Kelsey Grammer’s Daughter Greer Reveals “Meanest Thing” He Said After 12-Year Estrangement

Greer Grammer recalled one of dad Kelsey Grammer’s comments to her following their 12-year estrangement: “I started sobbing.”

Kelsey Grammer has had some awkward moments with his daughter Greer Grammer.

The Awkward actress—whose mom Barrie Buckner split from the Frasier actor in the mid-’90s when she was just 4 years old, which led to a 12-year estrangement from him—recalled one comment her father said to her when filling in the gaps of their time apart that felt particularly harsh.

“[Grammer] was always my last name,” Greer said on a recent episode of the Pretty Basic podcast. “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,” she continued, “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.’”

he 33-year-old also detailed how she and Kelsey reconnected, a chance encounter that happened when she was volunteering at a Christmas tree lot during her time as Miss Teen Malibu.

“He came up to me and said, ‘Are you Greer?’” she recounted. “And I said, ‘Yes, I am.’ Then he went, ‘I’m—.” And I was like, ‘I know who you are. Duh.’”

Greer shared that she met her father—who shares kids Mason, 24, and Jude, 21, with ex-wife Camille Grammer, who he was married to at the time, as well as Faith, 12, Gabriel, 10, James, 8, and Christopher, two weeks, with wife Kayte Walsh, and daughter Spencer, 42, with ex-wife Doreen Alderman—the following week for lunch.

“That’s kind of what started our relationship,” she said. “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.’”

As for where they stand now, Greer noted that while she doesn’t have a trust fund, Kelsey did pay for her to attend college and they “have a good relationship now.”

For his part, Kelsey is eager to make up for lost time.

“I have neglected a couple of the kids in my life, especially the first two,” the 70-year-old told People in May. “I’m trying to make up for a little of it now.”

He added at the time, “I’m still their dad, so you can always have [a] chance to show up.”

Keep reading for more about Kelsey’s eight children…

Spencer Grammer

Kelsey Grammer married dance instructor Doreen Alderman in 1982 and they welcomed daughter Spencer Grammer on Oct. 9, 1983.

Though they didn’t divorce until 1990, Kelsey and Doreen separated not long after Spencer was born—and the actor has since admitted to not being as present as he could have been the first time around.

“I have neglected a couple of the kids in my life, especially the first two,” Kelsey told People in May 2025. “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.”

Spencer was married to firefighter James Hesketh from 2011 to 2017 and they share son Emmett, born in October 2011.

An actress and singer known for Greek and providing the voice of Summer on Rick and Morty, Spencer fulfilled her dream of acting alongside Kelsey when they played father and daughter in 2022’s The 12 Days of Christmas Eve.

“I haven’t done any other Christmas movies, so it was my first experience in the Christmas world, but it made it momentous for me to actually do a movie with my father,” Spencer told E! News at the time. “I’ve always wanted to work with him.”

In July 2024, she mourned the death of her former stepdad Dr. Bill Skinner, in her life since she was 5 even after he and her mother split up.

“He has been there for me my whole life…no matter what I needed,” Spencer wrote on Instagram. “He was there. I always got to be his kid. He always gave me a hug, always listened, always believed in me, and always supported me.”

Greer Grammer

Kandace Greer Grammer was born Feb. 15, 1992, to Kelsey and makeup artist Barrie Buckner.

That relationship was short-lived, as the Cheers actor married Leigh-Anne Csuhany that September—a union that was annulled at the groom’s behest in 1993.

“For the most part, I had a regular childhood,” Greer told Glamour in 2015. “Sometimes though I would wonder if people wanted to be my friend because they liked me or because of who my dad was.”

While her father expressed his regret for past neglect, Greer—who appeared on a 2024 episode of the Paramount+ Frasier reboot—followed closely in his footsteps.

“I remember going to tapings of Frasier when I was around 4,” the Awkard actress told Nylon in 2014. “I knew I was at my dad’s work, but I didn’t get that he was acting for TV. It wasn’t until the second grade that it really hit me.”

