A beloved member of the Kardashian-Jenner family is gone, as Kris Jenner’s mother Mary Jo Shannon (better known as “MJ”) passed away at the age of 91. The momager broke the news herself, and Kim Kardashian followed suit with a touching tribute to the grandmother who made several stylish, smiling appearances on the family’s reality show.
MJ was grandmother to Kourtney, Kim, Khloé and Rob Kardashian, as well as Kendall and Kylie Jenner, and it’s clear from Kim Kardashian’s Instagram tribute how much she will be missed:
The carousel of photos shows just how close Kim Kardashian was to her grandmother, as they went blonde together, wore matching pajamas and took tons of selfies together throughout the years.
On IMDB, Mary Houghton (her credited name) is only noted for 15 appearances on Keeping Up with the Kardashians and The Kardashians combined, but fans of the reality TV family know her well. She was at all of the big birthday parties, holiday celebrations and family get-togethers. Kim could talk to her about literally anything, it seems, as she once detailed sex with Pete Davidson to her grandmother.
MJ definitely had a sense of humor about her, too, as she once was caught on camera laughing when Kris Jenner pulled a prank on the SKIMS boss and elicited Kim's iconic ugly-cry face. The All's Fair actress' tribute read, in part:
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. 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.
Kim Kardashian even mentioned MJ's secret Instagram account that she apparently sneaked around on to keep up with all of her grandchildren.
In addition to Kim and her siblings, though, this is undoubtedly a hard time for Kris Jenner, who shared just one photo of her look-alike mother on her own Instagram page as she announced Mary Jo's passing:
Kris Jenner's caption is a heartbreaking memorial to her mom, but the lessons that Mary Jo taught their family will live on. Kris wrote, in part:
Today, we said goodbye to my beautiful Mommy MJ. 😞💔 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.
Friends and family offered their condolences in the comments, including Kourtney Kardashian's husband Travis Barker, who said "sweet MJ" will be "deeply missed."
Kylie Jenner, meanwhile, shared simply a video from her childhood to her Instagram Stories, where MJ danced and twirled her around:
Mary Jo Shannon was a beloved member of the Kardashian family, not just by her daughter and many successful grandchildren, but by the fans who enjoyed seeing her react to all the shenanigans that went down on the reality shows.
Our condolences go out to Kris Jenner, her children and all of MJ Shannon's family and friends at this time.
