Dolly Parton: The Life and Legacy of Country’s Biggest Star
There are tons of things most people don't know about Dolly Parton, like how long she has been married and how many rides she has ridden at Dollywood. From her political views to her humble beginnings, continue reading to find some interesting facts you may not know about this superstar. She really has changed so much over the years!
Her Birth
Dolly Rebecca Parton was born January 19, 1946, in Sevierville, Tennessee.
She was the fourth child out of 12 (yes, you read that correctly). Her father was a construction worker and a farmer while her mother stayed home and raised the kids. Parton herself said that her family was “dirt poor” and lived in a one-room cabin in a valley in the Great Smokey Mountains.
Parton grew up in the church as her family lived in a mostly Pentecostal area. At just six years old, she started performing in church and got her first real guitar when she was eight years old, courtesy of her uncle.
Early Childhood Performances
Parton didn’t wait until she was an adult to start her career as a singer. She actually started when she was very young. Parton sang on local television and radio programs in the Eastern Tennessee area until she was 13.
Around that age, she got the opportunity to sing at the Grand Ole Opry hotel and met Johnny Cash. Cash gave her some sage advice and told her not to give up on her dreams and to follow her instincts.
Her Life After High School
Parton graduated high school in 1964 from Sevier County High School. Parton moved out immediately, heading to Nashville with dreams of making it big as a singer. Fun fact: her early success wasn't actually from singing.
So what did she find success as? A songwriter. She wrote songs with her uncle Bill Owens fairly often and even had two top ten hits.
The First Record Deal And Bubblegum Pop
Parton was signed to Monument Records when she was 19 years old in 1965. She was initially supposed to sing bubblegum pop music, which was essentially upbeat music designed for teens during the late ’60s and early ’70s. During this time Parton released several singles, though none ever made it to the Billboard top 100. Dolly did do the harmony on a Bill Phillips 1966 hit, which allowed her to transition over to the country genre.
She created her first full-length album title "Hello, I’m Dolly", which had two songs on it that reached No. 24 and No. 17 on the country charts in 1967.
Career In Motion!
After achieving success with her country album, Parton was asked to be on The Porter Wagoner Show. Parton replaced Norma Jean, which the audience was not happy about. The audience would often be very vocal about their feelings, even going so far as chanting for Norma Jean during shows. This didn’t stop Dolly though.
She was eventually accepted by the audience with the help of Wagoner. Parton and Wagoner put out a lot of hits together, hitting a six-year streak of top ten singles. Dolly was on this show for seven years before leaving in 1974.
The Struggling Solo Career
Dolly was signed onto the RCA Victor label while she was working with Wagoner. Her first solo single for the company was actually “Just Because I’m a Woman.” It was released in the summer of 1968 and even No. 17 on the charts, which was considered a moderate success.
Even though Parton kept putting out singles throughout the ’60s, none of her songs made it as high on the list as the songs she and Wagoner put out together. Eventually, Wagoner convinced Parton to record “Mule Skinner Blues” that was originally recorded by Jimmie Rodgers. This is what finally set her solo career in motion.
Finally Some Success!
Once Dolly recorded “Mule Skinner Blues,” the song hit No. 3 on the charts. She then went on to record “Joshua,” her first No. 1 single.
Over the next couple years, her songs continued to top the charts as a solo artist along with her duets with Wagoner. Her signature song “Coat of Many Colors” hit No. 4 in 1971. Other singles she recorded that had success included “Touch Your Woman,” “My Tennessee Mountain Home,” and “Travelin’ Man.”
Transitioning Into Pop Culture
Dolly Parton began her big transition from country to pop between 1976 to 1977. Parton started working with Sandy Gallin, her soon-to-be personal manager for the next 25 years.
The '76 album "All I Can Do" was co-produced with Wagoner but was directed towards the more mainstream and pop crowd.The first album she produced herself, "New Harvest, First Gathering" came out in 1977 and had covered hits on it such as “Higher and Higher.” Even though the album performed poorly, Dolly refused to quit.
Her Songwriting Career
As you now know, Parton’s career started out in songwriting. Her song “I Will Always Love You” has been heard many times, such as in The Bodyguard (sung by Whitney Houston), LeAnn Rimes sang a version on her album Unchained Melody: The Early Years, and Kenny Rogers even sang it as well on his album Vote for Love.
Parton was nominated for Academy Awards for Best Original Song in 1980 and 2005, for the songs “9 to 5” and “Travelin’ Through” respectively.
The latter song was also nominated for the Broadcast Film Critics Association Award and the Golden Globe for Best Original song in 2005.
Dolly Means Business
Dolly Parton made sure not to put all her eggs in one basket. She invested much of her earnings in small businesses in Eastern Tennessee, most of them being located around Pigeon Forge.
She is even co-owner of a theme park named "Dollywood". Other businesses operated by the Dollwood company include Dollywood’s Splash Country, Dolly Parton’s Dixie Stampede, and a dinner theater.
Her Acting Career
Fans couldn't seem to get enough of Dolly through her albums so she had to take to stage. This woman is seriously talented!
