Last updated: October 2026
Jan Ashley was an American former beauty pageant titleholder who became widely known as the second wife of attorney Robert Kardashian Sr. Their marriage in 1998 lasted only about a month, yet her name still appears in searches about the Kardashian family. Before that, she had spent almost twenty years married to actor and producer John Ashley. This profile pulls together what is supported by reporting and what is still disputed, because many pages about her repeat different dates and details.
Quick Facts About Jan Ashley
| Full name | Janice Lynn Glass, known as Jan Ashley (the middle name Lynn is widely reported) |
| Known for | Second wife of Robert Kardashian Sr.; earlier wife of actor and producer John Ashley |
| Born | August 3, 1948, in Amarillo, Texas (widely reported, not confirmed by a primary source) |
| Pageant title | Miss Tulsa, reported as 1966 |
| First marriage | John Ashley, reported from 1978 until his death in 1997 |
| Second marriage | Robert Kardashian Sr., November 25, 1998; annulled after about 30 days |
| Children | None reported from either marriage |
| Died | Reported as October 1, 2015, in Tulsa, Oklahoma, at age 67 (cause not made public) |
Who Was Jan Ashley?
Jan Ashley was a private woman who stepped briefly into public view through two marriages. Many profiles describe her as a former beauty queen and executive secretary who later lived in California, and then returned to Oklahoma. She never built a career in entertainment of her own, and her fame
comes from the men she married and from one controversial interview many years later. Because she died in 2015, the information about her comes from old news reports and reference pages and not from recent interviews.
Early Life and Education
Most pages say Jan Ashley was born Janice Lynn Glass on August 3, 1948, in Amarillo, Texas. That date and place appear on many websites, but I could not find a birth record, so they are best read as reported details. Some sources name her parents as James Douglas Glass and Monnie, and one says the family moved when she was seven. Her schooling is described only as local, and no source gives a school name.
There is also confusion about the places in her story. Her birthplace is Texas, while her pageant title is from Tulsa, Oklahoma, and several pages mix the two together. One website suggests she grew up in small-town Texas, while others say she lived in Oklahoma as a teenager. Since no reliable biography settles this, it is safest to say she had roots in both states.
Miss Tulsa and Early Career
Jan Ashley is most often described as Miss Tulsa 1966, a local pageant title that gave her some attention in Oklahoma. After that, one profile says she worked as an executive secretary at Phillips Petroleum, a large energy company based in the Tulsa area. These details come from a small number of pages, and I could not verify them in a major news source. They do fit the general picture of a woman who built a regular working life before moving to California.
Some websites also call her an actress or entrepreneur. I found no film credits or business records that support those labels. For that reason, I describe her only as a former pageant winner and office professional, which is the most consistent description across sources.
Jan Ashley and John Ashley: Her First Marriage
Jan Ashley’s first husband was John Ashley, an American actor and film and television producer with decades of work in Hollywood. Most sources say they married in 1978, moved to California, and stayed together for roughly nineteen years. John Ashley died in October 1997, which ended the marriage and left Jan a widow. Some pages give his exact date of death as October 3, 1997, and say he was 62, but several details about his early life, such as his birth name, differ between websites.
The long marriage matters because it explains how Jan ended up in Hollywood circles without being an entertainer herself. It also shows that her second marriage came just over a year after she lost her husband. Reports say she was later buried next to John Ashley at Forest Lawn Memorial Park in the Hollywood Hills, which would reflect how important that first marriage remained to her.
Jan Ashley and Robert Kardashian: The 1998 Marriage
Jan Ashley married Robert Kardashian Sr. on November 25, 1998, in a private ceremony in Vail, Colorado. Kardashian was the lawyer widely known for his role in the O.J. Simpson case, and he had divorced Kris Jenner in 1991. Several pages say the two met earlier that year, and one even says they met when he came to see a house she was selling in Beverly Hills. That meeting story is only reported by one site, so I would call it possible but unconfirmed.
