Beloved Kardashian family member Mary Jo ‘MJ’ Campbell has died at age 91.

The mother of businesswoman Kris Jenner, Campbell became a celebrity in her own right as a frequent guest on her family’s reality show, Keeping Up With The Kardashians. 

The show starred her daughter Jenner and her grandchildren Kim Kardashian, Khloe Kardashian, Kourtney Kardashian, Rob Kardashian, Kendall Jenner and Kylie Jenner.

A devastated Jenner announced the loss with her Instagram followers on Thursday with a touching tribute to the ‘heart’ of their family. 

‘Today, we said goodbye to my beautiful Mommy MJ,’ she posted. ‘There are no words that could ever capture what she has meant to me or the heartbreak of having to say goodbye. 

‘My mom was the heart of our family. She taught me everything that truly matters… to love your family fiercely, to be kind, to show up for the people you love, and to never take a single moment together for granted. 

Beloved Kardashians family member Mary Jo Campbell has died at age 91

The mother of businesswoman Kris Jenner, Campbell became a celebrity in her own right as a frequent guest on her family’s reality show, Keeping Up With The Kardashians

‘She taught us that family is everything. She showed us how to love unconditionally and how to find joy in the little moments. She showed me how to face life’s challenges with resilience and faith. 

‘Mom, thank you for every sacrifice you made, every piece of wisdom you shared, and every moment you loved us so completely. I will miss our daily talks, your smile, your laughter… 

‘Our 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. When I look at my kids and my grandkids, I will forever see pieces of you in all of us. 

‘There 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. 

‘Every memory, every moment, every blessing, it was all because of you, and I will forever thank God every single day for making you my mommy. My heart is broken into a million pieces… thank you for giving me the greatest childhood and oh what a beautiful blessed life… I love you forever Mommy. Thank you for giving us everything.’

Kim Kardashian also paid tribute to her ‘forever twin’ with a touching message and photos taken of them over the years.  

‘My sweet Grandma MJ, my best friend, my gossip buddy, my forever twin… You taught all of us the importance of family, and those values are something we’ll carry with us forever!!!!! 

‘You were the woman who showed me what it meant to be a hardworking businesswoman. You gave me my very first job at your store in San Diego and taught me lessons about work ethic, strength, and confidence that I’ve carried with me ever since. 

A devastated Jenner announced the loss with her Instagram followers on Thursday with a touching tribute to the ‘heart’ of their family 

Campbell was one of two witnesses at her granddaughter Kourtney Kardashian’s courthouse wedding to Travis Barker at the Santa Barbara courthouse in 2022

‘You always believed in me, championed me, and were my safe place. You truly were the matriarch of our family, and your love is woven into all of us. I know you’re at peace now. Give Papa Harry, Aunt Karen, and my dad a hug for me. You will always be a part of me, I love you soooooo much and I will miss you forever and ever. (white heart emoji). YOU ARE THE BEST OF US!!!

‘I know you are up in heaven, looking at all of our Instagram posts of you from your sneaky finsta account you would always use lol.’

The Daily Mail has contacted a representative for the Kardashians for comment. 

Campbell’s family shot to worldwide fame with their eponymous reality show, Keeping Up With The Kardashians – a program which also propelled her into the spotlight.

As a member of the family, she made frequent appearances on the show, was a guest at their exclusive parties, was photographed by the paparazzi, competed on Celebrity Family Feud with them, appeared in a KKW Beauty shoot, and of course made multiple cameos on her family’s Instagram accounts. 

Kim Kardashian paid tribute to her grandmother with photos of them over the years

‘My sweet Grandma MJ, my best friend, my gossip buddy, my forever twin,’ she posted

MJ made frequent appearances on her family’s reality show over the years

MJ was a frequent guest at her family’s exclusive parties

She also was one of two witnesses present for Kourtney’s wedding to Travis Barker at the Santa Barbara courthouse in 2022, a marriage that was documented on the couple’s special, Til Death Do Us Part Kourtney & Travis. 

The spotlight was not something Campbell completely shied away from earlier in her life. 

Years before the Kardashians became household names, Campbell also pursued a career that put her in the spotlight, working as a model in her early years, according to People. 

As an adult, however, she embraced a quieter life hundreds of miles away from glamorous Hollywood.

In 1980, she opened Shannon & Company, a children’s clothing boutique in the San Diego neighborhood of La Jolla – a store she ran for years before it eventually closed. 

It was a store that was frequented by the Kardashian siblings when they were children and a place where Jenner even worked at when she was a teenager, according to People. 

‘They grew up playing in the store,’ Campbell told The Daily Beast in 2012. ‘I recall Kim sitting on this very floor and counting money. She would sing, “Counting is the game, and money is my name,” or “Money is my name and counting is the game.” Something like that.’

The beloved grandmother appeared in a photo shoot for Kim’s beauty range KKW Beauty back in 2018

MJ with her grandchildren, Kendall and Kylie

A star in her own right, MJ was photographed by the paparazzi

The store is what ‘keeps me going. If I didn’t have the store, I would probably spend more time up [in Calabasas with family]. I want to keep my little house as my haven, because then you have some place to run to,’ she said. 

It is a life that has not been without upheaval. 

Campbell overcame two battles with cancer during her life, surviving both breast and colon cancer.

 In 2024, her daughter Karen  passed ‘unexpectedly’ – with a death certificate stating she passed from cardiac arrest and sudden cardiac arrhythmia with Type 2 diabetes listed as a secondary underlying cause.

Campbell was also married three times during her life.  

A marriage she had with her high school sweetheart ended after just two months.

She then wed Robert Houghton, whom she had daughters Kris Jenner and Karen Houghton with. 

Campbell and Houghton ultimately split when Jenner was seven-years-old.

MJ has also a similar love life to that of her granddaughter, Kim  

She walked down the aisle again with Harry Shannon, a marriage which lasted 40 years until his death in 2003. 

It is a love life that bears a striking similarity to her granddaughter Kim – who has also been married three times.

‘We have so much in common. History repeats itself,’ Campbell said back in 2017 on her granddaughter’s website. ‘I can’t 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, ‘You know what? This isn’t really that much fun,’ so I got out of it.’ 

‘Once you got married you realized it. ‘What did I do?’ And you try to stay in there for a month or so and really try hard and you just can’t,’ she added.  ‘You think, ‘I shouldn’t waste his time.’