LJ is connected, it's very nice. For this, I wish our system administrator continued health, a good wife, and an exciting legal job for serious money. Because he is a modern man and, unlike our leadership, he thinks broadly and positively. But I won’t mention the name, you never know. Conspiracy, tavagishi!

Those who come from the Soviet past may remember the black and white picture above from a high school biology textbook. There were no other notes explaining her, except for “Sister Dion”. Based on the surname, one could assume that the children came from some English-speaking, or maybe French-speaking? countries and that's it. No city, no year of birth, no what happened to them. The teachers were of little use; they themselves knew nothing. At best, they explained that quintuplets are very rare. Otherwise, don’t insert into an ideological textbook a reprint from “Niva” with yatami “...a peasant woman from Alpatiev N-sky district gave birth to six babies at once...”
However, even a child’s mind was clear that if a photo from the damned bourgeoisie was leaked into a Soviet communist-verified biology textbook, where primates were mentioned, and not just four-legged animals and all sorts of worm-like creatures, and even wandered from edition to edition year after year, then this is not just. Apparently, the fame of these five well-fed girls exploded out of nowhere, if it even reached the borders of our great and vast country.
School is a thing of the past, curiosity has moved to the present.

But, as you know, it doesn’t lead to any good! Because we found out about the Dion sisters and about the year, and about the country, and about fame, and this fame brought them a little joy, and, no matter how trite, the money did not bring happiness either....

A small digression.

The fact is that even today, with all the variety of well-developed nursing techniques, with fully equipped intensive care units for newborns with interior decoration similar to the cockpit of a flying saucer, with all the availability of nutritional mixtures and medicinal solutions for intravenous nutrition, Even with well-trained and responsible staff, nursing at least one baby weighing 600 grams is very serious and difficult round-the-clock work. And then there are 5 at once. I can imagine with what figurative and emotionally charged expressions the staff of our, by no means the worst, intensive care unit would greet the news of the birth of five human infants weighing just over half a kilo. How many new things would fellow obstetricians learn about themselves, although it seems that everything is already known...)))

This is what a baby like this looks like:

Or like this - here the doctor’s hand conveys the scale:

And even now, not all of them survive - they lacked a lot even before birth - after all, all intrauterine nutrition had to be divided among everyone, their organisms are still too unadapted to extrauterine existence. As a rule, due to the biochemical immaturity of the lungs, these children are not able to fully breathe on their own, and they are transferred to artificial respiration, which sometimes lasts for more than one week.

That is why it was not the birth - such people had been born before - but the survival of the Dion sisters in 1934 - without severe respiratory distress, without obvious disability, without severe mental disorders - became a real sensation.

This is how their contemporary described this event:

“One day in the small Canadian town of Callander, a telephone rang in the editorial office of the local newspaper. A man’s voice hesitantly asked: “Excuse me, how much will it cost to advertise in the newspaper about the birth of five children?” The editor at first did not understand what was going on. He asked several questions and was speechless at the receiver. Having regained the power of speech, he asked again: “What are you saying? Are five children really born at once?” The man on the other side of the line sadly confirmed this. It was a sensation! “If you’re telling the truth,” the editor shouted, “then it won’t cost you a penny. What’s your last name?” “Oliver Dion,” the man answered.

The amazing story of five little sisters began. Their legs were as thin as fingers, their bodies fit comfortably in the palm of their hand. Each weighed a little more than 600 g. The doctor, using a pipette, poured a few drops of water mixed with rum into their mouths. The midwife was sure that the newborns would not live even an hour. So she hastily put them in a bowl of water, christening them with names: Emily, Marie, Cecile, Annette, Yvonne. The midwife was right: the newborns had no chance to survive. They were born in the house of a poor farmer, where there was no electricity or running water, and five other family members already lived in a stuffy room."

One can only guess what they were fed with - besides rum and water, of course (by the way, maybe they owe it to him, who knows. The little ones needed to somehow relieve stress, I’m not kidding). Most likely, it was ordinary cow's milk, although the first powdered milk formula was created by Henri Nestlé back in 1867.

