But he does love her as if she were his own kid, though

Oct 22, 2014 10:31 GMT  ·  By
Lionel Richie laughs away rumors that he’s Khloe Kardashian’s real father
2 photos
   Lionel Richie laughs away rumors that he’s Khloe Kardashian’s real father

Speculation about Khloe Kardashian’s real father has been around for longer than we can remember, starting with the rumor that, during her marriage to the late Robert Kardashian, Kris Jenner wasn’t exactly what you’d call faithful. Quite the contrary, actually.

When Kris herself admitted to infidelity in the final months of her marriage, in her most recent book, the rumor mill went into overdrive. Because of certain physical traits that Khloe shared with O.J. Simpson, the disgraced athlete who was once a close friend of the Kardashian family, the Internet decided that he was the father.

Then, last week, Lionel Richie’s name was thrown in the mix.

The “evidence” lacks but is ironically compelling

According to various tabloids, the evidence that the famous crooner was Khloe’s real dad was there, if you knew where to look. First of all, Lionel’s daughter Sofia Richie was a dead ringer for Khloe, and how else could they look so alike if they weren’t closely related?

The second photo in the gallery was circulated online as “proof” of the new paternity theory.

Then, there was that rumor that Kris slept with Lionel in their younger days… a lot. Apparently, the two families were very close, which allowed Kris and Lionel to conduct an extra marital affair in plain sight, for a very long time.

Insiders told US glossies that Lionel had even “bragged” about sleeping with Kris behind Robert’s back countless times. No word of protection, but it was widely assumed that they had used none, so Khloe was born.

All these pieces of “evidence” have in common two things, with the most important being that they don’t exist unless you really want them to. The second one is that they were deemed “compelling,” so again, the Internet ruled in favor of another man than Robert as Khloe’s father.

Lionel is not the father

With all this talk and increased attention from the media, no one involved spoke out until now. Paparazzi from TMZ caught up with Lionel as he left Madeo after dinner, and they asked him the ever-burning question: was he or was he not Khloe’s dad?

His answer is included in the video below, but in case you don’t feel like watching it, let us sum it up for you: he says he’s not the father and shows himself quite amused by the rumor. However, he adds, they’re “all” his kids (referring to the Kardashian kids, sisters Kim, Kourtney, and Khloe, and brother Rob) because “they grew up in my house.”

On a side note, Lionel would adopt the paparazzo asking him these Khloe questions, because he’s nice like that.

The O.J. Simpson paternity theory

Lionel Richie may have denied that he’s Khloe’s father, but that doesn’t mean that the rumor will go away anytime soon. Because Khloe doesn’t share the same facial features as Kim and Kourtney, the media will always love to speculate on whether she isn’t a real Kardashian after all.

The favorite theory remains that O.J. Simpson is the real father. There’s even speculation that Simpson too is convinced of it and that he’s trying to get Kris and Khloe to do a paternity test. The fact that he’s behind bars is making it harder for him to get through to them, allegedly.

At the end of the day, Khloe is mostly likely Robert’s daughter, like Kris assures us she is. But scandal is far more interesting than the truth, at least where the Kardashians are concerned, so these theories will keep popping up every once in a while.

Lionel Richie, Khloe Kardashian's alleged father (2 Images)

Lionel Richie laughs away rumors that he’s Khloe Kardashian’s real father
Sofia Richie and Khloe Kardashian: the photo that started the rumor
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