Jennifer Lopez Targeted by Ex

Thu., Dec. 23, 2004 7:25 AM PST by Charlie Amter

Jennifer Lopez's love may not cost a thing, but when it comes to her ex-husband, that's another story.

J.Lo's first husband, Ojani Noa, sued the singer-actress Tuesday, alleging Lopez "lured" him into taking a manager gig at her Pasadena restaurant, then unceremoniously gave him the boot.

The Cuban-born Noa, a former waiter, is officially suing the actress for breach of contract, seeking unspecified damages.

For those keeping track at home, the Cuban-born Noa was Lopez's first husband. The former fun couple met in a Miami restaurant in the late 1990s, where Noa was a waiter (and aspiring model). After a whirlwind courtship, Noa reportedly proposed to the actress at the Selena post-production party, presenting her with a monster diamond ring.

They were married in Miami on Feb. 22, 1997. They divorced a year later.

Despite the couple's breakup, Noa still maintained sporadic ties with Lopez over the years. He eventually moved to Los Angeles, where he continued his restaurant career while chasing bigger fame in showbiz. Noa managed L.A.'s Conga Room club (where J.Lo was an investor) until 2002, when Lopez asked him to help run her Cuban restaurant, Madre's, in nearby Pasadena.

Per Noa's suit, Lopez offered him the gig at an initial salary of $1,000 a week. The pay was supposedly pegged to the eatery's success, if Madre's became an "in" spot, his take-home would go up.

Noa claims J.Lo considered him "family," and she would take care of him; she also purportedly promised him she would not take away his job "without good cause or reason."

But then, just six months after Madre's opened in April 2002, Noa was nixed. He says his ex gave no reason for the firing.

According to the complaint, filed in Los Angeles Superior Court, "Mr. Noa tried to call Ms. Lopez to find out what prompted this sudden change of events. His calls went unreturned.

"She didn't even have the decency to explain why she had lied to lure him to accept a job that she did not plan on letting him keep in the first place."

He's suing for breach of contract and asking for unspecified damages.

Calls Wednesday to J.Lo's reps were not immediately returned. Attempts to reach Noa were unsuccessful.

Noa has set up a Website, ojaninoa.com, but the only content is a link to buy a semi-nude 2004 Noa calendar. As 2005 rapidly approaches, Noa's site simply says, "Launching in 2004."

After their split, Jenny from the Block went around the block with dancer Chris Judd. They married in 2001 and split a year later as she took up with Ben Affleck and became one half of the pop-culture phenomenon known as Bennifer. Once their engagement fizzled, she wound up back with former flame Marc Anthony, and the two got hitched in a top-secret ceremony earlier this year.

Legal battles aside, Lopez, 35, already has two films in the can for 2005: An Unfinished Life, a family drama costarring Morgan Freeman and Robert Redford; and Monster-in-Law, a romantic comedy with Jane Fonda. She's also set to team up with Nicole Kidman early next year for American Darlings, a film about female singers entertaining the troops during WWII.