Over the past few weeks, we’ve seen Caitlyn Jenner transition from a former Olympic athlete and reality show husband into an outspoken advocate for the trans community. It’s been somewhat phenomenal to watch, and Caitlyn’s efforts seemed to culminate with a rousing and inspirational speech at the ESPYs Tuesday night, where she accepted the Arthur Ashe award. Most of Caitlyn’s adult children were in the audience (except for Rob) but of course her ex wife, Kris Jenner, was not. Kris has seemed blindsided and somewhat bewildered by Caitlyn’s transition. Although Kris knew that Caitlyn liked to cross dress behind closed doors she claims to have not been aware that her ex husband was planning to live full time as a woman. That’s why it seems big of Kris to give some positive comments about Caitlyn to US Magazine.
Talking exclusively to Us Weekly about Caitlyn’s big moment accepting her Arthur Ashe Courage Award, the momager was totally supportive of her ex’s heartfelt speech.
“I think it was amazing and very brave,” Kris, 59, told Us during Thursday, July 16’s Amazon Summer Soiree at Los Angeles’ Sunset Tower. “I think she looked beautiful,” she added, of Caitlyn’s jaw-dropping appearance in a floor-length cream Versace gown.
Jenner was joined at last night’s Amazon bash by daughter Kendall Jenner, 19, who had watched her dad’s speech from the front of the ESPYS’ audience, along with all of her other siblings and half siblings, apart from step-brother Rob Kardashian who shied away from the very public event.
Kris revealed that their Thursday night mother-daughter hang out was very last minute, but says she and her children like it that way.
“I love being with my kids,” Kris told Us. “I was on my way here to support the girls, the Foster girls, and I called Kendall and said, ‘Get over here, let’s go there for a minute and I’ll take you to dinner.’ That’s the way it goes in my family, it’s always spontaneous,” she added.
In terms of Kris’s comments on Caitlyn, she’s not going to say anything negative and of course she’s hyper aware of the press. She’s surely heard all the jokes about how Caitlyn is hotter than she is. On the other hand maybe she’s starting to understand what her ex was going through. Bruce was so secretive before the transition and kept so much of the struggle internalized. It’s got to be eye opening for Caitlyn’s family to hear what she’s dealt with most of her life and to see her finally embrace her true self.
Caitlyn gave a brief interview to Robin Roberts on the red carpet after the ESPYs. She got choked up as she said “I knew Arthur Ashe. I sat out there in the audience on many an occasion. I thought to myself ‘boy, what if some day I could make a difference in the world and do what I’m doing?’ Tonight was the night.”
For those of you who criticize Caitlyn for cashing in and making deals, yes she’s doing that. This is exactly what Bruce did after shattering records at The Olympics. Bruce didn’t even have a trainer before killing it in the decathlon. Caitlyn is breaking barriers now and she’s doing so much good while she’s getting paid. I can’t fault her for that.
No fan of Kris, but I think it would be nice if they became girlfriends. Not romantic girlfriends, just buddies.
Bruce Jenner was taking hormones and was growing breasts when Kris met him, she knew full well what he was all about. I remember years ago seeing a story on the cover of one of the tabloids with a headline saying something along the lines that Kris was going to tell the world that Bruce was a cross dresser if he didn’t toe the line.
And let’s be honest here folks, her dress, hair and make up are good and she looks very happy but in all honesty you can’t call her beautiful, she looks like what she is, a man who identifies with being a woman and looks like a man in a dress and make up.
Denail can be a very powerful thing.
Are you saying Kris is in denial?
IMO she looks more beautiful as a woman than she looked handsome as a man. Not to mention happier, which helps a lot. I wonder if she’ll get voice coaching, though.
She must have upgraded her plastic surgeon, because she was getting budget work done pre-transition but has the best work in her family now.
I just said the same thing to someone the other day!
@If You Say So: Maybe YOU can’t say Caitlyn is beautiful, but beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Who are you to say that your opinion should dictate everyone’s opinion? Live and let live.
“…Who are you to say that your opinion should dictate everyone’s opinion?…”
She has a right to say what she wants. Just as you did.
Btw…I think he was much more attractive as a male. He was so hot when I was a kid!
She may be admirable in some ways but seriously, her appearance is terrifying.
+1 @Francesca
Hard to become a woman when your old?
