Louise Mandrell bids farewell to Pigeon Forge

After an eight-year run in the theater that bears her name, entertainer Louise Mandrell announced in April she was selling the theater and leaving the county, citing her husband's debilitating illness. Mandrell, the last of the big-name entertainers to headline a theater here, closed out her run with two New Year's Eve performances.

Many in the community will miss her charity work, as she was a supporter of United Way, Friends of the Smokies, Boy Scouts, March of Dimes and the Dr. Robert Thomas Foundation at the hospital. After some time off back in Nashville, she's expected to star in a Broadway musical by next summer.