So, About The Wigs
Dolly Parton and wigs are pretty much synonymous. Actually, no, who are we kidding? Not “pretty much”, they are synonymous. This superstar adores her hair when its incredibly blonde and super-teased. To call it a classic trademark would be an understatement. However, there’s a reason behind the wigs – turns out that Parton can’t style her real hair. Once, she told People magazine, “I used to try to keep my own hair teased as big as I like it, and having the bleach and all of that, it just broke off.” So her solution to those pesky hair woes was fake hair – quite the solution, eh?
The Hubby
51 years, that’s how long Dolly Parton has been married to Carl Thomas Dean. In fact, for their 50 year wedding anniversary, these lovebirds renewed their vows. To which Parton said, “We’re really proud of our marriage. It’s the first for both of us. And the last.” While there is tons of speculation regarding if they have an open relationship, these two brush the rumors off and just keep on.
Just Once
You would think that if you married a superstar singer you would bathe in the luxury of backstage passes, front row seats and unlimited autographs… or maybe that’s just me. Well Dolly’s husband, Carl Thomas Dean admits to have only attended one performance of hers… ONE!
Two Can Play
You would also think that if your partner was a record-breaking singer and songwriter you would leave the songs and writing to her. Well that isn’t the case when it comes to Dolly and her husband. She shared that Carl is quite the romantic and even writes poems just for her. I wonder if any of them inspired some songs.
Fairy Godmother
If you thought that Cinderella had the greatest fairy godmother of all time then we might have a problem. Okay, we’re kidding about the problem part, but let’s note that Dolly Parton is the godmother to singer-songwriter Miley Cyrus. Moreover Cyrus has often cited Parton as a “role model” and not just when it comes to music either, but because she’s also such a kind, loving person.
Miley And Dolly
The fun didn’t stopped there for Dolly Parton and her goddaughter. Dolly made a special guest appearance as “Aunt Dolly” on the Hannah Montana Show – the audience loved that one! They didn’t stop there either – they went on to collaborate on a number of occasions, putting their musical talents together to produce some powerful country classic covers.
Big Break
After Dolly graduated from high school, she moved to Nashville and found success as a songwriter. Then in 1967, she scored a big break when musician and country music entertainer Porter Wagoner invited her on his show The Porter Wagoner Show. Initially fans were outraged at Dolly’s presence on the show, as she replaced Norma Jean, however in time, with Wagoner’s assistance and her killer vocals, fans adored Dolly. With the show, Parton’s success grew exponentially and as a farewell to Wagoner, our girl wrote a special song.
The Hit
The song Dolly wrote was called ‘I Will Always Love You.’ This song has been covered so many times since, so much so that many people believed that Whitney Houston was the first to release it! But folks, we know who the original is, don’t we.
Loser
Fun fact – Dolly joined a Halloween Dolly Parton lookalike contest out on Santa Monica Boulevard and….she didn’t win! Nope, not a typo, you read that right! See, Parton overexaggerated her look just by making her beauty mark bigger and her hair higher – so much so that none of the men in the contest even recognized her. Hard to believe that Parton lost her own lookalike contest!
Modeling Others
Now here’s one that will make you really realize that you can draw inspiration from just about anywhere. Parton found inspiration for her over-the-top make-up, dress-ups and massive air, believe it or not, from one of the ‘ladies of the night’ in her hometown. “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.'”
No Place Like Home
Growing up, Dolly was the fourth out of 12 children and she has since described her family as “dirt poor.” In Dolly’s early songs, “Coat of Many Colors” and “In the Good Old Days (When Times Were Bad),” she outlines her family’s poverty. Nonetheless, after her fame, she restored her old family home together with her brother, Bobby. Only this time around, they added electricity and plumbing.
A Bag Of Grain
Dolly Parton’s father did whatever he could to provide for his children. The clearest example of this was when Dolly was born. Her father traded a bag of grain with the doctor, ensuring that he would deliver his daughter. Now how’s that for a good ol’ country transaction?
Too Afraid To Ride
Dolly created her own amusement park called “Dollywood” which has helped employ a fortune of people. Although her attractive theme park has visitors coming in and out on a daily basis, she herself has admitted to being too afraid to take a turn on most of the rides. She did brave a short ride on the small ferris-wheel for a publicity stunt.
