Gary Owen Learns Fan’s Wife Died Days Before Show — What He Did for Him Next Is Incredible

Gary Owen showed a grieving fan much needed support after learning the audience member lost his wife days before attending one of the comedian’s stand-up shows.

During a show in Sacramento, California at Punch Line Comedy Club, Owen let the audience know that he was contacted by Rudy Escalante, who told him about his wife’s death two days before the show but still attended.

In a now-viral clip, posted to Complex, Owen and Escalante are shown talking. When Owen asked how much the funeral would cost, Escalante said around $1,600 for the “cremation and everything.”

Owen then did an unexpected act of charity, saying, “I’ll go ahead and cover it for you.” Escalante hugged the comedian on stage and showed off a tattoo of his late wife. They were married for 18 years and shared 13-year-old and 16-year-old daughters.

When Owen asked if $1,600 would cover everything, Escalante said, “Everything helps. I took a month off of work just to be with the girls and all that.” Owen responded, “I’ll make sure you’re good.”

Escalante is also doing a fundraising campaign, seeking a total of $16,000 his wife’s August 9 Celebration of Life via GoFundMe.  “Kim had the biggest heart and was the most caring person we all knew. She helped raise so many of her friends’ and families’ children,” the fundraiser reads. “She was the light of every gathering and had the whole crowd laughing. If you knew Kim, you were lucky to be a part of someone special. Her ‘give it to you 100’ attitude made her real. If she talked shit to you, that meant she liked you. Kim loved her Marshall Elementary family, and many of them stopped by to see her in her last days. This just showed how many people were impacted by her spark.”

Escalante took to Instagram to thank Owen for his help and shared a photograph of himself and the comedian, writing, “Gary Owen, you are a real one, Big Dawg. What you did lastnight for me and my family will never be forgotten. Kim is looking down, smiling on you. All I wanted was a picture, and you blessed us with a gift like that unbelievable. One love big dawg.”

Owen is on a comedy tour until December. He has stops in New York, Atlanta, Washington DC, Columbus, Richmond and more.