Floyd Parton Cause Of Death: Dolly Parton's Brother Dies At 61

Singer-songwriter Floyd Estel Parton, the brother of Dolly Parton, died at the age of 61 on Dec. 6, due to mystery illness, multiple reports confirmed on Monday.

“A renaissance man, Floyd was a man of many talents and areas of knowledge. He was an avid outdoorsman and had an abundant knowledge of nature as well as being an incredible cook," the obituary read. It added that he is survived by his siblings and their spouses, as well as several nieces, nephews, great-nieces and great-nephews.

His sister, Stella Parton, tweeted a photo with her brother on the day he died:

Floyd lived in Sevierville, Tennessee and was close to 72-year-old Dolly. He has appeared in many of her movies and TV series, including “Dolly Parton’s Christmas of Many Colors: Circle of Love" in 2007. He was mostly recognized for writing the song "Nickels and Dimes," in 1978 for Dolly and George Burns and the number one hit “Rockin’ Years” in 1991 for his sister and Ricky Van Shelton.

Floyd, along with his siblings were involved in Dolly’s career and helped her run many businesses, one of them being the Dollywood theme park Tennessee. He was also credited with acting alongside Sylvester Stallone and Dolly in the movie "Rhinestone" (1984).

He was rushed to the hospital three days before Thanksgiving and remained in a “critical condition” till his death. The exact nature of his illness was not revealed, although some reports suggested that it might have been cancer. The news of Floyd’s illness came days after Dolly told People’s Magazine about her own views about mortality. “I just hope I fall dead in the middle of a song, hopefully one I wrote, right onstage. I figure I’ll sleep when I’m dead. At this rate, I will be soon!” she said.

Last year, Floyd, along with his twin sister Freida Parton, went up against the rest of their siblings in court. While 10 of her children wanted to strip their mother Avie Parton, of her right to make her own decisions about medical treatment and money and have one of them appointed as her conservator, Floyd and Freida rallied around their mother pushing against the motion, Houston Chronicle reported.

Barbie Coffey, an employee at Holston’s Kitchen on Dolly Parton Parkway, told Radar Online that Dolly’s sister informed them of Floyd’s illness. “Stella Parton came in my restaurant to tell me. She and Dolly’s little brother Floyd us in critical condition at our area hospital. He’s my friend and much loved who stayed in the shadows and out of the spotlight. He’s our baby,” she said, adding that she was praying for Floyd.