Shaquille O’Neal and Joy Behar. Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images for Warner Bros. Discovery; ABC/Jeff Lipsky
Shaquille O’Neal blamed his friend and longtime TV cohost Charles Barkley for starting some fowl gossip about Joy Behar.
On the Wednesday, July 17, episode of The View, Behar, 81, confronted O’Neal, 52, about the “big rumor” that he “kicked me out” of one of his Big Chicken chain restaurants and had the daytime talk show host “banned for life.”
“Charles Barkley, I know you started that and I hate you,” O’Neal responded. “Joy, I want to say I would never kick you out a restaurant. I love you.”
The rumor appears to have started on a satire website in April with a headline reading: “Shaq Ejects Joy Behar From His Big Chicken Eatery, ‘Keep Your Toxicity Out.’”
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Still, O’Neal couldn’t resist from blaming Barkley, 61, his Inside the NBA cohost since 2011.
“So you know what I did?” O’Neal asked Behar as he reached into his suit pocket. “Since I’m the owner of the restaurant, I give you a lifetime warranty to my restaurant. I would never kick you out. Ever, ever.”
Joy Behar and Shaquille O’Neal during ‘The View’ on July 17, 2024. ABC/LOU ROCCO
O’Neal presented Behar with a Big Chicken card, apparently good for free food at any of the chain’s locations. Cofounded by O’Neal in 2018, Big Chicken is a fast casual restaurant with stores in 18 states.
Promising “Big Flavor, Big Food, Big Fun,” the menu consists of items like chicken sandwiches, chicken grilled cheese, chicken tenders and milkshakes.
“I love a Big Chicken, don’t you?” Behar said after receiving her gift.
Later, during a discussion about O’Neal’s new game show Lucky 13, the four-time NBA champion joked about how Barkley might fare as a contestant — and used it as another opportunity to beg for Behar’s forgiveness.
“Charles is not that smart. I apologize for that rumor, whoever started it,” O’Neal told Behar, kissing her hand.
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After a commercial break, Behar had an idea about how they might be able to rectify the entire kerfuffle.
“I wanna know if Charles Barkley will come on this show and apologize,” Behar said.
After O’Neal asked, “Can I say ass on this show?” — to which moderator Whoopi Goldberg said “yes” — O’Neal gave a message to Barkley straight into the camera.
“Charles, if you don’t come, I’m going to beat your ass,” he said. “You better come sit with these ladies.”
