MONTEL WILLIAMS TALKS A GOOD GAME BUT HIS KIDS SAY HE'S AN ABSENTEE FATHER!

The heartbroken children of Montel Williams have come forward to complain the TV star has all but abandoned them amid a bitter custody battle.
Williams, who styles himself as an inspirational guru, is locked in a 10-year fight with his ex-wife over son Montel, 16, and daughter Wyntergrace, 14.

The Connecticut teens say the talk-show host has turned his back on them - paying $18,700 a month in child support while depriving them of the emotional support they crave.

"My dad is now like a stranger," Wyntergrace, who turns 15 this week, told the Daily News.

"Everyone knows him as a great guy, but he's not making the best choices as a parent."

Williams, 53, is a former military man who won Emmys hosting his daytime show, which heavily promoted the importance of family and social responsibility.

These days, he hosts a radio show, writes change-your-life memoirs and hawks a series of products under the name "Living Well."

Meanwhile, his children say his public persona doesn't jibe with their personal pain - and they are asking that Williams either take an active role in their lives or let their mom make all the decisions.

"I wouldn't say I really have a relationship with my dad," the younger Montel said. "He's not in my life right now. It's his choice.

"I eat every night. I'm comfortable, but I can't say I have him as a father," he added. "There's all this fighting over things that shouldn't be a fight, like paying for my PSAT."

Wyntergrace has seen him four times in five years and their last meeting - a therapy session in September - was a disaster.

"He walked in already mad. He said he thought we were going to dinner, but my e-mail clearly said we were going to see my therapist," she said.

"It was intimidating. I was thinking, 'Why should I talk if I'm just going to get yelled at?'"

Williams and Grace Morley divorced in 2000, a year after he was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. The exes have joint custody, with the kids living full-time with their mom.

Morley is pushing for full custody, while Williams is trying to hold on to decision-making power.

In a statement, he declined to answer questions.

"I love my children very much. I do not believe parenting is best done in a public forum and I will not comment on ongoing legal action involving my minor children," he said.

The children were interviewed in the presence of life coach Lisa Nkonoki, whom Morley hired in 2008 to help them deal with their estrangement.

Nkonoki says Williams owes her for-profit Dads & Kids Project $100,000 in unpaid fees, but she hopes he reconciles with the kids.

"I've extended an open invitation, any day, anytime, anywhere," said Nkonoki, who has a photo of Wyntergrace on her Web site. "I would insist they go with me to see him. He's their father. It's a sacred relationship. If I went with them and they asked to be alone with him, I would leave."

Williams has claimed Nkonoki is needlessly meddling in the children's lives. At a hearing in November, his lawyer complained she's keeping father and kids apart.

"He has been trying to go out to dinner with them, to call them, to speak to them. And he's been unable to accomplish that at a reasonable level," the lawyer said, according to a transcript.

The younger Montel said it wasn't always that way. After the divorce, he and his dad took vacations and went snowboarding.

But the teen felt guilty his sister was often not included. When Williams married for the third time in 2007, he invited his son but not his daughter, the teens said.

"He would invite me to things like his 50th birthday party and not my sister," the teen said. "Or he would send me a birthday card and not her."

Wyntergrace said she invited her dad to visit her new boarding school last fall, but he didn't go. She said she wants to go to therapy with him, not dinner.

"He'll say, 'Let's just forget about this and move on.' And you can't just forget and pretend like the last few years didn't happen," she said.

The kids acknowledge that Williams - who has two children from his first marriage - has faced some daunting challenges.

He has openly spoken about how his MS causes debilitating pain and depression, and his syndicated talk show was yanked after 17 years in 2008.

In addition to his radio show, Williams now does motivational speaking. His latest book, "Living Well Emotionally: Break Through to a Life of Happiness," was released in paperback this month.

His children say his public image smacks of hypocrisy and they are speaking out to kick off the "Montel Williams II Equality for Kids Campaign," an online petition drive to give minor children a bigger voice in the court system.

"As long as what he's doing makes other people feel good, he should keep doing it. But if he wants to use his family as an example, he shouldn't," his son said. "He's constantly broken my trust."