Her acting career started out on The Porter Wagoner Show but she continued to appear on stage over the years. She had her own show, Dolly!, in the mid-1970s and a second one in the mid-1980s where Parton played a secretary who joins forces with her co-workers after they tire of their sexist boss.
Love At Last
Dolly Parton is married to Carl Thomas Dean. The couple was married on May 30, 1966, in Ringgold, Georgia. Her official name is “Dolly Parton Dean,” though she doesn't use this name professionally. Carl ran an asphalt paving business in Nashville and for the most part has stayed away from publicity. He hardly goes to any of Parton’s events and has only seen her perform once.
Dolly has come out and said that Carl is very romantic, often doing little things to surprise her. They do not have any children but have helped raise some of Parton’s siblings. In 2016, Dolly and Carl renewed their vows for their 50th wedding anniversary. Who says a marriage can’t survive stardom?
The Infamous Look-a-Like Contest
Who could win a Dolly Parton Look-A-Like Contest better than Dolly Parton? Apparently, somebody else. She once lost the contest to another person.
She walked into a contest on Santa Monica Boulevard where all the participants were dressed up as Dolly Parton and had very exaggerated looks. Dolly said she “just walked up on stage…I didn’t win. I didn’t even come close, I don’t think.”
Amusement Park Rides
So how many times has Parton ridden the rides in Dollywood? You'd think that after everything closes she could just go around and ride any ride she wants without having to wait in line. That’s the dream, right? Not to Dolly, she has not ridden any of the rides. Why? She gets motion sickness.
She says “My daddy used to say, ‘I could never be a sailor. I could never be a miner. I could never be a pilot,’ I am the same way. I have motion sickness. I could never ride some of these rides. I used to get sick on the school bus!”
Godmother Of Miley Cyrus
That's right. Dolly Parton is the godmother of the pop and country singer Miley Cyrus! The pair sang “Jolene” together, which was a sight to behold.
Parton was asked in 2014 about her opinion of what Miley had become in the media. Parton said that she has loved Miley since she was a baby, adding that Miley wanted to become Miley but no one would let her so she took it to extreme measures.
A Truly Supportive Godmother
When asked about Miley’s indecency in the media in 2014, Parton quickly defended Miley’s actions. Parton told TIME, “If I didn’t know how smart and talented Miley is, I might worry about her. But I’ve watched her grow up. So I don’t. She knows what she’s doing.
She was very proud of the work she did as Hannah Montana, but people were gonna leave her there forever… The girl is smart. And she doesn’t have to be so drastic. But I will respect her choices. I did it my way, so why can’t she do it her way?”
In Defense Of Miley
After Miley earned herself a lot of criticism for her risque stage presence at her concerts following her departure from Disney, Dolly mentioned that her own career beginnings were not so far off from Miley’s. Telling The Sunday Times that she understood Miley’s struggle in 2016, Dolly said, “Yeah, well I do, ’cause back in the day, doing my own things my own way, and dressing sexy and showing my cleavage and all that, I got a lot of criticism. Lots of people thought I was making a mistake and that I was just trashy, which I was.
So I did go through that, but I don’t give her advice. Everyone has to walk this journey according to their own rules.”
Lady Of The Night
Ever wonder where Dolly got the inspiration for her signature look? As it turns out, Dolly’s signature look was actually inspired by a local prostitute in her hometown. The big, blonde hair, red lips, and voluptuous figure are all drawn from the town tramp that Dolly would see growing up.
Parton told ABC News, “There was this woman, we won’t call her names, but she was beautiful. I had never seen anybody, you know, with the yellow hair all piled up and the red lipstick and the rouge and the high heeled shoes, and I thought, ‘This is what I want to look like.'”
Dolly In The Closet?
There were rumors swirling around that Parton was secretly gay because of her close relationship with childhood friend, Judy Ogle. When people compared her friendship with Judy to that of Oprah Winfrey and Gayle King, Dolly had to set the rumors straight, telling Nightline, “Like Gayle, her friend, Judy, my friend, they just think that you just can’t be that close to somebody.
Judy and I have been best friends since we were like in third and fourth grade… We still just have a great friendship and relationship and I love her as much as I love anybody in the whole world, but we’re not romantically involved.”
Vying For Freedom
While Dolly Parton might have gotten her start on The Porter Wagoner Show , her and Wagoner certainly had a falling out once Dolly hit it big. Dolly announced the end of their partnership on February 19, 1974, after having spent seven years working with him on his show and through two albums. Through all that time, it obviously wasn’t easy-going for the two singers. Parton told CMT, “I was trying to get away on my own because I had promised to stay with Porter’s show for five years.
I had been there for seven. And we fought a lot. We were very much alike. We were both stubborn.”
Bad Blood
Parton and Wagoner would butt heads so often that Dolly' decision to leave wasn't much of a shock. “We both believed that we knew what was best for us.
Well, he believed he knew what was best for me, too, and I believed that I knew more what was best for me at that time. So, needless to say, there was a lot of grief and heartache there, and he just wasn’t listening to my reasoning for my going.” Wagoner then sued Dolly for breach of contract, thus starting a nasty fued between the two.
