You know that feeling when you look back at a photo of yourself from twenty years ago and barely recognize the person staring back? That’s basically the vibe whenever Kris Jenner talks about her first marriage. Most people today see her as the "momager" mastermind, the woman who turned a family name into a multi-billion-dollar ecosystem. But before the cameras and the Calabasas mansions, there was Kris Jenner and Robert Kardashian—a couple whose drama literally helped shape the landscape of modern celebrity culture.
It wasn't just a marriage. It was a catalyst.
Honestly, the story of how they met sounds like something straight out of a 1970s soap opera. Kris was only 17, a flight attendant for American Airlines, when she caught the eye of Robert Kardashian at a horse race in 1973. He was 28, a wealthy, successful attorney from a prominent Armenian family. She was actually seeing someone else at the time—pro golfer Cesar Sanudo—but Robert was persistent.
They eventually married in 1978. It looked like the California dream: four kids (Kourtney, Kim, Khloé, and Robert Jr.), a gorgeous home in Beverly Hills, and a social circle that included some of the most famous people in the world. But behind the scenes, things were getting messy.
Why Kris Jenner and Robert Kardashian Really Split
It’s no secret that the marriage ended because of an affair. Kris has been incredibly candid about this in her memoir, Kris Jenner... and All Things Kardashian, and more recently on her family's Hulu show. She cheated. The man was Todd Waterman, a soccer player who was ten years younger than her.
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Kris has famously called this her "life's biggest regret."
"I thought the grass was greener somewhere else, and I made a huge mistake," she told her daughter Khloé during a particularly raw episode of The Kardashians.
When Robert found out, he didn't just get angry. He cut off her credit cards and made the divorce proceedings grueling. It was a massive wake-up call for Kris. She went from living a life of absolute luxury to wondering how she was going to pay for groceries. People often forget that part. They see the empire she built later and assume she always had the bag. She didn’t. She had to learn to hustle because the safety net Robert provided vanished overnight.
The O.J. Simpson Trial: A Family Divided
If the divorce was the earthquake, the O.J. Simpson trial was the aftershock that nearly leveled the family. Robert Kardashian was one of O.J.’s closest friends and famously joined the "Dream Team" of lawyers defending him.
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Kris, on the other hand, was the best friend of Nicole Brown Simpson.
Imagine that dinner table. Your ex-husband is defending the man you believe murdered your best friend. It wasn't just awkward; it was devastating. Kris sat on the prosecution’s side of the courtroom, pregnant with Kendall Jenner, while Robert sat with the defense. The kids were caught in the middle. Kim has mentioned how they felt torn between their loyalty to their "Daddy" and the grief their mother was clearly experiencing.
The Reconciliation Nobody Saw Coming
Despite the cheating, the lawsuits, and the Trial of the Century, something weird happened. They became friends. Not just "polite at graduations" friends, but actual confidants.
By the time Robert was diagnosed with esophageal cancer in 2003, the bitterness had largely evaporated. Kris was there. In fact, there’s a story—shared by family friend Cici Bussey—that Kim actually had to sneak Kris into the hospital so she could say a final goodbye to Robert without causing a scene with his then-wife, Ellen Pearson.
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They reportedly told each other they were the loves of each other's lives. Whether you find that romantic or slightly problematic given her marriage to Caitlyn Jenner at the time, it shows how deep their bond went.
Lessons from the Kardashian-Jenner Legacy
Looking at the history of Kris Jenner and Robert Kardashian, there are some actual takeaways for anyone navigating family drama or career pivots:
- Regret is a powerful teacher. Kris used the fallout of her divorce to fuel her business ambition. She realized she never wanted to be financially dependent on a man again.
- Co-parenting is a long game. It took them years to get to a good place. If you're in the thick of a messy split, realize that the "best friends" phase might be a decade away.
- Loyalty is complicated. Robert’s loyalty to O.J. cost him his relationship with many people, yet he stood by his friend. Kris’s loyalty to Nicole defined her moral compass during that era.
If you're looking to understand the Kardashian machine, you have to start with Robert. He provided the name and the initial legal platform, but Kris provided the drive born out of the mistakes she made during their marriage. They were two halves of a very complicated, very influential whole.
To really get the full picture, you should look into how Robert's legal career influenced Kim's current path into law—it’s a direct line from the 1990s to today.
Next Steps for Readers:
- Audit your personal "regrets": Like Kris, identify one major mistake and look for the "business lesson" it taught you about independence.
- Review your estate planning: Robert's death was sudden (only eight weeks after his diagnosis). It’s a grim but necessary reminder to ensure your family’s affairs are in order.
- Study the 1995 trial transcripts: If you want to see the real Robert Kardashian in action, the archival footage of the Simpson trial offers a better look at his character than any reality show ever could.