The Short Answer
Terry Kath was married. The legendary Chicago guitarist — a founding member of the rock band Chicago, praised by his bandmates for his guitar skills and his Ray Charles-influenced vocal style — was married to Camelia Ortiz when he died on January 23, 1978, at just 31 years old. It was his second marriage: he had previously been married to Pamela Robinson. With Camelia, he had a daughter, Michelle Kath. Kath's death — an accidental self-inflicted gunshot wound at a party in Los Angeles — cut short one of rock's most promising careers; Jimi Hendrix had cited Kath as one of his favorite guitarists and considered him 'the best guitarist in the universe.' He was married for the final years of his short life, a husband and father whose family story is often overshadowed by his musical legend and tragic end. At 31, with a wife, a young daughter and a band at its peak, Terry Kath had everything to live for — which is what makes his death so devastating.
Who Was Terry Kath?
Terry Alan Kath was an American guitarist and singer best known as a founding member of the rock band Chicago. Born January 31, 1946, in Chicago, Illinois, he played lead guitar and sang lead vocals on many of the band's early hit singles alongside Robert Lamm and Peter Cetera. His guitar work — ferocious, soulful, innovative — and his gritty, Ray Charles-inspired voice defined Chicago's early sound: '25 or 6 to 4,' 'Make Me Smile,' 'Colour My World' (his tender vocal showcase). He has been praised by his bandmates and other musicians for his guitar skills, and the Hendrix endorsement — Jimi reportedly told Chicago's saxophonist Walter Parazaider that Kath was better than him — is rock lore. Kath struggled with health issues and, by some accounts, substance problems in his final years. On January 23, 1978, at a party at roadie Don Johnson's home in Los Angeles, he died from an accidental gunshot wound to the head — reportedly telling friends the gun was not loaded. He was 31. Chicago considered disbanding; instead, they carried on, but fans and bandmates alike have always marked his death as the end of the band's greatest era.
Wife Camelia Ortiz
Camelia Ortiz was Terry Kath's wife at the time of his death — his second wife and the mother of his daughter. The two married in the mid-1970s, during Chicago's imperial phase, when the band was selling out arenas and Kath was at the height of his powers. Little is publicly documented about Camelia herself — she was not a celebrity, gave few interviews and has maintained privacy in the decades since — but she was central to Kath's final years. Their daughter Michelle Kath was born during the marriage and was a toddler when her father died. In the years after, Camelia raised Michelle largely out of the spotlight. Michelle later became the driving force behind The Terry Kath Experience (2016), the acclaimed documentary about her father, in which Camelia appears — a rare public window into the family's grief and pride. For Camelia, the marriage's end was not divorce but widowhood at a young age: married to a rock star, widowed at 31's wife, left to raise their daughter on the memory of a legend.
First Marriage: Pamela Robinson
Kath's first marriage was to Pamela Robinson in 1970. The union belonged to his pre-fame years — Chicago had formed in 1967 (as The Big Thing, then Chicago Transit Authority), and the early 1970s were the band's climb: the debut album in 1969, the breakthrough of Chicago II and Chicago III. The marriage did not survive the ascent; it ended in divorce within a few years. Details are scarce — neither Kath (famously private offstage) nor Robinson spoke publicly at length — but the pattern is familiar: a young marriage buckling under the pressures of a band's sudden fame, the touring, the temptations, the transformation. Kath was 24 when he married Robinson and in his late twenties when it ended. There were no children from the marriage. By the mid-1970s, he had married Camelia Ortiz, and the second marriage — the one that lasted until his death — became the defining relationship of his adult life. The Robinson years remain a footnote, but they are part of the full picture: twice married by 30, a father by 31, gone at 31.
