Kenny Chadway

Kenneth "Kenny" Chadway is a fictional character from the Showtime television series Soul Food. The character first appeared in the 1997 film Soul Food as Kenny Simmons, and was portrayed by Jeffrey D. Sams. In the television series, the surname was changed to Chadway, the role was assumed by Rockmond Dunbar.

Character Background

A lifelong resident of Chicago, Kenny is the oldest of two sons born to Benjamin (Obba Babatundé) and Vivian Chadway (Juanita Jennings) in 1970. When Kenny was still a child, his parents divorced. Since neither parent could afford to raise both sons alone, Kenny stayed with his father, while his younger brother Kelvin (Hill Harper) was raised by his mother. In high school, Kenny was a standout football player. While dating Teri Joseph, he was also secretly seeing her younger sister Maxine. Teri's discovery of the relationship led to years of friction between the two women. After Maxine became pregnant in high school with her oldest child Ahmad (Brandon Hammond, Aaron Meeks), she and Kenny were married. Eventually, they had four additional children: Kelly (Taylor Love), Brooke, and a set of twins.

Early in their marriage, Kenny starting a towing company -- Chadway Towing -- while Maxine stayed at home to raise the children. Although Kenny was supportive of Maxine's unsuccessful campaign for alderman, Kenny was often a borderline chauvanist, preferring that Maxine remain a stay-at-home mother and wife. Although Kenny and Maxine are generally regarded as having the most stable relationship in the Joseph family, things do not always run smoothly. At one point Kenny almost starts an extramarital relationship with his office manager Lila (Nicki Micheaux). When Maxine discovers this months later, the couple separates. However, they eventually reconcile.

While his wife's family is very close-knit, Kenny's relationship with his entire immediate family was strained. He considered his father to be undependable and felt his mother abandoned them. His distant relationship with his brother Kelvin was tested further when he learned that Kelvin was HIV-positive. As time passed, he was able to reconnect with all three of them.

Chadway Towing was very successful, and at one point Kenny was able to hire his brother-in-law Lem Van Adams (Mekhi Phifer, Darrin Dewitt Henson) as a driver, which served to strengthen the close friendship between the two men. Ultimately, Kenny sold the business to a larger regional towing company. He used the proceeds from the sale to open a classic car restoration business.