The marriage ended almost at once. Most sources say it lasted about thirty days and was annulled, and one says Kardashian signed a legal declaration in May 1999 asking that the marriage be declared invalid. The exact annulment date is not settled, since some sites say December 1998 and
others say 1999. Reports also say that Kardashian’s four children were on the honeymoon trip, but there is no clear public explanation of why the relationship fell apart so quickly.
The 2012 Claim About Khloé Kardashian
Jan Ashley returned to the headlines in January 2012, when she gave an interview to Star magazine. According to published accounts, she said that Robert Kardashian had told her shortly after their wedding that Khloé Kardashian was not his biological daughter. Robert’s third wife, Ellen Pierson, was reported to have made a similar statement in the same piece. The interview came about a year after Kris Jenner published a memoir in which she admitted to having an affair during her marriage to Kardashian.
This is an allegation and not an established fact. The Kardashian family strongly denied it, and Khloé publicly called the claims hurtful. No DNA test involving Robert Kardashian Sr. has been made public, and several sources note that his own 1999 court documents reportedly described four biological children. Because the claim has never been verified, a responsible biography should present it as a disputed statement and should not treat it as proof.
Children, Later Years and Death
Jan Ashley is reported to have had no children from either marriage. One 2014 interview, quoted by two sites, says she stated that she never wanted children, which also answers a question that came up in the annulment story. After the annulment, she is said to have lived quietly and spent time in Tulsa, Oklahoma. She never remarried, according to the sources that discuss it.
Jan Ashley is reported to have died on October 1, 2015, in Tulsa at age 67. One profile says the cause of death was never made public, and I could not find an obituary in a major outlet to confirm the date. Because the date appears on several websites but is not backed by a primary record, I present it as reported. Her burial place at Forest Lawn in the Hollywood Hills, next to John Ashley, is also reported and not fully verified.
What Is Still Unconfirmed
To be clear about the gaps, these details are not reliably confirmed: her exact birth date and birthplace, her parents and education, the Miss Tulsa year, her job at Phillips Petroleum, the exact year she married John Ashley, how she met Robert Kardashian, the exact annulment date, the date and cause of her death, and her burial place. I also could not find a net worth figure from any credible source. Readers who need these facts should look for court records, an obituary or a direct statement from the family.
How This Was Researched
I wrote this profile after reviewing more than a dozen biography pages about Jan Ashley, along with reports on the Kardashian marriage and the 2012 interview. I compared dates across sources and left out claims that appeared only once or contradicted each other, such as the birth name of her first husband and the exact annulment date. I did not speak to anyone connected to her and I have no inside access. The gap I tried to fill is that many existing pages present uncertain dates and a disputed paternity claim as plain facts, while this article labels each one clearly.
Accuracy Note
This biography is based on publicly available information, including reference pages and published profiles. Because Jan Ashley was a private person and has passed away, some details may be incomplete. If you spot anything outdated or incorrect, please let us know so we can update it.
Written and researched by Usama Khan, contributor at lopin magazine.
FAQ
Who was Jan Ashley?
Jan Ashley was an American former beauty pageant winner and the second wife of attorney Robert Kardashian Sr. She was earlier married to actor and producer John Ashley.
When did Jan Ashley marry Robert Kardashian?
They married on November 25, 1998, in Vail, Colorado.
How long did the marriage last?
About thirty days. It ended in an annulment, though the exact date is reported as December 1998 or 1999.
What did Jan Ashley say about Khloé Kardashian?
In a 2012 Star magazine interview she claimed Robert Kardashian told her Khloé was not his biological daughter. The family denied it, and it has never been verified.
Did Jan Ashley have children?
No children are reported from either of her marriages.
When did Jan Ashley die?
She is reported to have died on October 1, 2015, in Tulsa, Oklahoma, at age 67, though the date is not backed by a primary record.
Who was Jan Ashley’s first husband?
John Ashley, an actor and producer who died in 1997.
Usama Khan is the founder and editor-in-chief of Lopin Magazine, where he oversees the site’s biography and news coverage with a focus on accuracy and well-researched storytelling.