“When the twins were five months old, everyone was shocked by the news that their own father was going to exhibit them at the World's Fair in Chicago. That's when the Canadian government authorities took the Dion sisters seriously: a special pavilion was built in which the five sisters were placed ". This pavilion had ten huge windows and a gallery from which one could see them. The girls began to live as if in an enclosure. From 1935 to 1943, over 3 million people passed through the gallery! There were spectators not only from Canada, the USA, but and from other countries of the world. The viewing was paid, the proceeds went to a specially opened account in the name of Dion’s five children. Due to the influx of tourists, the city grew rich, but the parents felt deprived. “Everyone is getting rich off our daughters,” the father complained, “but we they only retained the right to sell postcards with their images..."

Children turned out to be a gold mine: companies producing milk, diapers, baby clothes, baby powder, toothpaste, paid huge sums for the use of photographs of the Dion sisters in advertisements for their products. Hollywood made three films about them. And only a few doctors and psychologists warned: due to the fact that girls are kept in cages like animals, they will grow up unhappy and uncommunicative.

When Emily, Marie, Cecile, Annette, Yvonne were nine years old, the authorities decided to build another large house in Callander and place the entire Dion family there. Idea life together the whole family was unsuccessful. The girls were completely unsuited to this. The father treated them irritably, even harshly: he considered himself unfairly deprived of the division of income. When the girls turned sixteen, they were sent to a boarding school. They appeared there timid, timid, unable to find contact with peers and other children.
Three years later, Emily went to a monastery, but she did not stay there long. A few years later, she began to experience epileptic seizures. One night, during another attack, Emily, deprived of medical care, died. For the other sisters it was a terrible blow. Immediately after Emily's death, they began writing the book “We Were Five,” which became an indictment not only against the family, but, above all, against the authorities.

The gloomy predictions of visionary people began to come true. The sisters were not adapted to normal life: none of them had a profession, they could not find contact with other people. Having grown up together, they only knew how to be friends with each other. Marie died at the age of thirty. After an unsuccessful marriage, she lived alone in Montreal, where she died suddenly. Annette and Cecile also did not have happy marriages. Strongly attached to each other, they spent a lot of time talking on the phone or on mutual visits, during which they recalled with longing the time when there were five of them.

Cecile gave birth to twins, but one of the twins soon died. Three years later she was widowed. Annette had four children. Yvonne tried to become a nun, but did not get along in the monastery and lived completely alone. Such is the sad fate of the Dion sisters."

Probably no afterwords are needed. There were still 12 years left before Dr. Spock and his wonderful book. Children cannot grow fully without love. I feel very sorry for them.

There is an interesting nuance in the tragic fate of the Dion sisters, confirmed by other sources: Death comes to the weak in spirit, it can be predicted... and if you were able to dodge last time, be careful next time;))

Original taken from lady_chizhowa in The tragic fate of the Dion quintuplets

Canada's most famous twins would have turned 82 this year. Five sisters, born into the family of a poor farmer on May 28, 1934, became a real goldmine, earning a lot of money for the Canadian government. Their story has been public knowledge and a constant topic in the media from the very beginning. But neither money nor fame brought them happiness.

The Dion quintuplets have gone down in history as the most famous and at the same time the most unfortunate identical twins.

On May 28, 1934, five famous Canadian twin girls were born in a small village in northern Ontario. Premature seven-month-old girls with tiny arms and legs weighed only 600 grams. The doctor who delivered the baby was sure that the babies would not live even an hour, so they were baptized in a hurry. But the sisters became the first quintuplets to survive. The amazing news about the birth of the Dion sisters spread throughout Canada within a few days. Pictured: mother Elzaire Dion and her five daughters: Annette, Marie, Emily, Yvonne and Cecile Dion, May 28, 1934.

The children were born into the family of a poor farmer named Oliva Dion, who lived with his wife and three older children on a farm in a house without electricity or running water. During her pregnancy, a farmer's wife suspected she was pregnant with twins, but the birth of five babies at once was a huge surprise. The birth took place at home. They were received by Dr. Allan Roy Dafoe, who was confident that none of the babies could survive. Soon after giving birth, the mother of the quintuplets, Elzaire, experienced severe shock, and Dafoe thought that she would die too, but after two hours the woman recovered.

Immediately after birth, the premature babies were wrapped in heated blankets and kept warm in a basket near the stove. The mother had no milk, so every two hours they were given a mixture of water, corn syrup, cow's milk and a couple of drops of rum. Photo: Ontario Prime Minister Mitchell Hepburn with babies Dion, 1934.

