Country music legend Dolly Parton's death at the age of 80 was announced via her Instagram page on Tuesday. At the forefront of the announcement was Dolly Parton's nephew, Bryan Seaver.
Bryan Seaver is the son of Dolly Parton's sister, Cassie Parton and her first husband, Larry Seaver. But, besides the family link, Bryan Seaver has been long-time associate of Dolly Parton, working as her manager/ director of security for over two decades. His sister, Rebecca, Cassie Parton's daughter with Larry Seaver, has worked for a long-time with Dolly Parton's museum and archive-related projects.
In many ways, Bryan Seaver's long-time association with Dolly Parton was almost foretold when he was only 16 years old. Back in 1993, Parton had said that her song "Romeo" was inspired by Bryan. Parton had joked that Bryan was "crazy about girls" then.
Dolly Parton herself was married to Carl Dean but had no children. As a result, she was known to be close to her sisters and their children. The 80-year-old had five sisters, alongside six brothers; in this article we will take a look at Parton's five sisters.
Who Are Dolly Parton's Sisters?
{{/usCountry}}Who Are Dolly Parton's Sisters?
{{/usCountry}}Dolly Parton's five sisters: Willadeene, Stella, Cassie, Freida and Rachel, had very different lives from Dolly.
Willadeene Parton, the eldest of them, helped care for the younger children as she was growing up. She later became a writer and cookbook author, publishing "Smoky Mountain Memories" and "In the Shadow of a Song", books about the Parton family's upbringing.
Stella Parton, born in 1949, came closest to having a substantial independent entertainment career. She began performing as a child, made her radio debut at nine, and launched a solo country career in the 1960s. Her biggest hit was “I Want to Hold You in My Dreams Tonight,” which reached the country Top 10 in 1975. She also acted in films.
Also read: Who was Carl Dean? All we know about Dolly Parton's husband, his death and their love story
Cassie Parton Griffith, the mother of Bryan Seaver, also had a brief music career, following on the footsteps of Dolly. She sang gospel and country music and performed with her sisters and with Dolly. The sisters appeared together on "The Porter Wagoner Show" in 1970, and Cassie subsequently performed at Dollywood.
Freida Parton, born in 1957, pursued music briefly. Eventually, she became an ordained Christian minister and operated a wedding chapel and antique store in Sevierville, Tennessee
Rachel Ann Parton George, the youngest of the Parton siblings, was born in 1959. She was a singer and actress and appeared most famously on the ABC sitcom "9 to 5" that ran from 1982 to 1988. She later moved away from the entertainment industry. Rachel Ann is married to Eric George.