Dolly Parton’s nephew, Bryan Seaver, has criticized the late country star’s manager, Danny Nozell, and Pinnacle Bank after he was removed from his longtime position as head of security.
Seaver and his security team told TMZ Monday that they were “dismayed by the unexpected and, so far, unexplained actions” taken following Parton’s death on Aug. 25.
“We refuse to be intimidated by those whose actions we believe are being taken in bad faith and with the intent to profit from the life of someone who willingly gave so much,” they said.
Although Seaver and his team said they have been comforted by the worldwide support for Parton’s legacy, they added that they “remain unshakably resolved to fulfill her final directive to protect her family.”
Page Six has contacted Seaver for comment.
Seaver, who publicly announced the country icon’s death last month, and his security companies were dismissed from all of Parton’s properties in a notice issued last week, according to TMZ.
Reports said replacement security teams were quickly assigned to Parton’s primary Nashville residence, her museum, downtown home and warehouse.
The termination notice does not, however, eliminate Seaver’s personal interest in Parton’s trust, which includes her business holdings and real estate, TMZ reported.
Seaver, the son of Parton’s sister Cassie, announced the singer’s death in an Instagram video. He said making the announcement was “something Dolly asked of me years ago, before I fully absorbed it as a future reality.”
“As her head of security for more than two decades, a role my father Larry held before me, I have imagined the heaviness of this moment but haven’t truly felt it until now,” Seaver said.
He continued, “It is an honor that is mixed with absolute pride and great sadness. But sadness lies with us, not with Dolly.”
Seaver also revealed that the “9 to 5” singer’s final request was to be buried in a “beautiful bed of plush cotton.”
Parton, who quietly battled cancer before her death, was laid to rest at Woodlawn Memorial Park and Mausoleum beside her late husband, Carl Dean Thomas, three days after she died.
Seaver attended the private memorial service alongside roughly a dozen of Parton’s closest relatives.
Earlier this month, Parton’s cousin Richie Owens told “Today” that the burial was “very quiet [and] very quickly done.”
“She wanted it very small,” Owens said of Parton’s wishes.