When the sisters were 6 months old, their father decided to show his daughters at the World's Fair in Chicago. Canadian authorities learned about this and decided to organize an unusual display. A special pavilion with ten huge windows and a gallery was built for the girls so that the little ones could be better seen. Pictured: sisters Anette, Cecile, Emily, Marie and Yvonne in 1936.

The Dion sisters were on display from 1935 to 1943, during which time they were seen by more than 3 million people. Thanks to the sisters, the Chicago Exhibition became a major city attraction, which caused an unprecedented influx of tourists.

Every day several thousand people came to look at the quintuplets. The girls, under the supervision of nurses, played on what looked like a playground, around which an observation deck had been built behind a net for onlookers. The children were like animals in an enclosure, which became evidence of one of the most cynical ways of using children for profit. Here you could buy memorable souvenirs in a special shop. Admission was free for visitors, but the Canadian government made a lot of money by selling a wide variety of merchandise featuring the sisters. The girls have become a real brand. For example, special sets of five dolls were produced in their honor.

The girls lived in isolation from the world. They had expensive toys fashion clothes, best care pediatricians. However, they were deprived of contact with their parents and communication with their siblings and peers. In the photo: the Dion sisters are given gifts at the Defoe farm.

When the quintuplets turned nine, the Canadian authorities built a large house in Callander with the goal of settling the entire Dion family there. However, this was not a completely successful idea, since the sisters were not adapted to such a life. After so many years of separation, build normal family relationships turned out to be impossible. The other children from the Dion family were never able to accept their long-absent twin sisters.

The father was irritated that he was left out in the division of income, and the children, accustomed to living in an enclosure, could not get used to the new way of life. The twins lived in this house until they were 16, after which they were sent to a boarding school. Pictured: the Dion sisters in May 1943, a few days before their 9th birthday.

Timid, withdrawn girls were incapable of normal communication. An unusual childhood, spent essentially in a human zoo, forever left a mark on the girls’ psyches. Photo: 16-year-old sisters at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in New York, October 19, 1950.

The girls were little adapted to normal life. Having difficulty communicating with people, the sisters could only feel free and at ease in each other’s company. After their eighteenth birthday, the girls broke off all contact with their family, who also tried to take advantage of their popularity and make money from them. Pictured: The Dion sisters in New York, October 21, 1950.

The further fate of the sisters was very sad. Emily died at the age of 20. She went to a monastery early, where she was diagnosed with epileptic seizures, which caused her premature death. For her sisters this was a real blow. Photo: Twin sisters with their father at the Rockefeller Center in New York, October 20, 1950.

Marie died at 30, after an unsuccessful marriage. Cecile and Annette also could not find happiness in family life. All their lives they felt an irresistible attraction to each other, talked on the phone for hours and felt great joy during mutual visits. Cecile also gave birth to twins, but soon one of the twins died. Three years later she was widowed. Yvonne entered monasticism, but did not get along in the monastery. She spent the rest of her life in solitude. Photo: The Dion sisters at a press conference in St. Paul, Minnesota.

The now adult Dion sisters filed a lawsuit and received compensation from the state in the amount of $4 million. “It’s too late and too little for our ruined lives,” the famous sisters commented. Two of the quintuplets are still alive today. In the photo: three sisters: Yvonne, Annette and Cecile with their autobiography “Family Secrets”, October 2, 1995.

Five sisters, born into the family of a poor farmer on May 28, 1934, became a real goldmine, earning a lot of money for the Canadian government. Their story has been public knowledge and a constant topic in the media from the very beginning. But neither money nor fame brought them happiness.

The Dion quintuplets have gone down in history as the most famous and at the same time the most unfortunate identical twins.
On May 28, 1934, five famous Canadian twin girls were born in a small village in northern Ontario. Premature seven-month-old girls with tiny arms and legs weighed only 600 grams. The doctor who delivered the baby was sure that the babies would not live even an hour, so they were baptized in a hurry. But the sisters became the first quintuplets to survive. The amazing news about the birth of the Dion sisters spread throughout Canada within a few days. Pictured: mother Elzaire Dion and her five daughters: Annette, Marie, Emily, Yvonne and Cecile Dion, May 28, 1934.


