Keenen Ivory Wayans, better known as the creator of Fox’s sketch comedy series “In Living Color,” is the proud father of five grown kids with ex-wife Daphne Wayans.
The former couple was married only for three years, but their relationship lasted almost 15. From the famous Wayans family of entertainers, Keenen met Daphne when she was still 16, and he was 28.
However, they started dating two years later when she reached her legal age, and their relationship lasted at least 15 years.
THEIR MARRIAGE AND KIDS
By the time they tied the knot officially in 2001, they already had three of their five children: their son, Keenen Ivory Jr, daughters Jolie and Nala. That same year, they welcomed Bella Ivory, and in 2003, they had their last daughter, Daphne.
Daphne and Keenen divorced in 2004, but they manage to remain good friends to this day. After Daphne joined the cast of “Hollywood Exes,” many people started to question the reasons for their divorce.
However, she explained in an interview with MadameNoire that there was not a particular reason for their split:
"There’s not any one reason why we decided. I don’t like to call it a split or divorce because we were still together. It was more of a shift, a change in structure."
She also revealed that they live five houses apart, and while they are not husband and wife, they still operate as a family. She added:
"In the legal world, the paper seals the deal, but in the real world, there’s still a lot there. "
Keenen Ivory Wayans arrives at UNCF's 34th Annual An Evening Of Stars held at Pasadena Civic Auditorium | Getty Images
LIFE OF KEENEN WAYANS KIDS
As for the kids, Jolie, the eldest, prefers to live her life away from the spotlight, and there’s little known about her. Keenen Jr., on the other hand, seems to be following his father’s steps into the stand-up comedy world.
Nala vlogs her experiences, travels, and day-to-day routines. She signed a modeling contract with DT Model Management and was also a co-host of the reality show “The Guest House.”
Her little sisters, Bella and Daphne, are still in high school and focusing on graduating before anything else.
When Nala walked the Sherri Hill runway in 2018 at NYFW for her modeling debut, her dad made sure to surprise her with a bouquet of red roses.
She was not the only celebrity kid to walk the show as Corinne Foxx, Jamie Foxx's daughter, was also on the runway.
ELVIRA'S DEATH
Keenen's mother, Elvira Alethia Wayans, was a social worker married to Howell Stouten Wayans, a supermarket manager. She passed away in July 2020 at the age of 81.
Before her death, Elvira was a mother to ten children and many grandchildren. At the time of her death, one of her sons, Marlon, took to his Instagram to share the news.
Craig, Damien Dante, Elvira, and Howell Wayans attend the "Real Husbands Of Hollywood" & "Second Generation Wayans" screening on January 14, 2013, in New York City | Source: Getty Images
The actor opened up about his loss weeks after her passing on July 23, 2020, because it was his 48th birthday and would have been his mother's 82nd birthday.
Of her ten children, grandchildren, and in-laws she left behind, most of them work in the entertainment industry.
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