Kathy Griffin Accuses Comedian of 'Clout Chasing' for Sharing Story from Celeb Luncheon

Comedian Ryan Asher appeared on RuPaul's Drag Race alum Delta Work's Very Delta podcast back in November, where she spilled about what allegedly went down when she was invited to one of Griffin's gatherings. The way she told it, she was clearly the odd person out in a group of stars.

"The lunch starts. Kathy Griffin goes, 'Let's all go around and introduce ourselves by our awards. And I was like, 'Oh, f--k,'" Asher claimed. "So they all start doing it and I was like, this is insane, I don't have any. So I was like, I'll make a joke and I was like, 'Hi, I'm Ryan Asher and I have $45.' And they went, 'Aww.'"

"Like, Sia was there. Rosie was like, 'I'm Rosie O'Donnell from The Flintstones.' Incredible," Asher continued. "They were all joking, kind of, but they were saying them. They were saying the awards. I was like, I literally have no credits to my name and I literally had $45. So I was like, this will be hilarious. But I made them so sad."

According to Asher, she was sitting next to O'Donnell, claiming Rosie later gave her $300.

"I was like, 'No,' and she was like, 'You can't have $45,'" she continued, adding, "So I took it and I bought weed with it."

While the podcast dropped back in November, Griffin reacted to it over the weekend, sharing the clip of Asher's comments with a response on Instagram.

"I know this video is a couple months old, but I just came across it and, you know me, I had to respond," began Griffin, who insisted she was "kidding about awards" at the luncheon. Kathy then claimed Asher was "lying about the reaction to you saying you had $45," before accusing her of "clout chasing."

"Look, it's not the biggest crime in the world. I mean, I've done it, I even had a 6-year television series where I made fun of my own clout chasing, so no hard feelings from my end," she continued. "Honestly, I'm sorry you did not have a good time at one of my 'salon' parties. I want people to leave my house feeling happy, feeling like they made a new friend or two and feeling full of delicious food."

In the comments, meanwhile, comedian Mo Collins also accused Asher of having "misread the room" and "mischaracterized the moment."

"Unfortunate for her! Your salons are the coolest spaces for thoughts and ideas, and lifting one another, having nothing to do with what's in someone's wallet," Collins continued. "If she's trying to be funny, I don't see it. I see a continuation of a pity party, (which I suppose is self deprecating humor?) I guess having been to your salons, I just found it off putting. I'm grateful for those salons. They're very insightful and uplifting."

Following Griffin's comments, Asher added, "Kathy. I knew you were kidding about awards I was still intimidated and felt like I had to think of something funny. The reaction did happen and was also funny. I'm not cloud [sic] chasing. It's just what happened."

O'Donnell, meanwhile,. also recalled the interaction, telling EW that she remembered giving Asher $300, adding, "I sensed she was uncomfortable there. I understood her, young comic and all."

Delta Work has since invited Griffin to join Asher on her podcast to hash it out; so far, Griffin has not responded.