The children were born into the family of a poor farmer named Oliva Dion, who lived with his wife and three older children on a farm in a house without electricity or running water. During her pregnancy, a farmer's wife suspected she was pregnant with twins, but the birth of five babies at once was a huge surprise. The birth took place at home. They were received by Dr. Allan Roy Dafoe, who was confident that none of the babies could survive. Soon after giving birth, the mother of the quintuplets, Elzaire, experienced severe shock, and Dafoe thought that she would die too, but after two hours the woman recovered.


Immediately after birth, the premature babies were wrapped in heated blankets and kept warm in a basket near the stove. The mother had no milk, so every two hours they were given a mixture of water, corn syrup, cow's milk and a couple of drops of rum. Photo: Ontario Prime Minister Mitchell Hepburn with babies Dion, 1934.


When the sisters were 6 months old, their father decided to show his daughters at the World's Fair in Chicago. Canadian authorities learned about this and decided to organize an unusual display. A special pavilion with ten huge windows and a gallery was built for the girls so that the little ones could be better seen. Pictured: sisters Anette, Cecile, Emily, Marie and Yvonne in 1936.


The Dion sisters were on display from 1935 to 1943, during which time they were seen by more than 3 million people. Thanks to the sisters, the Chicago Exhibition became a major city attraction, which caused an unprecedented influx of tourists.


Every day several thousand people came to look at the quintuplets. The girls, under the supervision of nurses, played on what looked like a playground, around which an observation deck had been built behind a net for onlookers. The children were like animals in an enclosure, which became evidence of one of the most cynical ways of using children for profit. Here you could buy memorable souvenirs in a special shop. Admission was free for visitors, but the Canadian government made a lot of money by selling a wide variety of merchandise featuring the sisters. The girls have become a real brand. For example, special sets of five dolls were produced in their honor.


The most famous twins have become something of a cult. Several films were made about them in Hollywood. Manufacturers baby food, clothes, powders and other products for children, their photographs were successfully used as advertising.

The girls lived in isolation from the world. They had expensive toys, fashionable clothes, and the best care from pediatricians. However, they were deprived of contact with their parents and communication with their siblings and peers. In the photo: the Dion sisters are given gifts at the Defoe farm.


When the quintuplets turned nine, the Canadian authorities built a large house in Callander with the goal of settling the entire Dion family there. However, this was not a completely successful idea, since the sisters were not adapted to such a life. After so many years of separation, it turned out to be impossible to build normal family relationships. The other children from the Dion family were never able to accept their long-absent twin sisters.


The father was irritated that he was left out in the division of income, and the children, accustomed to living in an enclosure, could not get used to the new way of life. The twins lived in this house until they were 16, after which they were sent to a boarding school. Pictured: the Dion sisters in May 1943, a few days before their 9th birthday.


The girls starred a lot in various commercials, mainly cosmetics and food products. Each of their birthdays was celebrated with the participation of the media. Photo: 16-year-old Dion sisters after visiting a hairdresser, October 19, 1950.


Timid, withdrawn girls were incapable of normal communication. An unusual childhood, spent essentially in a human zoo, forever left a mark on the girls’ psyches. Photo: 16-year-old sisters at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in New York, October 19, 1950.


The girls were little adapted to normal life. Having difficulty communicating with people, the sisters could only feel free and at ease in each other’s company. After their eighteenth birthday, the girls broke off all contact with their family, who also tried to take advantage of their popularity and make money from them. Pictured: The Dion sisters in New York, October 21, 1950.


The further fate of the sisters was very sad. Emily died at the age of 20. She went to a monastery early, where she was diagnosed with epileptic seizures, which caused her premature death. For her sisters this was a real blow. Photo: Twin sisters with their father at the Rockefeller Center in New York, October 20, 1950.


Marie died at 30, after an unsuccessful marriage. Cecile and Annette also could not find happiness in their family life. All their lives they felt an irresistible attraction to each other, talked on the phone for hours and felt great joy during mutual visits. Cecile also gave birth to twins, but soon one of the twins died. Three years later she was widowed. Yvonne entered monasticism, but did not get along in the monastery. She spent the rest of her life in solitude. Photo: The Dion sisters at a press conference in St. Paul, Minnesota.


The now adult Dion sisters filed a lawsuit and received compensation from the state in the amount of $4 million. “It’s too late and too little for our ruined lives,” the famous sisters commented. Two of the quintuplets are still alive today. In the photo: three sisters: Yvonne, Annette and Cecile with their autobiography “Family Secrets”, October 2, 1995.

