World’s oldest conjoined twins Lori and George Schappell dead at 62: Sister and her transgender brother whose skulls were fused together pass away in Pennsylvania – after defying doctors who said they wouldn’t live past 30
The world’s oldest conjoined twins, Lori and George Schappell, have died at the age of 62.
Lori and her transgender twin brother George died Sunday in a Pennsylvania hospital of unknown causes, according to their online obituaries.
The siblings, who had partially fused skulls and shared 30 percent of their brains, defied doctors who said they would not live beyond 30 years.
The twins previously made headlines after George, formerly Dori, came out as transgender.
The world’s oldest conjoined twins, Lori and George Schappell, have died at the age of 62
Lori and her transgender twin brother George (seen as babies) died Sunday in a Pennsylvania hospital of unknown causes, according to their online obituaries
Lori was physically healthy, but George, who had spina bifida, was confined to a wheelchair pushed around by his twin brother.
He had enjoyed a successful career as a country singer, but Lori pursued her interests elsewhere as a trophy-winning bowler.
She also worked at a hospital laundry for several years in the 1990s, arranging her schedule around George’s performances, which took them around the world to countries like Germany and Japan, according to the Guinness World Records.
The siblings became the first conjoined same-sex twins to identify as opposite sex after George, whose original name was Dori, came out as a transgender man in 2007.
It was at this point that he changed his name from Reba – a nickname he adopted to honor his idol Reba McEntire because he hated their rhyming names – to George.
The twins lived independently in a two-bedroom apartment in Pennsylvania, where they took turns pursuing their own hobbies.
They alternated which room they slept in and also showered separately by using the shower curtain as a barrier while standing outside the bath.
The pair appeared on numerous shows, including Jerry Springer, The Maury Povich Show and The Howard Stern Radio Show.
The siblings, who had partially fused skulls and shared 30 percent of their brains, defied doctors who said they would not live beyond 30 years.
George had had a successful career as a country singer, but Lori pursued her interests elsewhere as a trophy-winning bowler.
When asked in the past if the death of one person would necessarily mean the death of the other, Lori said at the time, “No, it wouldn’t. That’s another misconception.’
George and then Reba explained in the 1997 documentary, “If caught early enough, we could both be rushed to the hospital and then quickly separated in an emergency to save the other.”
Further addressing the question of whether she ever wBecause he wanted to be separated, he said no: ‘Shall we be separated? Absolutely not. My theory is: why fix what isn’t broken?’
“Just because we can’t get up and walk away from each other doesn’t mean we can’t have loneliness toward other people or ourselves,” Lori added. ‘People who are united can lead very private lives.’
She also opened up about her dreams of having a family of her own one day, explaining, “Ultimately, I would love to have a family – a husband and children of mine.”
Interviewer Antony Thomas then asked George if he would like to share the intimacy with a future husband, to which he replied, “He would be like a brother-in-law to me, that’s all.” They can do what they do and I would pretend I’m not even there. I would block it.’
The twins defied all predictions from medical professionals who said they would not live longer than 30 years.
They became the oldest female conjoined twins ever in 2015, overtaking Masha and Dasha Krivoshlyapova, who died at the age of 53.
Lori and George are survived by their father, six siblings and several nieces and nephews.
It comes after conjoined twins Carmen and Lupita Andrade, 23, based in Connecticut, detailed what happens when one of them dies.
The sisters, who moved to the U.S. from Mexico when they were two years old, share all organs and limbs below the waist.
When they were born, doctors told their parents they would probably only live a few days, but they have defied all odds and are now thriving.
Carmen recently discussed some of the confrontational and raw messages they regularly receive, including what will happen if one of them dies.
“We share a bloodstream, so eventually sepsis will set in and obviously the other will die within hours or days,” she explained. “But we’re not dead, so why do you always ask us that?”