Here’s a look at the life of six-time Grammy Award winner Glen Campbell, who was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease in 2011.
Personal:
Birth date: April 22, 1936
Death date: August 8, 2017
Birth place: Billstown, Arkansas
Birth name: Glen Travis Campbell
Father: John Wesley Campbell, a farmer
Mother: Carrie Dell (Stone) Campbell, a homemaker
Marriages: Kim Woollen, (1982-2017, his death); Sarah Davis, (1976-1980, divorced); Billie Jean Nunley, (1959-1976, divorced); Diane Kirk, (1955-1959, divorced)
Children: with Kim Woollen: Cal, Shannon, Ashley; with Sarah Davis: Dillon; with Billie Jean Nunley: Kelli, Travis, Kane; with Diane Kirk: Debby
Other Facts:
Campbell won six Grammy Awards, three Grammy Hall of Fame honors and a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award, and had 20 nominations.
Nominated for one Academy Award.
One of 12 children.
At 15 or 16, Campbell began playing music in local bars.
Had issues with alcohol and drugs in the past.
Campbell was engaged in the early 1980s to fellow country singer Tanya Tucker, who was more than 20 years his junior.
On having Alzheimer’s: “I just take it as it comes, you know,” Campbell told CNN in 2012. “If you’re going to have it handed to you, you have got to take it, anyway. So, that is the way I look at it.”
Timeline:
1960 – Campbell begins his recording career as a Los Angeles studio musician, lending his talents to many hits as part of the renowned “Wrecking Crew” of musicians.
Early 1960s – Signs with Capitol Records.
1964-1965 – Recurring role on the ABC music show, “Shindig.”
1964 and 1965 – Joins the Beach Boys as a tour fill-in for Brian Wilson.
1966 – Plays on the Beach Boys “Pet Sounds” album.
February 29, 1968 – Wins four 1967 Grammy Awards: Best Male Performance and Best Contemporary Group Performance (Vocal or Instrumental), for “By the Time I Get to Phoenix,” and Best Country & Western Recording and Best Country & Western Male Solo Vocal Performance, for “Gentle on My Mind.”
1968 – Co-host of the “Summer Brothers Smothers Show” on CBS.
1969 – Co-stars in the western, “True Grit,” with John Wayne.
1969-1972 – “The Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour” variety show airs on CBS.
March 12, 1969 – Wins a 1968 Grammy Award for Album of the Year, for “By the Time I Get to Phoenix.”
1994 – His autobiography, “Rhinestone Cowboy,” written with Tom Carter, is published.
2000 – Campbell’s 1968 single, “Wichita Lineman,” is inducted into the Grammy Awards Hall of Fame.
November 2003 – Campbell is arrested on suspicion of drunken driving, hit and run and assault charges after a series of incidents police say started with a minor car wreck near his home in Phoenix. After a plea deal, he is sentenced to 10 days in jail.
2004 – “By the Time I Get to Phoenix” is inducted into the Grammy Awards Hall of Fame.
2008 – “Gentle on My Mind” is inducted into the Grammy Awards Hall of Fame.
June 2011 – Reveals he has been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease.
2011 – Releases the album, “Ghost on the Canvas,” and embarks on his “goodbye tour.”
2012 – Receives a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award.
April 2014 – Due to the progression of his disease, Campbell is admitted to a special care facility in Nashville.
October 2014 – The video for Campbell’s final recording, “I’m Not Gonna Miss You,” is released. It was recorded in 2013 with producer Julian Raymond. “I’m still here but yet I’m gone. I don’t play guitar or sing my songs,” the tune begins as it details his struggles with Alzheimer’s.
October 24, 2014 – The documentary, “Glen Campbell … I’ll Be Me,” is released.
February 8, 2015 – Wins the Grammy Award for Best Country Song for “I’m Not Gonna Miss You,” with Julian Raymond.
October 2015 – Campbell’s wife, Kim, tells People magazine Campbell came home in late July for seven weeks, but since has returned to a special-care medical facility.
April 3, 2016 – Receives the Career Achievement Award during the 51st Academy of Country Music Awards.
August 8, 2017 – His family announces his death after his “long and courageous battle with Alzheimer’s disease.”