These extraordinary twins were born on May 28, 1934. Annette, Emily, Yvonne, Marie and Cecile Dion were the children of a poor Canadian farmer. For the parents, who by that time were already raising three children, five newborn girls came as a complete surprise.

The birth took place in the seventh month of pregnancy, and the babies initially weighed 600 grams. No one expected the babies to survive. However, to the surprise of everyone around, “ fab five“I didn’t even think about dying!

First in the world!

People knew about such births before. But it was the Dion girls who became world's first surviving quintuplets. Later, the babies will also be called the most unfortunate twins in the world.

Spartan childhood

In the house where Annette, Emily, Yvonne, Marie and Cecile were born no running water, no electricity. At first, they were given a special mixture of milk and water every two hours, to which corn syrup and a drop of rum were added. The doctor was amazed that after a difficult birth, both the mother and all the children survived!

Road to glory

News of the birth unusual twins quickly flew around the country. When the parents finally decided to show their children to the world, the authorities quickly met them halfway. For five sisters there was a whole pavilion was built!

More than a thousand people came every day to look at the girls. Babes Dion lived in a special enclosure, where they were constantly under the supervision of nannies. Trading shops made a considerable profit by selling souvenirs and portraits of the sisters to onlookers.

Of course, they did not skimp on clothing and child care. In the end, babies appeared in advertising the most popular brands! However, the rest of the life of the little ones could not be called normal.

Problems of quintuplets

Girls will never be children did not have the opportunity to communicate with peers. Their older brothers and sisters did not recognize them as relatives, and the little ones even saw their parents very rarely.

Later, when the little ones were nine years old, a special house was built for their family. However, life there was not successful for the sisters. Older children they took the quintuplets with hostility, the father could not get used to the new way of life, and the sisters themselves found the changes terrible. That is why, at the age of 16, the little ones were sent to a boarding school.

Not a single girls' birthday passed without lavish celebrations. Reporters and investor representatives were always nearby, and the sisters grew up not knowing ordinary life, not knowing how to do without each other.

In fact, from the first years of life babies were deprived of their childhood. Until they reached adulthood, the government and their father and mother only made money from them. It is not surprising that when the girls turned 18, they abruptly broke off all relations with their family.

Emily went to a monastery, but soon gave up her soul to God from the consequences of an epileptic seizure. The girl was only 20 years old. Another 10 years later, Marie passed away from a heart attack.

Tragic fates

Cecile and Annette tried to lead a normal life, got married and had children, but all their lives they felt good only in each other's company. Yvonne also tried to become a nun, but she did not succeed in the monastery. The remaining years of the poor fellow spent alone.

A crippled life

In 2001, at the age of 67, Yvonne said goodbye to life. Cecile and Annette are still alive. Both remaining sisters divorced at one time and now live together. According to experts, the psyche of the quintuplets was irreparably crippled even in childhood, which was taken away from them in the pursuit of profit.

In 1998, the sisters sued the government for about three million dollars for ruined childhood. However, money could no longer bring them happiness. In addition, the surviving quintuplets wrote to the parents of other unusual twins, warning them of the consequences of excessive popularity for their children.

The Dion sisters hope that their sad example will prevent others from repeating the terrible fate. Women would not wish a life like theirs even on their worst enemy!

Canada's most famous twins would have turned 82 this year. Five sisters, born into the family of a poor farmer on May 28, 1934, became a real goldmine, earning a lot of money for the Canadian government. Their story has been public knowledge and a constant topic in the media from the very beginning. But neither money nor fame brought them happiness.

The Dion quintuplets have gone down in history as the most famous and at the same time the most unfortunate identical twins.

1. On May 28, 1934, five famous Canadian twin girls were born in a small village in northern Ontario. Premature seven-month-old girls with tiny arms and legs weighed only 600 grams. The doctor who delivered the baby was sure that the babies would not live even an hour, so they were baptized in a hurry. But the sisters became the first quintuplets to survive. The amazing news about the birth of the Dion sisters spread throughout Canada within a few days. Pictured: mother Elzaire Dion and her five daughters: Annette, Marie, Emily, Yvonne and Cecile Dion, May 28, 1934.

