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Travolta Son's Death Shows Their Bay Area Connections

The Associated Press

A death certificate says the 16-year-old was killed by a "seizure," an official with a Bahamian funeral home told The Associated Press on Monday.

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By BAIRD HELGESON | The Tampa Tribune

Published: January 5, 2009

The death of the teenage son of John Travolta and his wife Kelly Preston brings new attention to their close ties to the Tampa Bay area.

Their friend and Tampa attorney Michael McDermott has been with the family after a nanny found Jett Travolta at the family's vacation home in Grand Bahama.

A death certificate says the 16-year-old was killed by a "seizure," an official with a Bahamian funeral home told The Associated Press on Monday.

Jett Travolta's body is now at the Grand Bahama airport en route for burial in Ocala, where the family lives, said the funeral home official, Glen Campbell.

The nanny who found the teen, Jeff Kathrein, lives in Clearwater. It's unclear how long Kathrein has worked for the family.

Kathrein and his wife, Ana, own a single-story house on Pine Place in Clearwater, according to Pinellas County records. They bought the 1,895-square-foot house in November 2004 for $293,000.

The Kathreins also own a business called K&K Photography, which specializes in wedding and maternity photography. Included in the portfolio is a picture of Kelly Preston that reportedly ran in TV Guide magazine.

Kathrein and John Travolta made headlines in 2006 when paparazzi took pictures of the two kissing on the steps to an airplane in Ontario, Canada. The photo landed in the National Enquirer, reigniting rumors that Travolta is gay.

At the time, Travolta attorney Martin Singer issued a statement saying nothing scandalous occurred and that Travolta's wife was on the plane.

"As a manner of customary greeting and saying farewell, Mr. Travolta kisses both women and men whom he considers to be extremely close friends," Singer said then.

In an October blog posting, Kathrein reported that his wife was pregnant and due in early 2009.

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