Dolly And Porter
Of one of her greatest hits, “I Will Always Love You,” Parton told CMT, “It’s saying, ‘Just because I’m going don’t mean I won’t love you. I appreciate you and I hope you do great and I appreciate everything you’ve done, but I’m out of here…'” “I took it in the next morning. I said, ‘Sit down, Porter. I’ve written this song, and I want you to hear it.’ So I did sing it.
And he was crying. He said, ‘That’s the prettiest song I ever heard. And you can go, providing I get to produce that record.’ And he did, and the rest is history.”
Mending The Wounds
Although they went through years of estrangement as she grew increasingly more successful on her own, Dolly still came to her old mentor’s side on his deathbed. In 2007, at age 80, Porter Wagoner had succombed to lung cancer. Parton told Knoxville’s News Sentinel, “It was really, really hard.
I held his hand, and we prayed… Porter’s soul was already with God. All that was left was a shell.” Dolly was at Porter’s bedside as he passed.
Chart-Topping Success
Though "I will always love you" was successful when She sang it, it really blew up after Whitney Huston’s version was heard in the 1992 film, The Bodyguard. The song, of course, was played at Huston’s funeral following the singer’s tragic death. Parton told Nightline, “When they played it at her funeral and they lifted her coffin up, man, it was like somebody stabbed me in the heart with a knife.
It just overwhelmed me.” After re-recording the song in 1982, Parton became the first singer to ever achieve a number one position on the charts with the same song. Houston’s version of the song was at number one on the Billboard Hot 100 for 14 weeks. “I Will Always Love You” holds the record for being the best-selling single by a woman in music history.
Dolly v. Houston?
Because “I Will Always Love You” became phenomenally more successful after Whitney Houston’s version was released, this led many to believe that Dolly Parton was upset over the matter. Tabloids in the early ’90s spread tons of nasty rumors that Houston and Parton were at eachothers throats. This turned out to be far from the truth. In fact, both of the singers spoke highly of each other. Houston told Rolling Stone that she had the chance to thank Dolly personally: “I talked to Dolly Parton by phone not too long ago,” she said in 1993.
“She said to me ‘Whitney, I just want to tell you something. I’m just honored that you did my song. I just don’t know what to tell you, girl.’ I said, ‘Well, Dolly, you wrote a beautiful song.’ And she said: ‘Yeah, but it never did that well for me. It did well for you because you put all that stuff into it.'”
Imagination Library
Did you know Dolly Parton runs a program called Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library? Part of the Dollywood Foundation, they mail a book out every month to children who are enrolled from the time they are born until kindergarten.
About 1,600 communities participate in the program so about 850,000 children in Australia, the UK, Canada, and the U.S. get books every year!
The Inspiration Behind Imagination Library
What inspired Dolly to start her literacy program? In a 2015 interview with Paper, Dolly said, “Where it all really started was with my daddy. He was, without a doubt, the smartest man I have ever known, but he could not read very well.
Daddy did an incredible job of providing a good life for our family but there is no telling what he could have achieved if he had learned to read. So the Imagination Library is just one way for me to honor him…”
Philanthropic Parton
As you know, Dolly Parton grew up with humble beginnings. So humble, in fact, that her parents paid the doctor who helped deliver Dolly with a sack of grains! Knowing this, it’s no wonder Dolly often shares her blessings with the world. Dolly stated, “One thing I never do is tell people what they should be doing.
All I can do is speak for myself, and I have always felt I had an obligation to give back. For me, it means a lot of different things… You also have to give a big chunk of yourself, but I don’t mind all that is expected from me. It comes with the territory and I would not change one thing.”
A Space For Everyone
Believe it or now, Dolly Parton hosts an annual “Gay Day” at her Dollywood theme park. The park has quickly become a popular tourist destination for the LGBT community and Christian groups alike. This may seem like a contradictory mix, but for Dolly, everyone is welcome.
Parton told The Hollywood Reporter in 2014, “It’s a place for entertainment, a place for all families, period. It’s for all that.
But as far as the Christians, if people want to pass judgment, they’re already sinning. The sin of judging is just as bad as any other sin they might say somebody else is committing. I try to love everybody.”
Her Love For Her Fans
Many members of the LGBT community are huge Dolly Parton fans and Dolly supports them just as fiercely. She told The Hollywood Reporter, “I’ve struggled enough in my life to be appreciated and understood. I’ve had to go against all kinds of people through the years just to be myself.”
“I think everybody should be allowed to be who they are, and to love who they love.
I don’t think we should be judgmental. Lord, I’ve got enough problems of my own to pass judgment on somebody else,” she added.
Be Yourself
Back in the day, Dolly allegedly wasn’t even aware of the LGBT community or that there was anyone in her own town that identified with it. She told Pride Source in 2016 that was actually introduced to the gay community through her own family: “We were just mountain people, and I did not know at that time – I sure did not. In my early days we did not know.
It didn’t take me long to know that people were different and that was always fine with me. I was different too, and I embraced and accepted them and I knew them. I knew them well.”