Jon Foster

Foster in 2009, photo by PrPhotos

Birth Name: Jonathan Daniel Foster

Place of Birth: Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.

Date of Birth: August 3, 1984

Ethnicity:
*father – Ashkenazi Jewish
*mother – English, Irish, French, distant Welsh and Scottish [may have converted to Judaism]

Jon Foster is an American actor and musician. His roles include the films The Door in the Floor, Stay Alive, The Mysteries of Pittsburgh, The Informers, Tenderness, Brotherhood (2010), Rampart, Poor Boy, and Like Father, the shows Life as We Know It and Accidentally on Purpose, and the made-for-tv movie Murder in Greenwich. He is a co-founder of electronic-soul duo Kaneholler, with his wife, musician Chelsea Tyler.

Jon is the son of Gillian and Steven Foster, who were restaurant owners. He is the brother of actor Ben Foster.

Jon’s father is from a Jewish family that emigrated from Ukraine, Romania, and Russia. Jon’s mother has English, Irish, French, and distant Welsh and Scottish, ancestry; Jon’s mother may have converted to Judaism. Jon’s brother Ben had a Bar Mitzvah ceremony, so it is likely that Jon was raised Jewish as well. He grew up mostly in Fairfield, Iowa.

Jon and Chelsea have one child. Chelsea’s father is singer Steven Tyler.

Jon’s paternal grandfather was named Abraham Frank Foster (the son of Samuel Foster and Bessie). Abraham was born in Massachusetts, to Ukrainian Jewish parents. He was a prominent judge in Boston.

Jon’s paternal grandmother was Celia “Lucille” Segal (the daughter of Barney Segal and Mary Seltzer). Celia was a Romanian Jewish immigrant, who came to the U.S. when she was eight, in the 1920s.

Jon’s maternal grandfather was Paul F. Jackson (the son of William Alfonso Jackson and Adele T. Carmody). William was the son of Michael J. Jackson, whose parents were Irish, with his father being from Galway, and of Alice M. Birmingham, who was likely also of at least part Irish ancestry. Adele was the daughter of William Timothy Carmody, who was born in England, and of Victorine Bartelle, who was French, from Normandy.

Jon’s maternal grandmother is Sophie Louise Jones (the daughter of Arthur Donald Jones and Sophie Louise Kirwan). Jon’s grandmother Sophie was born in Maryland. Arthur was the son of James Radcliffe Jones and Miriam Estelle Navy. Jon’s great-grandmother Sophie was the daughter of Solomon Franklin Kirwan, Jr. and Addie/Ada Travers Robinson.

Sources: Genealogy of Jon Foster –

Jon’s paternal grandfather, Abraham Frank Foster, on the 1930 U.S. Census –
Abraham Frank Foster on the 1940 U.S. Census –

Obituary of Jon’s paternal grandfather, Abraham Frank Foster –

Jon’s paternal grandmother, Celia Segal, on the 1940 U.S. Census –

Obituary of Jon’s paternal grandmother, Celia (Segal) Foster –

Marriage announcement of Jon’s maternal grandparents, Paul F. Jackson and Sophie Louise Jones –

Jon’s maternal great-grandparents, William Alfonso Jackson and Adele T. Carmody, on the 1920 U.S. Census –

Jon’s maternal great-grandfather, William Alfonso Jackson, on the 1900 U.S. Census –

Jon’s maternal great-grandmother, Adele T. Carmody, on the 1910 U.S. Census –

Jon’s maternal grandmother, Sophie Louise Jones, on the 1930 U.S. Census –