I really think "hear of" and "hear about" are pretty much the same.

Hear from sb = If you hear from someone, you get a letter or telephone call from them, or they tell you something "We haven't heard from her for ages." "You'll be hearing from my solicitors" (= They will write to you about my complaint). Hear of sb/sth = If you have heard of someone or something, you know that that person or thing exists "I'd never heard of him before he won the prize." "It's a tiny country that most people have never heard of." Hear about sb/sth = to learn about someone or something. (Not necessarily by hearing.) "Have you heard about Tom and what happened to him?" "I heard about the accident."