We Will Always Love Dolly Parton

There are very few celebrities as beloved as Dolly Parton. To wit, even people who aren't fans of country music, such as myself, loved Dolly. But then Dolly was much more than a country singer. She was a movie star, who appeared in such movies as 9 to 5 (1980) and Steel Magnolias (1989). She was a comedian, with a razor sharp wit that was often self-effacing. But most of all, she was a humanitarian. Dolly would easily have been a billionaire, but she insisted on using her money to help people, from providing children with books to medical research. I honestly can't think of any celebrity who was as selfless as Dolly Parton. She loved everyone and I don't ever remember her ever saying anything mean-spirited about anyone. It was as if she were an angel placed here on Earth. Indeed, Dolly was so friendly and so familiar to all of us that it only seems right to address her by her first name rather than something more formal. Sadly, Dolly Parton died on August 25, 2026, at the age of 80.

Dolly Parton was born on January 19, 1946, in a one room cabin on the banks of Little Pigeon River near Pittman Center, Tennessee. She was the 4th of twelve children born to Avie Lee Owens and Robert Lee Parton. Her father was a sharecropper and tobacco farmer who also occasionally worked as a construction worker. The family later moved to a cabin in Locust Ridge, Tennessee.

Her mother sang traditional mountain ballads and recited folklore to her children. By the time she was seven, Dolly had already taught herself to play guitar on a homemade guitar. When she was eight years old, her Bill Owens, her mother's younger brother, gave her a real guitar. Her Uncle Bill was a musician and songwriter who acted as her mentor and later collaborated with her on songs.

Dolly Parton was still a child when she began performing. She sang on local, East Tennessee radio stations. She was only ten yeas old when she appeared on The Cas Walker Show on WIVK Radio and and WBIR out of Knoxville, Tennessee. Her first single, "Puppy Love," was released when she was only 13, on Goldband Records, a Louisiana label. She appeared at the Grand Ole Opey for the first time during this period. She singed with Combine Publishing ans saw some success as a songwriter. She was 19 when she signed with Monument Records, who initially insisted on marketing her as a bubblegum singer. It was not until Monument relented and let her record country music that she had a single chart. That single was "Dumb Blonde," which peaked at no. 24 on the Billboard Country chart.

It was in 1967 that Porter Wagner invited her to join his syndicated TV show The Porter Wagner Show. Porter Wagner convinced the label on which he was on, RCA Victor to sign Dolly Parton. Porter Wagner and Dolly Parton often performed as a duo and released several singles and studio albums together. It was during this period that Dolly also saw success as a solo artist. Her single, "Just Because I'm a Woman" reached no. 17 on the Billboard Country chart. 1970 was her breakthrough year, with her version of "Mule Skinner Blues (Blue Yodel No. 8)" reaching no. 3 on the Billboard Country chart and "Joshua" going all the way to no. 1 on the chart. It was in 1973 that she saw her first crossover success. Her song "Jolene" went to no. 1 on the Billboard Country chart and peaked at no. 60 on the Billboard Hot 100. 1977 saw her first major crossover success. "Here You Come Again' reached no. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100.

Ultimately, Dolly Parton released 49 solo studio albums and 198 solo singles. She had 25 singles go to no. 1 on the Billboard Country chart. Her last album, Rockstar, was released in 2023, and saw her collaborate with rock artists from John Fogerty to Rob Halford.

Of course, much of Dolly Parton's initial success was due to her appearances on television, and she continued to appear on television throughout her career. She appeared on several talk shows and variety shows, including The Kraft Music Hall, Hee-Haw, The Mike Douglas Show, The David Frost Show, Dinah!, The Tonight Show, and Saturday Night Live. She had two variety shows of her own. Dolly! ran in syndication from 1976 to 1977. Dolly ran on ABC from 1987 to 1988. She guest starred on several TV shows during her career, including Captain Kangaroo, Designing Women, Babes, Heavens to Betsy, The Magic School Bus, The Simpsons, Reba, Hannah Montana, Gracie and Frankie, The Orville, and Call Me Kat. She also appeared in several TV movies, and produced several, including A Smoky Mountain Christmas, Wild Texas Wind, Unlikely Angel, Dolly Parton: Coat of Many Colors, and Dolly Parton's Christmas of Many Colors: Circle of Love. It might surprise many to learn that her production company, Sandollar Productions, produced the TV series Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Sarah Michelle Gellar said that while Dolly rarely visited the set, she would send personalized Christmas gifts to the cast. Dolly also expressed pride in the show.