LGBT Friendly
Now it’s no secret that Dolly Parton is a huge friend to the gay community, over the years she has made numerous contributions and even decided to show her support for LGBT families especially at her amusement park, Dollywood. So she created a ‘Gay Day’ for any and all LGBT families to come and celebrate together.
Gay Marriage
When it comes to gay marriage, Dolly Parton is hugely on-board with the idea. She supports the freedom everyone should have to marry whom they choose. But she didn’t make that clear without a quick joke, “I always say, ‘Sure — why can’t they get married? They should suffer like the rest of us do!’”
Life-Size
Head on over to Sevierville, Tennessee, the hometown of Dolly Parton! Why? Well that little town is insanely proud of their superstar so to showcase their love and support, they created a 28-stop walking tour through Dolly’s hometown. Furthermore they even erected a bronze statue, which features a younger Dolly sat barefoot, cradling a guitar.
Meh, No Thanks
In 1974, Parton released the song, “I Will Always Love You”, which as we mentioned she wrote about her professional break from Wagoner. Well that very song rose to number one on the country chart! So at about the same time, Elvis Presley pointed out that he actually wanted to cover the song. Which obviously interested Parton until Presley’s sly manager, Colonel Tom Parker, stepped in. Parked informed her that it was just standard procedure for a songwriter to sign over half of their publishing rights to any song that is recorded by Presley. Parton flat out refused. Yup, she actually said no to Elvis Presley. And it was that very decision that has earned her millions in royalties.
His Last Day
Imagine that Dolly Parton was the last person you ever saw? Well, there is someone who could have claimed that and that was Porter Wagoner. They had a history together seeing as Parton spent 8 years performing on his show before spreading her own wings. She sat by his bedside the day that he died of lung cancer, and she vividly recalls that day. “I held his hand, and we prayed… Porter’s soul was already with God. All that was left was a shell.”
No Shame Here
Aside from her many wigs and incredible voice, Dolly Parton is also known for many cosmetic surgeries – and she isn’t afraid to admit it either! In fact, Parton is very open about her many surgeries, she even said, “It takes a lot of money to look this cheap.” Moreover in an interview in The Guardian, Parton said, “This is just who I am! I may look fake, but I’m real where it counts.” Yeah, you are.
Oh, Hey, Playboy
Yup, our girl was approached by Playboy magazine multiple times, but she rejected them time and time again. Until their October 1978 issue where Parton is featured wearing a bunny costume! So Dolly went on to became the first country singer to have posed for the cover of Playboy.
Roots
Let’s look back at Dolly Parton’s roots – where it all began. Her father, Robert, was a farmer, while her mother, Avie, was a hymn-singer. We already mentioned she was the fourth child out of 12 siblings, and this huge family grew up poor but with a lot of love and faith. During an interview with Parade magazine, she said, “It was a hard life, a family with no money. But we had a lot of the important stuff that money don’t buy you anyway.” Moreover, she told Parade, “Daddy loved Mama and he loved his kids. Mama never loved anybody but my daddy. She married him when she was in the eighth grade. They stayed together and did the best they could.”
Time Capsule
In an interview with Southern Living, Parton was asked about the time capsule she created that’ll be opened in 2045. “Oh there’s several things we’re going to be putting in that box! Wood from the porch, and I guess I’m going to be writing a song that’s going to be dragged out way down the road. I don’t know if I’m going to be able to give up a song like that!”
Humble
Going off that last fact, why would she want wood from a porch? “It just makes me think of Mama and Daddy and my childhood. It’s not just [about] being a star, but [about] who I was then—and who I still am—and the way [my parents] helped mold and shape [my brothers and sisters and me] into the kind of people that we’ve become. It says a lot about that family unit, about the people and the mountains.” Parton carries on to say,” It’s from my humble beginnings; in America all things are possible and dreams can come true.”
Bullied As A Kid
Who would have thought it but Dolly was actually bullied quite a bit as child! Apparently other kids were incredibly jealous of all the attention that Parton received. As a kid, Parton sang on local TV and radio stations which caused the jealousy and bullying of other kids to escalate. At one point, some of the other kids locked her in a coat closet – which might explain why Parton has dedicated herself in the promotion of anti-bullying campaigns.
