The Untold Truth Of Bayou Billionaires

In January 2012, America met the Dowdens, a middle-class-turned-wealthy family based in Shreveport, Louisiana, through their CMT show, "Bayou Billionaires." Led by patriarch Gerald Dowden, the family came into unexpected wealth when a gas company drilled natural gas wells on their 80-acre property atop the Haynesville Shale. Gerald explained on the "Bayou Billionaires" trailer, "The gas company [came] in here [and] said 'Hey, we're going to put a gas well back here on your place.' We didn't much care for it at the time, but it ended up where it sure did pay off, pay out."

For two seasons, reality television lovers got hooked as Gerald, his wife, Kitten Dowden, their four children, eight grandchildren and father-in-law, invested and spent their money lavishly. They sought to join other southern elites by showing interest in the local country club, had enough money to plough into a taekwondo school for Thomas Dowden, the youngest of their sons, and even began producing their own Kung Fu film, "Shreveport Samarai." 

Although some facts about the Dowdens were in plain sight, others remained untold. From how much money they actually made to their legal wars with the gas company to the secret behind Gerald and Kitten's long-lasting marriage, keep scrolling for facts about the intriguing family.

By the time "Bayou Billionaires" went on air, the Dowden family was receiving a steady monthly $40,000 check from the gas company Exco. The payment, christened "mailbox money," allowed them to go on a spending spree, which led the public to assume that they were previously broke. That, however, couldn't be further from the truth. Gerald Dowden was the owner of a construction company that had at least 20 employees, including his wife, Kitten Dowden, who was responsible for accounting. Additionally, the family's land was already being used for small-scale natural gas mining, an activity that raked up to $5,000 in revenue.

With their newfound fame, of course, Gerald and Kitten — whose real name is Vellen Rose Roy Dowden — leveraged their image to make more money. In April 2013, they partnered with multi-chain restaurant Buffalo Wild Wings to host a meet and greet alongside pencil artist Priscilla Wadsworth. They may have disappeared from the limelight since then, but they join the long list of reality television stars whose net worths are more than fans think. At the time of writing, Celebrity Net Worth values the Dowden family's fortune at $50 million.

Reality television stars often spend their money lavishly, and the Dowdens were no exception. The family was portrayed as a seemingly irresponsible brood who made extravagant purchases: During Season 1, Kitten Dowden was hellbent on buying a pet tiger for her granddaughter, Nikki Wells, after the death of her pet cat, "Booey." In a similar fashion, Gerald and Thomas Dowden set out to make a large mailbox in honor of their "mailbox money" on Season 2 of "Bayou Billionaires." 

The more money got into the Dowdens' pockets, the more they kicked spending limits to the curb. In a joint interview with Conn TV, Gerald said, "There's no budget," while his wife, Kitten, added, "We budgeted all our lives, for everything. And so, the money is the best part because we don't have to do that. We can spend it. We can go and we can have fun and help everybody, and you don't have to worry about it."

The Dowdens still have a strong sense of responsibility and have a healthy reserve for their most essential expenses. A 2013 survey showed that most Americans would not give up their jobs if they won the lottery, and the Dowdens have borrowed from that playbook. At the time of writing, Gerald and Kitten still run their construction business, Gerald Dowden Inc.

Gerald Dowden had a chat with CNN Money in which he vouched for the harmlessness of the gas extraction process. The father of four said of Exco, the gas company, "They're a community-oriented company. They're really safe." However, it was reported that there were several loopholes in his assertions. First, the drilling process involves fracking — the injection of water at high pressure in subterranean rocks to open existing fissures — which causes both noise and air pollution. Second, the show reportedly omitted any disputes with neighbors over the potential negative effects of the drilling.

As it turned out, the process may not have been entirely safe after all, and a legal tussle between similar companies proved it. In August 2012, a large sinkhole emerged in Bayou Corne and rapidly expanded to cover at least 35 acres in a span of three years. It eventually led to a state of emergency declaration and forced up to 300 people to vacate their homes. The disaster was blamed on Texas Brine, who reached a reported $48.1 million settlement with residents of the area, but the company later took legal action against Occidental Petroleum Corp., claiming their operations led to the damage. In January 2018, both companies and a third, Vulcan Materials Company, were proven to be responsible for the sinkhole.

Following its debut, "Bayou Billionaires" was one of the two record-breaking shows at CMT; it tied with "My Big Redneck Vacation" as the most-watched original series in the network's history. While most viewers tuned in for the amazing plot, it wasn't entirely a new concept.

In September 1962, "The Beverly Hillbillies," a fictional sitcom which has a similar storyline, premiered on CBS and ran for nine seasons. The multi-award-winning show told the story of Jed Clampett (Buddy Ebsen) and his family, who also struck gold when an oil pool emerged in their swamp. The Clampetts relocated to Beverly Hills after hitting the jackpot, and although they lived amongst movie stars, royalties on exile, and retired millionaires, Jed still reminisced over simpler times in the countryside.

As such, when "Bayou Billionaires" aired, it didn't take long before similarities between the Dowdens and the Clampetts became public discourse. It was a comparison that Gerald Dowden didn't mind at all. "Why be offended?" Dowden asked in an interview with Deseret News, also adding that they were on television for all the good reasons: "We talk slow. We smile a lot, and we just enjoy life. That's why people like us." Gerald's observation wasn't wrong since some reality television stars have earned the reputation of having repulsive personalities.

