Jan Ashley was an American former pageant winner whose life crossed two distinct corners of the entertainment world. Long before her brief marriage to attorney and businessman Robert Kardashian Sr., she was married to actor and television producer John Ashley for nearly two decades. She spent much of her life away from cameras, working professionally and maintaining close ties to Tulsa, Oklahoma. Although later coverage often reduces her story to a short Kardashian marriage and a disputed celebrity claim, surviving records provide a fuller picture of her upbringing, career, marriages and final years.
Jan Ashley Quick Facts
| Category | Details |
|---|---|
| Full name | Janice Lynn Glass Ashley |
| Known as | Jan Ashley |
| Born | August 1948 |
| Birthplace | Amarillo, Texas, United States |
| Raised in | Tulsa, Oklahoma |
| Education | Will Rogers High School |
| Early distinction | Miss Tulsa 1966 |
| Occupation | Executive secretary |
| First husband | Actor and producer John Ashley |
| Second husband | Attorney and businessman Robert Kardashian Sr. |
| Died | October 1, 2015 |
| Age at death | 67 |
These details come primarily from Ashley’s funeral-home obituary and a 1999 legal declaration filed by Robert Kardashian during their annulment proceedings.
Early Life in Texas and Oklahoma
Jan Ashley was born Janice Lynn Glass in Amarillo, Texas, in August 1948. Her family moved to Tulsa when she was seven years old, and she later graduated from Will Rogers High School. Tulsa remained an important part of her life even after marriage took her to California.
In 1966, she represented Tulsa as Miss Tulsa. Records from that year’s Miss Oklahoma competition list Janice Lynn Glass as the Miss Tulsa contestant. The state title was won by Jane Anne Jayroe, who subsequently became Miss America 1967.
Ashley did not build a long-term career around pageants or entertainment. Her obituary states that she worked as executive secretary to Kenneth “Boots” Adams of Phillips Petroleum. That position places her early professional life within the corporate world rather than the celebrity industry with which she later became associated.
Her Marriage to Actor and Producer John Ashley
Jan met John Ashley after returning to Tulsa. They married in 1978 and moved to California, where John had established a career in film and television. The marriage lasted until his death in 1997.
John Ashley began as an actor in hot-rod films, horror pictures and the popular beach-party movies of the 1960s. He later became a television producer and worked on productions including The A-Team. The Los Angeles Times described him as both an actor and a producer following his death.
The couple’s marriage lasted approximately 19 years. John died after suffering a heart attack in New York City in October 1997 while working on a film production. Jan’s obituary refers to him as her loving husband and states that she was eventually interred beside him at Forest Lawn Memorial Park in California.
This long marriage is an important part of Jan Ashley’s biography. She spent far more of her adult life with John Ashley than with Robert Kardashian, yet many summaries mention only her Kardashian connection.
Jan Ashley and Robert Kardashian Sr.
When did they get married?
Jan Ashley married Robert Kardashian Sr. on November 25, 1998, a little more than a year after John Ashley’s death. The date appears in a declaration signed by Kardashian under penalty of perjury in May 1999.
Robert Kardashian was an attorney and businessman who had become internationally recognizable through his friendship with O.J. Simpson and his involvement in Simpson’s 1995 criminal defense. He had previously been married to Kris Jenner, with whom he had four children: Kourtney, Kim, Khloé and Rob Kardashian.
Jan was Robert’s second wife. Their relationship was kept largely outside the entertainment press, particularly when compared with the later television fame of the Kardashian family.
Why was the marriage annulled?
Many celebrity biographies claim that Jan and Robert separated after exactly 30 days. The available court declaration does not establish that timeline.
Robert stated that before the wedding, he and Jan had agreed to have a child together. He wrote that approximately two months after the marriage, he changed his mind because he already had four biological children and did not wish to have another. He accepted responsibility for changing the plan and submitted the declaration in support of his request to have the marriage declared legally invalid.
The document was signed on May 13, 1999, in Beverly Hills. Later biographical coverage describes the marriage as having been annulled within a year of the wedding.
An annulment differs from a divorce. A divorce ends a legally recognized marriage, while an annulment is based on a finding that the marriage was invalid or voidable under applicable law. For that reason, describing Jan simply as someone Robert “divorced after one month” is not an accurate summary of the available record.
The 2012 Kardashian Controversy
Jan returned to entertainment coverage in January 2012 after she made a claim about Khloé Kardashian’s biological parentage during an interview with Star. Robert’s later wife, Ellen Pierson, made a similar allegation. Khloé publicly condemned the statements.
The allegation was never established through a publicly documented paternity test and should not be presented as fact. Robert’s 1999 declaration, meanwhile, stated that he already had four biological children, although it did not list them individually.
That distinction matters when recounting Jan Ashley’s life. She made the claim, and the Kardashian family rejected it, but repeating an allegation does not make it a proven biographical detail.
Final Years and Death
Jan eventually returned to Oklahoma. Her obituary states that she moved back in 2012 after spending additional time in California. She died on October 1, 2015, at the age of 67.
Her surviving relatives included her brother, Jerry D. Glass, her sister-in-law and three nephews. A private family service was arranged, and she was buried beside John Ashley in California.
Her obituary remembered her primarily as a loving sister and aunt. That family description offers a different portrait from the tabloid coverage that shaped most later references to her name.
Jan Ashley Timeline
| Year | Event |
|---|---|
| 1948 | Born in Amarillo, Texas |
| Mid-1950s | Moved with her family to Tulsa, Oklahoma |
| 1966 | Became Miss Tulsa and competed for Miss Oklahoma |
| 1978 | Married actor and producer John Ashley |
| 1997 | John Ashley died in New York City |
| 1998 | Married Robert Kardashian Sr. on November 25 |
| 1999 | Robert filed a declaration supporting an annulment |
| 2012 | Moved back to Oklahoma |
| 2015 | Died on October 1 at age 67 |
The timeline is based on Ashley’s obituary, the Miss Oklahoma contestant archive and Robert Kardashian’s court declaration.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who was Jan Ashley?
Jan Ashley was a former Miss Tulsa, corporate executive secretary and the widow of actor-producer John Ashley. She later became Robert Kardashian Sr.’s second wife.
How long were Jan Ashley and Robert Kardashian married?
They married on November 25, 1998, and the marriage was annulled in 1999. Robert’s court declaration was signed in May 1999. The frequently repeated claim that the marriage lasted exactly 30 days is not confirmed by that document.
Why did Jan Ashley and Robert Kardashian separate?
Robert stated in a court declaration that they had expected to have a child together, but that he changed his mind approximately two months after their wedding because he already had four children.
Who was Jan Ashley’s first husband?
Her first husband was John Ashley, an American actor and producer associated with beach-party films and television productions such as The A-Team. They married in 1978 and remained together until his death in 1997.
When did Jan Ashley die?
Jan Ashley died on October 1, 2015, at age 67. She was buried beside John Ashley at Forest Lawn Memorial Park in California.
Conclusion
Jan Ashley’s life cannot be fully described by her short marriage to Robert Kardashian Sr. She grew up in Tulsa, represented the city in a major state pageant, worked in a senior secretarial position and spent nearly two decades married to actor and producer John Ashley. Her Kardashian marriage ended through an annulment in 1999, while her later media appearance involved an allegation that remains unproven. She died in 2015 after returning to Oklahoma, leaving a personal history far broader than the celebrity dispute most often connected with her name.
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