Makin Fun Ain’t Funny
In 2017, Dolly Parton released an album aimed to raise awareness of bullying. “The message of the album is for little kids, and it’s for adults too,” she said. It’s no wonder everyone loves Dolly Parton!
Talent Runs In The Family
That’s right, Dolly isn’t the only talented Parton in the family. Everyone grew up singing in the church and their love for music has only grown since then. While her siblings may not be as famous as her, they still have found some success. For instance, her sisters Stella, Freida and Rachel, have singing careers and the youngest sister, Stella, appeared in the TV show, The Dukes of Hazzard.
First Guitars
When you’ve got a talent you’ve got to let it sing (literally), but what do you do when you don’t have everything you need? Well little miss Dolly Parton started playing music on a homemade guitar. When her uncle realized that his 8-year-old niece was a gem, he bought her her first real guitar, and what a life-changing decision that was!
Proud
Southern Living asked Dolly Parton if there was a particular memory she carries with her. “I’ve always been proud of who I was and of my people. I was proud of where I was from. Some people want to get away, to move and get out and don’t even want to be reminded, but that’s not me. And the older I get, the more sappy I get about my childhood.”
Hillbilly
Oh yeah, Southern Living also asked Parton is she takes the term “hillbilly” as an insult or compliment? “Well, it’s a compliment to me. I mean we were really Hill. Billies. To me that’s not an insult. We were just mountain people. We were really redneck, roughneck, hillbilly people. And I’m proud of it.” “White trash!” I am. People always say “Aren’t you insulted when people call you white trash?” I say, “Well it depends on who’s calling me white trash and how they mean it.” But we really were to some degree. Because when you’re that poor and you’re not educated, you fall in those categories. But I’m proud of my hillbilly, white trash background. To me that keeps you humble; that keeps you good. And it doesn’t matter how hard you try to outrun it—if that’s who you are, that’s who you are. It’ll show up once in a while.
White Trash
Some people have even called Parton “White trash!” To which she replies, “I am. People always say ‘Aren’t you insulted when people call you white trash?’ I say, ‘Well it depends on who’s calling me white trash and how they mean it.’ But we really were to some degree. Because when you’re that poor and you’re not educated, you fall in those categories. But I’m proud of my hillbilly, white trash background. To me that keeps you humble; that keeps you good. And it doesn’t matter how hard you try to outrun it—if that’s who you are, that’s who you are. It’ll show up once in a while.”
The Truth Behind Jolene
If you haven’t heard the song “Jolene” then stop what you’re doing and listen to it, like right now! Now that we’re all familiar with the tune, it’s best you know that the song is actually based on a true story. Wicked. Turns out early on in Dolly’s marriage, there was a redheaded banker who had a “terrible crush” on her husband, Carl. In fact, this crush became a running joke between the couple. And yeah, that little incident birthed the start of a great, great, great song.
Winner-Winner
Are you really surprised to learn that Dolly Parton has tons, and tons, of accolades to her name? Didn’t think so. Now to save a bit of time, we’ll rattle off a few, but note that she is seriously so talented. To begin, she has Nine Grammy Awards (with 47 nominations), 10 Country Music Association Awards, seven Academy of Country Music Awards, and three American Music Awards. Furthermore she is just one of seven female artists to win the Country Music Association’s Entertainer of the Year Award.
Bit of A Butterfly Obsession
Why yes, Parton is just a wee bit obsessed with butterflies, come on, it could be worse. Anyways, her love for butterflies brought her to title her 1974 album, ‘Love Is Like A Butterfly’ – although she does also feature the winged beauts on many of her album covers too. Moreover, the song also connects her immense love with Carl, where she sings, “Love is like a butterfly, as soft and gentle as a sigh. The multicolored moods of love are like it’s satin wings. Love makes your heart feel strange inside. It flutters like soft wings in flight.”