And weird face work…
In the eye of the beholder, I suppose. I think she looks stunning, maybe more on the handsome woman side rather than the pretty girl side, but she looks all right to me. She doesn’t look any worse than most people her age in Hollywood who have had a ton of plastic surgery. She’s what, 65? I think she looks damn good for that age. If I could look that good at 65, I’d be ecstatic, and I’m cis.
She looks better than Bruce did in recent years.
I agree
She does look great. Unfortunately most transgender can’t afford the amount of plastic surgery Caitlyn has had done.
And that is something to remember. We discussed this a while ago, I don’t remember when. I said that she had access to better plastic surgery, and someone else said she also probably has better security. She’s not likely to be physically attacked, as some transgender people have been.
I think her speech was a historical moment. I usually comment on fashion when I come to Celebitchy, but this time my focus is more on what she said rather than how she looked.
^This. You have to give her some credit for coming forward and speaking on behalf of those who can’t. I thought the speech was lovely.
However, the speech that got me more choked up was the young football player who is struggling with his daughter to overcome her cancer. No disrespect to Caitlyn, but I got way more choked up watching that speech than hers.
I am in Australia so the big reveal of the Vanity Fair cover happened while I was sleeping. When I saw it on my Instagram feed I’ll be honest and say I had no idea who it was at first. I thought she looked like a very handsome older woman in the same vein as how I always imagined Kathleen turner would age. Or even Ellen Barkin.
Beauty is definitely subjective. I think she can be described as beautiful as she radiates happiness now and that is very beautiful.
Kendall looks like Kris
on a good day, when she’s on the catwalk, she looks like Ali McGraw
she’s very pretty. Total dum dum in conversation though. Has no clue of the real world.
Beautiful? No. Cartoonish comes to mind.
+1.
Can a Kardashian complete a sentence without using the word “amazing”?
It’s their Word of the Week, and their next task is learning how to spell it.
Funny, but sadly, probably true, NYer.
Yeah … beautiful by Kardashian standards which include industrial strength Spanx, bad wigs and butchered plastic surgery that makes your face look like you’re suffering from a stroke.
What good has Caitlyn done? Coming out or transitioning took courage but what has she done that hasn’t benefitted her personally?
Nothing, just as PMK has taught all her girls.
She’s consistently advocated for and brought into focus the struggles of transgender women less fortunate than her, and has created understanding of what it means to be transgender in the world at large. That’s huge.
The first thing I thought was can you imagine the number of hours it took to get this look? The makeup, the hair, and not to mention the girdle and/or waist cinchers that are squeezing the body into a feminine shape. This is ironically not unlike many women in the industry, I suppose, but a serious commitment every day for someone who chooses this lifestyle. Gone are the days of throwing on a hat and running out the door.
As far as Kris thinking she is beautiful, there’s been a lot of years shared between them and I wouldn’t doubt Kris still feels for her. And if any other celebrity came out saying anything different, it would be considered going against the currently politically correct thing to say, so I doubt anyone would share what they are really thinking and risk the media storm that would follow.
I’ve heard a lot of people say that Caitlin is a fame-whore who is doing all of this for publicity and is over saturating the media with her presence.
On the other hand, I think Caitlin would also be criticized if she gave one statement to the press and quietly transitioned behind doors. I believe that people would accuse her of downplaying an action that needs recognition. Some might say she could have been an inspiration and role model to other kids/adults going through the same ordeal, and not using her voice (which could reach a broad audience of many ages) is disappointing.
I think her pr people need to get more out there about what she does and not so much where she goes and what she is wearing. Again yesterday the stories concerned her style and nothing else. That’s where the fame whoring comes from.
I think much of the criticism and eye-rolling is simply at how horrid a person inside Caitlyn is/has been. Totally self-centered, a pathological liar, a child deserter, etc. Yes, kudos for her transition now but the whole schtick about her being a positive role model or a force for LGBT causes is so misguided. She’s one of the worst, in addition to her association with the Trash Klan. Someone like Laverne Cox or Chaz Bono were so much more inspirational. And with Caitlyn, there hasn’t been a real effort, aside from this speech, to fully address the hardships of fully embracing who she is; to date, it’s been all about pretty dresses, makeup, lip injections, stilettos, and photo shoots.