Daughter Michelle Kath
Michelle Kath, Terry and Camelia's daughter, was a small child when her father died in 1978 — too young to remember him. She grew up on stories: the Hendrix praise, the bandmates' reverence, the what-ifs. As an adult, she made it her mission to secure her father's legacy, producing the documentary The Terry Kath Experience (2016), which premiered to acclaim and introduced Kath to a new generation of guitarists. The film features interviews with bandmates, family and admirers, and it makes the case — convincingly — that Kath was one of rock's great lost geniuses. Michelle has also been involved in the campaign for Kath's greater recognition, including his 2016 induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of Chicago. Through her work, the daughter who never knew her father became his most important historian. Camelia, her mother, participated in the documentary — a widow's testimony, nearly 40 years on, to a marriage cut short and a talent extinguished.
The Death That Ended the Marriage
On the night of January 23, 1978, Terry Kath was at a party at the Los Angeles home of roadie and band technician Don Johnson. Drinking and, by most accounts, in a troubled state, he began playing with guns — reportedly telling those present not to worry because the gun was not loaded. It was. The single shot killed him instantly. He was 31 years old, married to Camelia, father to a toddler. The death was ruled accidental. Chicago was devastated: Kath was not just the guitarist but the band's soul — the rocker among the horn players, the edge in their sound. They briefly considered breaking up, then hired Donnie Dacus and carried on, but the chemistry was never the same. For Camelia, the night was the brutal end of a marriage in its prime: widowed young, with a small child, married to a man the world would spend decades mythologizing. The 'what if' of Terry Kath — what the next 40 years would have held — remains one of rock's most painful.
Legacy of a Marriage and a Musician
Was Terry Kath married? Yes — twice, and married to Camelia Ortiz when he died. His personal story is inseparable from his musical one: the founding member of Chicago, the guitarist Hendrix admired, the voice of 'Colour My World,' a husband and father at 31. The band's 2016 Hall of Fame induction finally gave him institutional recognition; his daughter's documentary gave him narrative justice. Camelia, who has guarded her privacy for nearly five decades, remains the keeper of the personal flame — the wife who knew the man behind the legend. Born January 31, 1946; died January 23, 1978; married twice; father of one. Thirty-one years, two marriages, one daughter and a guitar legacy that outlived them all. Terry Kath was married — and the music he made as a married man, in the final years with Camelia, is the music the world still plays.
'25 or 6 to 4' and the Guitar Legacy
If one song captures Terry Kath, it is '25 or 6 to 4' — Chicago's 1970 classic, built on Kath's ferocious wah-wah guitar riff and his gritty vocal. The track, written about trying to write a song at 25 or 26 minutes to 4 a.m., became the band's breakthrough rock anthem and remains Kath's signature moment: the guitarist as co-lead voice of a horn band. His playing — blending rock fire, jazz sophistication and soul feeling — was unlike anyone else's; his Ray Charles-influenced singing gave Chicago its edge. The Hendrix endorsement is legend: Jimi reportedly told Chicago's Walter Parazaider that Kath was 'the best guitarist in the universe,' and rated him above himself. Born January 31, 1946, in Chicago, Kath recorded eight studio albums with the band before his death at 31 on January 23, 1978. His 2016 Hall of Fame induction (with Chicago) and his daughter Michelle's documentary finally gave him his due. Married to Camelia, father to Michelle, guitarist without peer: the legacy plays on every time that '25 or 6 to 4' riff kicks in.
Frequently Asked Questions
Was Terry Kath married?
Yes. Terry Kath was married to Camelia Ortiz at the time of his death in 1978; it was his second marriage.
Who was Terry Kath's wife?
Camelia Ortiz, his second wife and mother of his daughter Michelle. His first wife was Pamela Robinson.
Did Terry Kath have children?
One daughter: Michelle Kath, with his wife Camelia Ortiz.
How did Terry Kath die?
He died January 23, 1978, from an accidental self-inflicted gunshot wound. He was 31.
What band was Terry Kath in?
He was a founding member of Chicago, playing lead guitar and singing on early hits.
Did Jimi Hendrix really praise Terry Kath?
Yes. Hendrix reportedly cited Kath as one of his favorite guitarists, calling him 'the best guitarist in the universe.'
How old was Terry Kath when he died?
31. He was born January 31, 1946, and died January 23, 1978.