First, I’m A Songwriter
That’s right, Parton is a seriously talented songwriter, in fact, she has actually composed over 3,000 songs! Some of her most notable songs include “I Will Always Love You”, “Jolene”, “Coat of Many Colors”, and “9 to 5”. Furthermore, she’s also one of just a few to have been nominated for Academy Awards, Grammy Awards, Tony Awards, and Emmy Awards.
Stormzy Speaks
Recently, Stormzy an English grime and hip hop artist, reviewed Parton’s “Jolene” track on Twitter and the results are hilarious. “Nah Dolly Parton was spitting some real real pain on Jolene,” he started off saying. “And Jolene sounds like she’s the baddest b to ever walk this planet.”
Dream Big
After singing in church as a kid, and also appearing on local radio and TV stations, Parton knew she was meant to be a star. At just age 13, she recorded the single “Puppy Love” on some small Louisiana label, Goldband Records, and went on to appear at the Grand Ole Opry, where she actually first met Johnny Cash! Cash encouraged her to follow her instincts and pursue her dreams as singer and songwriter.
Crushing
Johnny Cash had quite the influence on Dolly, and in more than one way. Aside from telling her to pursue her music career (good advice, we agree), he also became her first official crush. She described the first time she saw him play, “I was sitting in the audience and that’s when I first knew about sex appeal… he had this tick when he moved his shoulder… and it was still sexy. It still got to me.”
Business Savvy
Uhh, yeah, Dolly is way more than just a talented singer and songwriter, she’s also incredibly business savvy. Early on, she created Velvet Apple Music (BMI), which really allowed her to own the copyrights and publishing of her own beautiful songs. In addition to this, in 2007 she also released her own record label, Dolly Records. So when the record label was first released, Dolly was actually the only person to appear on the label. This way she had total power to create her own marketing deals. Slay, Dolly, slay.
The Imagination Library
Back in 1995, Dolly started the amazing book distribution project called “The Imagination Library”. She was inspired by her own father’s inability to read and write, to start a drive that donates books to children under the age of 5, with the intention of getting them to fall in love with books and reading. It didn’t take long for this initiative to spread across America, to Canada, the U.K. and recently to Australia.
Disguises, Disguises
There was a period in Dolly’s life where she felt the need to disguise herself when she stepped out in public. Typical of most celebrities, she just wanted to walk around without anyone bothering her, and while we can’t understand what that’s like, we can certainly respect it. However Dolly’s attempts to conceal her identity with different kinds of wigs and makeup just didn’t work.
Busted
Kids are like guided missiles in the way they can pick up things that adults usually can’t. “Once I was going Christmas shopping. I did my makeup completely different with dark eyebrows, and wore a short black wig, and wore different clothes than I would normally wear,” Parton explained. “I said something, and this group of kids said, ‘You’re Dolly Parton in a black wig!'” Her voice was a dead giveaway.
Little Bit
Makeup is another trademark of Parton’s, however she likes to do most of it on her own. “[When asked if she does her own makeup] Um, too much of it. Sometimes if I’m doing photo shoots or movies or such, they’ll use some other people. But I usually sneak off in the dressing room and re-do it. [laughs] ‘Cause I have a certain way I like to look. And if I don’t have my eyes a certain way or my lips a certain way, I’m just not comfortable, so I go play in it.”
That Famous Bust
Ahem, how do we put this lightly? You know what – we’ll just come out and say it – Dolly is also quite known for her, uhh, boobs. And hey, she’s not ashamed of that either, she once said, “My boobs are fake, my hair’s fake but what is real is my voice and my heart.” Right on, Dolly, right on.
Digits Please
Tiny, yeah that’s an understatement when describing Dolly, seeing as how she is just 4 feet, 9 inches. Which only makes her huge ta-ta’s larger than life. However did you know that they actually measure at a size of 40DD… And did you also know that her chest is actually insured at a whopping $300,000 each! Each.
C-C-C-Changes
30 years of big boobs proved a challenge so Dolly took it down a notch. According to Contact Music, Dolly had been suffering from serious back pain for many years due to the size of her breasts. That’s when she revealed, “My boobs are killing me – and I don’t know if I can stand the pain any longer. My boobs have been a trademark for me – but I’ve paid one hell of a price.” Yeah, we get it, well kind of.
