Alex Carson
“Stand By Your Man” singer Tammy Wynette had a disturbing life fraught with several bad marriages and abuse. She abused herself with drugs ended up dead in 1998 and speculated that she did that to escape abusive relationships. At her death, Tammy married her fifth husband George Richey for two decades. Though their marriage lasted a long time, it was only because Tammy was afraid to leave! Near the beginning of their marriage, Tammy was supposedly kidnapped. After Tammy Wynette’s death, her daughter stated that the kidnapping was actually to cover the crime that occurred within Tammy’s home! Join Facts Verse as the truth about Tammy Wynette’s kidnapping has finally been revealed.
One of her strangest incidents from “Stand By Your Man”, explained the 1978 kidnapping, she was beaten far from home. Authorities were baffled for numerous reasons when Tammy reported the crime, and no culprit was ever found. However, two decades later, Tammy’s daughter told the truth, which proved a mystery for the fans for a long time.
The incident occurred in October of 1978, Tammy married her final husband George Richey in July of that same year. Not very long after, marriage to George Richey ended, with that being third husband George Jones. Tammy’s relationship with George Jones had been both a business one and a personal one. George Richey was also a singer, and Tammy’s marriage to him mirrored her marriage to George Jones in that the two ended up working together professionally in addition to tying the knot.
Tammy Wynette and George Jones’ marriage hadn’t been very successful. The two divorced in 1975. George Richey was actively pursuing a relationship with Tammy near the end of her and George Jones’ marriage. However, Tammy decided to marry someone else after divorcing George Jones, with that being her fourth husband Michael Tomlin. This marriage lasted for less than a year, after which point it was only a short time before George Richey inevitably wore down Tammy’s hesitancy to tie the knot with him. George Richey had promised her that he was going to help revive her career after a period of waning success. And he did end up doing so… though not without a price!
Tammy reported the alleged 1978 abduction that occurred mere months after her having tied the knot with George Richey. She claimed that she had left her car door unlocked while going into a supermarket and that a man had snuck into the car when she was inside of the store. She then claimed that, when she got back into the car, the man stuck a gun to her head from the backseat and told her to drive. Tammy ended up nearly 100 miles away, and claimed that the man beat her as she was driving. The physical abuse that the alleged kidnapper had inflicted upon the country singer was fairly severe. Then the police questioned why the alleged perpetrator had been so aggressive.
Tammy showed up at the house of a woman named Junette Young after the alleged kidnapper had supposedly abandoned her and taken off with her car. Junette could see that the country singer was pretty badly injured and went on to get her a wet rag to clean her wounds.
Nashville police were also confused about why the alleged kidnapper had chosen not to steal money from the wealthy star. Not only did she have $40 in cash on her at the time of the supposed crime. But she also had several credit cards. Tammy also claimed that she hadn’t seen the face of the perpetrator. She also had a hard time giving any physical description to the police.
Tammy’s alleged kidnapping baffled authorities, and the crime remains officially unsolved to this day. However, after Tammy Wynette’s death two decades later in 1998, one of her daughters came out with a story that explained the mysterious kidnapping. It was even more tragic than the one the singer had given.
In 2000, after Tammy Wynette’s death, one of her daughters released a book that claimed to solve the mystery. The abduction that had been making the singer’s fans scratch their heads for nearly two decades. According to her daughter, whose name is Jackie Daly, her mother was, in fact, lying about the kidnapping; But it wasn’t for a reason that anyone could have predicted.
When Tammy’s alleged 1978 kidnapping started making the news, the authorities weren’t the only ones skeptical of the singer’s claims. Many fans and onlookers felt that something didn’t add up about her story. Some theories suggested that the singer had simply done it for attention. Given that she was no longer the celebrity that she once was. Others suggested that the oft-unfaithful Tammy had made the story up to cover up an affair that she was having on her then-new husband, George Richey.
According to Jackie Daly, her mother did make up the story of the 1978 kidnapping to cover something up.. And the thing that she was covering up did involve George Richey. However, the thing she was covering up wasn’t an affair, and George Richey was certainly no victim! Instead, Jackie has claimed that her mother made the story up in order to cover up abuse.
There are many things about Jackie’s story that add up. For one thing, though Tammy and George Richey’s marriage ended up lasting for two decades. It was never a very pleasant one. He still did plenty of other messed up things to her, beginning before the two even tied the knot.
Another thing that makes sense about Jackie’s story is that it explains the serious nature of the physical injuries that Tammy received during the supposed kidnapping. Previously, authorities had been left perplexed by the physical injuries that had supposedly been inflicted on Tammy; while she was operating her vehicle and cooperating with what the alleged kidnapper had wanted her to do.
Though Tammy Wynette’s death by the time daughter Jackie Daly came forward with the supposedly true story of the alleged 1978 kidnapping; George Richey was still alive! Understandably, he had some issues with Jackie’s account. George Richey claims that he was innocent. He is saying that the notion that he would have ever abused Tammy as being ridiculous. However, their marriage was never the happiest.
Jackie Daly claims she learned the truth about the supposed kidnapping by eavesdropping on her mother’s conversations around the time of the incident. George Richey had proceeded to beat Tammy to a pulp when they argue. When Tammy threatened to go to the authorities with the truth of what happened, George Richey blackmailed her with undisclosed personal information. Claiming that he would write a tell-all book about her and destroy her career. If this account is correct, it was then George Richey himself who plotted the kidnapping. And likely George Richey, who was the one who actually drove Tammy nearly 100 miles away from their home in Nashville, Tennessee.
Whether Jackie Daly’s story of spousal abuse is true or not, Tammy Wynette ended up staying with fifth husband George Richey for two decades after the alleged incident. However, the marriage was never a bright spot for the singer. And many believe that the relationship eventually led to her death from a prescription drug overdose. Although George did help Tammy get her career back on track over the course of the 1980s and into the 1990s. He likely did more damage to the singer’s personal life than this boost was worth.
Although Tammy was never happy during her fifth marriage, she apparently bottled all of the pain up inside and only let those closest to her know how badly she was hurting. Leading to her 1998 death, her close and personal friends claimed that Tammy suffered in distress. Though they had a hard time putting their finger on exactly why. Many claimed that the singer’s marriage to George Richey was more of a business arrangement than a loving relationship brought forth from love and mutual respect, and it appears as if this might have genuinely been the case.
While George Richey was alive when Tammy Wynette’s daughter made the claims that he had abused her mother, he later passed away in 2010. Now it’s time to hear from you: do you think that Tammy Wynette was really kidnapped in 1978 like she claimed, or do you think that she made the whole story up in order to hide something even more sinister that was going on at home?
