Jan Ashley is not as famous as the Kardashian family, but her life is still interesting.
She was a beauty queen, a wife, and a very private person. Most people know her only because she was married to Robert Kardashian Sr., the father of Kim, Kourtney, Khloé, and Rob Kardashian.
Personal Information
| Quick bio | Detail |
|---|---|
| Full name | Janice Lynn Glass |
| Known as | Jan Ashley, Robert Kardashian Sr.’s second wife |
| Date of birth | 3 August 1948 |
| Place of birth | Amarillo, Texas, USA |
| Died | 1 October 2015, age 67 |
| Parents | James Douglas Glass and Monnie M. Glass |
| Nationality | American |
| Famous for | Miss Tulsa 1966, brief marriage to Robert Kardashian Sr. |
| First husband | John Ashley, actor and film producer, married 1978 to 1997 |
| Second husband | Robert Kardashian Sr., married November 25 1998, annulled 1999 |
| Children | One son, Cole Ashley |
| Burial place | Forest Lawn Memorial Park, Los Angeles |
Early life and first marriage
Jan Ashley was born Janice Lynn Glass on 3 August 1948 in Amarillo, Texas. She grew up in a normal American family and later moved to Oklahoma.
As a young woman she liked beauty pageants. In 1966 she won the title of Miss Tulsa. This small success gave her some local fame and opened doors for work as a model and sometimes as an actress.
In 1978, Jan married John Ashley. He was already known in Hollywood as an actor and film producer. He worked on TV shows and films such as The A Team, Apocalypse Now, and several adventure movies.
Their marriage lasted almost 20 years, until John’s death on 3 October 1997. Reports say the marriage was stable and peaceful. It also connected Jan to Hollywood life long before anyone linked her name to the Kardashians.
Jan and John had one son together named Cole Ashley. After John died, Jan was later buried beside him in Los Angeles which shows how important this first marriage was in her life story.
Meeting Robert Kardashian Sr.
After John Ashley’s death, Jan slowly returned to normal life. Around 1998, she met Robert Kardashian Sr.
Robert was a well known lawyer and businessman. He was famous because he was part of O. J. Simpson’s legal team during the famous murder trial in the 1990s.
Different sources say they met when Robert was interested in a house that Jan was selling or connected to. They started to date and were together for around seven months.
On 25 November 1998, Jan and Robert married in Vail, Colorado. It was a happy winter wedding, and Robert’s four children from his first marriage with Kris Jenner were also part of the event and the honeymoon.
For many people, it was a surprise. Robert had already been divorced from Kris for several years and had also had other relationships. Jan now became his second wife and stepmother to his already famous children.
A wedding that lasted only one month
The marriage between Jan Ashley and Robert Kardashian Sr. was very short.
According to reports, the couple decided to end the marriage after only about a month. By December 25 1998 they had agreed to an annulment. An annulment means that the court says the marriage is not valid, almost like it never happened in law. The legal process finished in 1999.
They did not have any children together. This brief marriage is why many articles call Jan the month long wife or little known second wife of Robert Kardashian.
Even though the marriage was short, it became an important part of Jan’s public identity. Because the Kardashian family later became very famous with reality TV, people looked back at every part of Robert’s love life, including his short marriage to Jan.
Why the marriage ended
At the time of the split, Jan and Robert did not share detailed reasons with the public. Years later, Jan spoke about what she believed went wrong.
She said that Robert was often stressed and upset because of problems with his ex wife Kris Jenner and their children. She said they were always asking him for money and that he felt pressure and worry all the time.
Jan also said that Robert talked a lot about his first marriage. This made it hard for her to feel close to him as a new partner.
Another issue was about having more children. Court papers from the annulment showed that Robert said he had four biological children with Kris and that he did not want more kids. This was one reason the marriage broke down.
Later, Jan said she never really wanted another child and that if she had wanted one, she could have had a baby with her first husband. So even this point is not completely clear. Like many things in relationships, there are two sides to the story.
What we can see is that family tension, money worries, and different wishes for the future all played a part. For Jan, the stress around Robert’s earlier family life was too much and the marriage ended very quickly.
Media attention and family drama
For many years after the annulment, Jan stayed mostly quiet. She did not use social media and did not try to build a public career from the Kardashian name.
However, in 2012, she suddenly came back into the news. Jan and Robert’s third wife, Ellen Kardashian, both said that Robert had once told them Khloé Kardashian was not his biological daughter.
These claims were very sensitive. Kris Jenner and Khloé denied them strongly. Khloé even answered in public and called the story disgusting.
Court papers also showed that Robert had earlier listed Khloé as his biological child which many people saw as proof against the rumor.
Because of this, many people see Jan’s words as part of long running family drama rather than proven fact. It shows how even a short marriage to a famous person can pull someone into rumors for many years.
When we read about these claims today, it is important to be careful and kind. We can say that Jan made these statements and that the Kardashians strongly denied them. But we cannot say the claims are true, and it is better not to judge any person only by tabloid stories.
Life after divorce and her legacy
After the 2012 media storm, Jan again stepped back into private life. Reports say she avoided interviews and public events. She did not try to start a TV career or use her link to the Kardashian name for fame or money.
Jan died on 1 October 2015 at 67 years old. She was buried beside her first husband, John Ashley, at Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Los Angeles.
Today, people remember her mainly for three things
- Her early success as Miss Tulsa in 1966
- Her long marriage to actor and producer John Ashley
- Her very short marriage to Robert Kardashian Sr. and the later media stories around it
Her life shows how one short relationship with a famous person can bring years of attention even to someone who prefers quiet and privacy. At the same time, it also shows that a person is more than a headline. Behind the stories, Jan Ashley was a daughter, a wife, and a mother who tried to live her life in her own way.
Conclusion
Jan Ashley lived a life that was touched by fame but was mostly quiet and personal. Many people know her only because she was once married to Robert Kardashian Sr., but her story is much bigger than that. She was a beauty queen, a loving wife to John Ashley, and a mother. Her time with Robert was short, and the media often focused only on that part of her life.
10 frequently asked questions about Jan Ashley
1. Who was Jan Ashley
Jan Ashley was an American woman best known as the second wife of lawyer Robert Kardashian Sr. She was also a former beauty queen and the widow of actor and producer John Ashley.
2. What was her real name
Her birth name was Janice Lynn Glass.
3. When and where was Jan Ashley born
She was born on 3 August 1948 in Amarillo, Texas, USA.
4. Was Jan Ashley famous before she met Robert Kardashian
Yes. She won the Miss Tulsa beauty pageant in 1966 and worked as a model and sometimes as an actress.
5. Who was her first husband
Her first husband was John Ashley, an actor and film producer known for work on The A Team and films like Apocalypse Now.
6. How did Jan Ashley meet Robert Kardashian Sr.
Reports say they met in 1998 when Robert was interested in buying a house connected to Jan. They began dating soon after.
7. How long were Jan Ashley and Robert Kardashian married
They married on 25 November 1998 in Vail, Colorado. The marriage lasted about one month and was annulled in 1999.
8. Did Jan Ashley and Robert Kardashian have children together
No, they did not have any children together. Jan had one son, Cole Ashley, from her first marriage.
9. Why was Jan Ashley in the news in 2012
In 2012 she and Ellen Kardashian claimed that Robert had told them Khloé Kardashian was not his biological daughter. The Kardashian family denied this.
10. How is Jan Ashley remembered today
She is remembered as part of Kardashian family history, but also as a woman who mostly chose a private life. Her story shows how fame can touch someone for a short time while the rest of their life stays quiet and personal.
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