Heart of the Matter
Ahh yes, throughout the years, almost everyone has speculated whether Dolly Parton has remained faithful to her husband, Carl. Even the Daily Mail reported that Parton said, “I love to flirt, and I’ve never met a man I didn’t like. Men are my weakness. Short, fat, bald or skinny – I’ve had crushes on some very unusual men but Carl knows I’ll always come home and I’m not having sex with these people – I’m just flirtin’ and having fun.”
Besties For Life
On top of it all, there were even rumors that Dolly Parton’s relationship with her best friend Judy Ogle was more than meets the eye. Many people wanted to know if they were just friends or was Dolly, perhaps, bisexual? And yes, Dolly did speak out and crush the rumors saying, “Judy and I have been best friends since we were like in the third and fourth grade. I mean, I love her as much as I love anybody in the whole world, but we’re not romantically involved.” Did that help to stop the rumors though? NOPE.
Three’s Company
Oh yeah, it carries on! There was once a story that Dolly Parton, her best friend Judy Ogle, and Sylvester Stallone (co-star from the film Rhinestone) had a steamy, passionate threesome. However not any one of them ever admitted if the rumors were true, or false, so we’ll never know.
Regrets
Dolly Parton has looked back on her youth and she has expressed her feelings about not having had kids of her own. She told ABC News that she and her husband didn’t not think about the possibility of having children, but it just didn’t happen that way for them.
Reasons Why
Moving on with that fact, Parton has also admitted that her reasons not to have children were selfish in nature. “I was starting my menopause and feeling guilty about my success. Maybe I was thinking that I’d been selfish not to have had children.” Additionally Dolly also has tons of faith and strongly believes it was not God’s plan. That’s why she also told ABS News, “God didn’t mean for me to have kids so everybody’s kids could be mine. My younger brothers and sisters lived with me and Carl for many years — and we’re very close to our nieces and nephews.”
Big Spender
Now Parton has learned to brush off people’s snickers when it comes to her style – why? Because she’s Dolly, she doesn’t care, she loves how she looks. Yes, she feels confident in her looks, no matter how silly the style, and the fans also love it. So, yah know, win-win.
Barbie Influence
Dolly credits her longing to look as pretty as Barbie due to the fact that she was raised into a poor family. It was this idea that also influenced her write the song, “Backwoods Barbie.” I mean, just listen to the lyrics, “I wanted to be pretty more than anything in the world, like Barbie. From rags to wishes in my dreams I could have it all. I’m just a backwoods Barbie, too much makeup, too much hair. Don’t be fooled by thinkin’ that the goods are not there.”
Body Art
The tale of Dolly Parton’s secret tattoos could possibly become its own book, but chances are it won’t. Rumors have long flown around that the country singer covers her arms because they are full of tattoos, but this has never been confirmed. She did mention in an interview that she does “have a few little tattoos, but they were mostly done to cover scars because I’m so fair.” Well at least there are lots of fans out there happily sporting her face (and more) in ink on their bodies.
Corn Song
Why yes, Dolly actually learned how to write songs before she even learned how to write! Her mom, Avie, would write down all of Dolly’s lyrics. Furthermore, the first song that Dolly ever “wrote” is called “Little Tiny Tasseltop,” which goes something like, “Little tiny tasseltop, I love you an awful lot. Corn silk hair and big brown eyes, How you make me smile.” Cute.
5,000 Songs
Until today she has written over 5,000 songs, but of course not all of them have made it out there. And then I can hardly finish writing my shopping list. And how’s this for a way to spend your birthday? She takes off time on her birthday to write songs, even though she writes a new song every 2 or 3 days anyway.
Same-Same
Now, “Jolene” and “I Will Always Love You” are Partons’s biggest hits, but that’s a given. However, here’s a fun fact, she wrote both songs on the exact same night back in 1973. So much talent!
Islands in the Stream
When Dolly Parton released her duet, “Islands in the Stream”, with fellow country legend Kenny Rogers, it quickly was ranked the #1 duet of all time on CMT’s 100 greatest country duets of all time. However did you know that neither Parton or Rogers wrote the song? The pop group, the Bee Gees, did!