Asked about the best advice her famous father had given her over the years about their shared profession, Greer told Stage Buddy in 2021, “He gives me a lot of advice but the best was one time he told me to make sure that I act because I love it. He said ‘act for the right reasons.’ One time we had a lengthy conversation where he was honest with me and talked to me about how unfair and cruel Hollywood can be to women, he said, “Don’t let it get to you.’ I still get emotional when I think about it.”

Mason Grammer

Kelsey married Camille Donatacci in 1997 and they welcomed daughter Mason Grammer on Oct. 24, 2001, via surrogate.

The end of their marriage in 2010 became engrossing fodder for The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills, which counted Camille as an original cast member when it premiered that year.

Mason, a model and graduate of Emerson College, said in 2018 that her relationship with Kelsey suffered in the wake of her parents’ messy split, but they had since repaired their bond.

“It was the hardest time of my life,” she recalled to Genlux, per Page Six. “I changed a lot after that. I had to grow up faster because I had a lot more responsibilities. My dad wasn’t around, so I didn’t see him much, and my mom had such a hard time. I became my younger brother’s mom. Everyone was on edge. My parents still don’t talk.”

Camille, who’s been married to second husband David Meyer since 2018, did throw a compliment her ex’s way, telling Page Six that Mason was “a really good student” and she “must have gotten that from [her] dad because I don’t have that kind of discipline at times!”

Jude Grammer

Kelsey and Camille welcomed son Jude Grammer on Aug. 28, 2004, also via surrogate.

The youngest of Kelsey’s non-minor children is more private than his older sisters, but Camille told Page Six in 2018 that Jude “wants to be like his dad, an actor.”

But, she added, “He doesn’t like being in pictures right now. He hides. If I get a picture of him out of him, I’m lucky!”

Faith Grammer

Two weeks after his divorce from Camille was finalized, Kelsey married flight attendant Kayte Walsh on Feb. 25, 2011.

Their daughter Faith Evangeline Elisa Grammer was born July 13, 2012, the couple explaining that, while they had originally announced they were expecting twins, “tragically we lost the little boy shortly thereafter.”

Five years later, Kelsey opened Faith American Brewery in upstate New York.

“My daughter’s name is Faith, but there’s also action in Faith. Faith is something you have to fight for,” he explained to Fox Business. “We fought for this beautiful child in our lives, and she’s our first child. And the idea of America is still something I’m willing to fight for.”

Gabriel Grammer

Kelsey Gabriel Elias Grammer was born July 22, 2014, and the boy’s father let it be known that he and Kayte were just getting started with two kids.

“I can’t imagine not trying for more because it’s been incredible,” Kelsey, who’s 25 years older than his third bride, told People when Gabriel was 5 weeks old. “As soon as [he] came out, Kayte and I were going, ‘Yeah, let’s do another one.’”

(The actor born Allen Kelsey Grammer also said they’d be following his family’s tradition of calling their boys by their middle name.)

“It’s just this overwhelming gratification of being close to life like this. It just gives you such hope and joy,” Kelsey gushed. “I’ve never felt more alive or more serenely happy than in the throes of life with these young people. I really enjoy it.”

James Grammer

Kayte and Kelsey’s family grew again on Nov. 14, 2016, with the birth of son Auden James Grammer.

And the Frasier star’s older kids were all for it.

“My dad’s always wanted a huge family,” Greer told Entertainment Tonight two months before James arrived. “Him and Kayte are such great parents together, and they have all these little ones, and they love them so much. They’re the cutest kids, Faith and Gabe. I’m excited for them to have another one, another crazy baby.”

Mason said Kelsey “becomes a better dad after every child,” telling Closer in 2018, “When I grew up, he was very strict. Now he’s more relaxed with my younger siblings. It’s a blast!”

Christopher Grammer

Kelsey revealed on the Pod Meets World podcast in October 2025 that he and Kayte “just had our fourth one, so it just became eight kids.”

The 70-year-old noted, “It was like three days ago, Christopher that’s just joined the family.”