New Tenderfoot TV and Double Elvis podcast, Dead and Gone, investigates the unsolved cases of missing and murdered Grateful Dead fans

Atlanta GA, USA—There is a small group of missing, murdered, and unidentified people from across the country who are all linked by a single commonality – the Grateful Dead, an iconic band with a subset of devoted fans dubbed “Dead Heads”. One fan died in a car accident and went unidentified for 20 years, one was murdered and left in a ditch, and numerous others mysteriously disappeared and continue to remain missing to this day.

Now, Tenderfoot TV, the podcast company behind true crime hit series, “Atlanta Monster,” “Up and Vanished” and “To Live and Die in LA”, in partnership with Double Elvis Productions, the podcast company behind hit series “Disgraceland”, and will investigate these mysterious cases of murdered and missing “Dead Heads” that have tragically occurred over the past five decades. The explosive new true crime podcast “DEAD AND GONE” debuts on October 15, 2020. Tenderfoot TV co-founder and host Payne Lindsey will lead the investigation, while “Disgraceland” host Jake Brennan will co-host, as “DEAD AND GONE” takes a closer look at this true crime music mystery set in the world of Jerry Garcia’s psychedelic rock band.

Lindsey and Brennan originally set out to look at the bizarre elements of each of the dozens of cases of missing and murdered Grateful Dead fans… until their investigation took a shocking turn. After receiving a mysterious tip from a fellow “Dead Head”, Payne is sent on a journey for one particular case that may have put an innocent man in jail and sentenced to death for a 1985 double murder of two Grateful Dead fans in Berkeley, California.

“I knew we would encounter surprises throughout this investigation because of the strange coincidences, mysterious circumstances and rock and roll at the center of it all… but I never predicted to come across such a tragic case with so many unanswered questions,” said Lindsey. “Many of these cases have not been thoroughly examined until now, and our goal is to uncover the truth about what really happened that night so justice is served.”

In August of 1986, the bodies of Mary Regina Gioia, 22, and Gregory Allen Kniffin, 18, two fans of the Grateful Dead were found beaten and shot to death in the San Francisco Bay. 31-year-old black man Ralph International Thomas was arrested and sentenced to death for the murders. “DEAD AND GONE” will look deeper into the lack of evidence, conflicting witness testimonies and potential new suspects to uncover whether Thomas was actually guilty of the crimes.

“I’ve studied the history and culture of the band for years, and I think people will be surprised to find that there is a darkness at the core of the Grateful Dead’s music and that darkness is present throughout the band’s history,” said Brennan. “It has manifested in song and in real life and many of the band’s fans have fallen victim to it. This darkness and the violence and mystery it’s spawned runs contrary to the good intentions of the band and the Grateful Dead’s image of peace, love, good times and music, and that contrast makes for fascinating storytelling.”

A long, strange, deadly trip – “DEAD AND GONE” is rock history wrapped in true crime. Beyond the double murder of Gioia and Kniffin, listeners will also dive into the darkness surrounding the band and discover other mysteries, like tales of the band’s subversive past, the predators amongst the concert goers, and more.

“The combinations of Payne and Jake, and music and true crime, makes for a very fascinating story by two of the best storytellers in the game” said Chris Corcoran, Chief Content Officer, Cadence13.

DEAD AND GONE is produced and distributed in partnership with Cadence13, and will debut on October 15 with the first two episodes. New episodes will then drop weekly on all platforms.

About Payne Lindsey:

Payne Lindsey is an Atlanta-based director, award-winning documentary filmmaker, and the co-founder of Tenderfoot TV. Lindsey began his podcasting career as the creator and host of the hit podcasts “Up and Vanished”, which investigated the disappearance of beauty queen and school teacher Tara Grinstead, a notorious decade-old cold case from South Georgia. As Lindsey chronicled his investigation in real-time, “Up and Vanished” propelledGrinstead’s case into the mainstream media, uncovering new evidence that helped to crack the 11-year-old cold case in early 2017, leading to two arrests. Today, the series has garnered more than 300 million downloads. Under the Tenderfoot umbrella, Lindsey and the team have successfully released multiple successful true crime podcast franchises totaling 500 million downloads, including a new missing person’s case in “Up and Vanished: Season 2,” the “Monster” franchise, which debuted with an investigation in to the Atlanta Child Murders and garnered 80 million downloads in “Atlanta Monster.” Lindsey also hosts “Radio Rental,” narrated by Rainn Wilson. The core of Lindsey’s work, whether it is investigating, podcasting, or directing, continues to be storytelling that serves as a catalyst for change.