When "Bayou Billionaires" aired in 2012, the Dowden family had its fair share of lighthearted on-screen drama. Case in point: During the making of their debut film, "Shreveport Samarai," whose screenplay was the brainchild of Thomas Dowden, everything seemed to be on track until Gerald Dowden unceremoniously took the director's role. At the time of writing, the film has yet to see the light of day. In the same way, when Gerald and Kitten Dowden made the decision to renew their vows toward the end of S2, the children unanimously offered their help, but of course, their plans fell apart. Luckily for the Dowdens, no scenes were heated enough to make the family members quit. That's saying a lot when it's fairly common practice for reality television stars to consider exiting shows when things fall apart. 

Behind the scenes, the Dowden family had a couple of altercations, possibly more charged ones, that never made it on air. Gerald told Conn TV, "We can turn around [and] have a fist fight pretty quick ... especially all 'em boys ... I got ... four big grand boys, you know. We have drama, but, um, we hold it between ourselves, and we just talk about it." Kitten also weighed in on family conflict, telling the outlet, "We're [a] pretty close-knit family, so we handle those kinds of little problems pretty quick."

While "Bayou Billionaires" portrayed 90-year-old grandpa Jim Roy as the ultimate ladies' man, his daughter, Kitten Dowden, had a contrasting stable love life. At the heart of the show was the affectionate relationship between Gerald Dowden and Kitten. In Season 1, Gerald had the romantic task of figuring out how to mark the anniversary of the first time he took Kitten out on a date, and after their vow renewal during Season 2, they traveled with the whole family to their honeymoon destination: Hawaii. In their chat with Conn TV, Kitten gushed over the entire reality television experience, saying, "Imagine, at our age, to get to do a TV show and to be in it with your kids and grandkids. I mean, how awesome is that?"

The heartwarming love story between Gerald and Kitten has spanned decades, and their secret recipe for having a long-lasting marriage is good ol' friendship, as Kitten shared with Conn TV. "Gotta be best friends," she told the outlet. "That's the trick and that's the advice we give everybody. You got to like each other as well as love each other." Gerald additionally disclosed that they were great at compromising to meet each other's wants: "Sometimes, you have to do things that she [Kitten] wants to do that you don't want to do, and sometimes she has to do things that I want to do, and she [doesn't] want to do. But we do them, and we have a good time doing them."

The late Valerie Dowden Wells, the eldest of the Dowden daughters, lived in a trailer on the Dowden property alongside her three children, Jessica and Devyn Metcalf and Nikki Wells. When "Bayou Billionaires" aired in 2012, Valerie received backlash online, with many viewers voicing the opinion that she had supposedly odd mannerisms. The negative comments prompted Valerie to have an interview with CMT (via Starcasm), in which she revealed that she was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis in 2008. 

According to Valerie, it took a while to confirm the diagnosis since some doctors were dismissive of her early signs and symptoms. "I knew something was wrong when my legs, from my knees down on both sides, would go numb, and felt like they were on pins and needles, like the way it feels when your foot goes to sleep," Valerie told the outlet and added that she was eventually put on steroids to manage the condition. Valerie, who worked at a public defender's office, also said she was handling her medical bills.

Valerie's struggles with MS were intentionally left out of her storyline on "Bayou Billionaires" at her request. In her conversation with CMT, she said of her decision, "That was my choice. I didn't want people to feel sorry for me. I don't feel sorry for myself, although I do have days that I get angry, more of a 'why me.'"

In November 2016, Valerie Dowden Wells was gunned down while seated in her car. Valerie, who was 47 years old at the time of her death, was shot several times near a McDonald's parking lot and declared dead at University Health Hospital in her hometown, Shreveport. Valerie's killer, Robert Gaddy, also took his own life and was pronounced dead at the same hospital. 

Louisiana police Sgt. Rod Johnson told People when the news broke, "We know they [Valerie and Gaddy] had a relationship of some type, but I can't tell you if they were friends having a dispute or formerly intimate. We simply don't know at this moment." It was later confirmed that the two were indeed an item, but their relationship had not been smooth sailing. According to reports, Gaddy and Valerie had been acquainted since middle school and started dating shortly before her death. Valerie still kept in touch with her husband, Robert Wells, and their association led to jealousy on Gaddy's part. A "Bayou Billionaires" executive producer told People that Valerie's loved ones "believe that's the reason it all went down."

The mom of three was remembered as a caring person, who spread joy to the people around her. Her sister-in-law, Peggy Dowden, spoke fondly of her in a chat with People, saying, "She was the most loving person, she was so friendly, she was always smiling. She was down-to-earth. She loved everybody so much."

While most reality television stars often take other career paths — OnlyFans is a seemingly popular trajectory — the Dowden family chose to live a private life long after their show came to an end. The family experienced losses, challenges, and triumphs in equal measure. In 2015, Gerald Dowden's mom, Maura Jane Dowden, died peacefully in the presence of her family. The following year, Gerald and Kitten Dowden, alongside other plaintiffs, lost an appeal against the Louisiana Department of Natural Resources, Exco, and other respondents after a years-long legal battle over their land.

As far as their wealth goes, the Dowdens are nothing like reality television stars who are actually much poorer than fans think. Gerald and Kitten continue to enjoy their wealth, owning a Chrysler 300 sedan and a Ram 1500 truck, both of which have hefty price tags. The family is also still adventurous; Kitten shared several pictures of themselves fishing on Facebook in 2018 with the caption, "Some of my favorite things."

Gerald and Kitten are now proud great-grandparents, as they have had new additions to the family. In August 2023, Nikki Wells welcomed a bundle of joy. Wells announced her daughter's birth on Facebook, writing, "Ella Nicole Pilcher made her arrival! August 11th, 2023. Weighing 7lbs 6.5 oz, 19 inches long. She's so beautiful and couldn't be more blessed."