Editing Billy Tipton (section)

== Death, post-mortem outing, and aftermath ==
In 1989, Tipton had symptoms which he attributed to the [[Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease|emphysema]] he had contracted from heavy smoking and refused to call a doctor. He was actually suffering from a hemorrhaging [[peptic ulcer]] which, left untreated, was fatal. On January 21, 1989, his son William called emergency services. While paramedics were trying to save Tipton's life, they, alongside Tipton's son William, discovered he was born female. This information "came as a shock to nearly everyone, including the women who had considered themselves his wives, as well as his sons and the musicians who had traveled with him".<ref name="STANFORD"/><ref name="REMEMBERED"/> Later, following financial offers from the media, Kelly and one of their sons went public with the story.<ref name="SPOKESMAN" /> The first newspaper article was published the day after Tipton's funeral and it was quickly picked up by wire services. Stories about him appeared in a variety of papers, including tabloids such as ''[[National Enquirer]]''<ref>{{Cite book |title=Suits Me: The Double Life of Billy Tipton |first=Diane |last=Middlebrook |author-link=Diane Middlebrook |page=309 |publisher=Houghton Mifflin |year=1999 |isbn=978-0-395-95789-9 }}</ref> and ''[[Star (magazine)|Star]]''<ref name="STRANGE">{{cite web|last=Boss|first=Kit|title=The Strange Story of Billy Tipton|url=https://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/fl-xpm-1989-04-06-8901180335-story.html|website=Sun Sentinel|date= 6 April 1989|access-date=22 July 2020}}</ref> as well as ''[[People (magazine)|People]]'',<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.people.com/people/archive/article/0,,20119615,00.html|title=Death Discloses Billy Tipton's Strange Secret: He Was a She – Vol. 31 No. 7|date=February 20, 1989|work=People|access-date=February 20, 2017| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150710161809/http://www.people.com/people/archive/article/0,,20119615,00.html|archive-date=July 10, 2015}}</ref><ref name="SWING">{{cite news|last=Brubach|first=Holly|url=https://www.nytimes.com/books/98/06/28/reviews/980628.28brub.html|title=Swing Time|newspaper=The New York Times|date=June 28, 1998|access-date=February 1, 2007}}</ref> ''[[The New York Times]]''<ref>{{cite news|author=AP Staff|title=Musician's Death at 74 Reveals He was a Woman|newspaper=The New York Times|url= https://www.nytimes.com/1989/02/02/us/musician-s-death-at-74-reveals-he-was-a-woman.html |date=2 February 1989|access-date=22 July 2020}}</ref> and ''[[The Seattle Times]]''.<ref name="Seattle">{{cite web|author=Karen Dorn Steele|title= Judge: Billy Tipton's "Sons" can inherit their "Mother's" Estate|url=https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/judge-billy-tiptons-sons-can-inherit-their-mothers-estate/|website=The Seattle Times|date=10 December 2008|access-date=22 July 2020}}</ref> Members of Tipton's family made talk show appearances as well.<ref name="STRANGE"/><ref name="SPOKESMAN">{{cite news|last=Clark|first=Doug|url=http://www.spokesmanreview.com/breaking/story.asp?ID=15236 |title=Billy Tipton's Estate|work=[[The Spokesman-Review]]|date=March 5, 1989|access-date=December 9, 2008|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090728170013/http://www.spokesmanreview.com/breaking/story.asp?ID=15236|archive-date=July 28, 2009}}</ref><ref>Archived at [https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211211/Nw-NDom1Fxc Ghostarchive]{{cbignore}} and the [https://web.archive.org/web/20190331202103/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nw-NDom1Fxc Wayback Machine]{{cbignore}}: {{cite AV media |url=https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Nw-NDom1Fxc|title=Billy Tipton...the Truth Behind the Man|via=YouTube |publisher=Video Disorder|date=21 February 2018|access-date=July 22, 2020}}{{cbignore}}</ref>

Tipton left wills: one handwritten and not notarized that left everything to William Jr.; and the second, notarized, leaving everything to John Clark, the first child the Tiptons adopted.<ref name="SPOKESMAN"/>  A court upheld the first will, and William inherited almost everything, with John and Scott receiving one dollar each.<ref>{{cite web|last=Yiannis|first=John|url=https://gaycultureland.blogspot.com/2016/07/billy-tipton.html?m=1|title=Billy Tipton|website=GayCultureLand|date=July 30, 2016|access-date=July 23, 2020}}</ref> According to a 2009 episode of the documentary program ''The Will: Family Secrets Revealed'', which featured interviews with all three sons, it was revealed that a final court judgment awarded all three sons an equal share of his wife Kitty Tipton's estate (not Billy Tipton's), which, after lawyers' fees, amounted to $35,000 for each son.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://investigation.discovery.com/videos/the-will-family-secrets-revealed-death-reveals-secret.html|title=Family Secrets Revealed: Death Reveals Secret|work=discovery.com|access-date=February 20, 2017|archive-date=May 2, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120502011947/http://investigation.discovery.com/videos/the-will-family-secrets-revealed-death-reveals-secret.html|url-status=dead}}</ref> Two of his adopted sons changed their names not long after learning of Tipton's assigned gender, as they felt Tipton behaved deceptively.<ref name="Seattle" />