Wendy Clark: When I started playing music many years ago, a major part of life was seeing JT on every zine, flyers on every store window, every where there was music, there was Ten Tiers and his handsome face was predictably promoted; he was a big rock star to me and the Denver and Ft Collins scene.
He didn’t seem real with this amount much press and presence. He was the big deal and when he came out to see Tequila Mockingbird at the old Soiled Dove Underground, I was panicky and intimidated because then the big deal became the real deal when he walked up to me and said he that he loved our band and band name (joking that he had thought of it first). I was slightly starstruck but he was so kind and good to be around, I would make sure we didn’t play at the People’s Fair at the same time so we could watch him and he would alway come see me and make me feel like a rock star and that wasn’t the case with a lot of male musicians — he was lovely and brilliant and used his words.
He invented cool to me as a young musician. I didn’t even know he was a movie star for a few years when I saw an article in the Westword. Jonathan Tiersten was always bigger than life to me and a genuine talent and brilliant, beautiful, intense rock star since I landed in Colorado. Thank you JT for everything you were and always will be to our community and our Colorado sound. And for giving me someone to look up to. Rest in love, know you were loved. It’s a sad day without you.
https://www.facebook.com/jonathan.tiersten.9
Photo: Ron Oliver & Jonathan Tiersten | https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10227270477085697&set=t.1172621261&type=3
‘Sleepaway Camp’ Jonathan Tiersten Dead At 60
By TMZ Staff
Jonathan Tiersten — the actor best known for his role in the ’80’s horror classic “Sleepaway Camp,” has died, TMZ has learned.
Tiersten passed away last week at his home in New Jersey, according to his brother, William Tiersten. William tells us the medical examiner is investigating Jonathan’s cause of death.
In 1983, Jonathan landed his first film gig with the biggest role of his acting career, playing Ricky Thomas in “Sleepaway Camp.” He also appeared in two out of the 4 sequels: “Return to Sleepaway Camp” and “Sleepaway Camp IV: The Survivor.”
Jonathan’s passion for blood-splattered horror flicks never ceased, starring in “The Perfect House,” “Terror Tales,” “Toilet Zombie Baby Strikes Back,” and “Time’s Up” throughout his career.
For the role of serial killer John Doesy in “The Perfect House,” Jonathan snagged 3 best actor awards and was nominated for a fourth at multiple film festivals.
Jonathan was 60.
RIP
https://www.tmz.com/2026/05/05/jonathan-tiersten-dead/
From Wikipedia:
In between acting Jonathan took to music, fronting a number of bands, mostly based out of the Fort Collins, Colorado area. Tiersten was the lead singer of the band Ten Tiers and composed the score to a short starring David Krumholtz. Tiersten also starred in the 2012 film The Perfect House in which he played a serial killer named John Doesy and the thriller film Redemption which co-stars George Loros and Meredith Ostrom. Tiersten also composed the theme song for The Perfect House and contributed to the soundtrack of Redemption. Tiersten’s 2011 EP We’ll See, released by Edward Records, ranked third in Magnet magazine’s most anticipated albums list. Shakefire.com called the album “surprising” and “simply amazing”, rating it 4 out of 4 stars.
Tiersten also recorded a version of the Mickey & Sylvia song “Love Is Strange” for the remake of Ed Wood’s Plan 9 from Outer Space called Plan 9, starring Brian Krause.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jonathan_Tiersten
OTHER NOTABLE MUSICIANS’ DEATHS
Warning Signs of Suicide – National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 988 or if you want to discuss, call the old numbers at 800-273-TALK or 800-273-8255 for English and 888-628-9454 for Spanish. Learn the signs of someone who may be contemplating suicide.
Posting for my Veteran/singer/songwriter/musician friend Troy Hoss: Heavy on my heart so here goes: This is a very real problem … 22 Veterans a day surrender to their demons. #SuicideAwareness | Call Veteran’s Hotline: 988 #1 or 844-647-1354
From Care2 via Jock Bartley on Facebook: Trump shut down our LGBTQ+ suicide and mental health hotline, but CANADA opened a US toll-free number to theirs… so our citizens can get help anytime, at no cost: 1-877-330-6366
Kindness & empathy have no borders.
If you want to know more about any of the musicians we lost, please check them out at http://www.wikipedia.com
May 2026
6: Jesse Hector, 78, English musician (The Gorillas).
5: Guto Graça Mello, 78, Brazilian composer and music producer; Jonathan Tiersten, 60, American actor (Sleepaway Camp, Return to Sleepaway Camp, The Perfect House).
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jonathan_Tiersten
4: Jorge Calandrelli, 86, Argentine composer; Jalil Hamid, 69, Malaysian actor (Buli), singer and producer.
3: Hany Shaker, 73, Egyptian singer, actor (Sayed Darwish) and composer; Gheorghe tefăne , 82, Moldovan singer and musician; Lee Allen Zeno, 71, American bassist, cancer (Buckwheat Zydeco). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lee_Allen_Zeno
2: Michel Debost, 92, French flutist.
1: Tülay Özer, 79, Turkish singer; Michael Sollis, 40, Australian musician and artistic director, bowel cancer; Georg Wadenius, 80, Swedish guitarist (Blood, Sweat & Tears, Saturday Night Live Band). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Georg_Wadenius
April 2026
30: Seymour Bernstein, 99, American pianist and composer; Alex Ligertwood, 79, Scottish musician and singer (Santana); Bobby Murray, 72, American blues musician, songwriter and producer (Etta James, B.B. King).
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seymour_Bernstein
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alex_Ligertwood
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bobby_Murray_(musician)
29: David Allan Coe, 86, American country singer (“You Never Even Called Me By My Name”, “The Ride”) and songwriter (“Take This Job and Shove It”); Donald MacRae, 84, Scottish folk singer; Oskar Petr, 73, Czech composer, lyricist, and singer.
