’s name was later dragged in the mud with rape and sexual misconduct claims leveled against him.
Bryan Callen Faced an Unexpected Wave of Sexual Allegations in July 2020
It is known that comedian Chris D’Elia received a lot of backlash in May 2020 for sexual misconduct, however, he was not the last person to face such allegations as his close friend Bryan Callen faced his own share of the accusations a few months later in July.
According to the L.A. Times, 4 women came to them with detailed statements accusing Callen of sexual misconduct. The allegations go as far back as 1999 when Kathryn Fiore Tigerman had claimed to be raped by Callen. Tigerman said she had run into Callen in Los Angeles during the early days of her acting career. The pair became friends since they had known themselves back in New York where her dad, Bill Fiore, had helped him get some roles when his career was beginning.
The two were as a result quite excited to reunite in L.A., however, unknown to Tigerman, Callen had other plans up his sleeves and after taking her to dinner one night, he forced himself on her amidst protests for him to stop. After the incident, Tigerman severed ties with him and moved on but when the recent allegation of D’Elia came to light in May 2020 and Callen was mentioned in the whole mess, she summoned the courage to tell the world what she did to him.
Just like Tigerman, some other women also came out to expose the comedian for his indecent acts towards them. One of these women was Rachel Green who had worked in a clothing store. Green revealed that back in 1999, Callen had pinned her to the wall of a dressing room and kissed her forcefully. She told her colleagues of the incident but no further action was taken.
Actress Claire Ganshert, who Bryan Callen had dated back in 2012, revealed that 4 years into their romance in 2016, he made what she thought was a very horrible comment. She said that the comedian made it known to her that ladies had a ‘biological, primal desire to be raped’.
Comedian Tiffany King is also a victim of Callen’s sexual escapades as he cajoled her into giving him oral sex in return for some cash and stage time. Tiffany, who was going through a very hard time financially back then, was dismayed by his offer as she stated that Callen was someone she looked up to as a comedian and had control over something she loved. She took to Instagram to express her views to her fans.
Callen’s Reaction To The Allegations Have Been Defensive
In response to the allegations made against him, Bryan Callen denied them in an interview with Times Magazine. He said: “Let me be very clear: I have never raped, forced myself upon any woman nor offered to trade stage time for sex. EVER,”. He then went on to add: “I know the truth. And I can only hold my head up high, remain true to myself, my family, my audience and know that I will not allow the cancel culture to subvert what I know and as importantly, what they know, is the truth.”
In regard to the statement he allegedly made to his past girlfriend Ganshert, he accused her of what he termed ‘mud-slinging’, meaning she joined the whole conspiracy so as to ‘get her name in the press.’ This was because he was actually in a mutual relationship with her and nothing close to what the other ladies are claiming had transpired between him and them. However, Ganshert who told Times that ‘I am not a victim but I’m standing up for that 23-year-old girl by saying that a 45-year-old man should have known better’ was technically accusing the comedian of taking advantage of her gullibility back then.
Callen wanted to talk about the allegations on his podcast but changed his mind. According to a post on Instagram, he revealed that he was “taking a leave of absence” from The Fighter and the Kid podcast for a while. He went on to say that he was not going to make a ‘stale’ statement in the bid of defending himself.
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In September 2020, word got around that the comedian had gone ahead to file a lawsuit against the husband of one of the women who accused him of rape. He did this to protect his career as the husband of the alleged victim was conspiring to end his means of livelihood. According to reports, the husband reached out to the clubs Callen was supposed to performing in and went on social media to publicize the idea that if these clubs host the comedian, it will show that they support his illicit actions and disregard the statement of his victims.
Bryan Callen Enjoyed a Remarkable Career Prior to the Misconduct Allegations
Bryan Callen launched his career as an entertainer with his role in the award-winning comic drama sketch, MADtv, where he played characters like Pool Boy from Cabana Chat with Dixie Wetsworth, motivational speaker Al Casdy, and death row inmate Jeremy Anderson. In the series, Bryan also performed impressions of notable politicians and celebrities.
His remarkable portrayals paved way for him to earn other roles in other television projects and films. TruTV Presents: World’s Dumbest is one of the earliest successful television series where Callen exhibited his humor. He has so far starred in well over 23 television shows and series. The notable ones are 7th Heaven (2004–2006), Entourage (2006–2009), In Plain Sight (2009), Goldberg (2014-2020), and Schooled (2019-2020).
In films, Bryan Callen has starred in well over 24 films, including very successful productions like The Hangover (2009), The Hangover Part II (2011), 10 Rules of Sleeping Around (2013), Joker (2019), No Safe Place (2019), and Think Like a Dog (2020). More so, Bryan’s stand up comedy has been enjoyed in many cities across America. He has released no less than 3 comedy specials; Man Class (2012), Never Grow Up (2017), and Complicated Apes (2018).
Although he is yet to land any known award for his works, Callen’s hard work over the years has garnered him wide recognition which is reflected in the numerous offers he gets to perform at different events. These works are also credited for his $2.5 million net worth which is still on the rise as he is still very much active.
Callen’s Eleven-Year-Old Marriage Also Ended in Divorce in 2020
Bryan Callen’s personal life is enshrined in secrecy and mystery. While it is known that he married Amanda Callen (nee Humphrey) on October 28th, 2008, information regarding when and where they met is not in the public domain. More so, the only known fact about their marital life is the fact that they are proud parents to two children; a son and a daughter, who they have been so careful about exposing their identities to the media. Their names and when they were born are not known to the public.
However, after being married for more than a decade, Amanda Callen filed for divorce from the comedian on February 7th, 2020 at the Los Angeles Superior Court. The pair have gone on to lead their own separate lives and have refused to give more insight into the real cause for the split. Albeit, given Bryan Callen’s love affairs, even when he was married, it is believed, his actions just caught up with him. It was a few months after this announcement that the allegations of sexual misconduct began to make rounds on the internet.
His ex-wife who is notable as a very quiet and reserved woman has not made a comment with regard to the ongoing allegations. Many are of the opinion though that if she knew of his sexual escapades all these years and stayed with him, she has betrayed not just herself but other women as she has shown over the years that she cares about women under oppression. Amanda is known for her support of the women group, HER platform which was created on Instagram in support of women empowerment.
Amanda Humphrey was in the Entertainment Business Before Becoming Engrossed with Humanitarian Works
Although Amanda has been quite secretive of her personal life, she does not fail to tell the world about her interests. One such time was when she was a model some time back in the early 2000s. Every now and then, she would take to her Instagram page to share cherished memories of her days as a model back in Milan, Italy. More so, the former model is very keen when it comes to self-care as she usually shares pictures of getting treatment for her face, including the ones she does at home with face masks.
In recent times though, Bryan Callen’s ex has taken a liking to humanitarian works and she has been involved in several outreaches aimed at solving one social problem or the other. She normally goes on social media to talk about It’s About Humanity, a charity based in Los Angeles aimed at creating publicity about the ongoing condition of separated families at the U.S borders with Mexico.
Sometime in 2019, she tagged along with Border Angels to drop water and other supplies on the paths immigrants take to cross from Mexico into the United States. Aside from her love for humans, Humprey is also notable for her love for animals especially horses. She has one named Toby whom she takes care of. When the Wolsey wildfire that ravaged Los Angeles in 2018 started, she lent her support to track down horses who got missing while trying to escape the fire.
