Lori Chappelle and George Chappelle, the world's oldest conjoined twins, have died.
The twins died on April 7 of undisclosed causes, according to a joint obituary published by Leibensperger Funeral Home in Hamburg, Pennsylvania.
The Chappelle twins were born on September 18, 1961 in Pennsylvania. At 62 years and 202 days old, the pair hold the record for the oldest living conjoined twins, according to the Guinness World Records website.
The twins also held the record for the oldest female conjoined twins until George Chappelle came out as transgender in late 2007. After George Chappelle came out, they became the first same-sex conjoined twins to be identified as different genders, the site said.
The Chappell twins were craniocleft twins, meaning they lived with partially fused skulls. According to Guinness, the two men shared important blood vessels and 30% of their brains. These are the rarest form of bond twinning, accounting for only 2-6% of cases.
A 2005 profile of the Chappelle brothers, who live in New York, said the twins were conjoined with their foreheads facing in opposite directions and could not see each other.
Surgery to separate conjoined twins like themselves wasn't possible at the time the Chappelles were born, and they never wanted to be separated.
Lori Chappelle told the Los Angeles Times in 2002, “I don't believe in separation. I think you're ruining God's work.”
Despite being physically together, the twins led completely different lives.
Lori Chappelle could walk, but her brother, who was four inches shorter, was diagnosed with spina bifida and was unable to walk on his own, the Los Angeles Times reported in 2002. They defecated everywhere they went.
George Chappelle worked as a professional country singer for many years and also booked gigs overseas. Lori Chappelle earned a college degree and worked in a hospital. They told the Los Angeles Times that George sat quietly reading a book while Lori Chappelle packed medical equipment.
As they grew together, the two found creative ways to accommodate each other. Lori Chappelle liked to take a shower in the evening, while her younger brother preferred to take a shower at the beginning of each day. They came up with a technique that allows one twin to take a bath while the other stays wet.
“Normal is whatever you want to call it, but we're very happy,” Lori Chappelle told the Los Angeles Times. “It all comes down to compromise. The world would be a better place if more people did it.”
According to a profile in New York magazine, the twins spent the first 24 years of their lives in a mental health facility after their “scared and confused parents” placed them there.
They were finally able to leave the facility after former Pennsylvania Gov. Richard Thornburgh's wife helped prove to state authorities that they were not mentally retarded, the magazine said.
The twins then moved to a high-rise apartment building for seniors in Reading, Pennsylvania, where they lived on their own.
The Chappelle twins have been featured on several television documentaries and talk shows.
According to IMDB.com, the two also appeared in a 2004 episode of Nip/Tuck, playing fictional conjoined twins Rose and Raven Rosenberg.