Details of country music legend Glen Campbell’s will were released Wednesday, and shoe he has cut out three of his eight kids
The family of one of country music’s biggest stars are fighting over his estimated $50million fortune.
Glen Campbell, who rose to fame with hits like ‘Rhinestone Cowboy’ and ‘Wichita Lineman,’ died August 8 after a six-year battle with Alzheimer’s. He was 81 at the time.
On Wednesday, detail of the country legend’s will were released, showing he left out three of his eight kids.
The will was written in September 2006, more than five years before he announced his Alzheimer’s diagnosis. It stipulates that all three of his kids from his second marriage to Billie Jean Nunley, which ended in 1976, were not to benefit from his estate or any resulting trust.
Those children are 56-year-old Kelli, 51-year-old Travis and 58-year-old Kane.
Campbell had five other children from three wives. He had daughter Debby Campbell-Cloyd, 61, with his first wife Diane Kirk, 37-year-old Dillon with his second wife Sarah Barg and three kids with his fourth wife Kimberly Woollen – Cal, 34; Shannon, 32; and Ashley, 30.
Kim stayed with Campbell until the end is named as the executor of his will.
All three kids from Campbell’s second marriage to Billie Jean Nunley have been cut out of his will, including 56-year-old Kelli. Kelli and her father pictured above in a photo posted to her Facebook in 2014
Travis Campbell (left) and Kane Campbell (right) have also been left out of their father’s will
Campbell and his second wife pictured above with their three kids in 1973. The kids are bottom row from left: Kelli, Kane and Travis
Travis and his older half-sister Debby sued in 2015 to get visitation rights to see their father. Above, Campbell and his second family again, also in 1973
Campbell kisses is his Travis as he’s held by his daughter Kelli in this photo from the LIFE Picture Collection
It gives no explanation why three of the kids were cut out.
However, Travis and his older half-sister Debby did file a lawsuit in 2015 when they said Kim had kept them from seeing their father for over year.
At that point, Kim had moved her husband to a long-term care facility so he could get round-the-clock attention for his Alzheimer’s.
The brother and sister won their legal battle a year later, and Tennessee has since passed a law inspired by the case, which protects family members rights to see their families who suffer from diseases similar to Alzheimer’s.
Campbell had five other children from three other marriages. From his first wife Diane Kirk, he had Debby Campbell-Cloyd, now 61 (left). From this third marriage to Sarah Barg, he had son Dillon (right), now 37
Campbell’s most recent marriage was to Kim Woollen in 1982. He remained married to her for the rest of his life and had three more kids – including sons Cal (left), 34; and Shannon, 23 (right)
Campbell’s youngest daughter Ashley, with wife Kim, is now a country star in her own right. The 30-year-old is pictured above at the 2017 CMA Awards
The battle clearly caused a rift in the family, with Campbell’s youngest daughter Ashley taking to Facebook to defend her mother.
‘My mother Kim has endured unspeakable heartache and has selflessly and lovingly cared for my dad through every step of his disease and continues to do so,’ she wrote. ‘She has never denied any of his children a visit, including Debby and Travis who see him regularly yet continue to spread malicious lies about her…They have visitation rights, so what else do they want? One answer: the limelight.’
At stake for the eight children is a fortune estimated at $50million. The will also says that Campbell also has real estate holdings outside of Nashville, Tennessee – where he was living at the time of his death.
A half of the fortune is expected to be put into a trust.
Campbell announced his diagnosis in 2011, and in 2014 released a film that chronicled his descent into Alzheimer’s called Glen Campbell: I’ll Be Me.
Two days before his death, he released his final album, Adios, which was nominated posthumously for a Grammy this year. His song Arkansas Farmboy has also been nominated for an award.