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Mary Jo Campbell, best known as being the mother of Kardashian-Jenner \u2018Momager\u2019 Kris Jenner, has died aged 91.<\/p>\n
<\/span><\/p>\n Kris announced the news on Thursday, sharing on social media: \u2018Today, we said goodbye to my beautiful Mommy MJ. She taught us everything. She showed us how to love unconditionally and how to find joy in the little moments. She showed me how to face life\u2019s challenges with resilience and faith.’<\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n She added, \u2018Our hearts are broken, but we find comfort knowing that love like yours never truly leaves us. Your love will live on in our family, in our traditions, in every moment we are together, and in every life you touched.\u2019<\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n Mary Jo, better known as MJ, is a familiar face for fans of the Kar-Jenner family. She appeared on the family’s reality TV shows several times over the years, ever since they catapulted to fame with 2007\u2019s Keeping Up With The Kardashians.<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n As Kris posted her emotional tribute, the star’s friends were quick to share their love. Actor Melanie Griffith wrote, \u2018Sending you so much love, Kris. So sorry for your loss. MJ is now with the angels. God Bless.\u2019 TV host Ross Matthews added, \u2018I\u2019m sending you ALL my love. I\u2019m here if you need ANYTHING. Even just to talk.\u2019<\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n With tributes pouring in, we’re taking a look at the MJ Campbell: the woman behind the Kardashian-Jenner empire.<\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n Mary Jo \u2018MJ\u2019 Campbell – better known as MJ – is best known as being the matriarch of the Kardashian-Jenner family. Born 26 July, 1934, she passed away on Thursday 16th July 2026, just days shy of her 92nd birthday.<\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n She\u2019s the mother of Kris Jenner, 70, and Karen Houghton, who died in March 2024 aged 65 from a cardiac arrest.<\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n MJ is grandmother to Kourtney, 47, Kim, 45, Khloe, 42, and Rob Kardashian, 39, as well as to Kendall, 30, and Kylie Jenner, 28. She\u2019s also great-grandmother to Kourtney\u2019s children Mason, 16, Penelope, 14, Reign, 11, and Rocky Thirteen, two, Kim\u2019s children North, 13, Saint, 10, Chicago, eight, and Psalm, seven, Khloe\u2019s children True, eight, and Tatum, three, Rob\u2019s daughter Dream, nine, and Kylie\u2019s children Stormi, eight, and Aire, four.<\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n \u2018When I look at my kids and my grandkids, I will forever see pieces of you in all of us,\u2019 Kris Jenner wrote in a tribute to her late mother. \u2018There is not a part of me that isn’t shaped by you. And if I have done anything right in this world, it’s because I spent my life trying to live in a way that would make you proud.\u2019<\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n Over the years, MJ became a familiar face to fans of the reality TV family and grew her own fanbase thanks to her infamous one-liners and stellar advice. While the rest of the reality TV family weren\u2019t afraid to splash the cash on private jets and designer goods, MJ was often seen teasing them about their extravagant lifestyle.<\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n Her 90th birthday party was detailed during an episode of The Kardashians<\/em>, where she revealed that her biggest accomplishment in life was her two daughters, Kris and Karen. \u2018How wonderful life is when you\u2019re in my world\u2026 That\u2019s all of you,\u2019 she shared.<\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n At the birthday party, Kris also grew emotional when talking about the prospect of one day losing her mother, calling her \u2018my best friend, and I couldn\u2019t live without you.\u2019<\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n Just like her granddaughter Kim, MJ has been married three times.<\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n According to PEOPLE<\/em>, Arkansas-born MJ married her first husband, her high school sweetheart whose identity has remained anonymous, when she was 18 years old. It was a brief romance, with the couple separating after just two months.<\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n It was something MJ was quoted on referencing when chatting to Kim, who was 19 years old when she eloped with music producer Damon Thomas<\/a> in 2000. \u2018We have so much in common. History repeats itself,\u2019 she said. \u2018I can\u2019t believe it because I was married for two months at 18. Right out of high school I was given an engagement ring, a guy I had been going with for four years. And then I just thought, \u201cYou know what? This isn\u2019t really that much fun.\u201d So I got out of it.\u2019<\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n Not long after, MJ married her second husband, aircraft engineer Robert Houghton. The couple went on to welcome two daughters: Kris in 1955, and Karen in 1958. MJ and Robert went on to split after seven years of marriage, before Robert died in 1975 following a car crash in Mexico City.<\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n MJ\u2019s third and final marriage was to businessman Harry Shannon, who Kris lovingly referred to as her \u2018dad\u2019. The couple were together for almost four decades until 2003, when reports say he died following complications from a car crash.<\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n They\u2019ve gone on to build a billion-dollar reality empire, but the Kar-Jenner family have often credited MJ with inspiring them to work hard. Unlike her daughter and granddaughters, MJ\u2019s career didn\u2019t involve reality TV. According to PEOPLE<\/em>, she spent her early years working as a model, as well as an etiquette schoolteacher.<\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n She also went on to open her own children\u2019s clothing store. The boutique was called Shannon & Company, and first opened in 1980 in La Jolla, San Diego. It remained open for 45 years before closing down, with both Kris and Kim having worked there.<\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n It was something Skims founder<\/a> Kim had spoken about, once writing of her grandmother, \u2018You were the woman who showed me what it means to be a hardworking businesswoman!\u2019<\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n Indeed, it seems MJ\u2019s retail talents rubbed off on the rest of her family. Sisters Kourtney, Khloe and Kim previously had their own reality show, following the trio as they launched their clothing store Dash in Calabasas. Since then, they\u2019ve branched out into several different clothing ventures – including Kim\u2019s Skims and Khloe\u2019s Good American denim line.<\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n The Kardashian family have not released any details on MJ\u2019s cause of death.<\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n During a March 2025 episode of The Kardashians<\/em>, Kris grew emotional as she expressed her fears over watching her mother grow older. Saying she was \u201990 and frail,\u2019 Kris explained, \u2018Ever since my sister passed away, she\u2019s been super sad, like we all have, and I know that I need to be there for her. It just gets to the point in life where you can\u2019t be by yourself anymore. It makes me sad.\u2019<\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n In the past, MJ overcame many health obstacles. She\u2019d spoken candidly about being a two-time cancer survivor, having beaten both breast cancer and colon cancer.<\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n Get more Grazia content straight to your browser.<\/strong> Click here<\/strong><\/a> to add Grazia as a preferred source on Google.<\/strong><\/p>\nWho is Mary Jo Campbell?<\/h2>\n
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