I feel like this site is generally very inclusive toward the trans community, and has been handling the Caitlyn Jenner stories very sensitively. That said I’ve been noticing a pretty disturbing trend of pronoun confusion when referring to Caitlyn Jenner’s background prior to coming out. The rule of thumb is to always refer to trans people by the name and gender identity that they have expressed- never the one assigned to them at birth- regardless of whether you’re referring to a time before they came out. With regard to familial relations, gender neutral terms like parent and spouse offer the same idea without inappropriately gendering the relationships. Just a heads up! I’m a huge fan of your site!
No. The rule of thumb is to refer to trans people in the way they prefer. In Bruce’s case, when he was interviewed by Diane Sawyer, he said he still wanted to have male pronouns applied to him at that time. In Vanity Fair, Caitlyn said that she understood that people might mix up the pronouns and she was okay with that. Bruce Jenner won the Olympic decathlon, not Caitlyn. And HIS records and accomplishments should not be wiped out. Bruce Jenner was the father of six children. Caitlyn Jenner didn’t become their mother when she transitioned.
Robin, that’s not what she prefers. That’s true about her remaining their father, but there’s no reason to call her by her old name or use INCORRECT pronouns. She’s specifically said that she won the decathalon as a woman, even though she wasn’t out yet. When she was asked who won Olympic gold, she said, and I quote, “That’s me. That’s her.” The Olympic committee is changing the record books to Caitlyn Jenner. You don’t get to misgender Caitlyn from 1950-2015 because that’s how she presented at the time. We know better, so use her and she. I’m sure she’s fine with people making a genuine mistake with her pronouns, i.e. her lovely and supportive elderly mother using male pronouns, or her children still adjusting to the transition. But I think you know better, and I think we should all strive to be better. Use the right pronouns.
I’m tired of the comments about how she’s not brave, and basically equating bravery as exclusively belonging to soldiers, cops, and firemen. It doesn’t take bravery to become who you always were? Especially after being known as a male athlete for most of your life? Okaaaaay…I think it’s damn brave. She took a risk at being completely ostracized by pretty much everyone, and it’s working out for her.
Maybe ironic is the wrong word to use, but I find it hilarious that all the people who are bashing her in my Facebook feed, are republicans. Which Caitlyn Jenner also is. Ha.
Oh me tooooo. I’ve seen about 80 million memes saying the award should have gone to a soldier and my hand hurts from typing ‘it’s a SPORTS AWARD YOU DUMBARSE and frankly the backlash Caitlyn has received proves more than ever how brave she’s been.’
Just my opinion but kris does seem prettier than Caitlyn (plastic surgery and all) if we are judging them on looks.
OK she needs to stop with the plastic surgery (facial) and injections now. She is beautiful but her face no longer moves naturally and if it were anyone else, we’d be pointing that out.
Actually I think Caithlyn did look stunning and beautiful during her speech. I am also well aware that it took a lot of money – as in plastic surgery, stylists, etc to help her look like that. But I don’t care, if I had that money, in the spotlight, I would do exactly the same. I’d want to look my best on telly too.
As for the courage, she definately has it in spades. On the other hand she has the money & people around her, to protect her from most negativity. Protection most trans people do not have, who are vilified for whom they are. Hopefully Caithlyn will change that, but only time will tell.
Caithlyn becoming a woman doesn’t change her personality a 180. It doesn’t alter her past where she made some very bad choices – of which the effects are still present today.
I liked portion of her speech where she stated that those who are young & are coming to terms with being transgendered shouldn’t have to put up w/crap from those who don’t understand or agree.
Not to nit pick but Rob isn’t a step brother but a 1/2 brother to the Jenner girls & nothing to the Jenner boys other than ex-step & ex-step son. Although I do believe that Caitlyn was close to Rob when he was married to Kris.
I have hopes that this is truly for those who could be helped by a famous voice & not just for publicity.
okay sure… nevermind that her youngest daughter was dating a pedo, that she might have killed someone in a crash, that she doesn’t protect her daughters. Still trash but good for her for living her truth. *eye rolls so hard it falls on the floor
**picks up eyeball and returns it to “yea”**
“Excuse me, you dropped this?”
I’d just like to add a small correction to what you mentioned.
“… that she might have killed someone in a crash…”
Bruce DID contribute 99.9% to the womans death.
I really like the part where she say that with spotlight comes responsibility and that she hopes to use her platform for good.
hopefully her youngest daughters do the same.
my question with full honesty not sarcastically is how can we refer to Caitlin as a parent like is correct to say “your dad”?
Because I hi wanted to say to Kylie and Kendall about that part of their “dad’s” speech and I don’t know if its politically correct