In addition to being a country music star, Dolly Parton was also a movie star. She made her movie debut in 9 to 5 in 1980. Over the years, she appeared in the movies The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas (1982), Rhinestone (1984), Steel Magnolias (1989), Straight Talk (1992), The Beverly Hillbillies (1993), Smoky Mountain Wilderness Adventure (2002), Frank McCluskey, P.I. (2002), Miss Congeniality 2: Armed and Fabulous (2005), Joyful Noise (2012), Dollywood's Christmas Carol (2013), and Christmas in the Square (2020). She was a voice in the animated movies Gnomeo & Juliet (2011) and The Year Dolly Parton Was My Mom (2011).

Of course, Dolly Parton was also known for her amusement park Dollywood, located near Pigeon Forge, Tennessee. The park opened in 1986 and has since become the biggest ticketed tourist attraction in Tennessee.

As famous as Dolly Parton was as a singer, an actress, and an all-around entertainer, she may be well be more famous for her humanitarianism. In fact, I think it may well be impossible to list every single act of charity she did in her life. There was so much that Dolly did without publicity, things that were only made public later by others. Among her most famous works of charity was her literacy program the Imagination Library. Founded in 1995, it sends a book to every child who is enrolled from their birth to when they enter kindergarten. In 2022 it was revealed that for years Dolly Parton had been anonymously buying band uniforms and instruments for low-income and underfunded schools across Tennessee and much of the South.

Dolly also was a huge supporter of healthcare and medical research. She has raised money for both the Red Cross and HIV/AIDS charities. As the COVID-19 pandemic unfolded, Dolly Parton donated $1 million to Vanderbilt University Medical Center and as a result funded the early stages of the development of the Moderna vaccine. She also made donations to various hospitals during her life. Her sister Stella Parton revealed that, even if there was no hope that she could survive her cancer, Dolly offered to have experimental drugs used on her in hope that it might help others.

Dolly Parton did so much good in this world. When the Great Smoky Mountains Wildfires in 2016 took place, Dolly's "My People Fund" sent $1000 a month for six months to people affected by the wildfires. After Hurricane Helene in 2024, she donated $2 million to relief efforts. She also supported wildlife conservation and animal welfare and was an advocate for the LGTQ+ community. Following her death, there have been numerous stories of individuals helped by Dolly, as well as her kindness and warmth in general.

Dolly Parton was certainly a most remarkable person. Even someone who doesn't know much about country music as myself knows the impact she had on country music. Her songs changed the genre forever and brought it to a larger audience. I daresay every country music artist has felt her impact every since. And it is little wonder she had such success. She had a gift for songs that told stories, that people relate to, from "Jolene" to "Coat of Many of Colors.' She also had a beautiful high soprano voice. Dolly was known as "the Queen of Country" for a reason.

Of course, Dolly also had a film career and she was a very good actress. She was great right out the gate in her movie debut as secretary Doralee Rhodes in 9 to 5. She also gave an excellent performance as hairdresser Truvy Jones in Steel Magnolias. Even when the movies weren't necessarily that good, such as Best Little Whorehouse in Texas and Rhinestone, Dolly was always good. Dolly was perhaps a natural as an actress, particularly when it came to comedy. In both her concerts and in interviews, she often displayed a razor-sharp, self-deprecating humor. Dolly could be funny enough that had she not become a singer, she could have seen success as a comedian.

While Dolly Parton was clearly a great talent, what made her most remarkable was her abundance of love for her fellow human beings. She did so much to help so many, and often did so with no publicity, no fanfare. Dolly once said, "I'm just so proud to have been a part of anything that's good and that's making life a little better for people." The fact is that she made life a whole lot better for a whole lot of people. As I said earlier, it was as if she was an angel placed here on Earth. If Dolly is being mourned so greatly around the world, it isn't because she was a great singer or a great actress, it's because she was a great person.