Siblings
When you’ve got 11 siblings, it can be tough to have a good relationship, but that wasn’t the case for the Parton’s, they’re all very close! Although we should point out that Dolly’s fame caused a rift with her sister, Stella. As a matter of fact, Stella wrote about their rocky relationship in her tell-all book. Basically, when Dolly got very famous, Stella remembers how she was pushed aside, she said, “Dolly found every reason in the world to keep me as far away as possible and over the years I finally gave up and let her have it.”
Nothing But A Rumor
Billy Ray Cyrus, yes the ‘Achy Breaky Heart’ singer and father to Miley Cyrus, credits Dolly Parton with jump-starting his career! See, after Cyrus released his very first studio album, he was selected to open for many of Parton’s concerts. And just like that, many rumors even circulated around the fact that the pair could be more than friends. Crazy, right? Yes, especially considering that the two had not even met face to face yet! When the pair did eventually meet, Cyrus apologized for the rumors to which Dolly said, “Honey, that sh*t sells records!”
Not Far Off
We mentioned Dolly Parton’s younger sister Stella before and here she is again. Stella is pretty much a near splitting image of Dolly Parton! Just like her sister, Stella is also a singer and performer who has recently released a new album. The album ‘Mountain Songbird’ was supposedly inspired by her very famous older sister. In a TV interview she said, “I did do this for her, it’s 11 of her songs and then one that I wrote with her, and that’s the new song out right now, called ‘More Power to ‘Ya’.”
Huge Fan
In 1998, Drew Barrymore talked about her film, Home Fries before its release. In which she revealed that her character was an incredibly huge fan of Dolly Parton. Moreover Barrymore said that many of Parton’s songs would appear in the film, plus they even spent a two-day shoot at Dollywood. However when the film was finally released, refrences to Dolly Patron were very few – just posters and pictures on the walls of Drew’s bedroom were seen.
Having A Laugh
When it comes to Dolly’s sense of humor, it’s pretty hard to top. Here are just a couple things that she has said that will make you wet your pants with laughter. “I’m not offended by all the dumb blonde jokes because I know I’m not dumb… and I also know that I’m not blonde.” How funny? And how’s this – “I was the first woman to burn my bra – it took the fire department four days to put it out.”
Baaaaaaaa
Rewind back to the year 1995, cause that’s when the very first mammal was ever cloned. Ahh, what a time. Anyways, scientists managed to clone a domestic sheep while using nuclear transfer and they actually decided to name the new animal…Dolly! Apparently the sheep’s name was inspired by Dolly Parton rather large bust. Ian Wilmut, who cloned the sheep, went on to explain his name choice, “Dolly is derived from a mammary gland cell and we couldn’t think of a more impressive pair of glands than Dolly Parton’s.” Ah-ha.
Baaad Publicity
Surprisingly, when Dolly Parton heard the reasoning behind the cloned sheep’s name, she was actually flattered. She said, “she was called after me because she had big mammary glands. She gave me a lot of competition… but I always said there’s no such thing as baaad publicity.”
A Bridge Too
Having a sheep named after your bosom is one thing, but could it have been taken too far when a bridge was named after her too? The bridge is the General W.K. Wilson Jr. Bridge AKA Dolly Parton Bridge in Mobile, Alabama. Can you understand how this bridge got its nickname? Hmmmm.
Nicknames-a-plenty
You’ve probably never thought about it, but Dolly Parton has a ton of nicknames. Such as The Smoky Mountain Songbird, The Iron Butterfly, The Queen of Country, The Backwoods Barbie, The Queen of Nashville, The Book Lady, The Leading Lady of Country, and Aunt Granny. That’s quite the list!
Thick And Thin Skin
Dolly Parton can teach us all a thing or two about love, life, and everything that makes up the two. For one she has proven that a thick skin wards off the bad words and vibes of others. But she also teaches us that it’s safe to fall in love, and it’s one of the best things a person can do. When speaking about difficult times she said, “Storms make trees take deeper roots.” How true those words ring.
Greatest Love
In an interview once, Parton said, “My music is what took me everywhere I’ve been and everywhere I will go. It’s my greatest love. I can’t abandon it. I’ll always keep making records”. That sounds pretty darn special to us, we’re happy she’s so passionate about what she does.