About Jake Brennan:

Jake Brennan is the host and creator of the explosive music and true crime podcast Disgraceland and co-owner of the audio-driven media company Double Elvis Productions. Disgraceland is the most downloaded music podcast in the world (Podtrac). In 2019, Jake Brennan published his first book, Disgraceland: Musicians Getting Away with Murder and Behaving Very Badly (Grand Central/Hachette). In 2020 Disgraceland was voted winner of the iHeartRadio “Best Music Podcast” award and in 2019 and ‘18 named to Apple Podcasts coveted “Best Of” list. Jake’s most recent endeavor includes a partnership with Amazon Music, where he was announced as one of the creators tapped to lead the service’s endeavor into exclusive podcasts.

About Tenderfoot TV

Founded by Atlanta director and independent filmmaker, Payne Lindsey, and music industry veteran, Donald Albright, Tenderfoot TV is a hub for creators and storytellers. The company launched in August 2016 with the release of the viral true crime podcast, “Up and Vanished.” It has since created additional breakthrough podcasts including the critically acclaimed “Atlanta Monster” as well as the true crime hits “To Live and Die in LA”, and “Culpable.” Tenderfoot is also developing multiple projects for TV and film, but podcasts remain the company’s primary focus, having amassed over 500 million total downloads in just 4 years. Tenderfoot strives to tell compelling and important stories. No rules. No restrictions.

About Double Elvis Productions:

Double Elvis is a music-focused entertainment company rooted in podcasting. Co-founded by Brady Sadler and Jake Brennan, creator & host of the podcasts “Disgraceland,” “27 Club” and “Blood On The Tracks,” the company specializes in storytelling about music and aims to provide a platform for artists and a destination for music fans. In 2020 Double Elvis also released the critically acclaimed coming-of-age music memoir, “Dear Young Rocker.”

About Cadence13:

Cadence13, a leading premium podcast company, is part of Entercom’s Podcast Network and was named one of Fast Company’s “World’s Most Innovative Companies for 2019.” Our roster of critically-acclaimed shows and personalities reflects the diverse conversations and interests happening in the world, led by a collection of voices that include Sophia Amoruso, Lili Anolik, David Axelrod, Rachel Brathen, Dean Budnick, Alejandra Campoverdi, Emma Chamberlain, Deepak Chopra, Gotham Chopra, Lauren Conrad, Remi Cruz, Charli D’Amelio, Dixie D’Amelio, David Dobrik, Ethan Dolan, Grayson Dolan, Kevin Durant, Elle Fanning, Jon Favreau, Emily Jane Fox, Malcolm Gladwell, Mark-Paul Gosselaar, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Joe Hagan, Andrew Jenks, Tony Kornheiser, Michael Lewis, Payne Lindsey, Michael Lombardi, Karina Longworth, Jon Lovett, Alisha Marie, Johanna Maska, CJ McCollum, Jon Meacham, James Andrew Miller, Mike Murphy, Leon Neyfakh, Michaela Okland, Darienne Page, Gwyneth Paltrow, Josh Peck, David Plouffe, Katherine Schwarzenegger Pratt, Paul Rabil, JJ Redick, Ben Reiter, Rhett and Link, Rick Rubin, Tommy Vietor, Adnan Virk, Jessica Wapner, Tim Weiner, Ashley West, iO Tillett Wright, Andrew Yang, and many more. These storytellers represent both established and emerging personalities across sports, business, tech, politics, entertainment and news. Cadence13 is the home of C13Features and the Peabody Award-nominated C13Originals documentary studio, and has a broad range of programming partners including Comments by Celebs, Crooked Media, Entertainment Weekly, Girlboss Media, goop, Granity Studios, Headspace, HISTORY, Meredith, Mythical Entertainment, Pushkin Industries, Ramble, Seven Bucks Productions, Smosh, Sports Illustrated, Tenderfoot TV, theSkimm, The Try Guys, TNT, Up and Vanished, Vanity Fair, Who? Weekly and Yoga Girl, among others. Cadence13 is headquartered in New York, with offices in Los Angeles and San Francisco.