Wait, back up a second.
drama that has come pouring forth from the third season of Netflix’s Selling Sunset, almost buried underneath Chrishell Stause‘s divorce and Christine Quinn‘s grandiose wedding plans, there’s the mystery of Amanza Smith‘s missing ex-husband.” data-reactid=”18″>Amid all the drama that has come pouring forth from the third season of Netflix’s Selling Sunset, almost buried underneath Chrishell Stause‘s divorce and Christine Quinn‘s grandiose wedding plans, there’s the mystery of Amanza Smith‘s missing ex-husband.
told Entertainment Tonight in a recent interview. “It’s like, this is a huge part of my life and I have cameras following me 24/7. You can’t hide it. So it’s not like I went into filming in this position.”” data-reactid=”25″>About two weeks into filming, he disappeared from Smith’s life, she recalled. “We filmed for seven or seven and a half months, when he still was nowhere to be found,” she told Entertainment Tonight in a recent interview. “It’s like, this is a huge part of my life and I have cameras following me 24/7. You can’t hide it. So it’s not like I went into filming in this position.”
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“I filed a missing persons report at one point,” she said. “I hired a private investigator at one point and they never got a visual. They gave me a little insight of where they think, maybe [he might be]. I’ve reached out to every family member. I’ve had friends reach out. If I reach out to his sister and brother-in-law, the next thing, I would be blocked.” Calls, emails and texts to his brother and father have gone unanswered, she continued, but “at least 20 of his ex-NFL teammates [have reached] out to me saying, ‘Hey, have you heard [anything], we can’t get a hold of Ralph, do you know what’s [going on]?”
Even his best friend of 20 years “has no idea,” Smith said.
Mary Fitzgerald, Amanza Smith, Selling Sunset
Neither the Los Angeles Police Department nor the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department had a current missing-person report on file for Ralph Brown, and a rep listed for Smith has not yet responded to E! News’ request for comment.
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Steve Warren, a former teammate of Brown’s at the University of Nebraska, said on the Aug. 22 episode of fellow Cornhusker Adam Carriker‘s Carriker Chronicles.” data-reactid=”46″>”From what we can tell, he’s been missing for over a year, or off the grid,” Steve Warren, a former teammate of Brown’s at the University of Nebraska, said on the Aug. 22 episode of fellow Cornhusker Adam Carriker‘s Carriker Chronicles.
Warren said he found out when he saw the ET story featuring Smith’s interview pop up online.
gone and hasn’t been seen, or nobody’s heard from him, for a year?’ So I immediately started texting all of our friends and teammates that were in around our age, or guys that I know that he’s had a relationship with—and every text I sent, every message I sent, came back. The really shocking thing was everybody was in the same boat as not knowing that he’d been off the grid for that long.”” data-reactid=”48″>”As I’m reading I’m starting to think, ‘Wait a minute, she just said he’s gone and hasn’t been seen, or nobody’s heard from him, for a year?’ So I immediately started texting all of our friends and teammates that were in around our age, or guys that I know that he’s had a relationship with—and every text I sent, every message I sent, came back. The really shocking thing was everybody was in the same boat as not knowing that he’d been off the grid for that long.”
Warren continued, “I think part of that plays into what’s going on with the pandemic. And then part of it is, you know, we’re all just getting older and have families, and none of us are in the same place anymore, and you kind of lose track of people you don’t see every day.”
Ralph Brown, Cardinals 2009
Brown, who was born in Los Angeles, was an All-American cornerback for Nebraska from 1996 until 1999, after which he was drafted by the New York Giants in 2000. He spent four seasons with the Giants, then moved on to stints with the Minnesota Vikings, Cleveland Browns and Arizona Cardinals until he left the game in 2009.
born in 2011.” data-reactid=”64″>In July 2010, he married Smith, a former Indianapolis Colts cheerleader and Deal or No Deal briefcase model (alas, starting in 2008, after Meghan Markle had already left). They were already parents to Noah, who was at her mom and dad’s wedding in Indianapolis, and son Braker was born in 2011.
told London’s Metro in May that when they did divorce, her longtime friend (and now boss) Jason Oppenheim “literally co-signed an apartment for me and my kids. I was getting turned down right and left and he’s like, ‘As long as you pay the rent on time, it’s fine.'”” data-reactid=”65″>It’s unclear when they split up (reports say 2012), but Smith told London’s Metro in May that when they did divorce, her longtime friend (and now boss) Jason Oppenheim “literally co-signed an apartment for me and my kids. I was getting turned down right and left and he’s like, ‘As long as you pay the rent on time, it’s fine.'”
She continued, “I decided to start my real estate career to provide for my family. I have two amazing kids. I’ve been a single mom since they were one and two, they’re now eight and nine. When I met my ex-husband he was playing in the NFL. It was pretty comfortable. When we separated, my ex unfortunately couldn’t even pay child support.”
Taye Diggs, Amanza Smith, 2017 Tony Awards, Arrivals
Smith talked about sharing joint custody with Brown—until he disappeared—and how she was finding it difficult to get the court to grant her full custody.
“At this point, legally we still have 50-50, but I don’t know where he is,” she acknowledged. “So I need to be able to make decisions without his signature and his approval.”
Amanza Smith, Chrishell Stause, Selling Sunset
Instagram, writing, “The reason for everything! My babies! I will always protect you and never leave your side! Thank you for being the most amazing gift on the planet!” She included a series of hashtags, including “#singlemom.”” data-reactid=”93″>In July, Smith posted a picture of herself with Noah on Instagram, writing, “The reason for everything! My babies! I will always protect you and never leave your side! Thank you for being the most amazing gift on the planet!” She included a series of hashtags, including “#singlemom.”
added a dog to their household, Smith posting a series of photos in June with the caption, “This was the best I could do! Dogs are harder to get a shot of then even kids! Meet Bowie!”” data-reactid=”94″>They also added a dog to their household, Smith posting a series of photos in June with the caption, “This was the best I could do! Dogs are harder to get a shot of then even kids! Meet Bowie!”
ET, pausing for a second. “For my kids, because it’s not just their dad, it’s that whole side of the family has just disappeared. In my mind it’s like, okay, if he’s had some sort of mental breakdown or—he played in the NFL for 11 years, I have to wonder if maybe it’s CTE. Those are real things, so even if that were the case…” She trailed off.” data-reactid=”96″>”It’s the most bizarre, heartbreaking…” she said while talking to ET, pausing for a second. “For my kids, because it’s not just their dad, it’s that whole side of the family has just disappeared. In my mind it’s like, okay, if he’s had some sort of mental breakdown or—he played in the NFL for 11 years, I have to wonder if maybe it’s CTE. Those are real things, so even if that were the case…” She trailed off.
“Ralph’s always just been a good dude, a good, solid person,” Warren said, “so to see these stories coming out and to hear that he’s missing…we’re just hoping it’s not as crazy as it seems. My hope is he just really wants to be off the grid and not want to be found, but he’s fine. Which I’m perfectly fine with. I get that, sometimes you just need to be by yourself. I’m hoping that’s the case.”
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But for the ex who’s been trying to explain to her kids why they haven’t seen their father in a year, that’s not a particularly reasonable explanation at this point.
“I said, ‘Daddy’s taking this time to figure himself out and get better so he can come back and be the dad that we know he is. His brain is sick. Daddy loves you very much,'” Smith told ET.
At the end of the day, “I’ve reached out to him,” she said. “His phone is off, he has no social media, but I email and say—I go from being [she mimed scales tipping back and forth] angry to just really sad. It’s like this [roller coaster motion with her hand]. Because I’m picking up the pieces and mending little broken hearts.”