Kathy Griffin Explains Feud With Ellen DeGeneres

Kathy Griffin is a strong supporter of female empowerment and separates herself with those who are not.

The comedian’s new book, Kathy Griffin’s Celebrity Run-Ins: My A-Z Index, chronicles her encounters with more than 125 stars, including Ellen DeGeneres.

“I’m almost positive a certain beloved daytime talk show host once had me kicked out of a backstage dressing room at the Emmy Awards,” writes the comedian. “I can’t prove it, but this person, who has short blonde hair, has a mean streak that all of Hollywood knows about.”

So what happened between the two of comedians? Griffin revealed to Us Weekly the reasoning behind their feud. During a 2007 appearance on The Ellen DeGeneres Show, “Ellen did a monologue about how mean I am,” Griffin told Us. “I was in the dressing room like, ‘S–t! You’re another woman comic, c’mon!’”

DeGeneres wasn’t the biggest fan of Griffin because she went on to bash her during an interview with W magazine in 2007. “I know she had a big thing about wanting to be on the show, and we didn’t book her,” she said. “She did a whole thing that I banned her from the show. I didn’t ban her from the show, because first you have to be on the show to be banned.”

What frustrated Griffin about the situation was the fact she believed they should be banding together, “I don’t know if Ellen gets that when I talk about women, I’m joking,”says the author. “I just feel really strongly about women supporting each other, especially women over 50 and women in comedy, because the people who still make decisions are still middle-aged white guys. We have to be better at not turning on each other.”

Regardless of their disagreement, Griffin still has “immense respect” for DeGeneres. She would love it if females, especially comedians, where “there for each other the way the dudes are. They all help each other and hook each other up.”

This article originally appeared on our sister site, Womanista.com.