 Dear
Friends and Fans of Jon-Erik Hexum,
Some of you are just discovering this
gorgeous man, and some of you knew, loved, and have mourned
him since his tragic death in 1984, just before his 26th birthday.
He and I met in the spring of 1983, when
he came to my door in Toluca Lake, California, for a photo
session. He was already known at that time, as the star of
his own TV series, "Voyagers!" - his first paying
acting job. Our session was to be for my 1984 celebrity BUNS
calendar, published by Putnam, a follow-up to my best-selling
book, and one of a series of calendars. |
 Jon-Erik
and I became instant friends that day, and more. We did many
things over the following 16 months, like meeting up to play
his favorite arcade game, Galaga, travel, and throwing home
parties, as well as accomplishing many photos sessions. "Entertainment
Tonight" did a piece on us, our friendship and our working
relationship, and some of the photos on this page are from
the day they spent at my home and studio. He was a terrific
guy, loved by all, and was easy to make friends with. He
loved life, loved living, loved nothing more than having
pals over. His positive spirit was infectious, and despite
those who have tried to explain his death as just another
Hollywood actor with a dark side, I and others will attest
to the fact that he simply didn't have one. |
 Jon-Erik took this
photo of me in 1984 with his very cool car. He loved driving
it, and would wear
his mothers white rimmed
rhinestone winged glasses as he never had time to go get his
own. I'd howl at how funny he looked, and he'd reply "Hey!
I need these! Or we could crash otherwise!" I think maybe
he just enjoyed not looking perfect all the time, which he never
took credit for anyway, saying "I came out of the womb lookin'
like this - I had nothing to do with it." It wasn't an
act - he was truly humble. |
 There were scores
of us who would have happily, respectfully, purchased the
car from Gretha after
Jon-Erik's heart and other
vital organs were donated to help others - what we call "the
final passing" - but then something unforeseen happened.
When she returned to LA from the transplant day in San Francisco,
she and her other son Gunnar dispersed of his house, car, and
belongings in short order, without calling any of us to reclaim
our own possessions (like some of my photographs, and everything
belonging to his two room-renters, Linda and Nick.) We don't
know who bought the car. I guess I was lucky that since he
had so few clothes, he often wore mine for our sessions - the
three
sweaters and fur you'll see on the Jon-Erik Image Page still
belong to me.
|
 So
about the accident on the set of his TV show "Cover-Up" -
it was just that, an accident. In short, any gun loaded with
a blank is considered "loaded", and therefore locked
up by the prop dept. until just before "action" is
called. Any gun left out all day, as the one that killed
him was, is known to have empty chambers. When you're an
actor that holds a gun as a prop, sometimes for hours a day,
playing, twirling, tossing, or scratching your head or leg
with it, feels absolutely normal (I was a figure skater and
would often unconsciously use my blade to scratch an itch,
and yes, I split my skin at least once a month). |
 On
set, October 12, 1984, Jon-Erik was upset at the lateness
of the day, promised he'd be released hours earlier to catch
a plane for Las Vegas, where he was to appear on "Circus
of the Stars", a show he'd been training hard for. He
was exhausted, and had fallen asleep on a set-bed there on
the Fox soundstage. Groggy, waking, checking his watch, he
most likely muttered something like "Come on! get me
out of here", and pulled the trigger. He would have
done this with his hand and finger, just like some people
do to signal frustration, but that damn gun happened to be
on the nightstand. An awful happenstance. And that was the
end of his life. I know all of these things, for seconds
after the shot was heard and blood was seen, signifying that
this gun was in fact loaded, one of the responsible set people
called me as he was being bundled into a nearby station wagon
and rushed to a nearby hospital. There is much more to this
horrible tale, and it can be found in various forms on the
web, some of it written by me, for those who care to search. |
 I'd
like to focus on the life and spirit and incredible charm
and appearance that was the Jon-Erik Hexum I knew and loved.
You'll see a link that will lead you to a page of many images
we made together. He always kept the copyright with me- we
planned to create a calendar someday - and just a few years
ago I finally
began selling a few of my hundreds of images due to constant
requests. I hope you will enjoy seeing them, and I thank
you for your interest, which helps keep this wonderful man,
and
dearly
missed friend, a bit still with us.
Most Sincerely,
Christie Jenkins
Seattle, 2008
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the Jon-Erik Hexum Portfolio >
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