2. The children were born into the family of a poor farmer named Oliva Dion, who lived with his wife and three older children on a farm in a house without electricity or running water. During her pregnancy, a farmer's wife suspected she was pregnant with twins, but the birth of five babies at once was a huge surprise. The birth took place at home. They were received by Dr. Allan Roy Dafoe, who was confident that none of the babies could survive. Soon after giving birth, the mother of the quintuplets, Elzaire, experienced severe shock, and Dafoe thought that she would die too, but after two hours the woman recovered.

3. Immediately after birth, the premature babies were wrapped in heated blankets and kept warm in a basket near the stove. The mother had no milk, so every two hours they were given a mixture of water, corn syrup, cow's milk and a couple of drops of rum. Photo: Ontario Prime Minister Mitchell Hepburn with babies Dion, 1934.

4. When the sisters were 6 months old, their father decided to show his daughters at the World's Fair in Chicago. Canadian authorities learned about this and decided to organize an unusual display. A special pavilion with ten huge windows and a gallery was built for the girls so that the little ones could be better seen. Pictured: sisters Anette, Cecile, Emily, Marie and Yvonne in 1936.

5. The Dion sisters were on display from 1935 to 1943, during which time they were seen by more than 3 million people. Thanks to the sisters, the Chicago Exhibition became a major city attraction, which caused an unprecedented influx of tourists.

6. Every day several thousand people came to look at the quintuplets. The girls, under the supervision of nurses, played on what looked like a playground, around which an observation deck had been built behind a net for onlookers. The children were like animals in an enclosure, which became evidence of one of the most cynical ways of using children for profit. Here you could buy memorable souvenirs in a special shop. Admission was free for visitors, but the Canadian government made a lot of money by selling a wide variety of merchandise featuring the sisters. The girls have become a real brand. For example, special sets of five dolls were produced in their honor.

7. The most famous twins have become something of a cult. Several films were made about them in Hollywood. Enterprises producing baby food, clothing, powders and other goods for children successfully used their photographs as advertising.

8. The girls lived in isolation from the world. They had expensive toys, fashionable clothes, and the best care from pediatricians. However, they were deprived of contact with their parents and communication with their siblings and peers. In the photo: the Dion sisters are given gifts at the Defoe farm.

9. When the quintuplets turned nine, the Canadian authorities built a large house in Callander with the goal of settling the entire Dion family there. However, this was not a completely successful idea, since the sisters were not adapted to such a life. After so many years of separation, it turned out to be impossible to build normal family relationships. The other children from the Dion family were never able to accept their long-absent twin sisters.

10. The father was irritated that he was left out in the division of income, and the children, accustomed to living in an enclosure, could not get used to the new way of life. The twins lived in this house until they were 16, after which they were sent to a boarding school. Pictured: the Dion sisters in May 1943, a few days before their 9th birthday.

11. The girls starred a lot in various commercials, mainly cosmetics and food products. Each of their birthdays was celebrated with the participation of the media. Photo: 16-year-old Dion sisters after visiting a hairdresser, October 19, 1950.

12. Timid, withdrawn girls were not capable of normal communication. An unusual childhood, spent essentially in a human zoo, forever left a mark on the girls’ psyches. Photo: 16-year-old sisters at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in New York, October 19, 1950.

13. The girls were little adapted to normal life. Having difficulty communicating with people, the sisters could only feel free and at ease in each other’s company. After their eighteenth birthday, the girls broke off all contact with their family, who also tried to take advantage of their popularity and make money from them. Pictured: The Dion sisters in New York, October 21, 1950.

14. The further fate of the sisters was very sad. Emily died at the age of 20. She went to a monastery early, where she was diagnosed with epileptic seizures, which caused her premature death. For her sisters this was a real blow. Photo: Twin sisters with their father at the Rockefeller Center in New York, October 20, 1950.

15. Marie died at 30, after an unsuccessful marriage. Cecile and Annette also could not find happiness in their family life. All their lives they felt an irresistible attraction to each other, talked on the phone for hours and felt great joy during mutual visits. Cecile also gave birth to twins, but soon one of the twins died. Three years later she was widowed. Yvonne entered monasticism, but did not get along in the monastery. She spent the rest of her life in solitude. Photo: The Dion sisters at a press conference in St. Paul, Minnesota.