Dolly Parton

“It's certainly a choice. I don't like to be like everybody else. I've often made this statement that I would never stoop so low as to be fashionable. That's the easiest thing in the world to do.”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-31

Dolly Parton responded to Barbara Walters's questioning of her extreme clothes and blonde wigs by owning her choices.

“I think you probably are,”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-31

Dolly Parton responded to Barbara Walters's question about whether she would be called a hillbilly.

“But we were very proud people, people with a lot of class. It was country class, but it was a great deal of class. And most of my people were not that educated, but they are very, very intelligent. Good common sense — horse sense, we called it.”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-31

Dolly Parton continued her reply, redefining the label 'hillbilly' as being about proud, intelligent people with common sense.

“My weaknesses have always been food and men — in that order,”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-30

Dolly Parton shared a humorous quote with her followers on X in 2013.

“just a working girl”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-30

Dolly Parton discussed how she views herself during a 2014 interview with Billboard.

“It’s hard to be a diamond in a rhinestone world,”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-30

Dolly Parton reflected on one of her famous one-liners in a 2022 video shared to Instagram.

“Why blend in when standing out is so much more fun!”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-30

Dolly Parton gave her explanation of what one of her famous quotes meant in a 2022 Instagram video.

“It costs a lot of money to look this cheap,”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-30

Dolly Parton included one of her most famous lines when sharing favorite quotes on Instagram.

“All that matters is being yourself and feeling great about it.”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-30

Dolly Parton translated the meaning behind her famous quote about looking cheap.

“I thought OK – enough is enough. Get off your fat ass and do something about it, cos nobody's happy all the time. I always make a joke now: people say 'Oh you're always seem to be so happy all the time,' I say, 'No I'm not happy all the time, that's Botox!”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-29

Parton described how she pushed herself through depression and joked about the public perception that she is always happy.

“But it's a nice compliment, and I appreciate it. I've been blessed.”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-29

Dolly Parton reacted to a petition seeking to rename Nashville International Airport after her during an interview on 'CBS Mornings'.

“I know you're my Hollywood lawyers and accountants and all that, but I think I know a little bit more about me than you do. And so, I went ahead and done it. Got rid of them. And it proved that I was right to go ahead with my plans.”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-29

Parton told her Hollywood lawyers and accountants she knew herself better than they did when she decided to enter the theme park business.

“He was always so smart, and it always bothered me. It bothered him, but I can't even begin to imagine, as smart as my Daddy was, what all he could have been if he hadn't have been crippled with that,”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-29

Parton spoke about her father, who never learned to read and write, and how that inspired her Imagination Library program.

“That hurt my feelings,”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-29

Parton recalled being laughed at by her high school graduating class when she said she was going to Nashville to become a star.

“I was having some personal problems and just beginning to kind of feel a little guilty about my success,”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-29

Parton reflected on personal health and professional challenges she experienced in the 1980s.

“He's kind of a homebody, he didn't want to go out there doing all that. No, even when he does come out, he's not going to be seen. As a matter of fact, here at Dollywood, he won't come here with me, not the times I come. He'll come up and he'll come to the park and most times nobody even knows he's been here.”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-29

Parton described her husband Carl Dean as a homebody who avoided public appearances.

“I thought if I DO make it, I want to come back home, do something special in this area for the people. we've really provided thousands and thousands of jobs through the years and that makes me feel proud and I think Little Dolly would be proud of that - and my Mom and Dad too.”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-29

Parton explained her motivation for building Dollywood to provide jobs for people in her home region.

“one of the things that I'm proudest of in my whole career.”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-29

Parton called her Imagination Library philanthropic initiative one of the proudest achievements of her career.

“I was born in a one-room cabin, we didn't have anything fancy in it except our dreams and our plans and the love of a good mama and a good daddy,”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-29

Parton described her humble beginnings growing up in a one-room cabin.

“I want people to remember everything that I've done that was of any importance… I want them to think that I was a person that really wanted to give… that I was a caring person and that I was someone that wanted to make life a better place for everybody.”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-29

When asked about her legacy, Parton said she wanted to be remembered as a caring person who wanted to make life better for everybody.

“I was having some personal problems and beginning to feel a little guilty about my success,”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-29

Parton spoke candidly about a period when she struggled with depression during an interview at Dollywood Theme Park in 2015.

“I said, 'Well, I am really sorry to hear that cos I already told everybody Elvis was doing my song,' but I thought you know, I can't do it. And I didn't. So, I thought well, it was just one of those first really hard business decisions I had to make.”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-29

Parton recounted refusing Elvis Presley's demand for half the publishing rights to her song in 1974.

“I think there's always the 'good ole boy' syndrome when it's a girl in business. A lot of people, especially with me, cos I look like trash and I did even then, I just look like I would be easy prey. But I got my business sense from my dad,”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-29

Parton discussed the sexism she faced in business and credited her father for her business sense.

“They're not laughing now.”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-29

Parton added this remark about her classmates who had mocked her ambition to become a star.

“Given all that is going on in the world, I don't think putting me on a pedestal is appropriate at this time,”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-28

Parton explained she did not believe such an honor was appropriate while the country faced larger challenges.

“I hope, though, that somewhere down the road several years from now or perhaps after I'm gone if you still feel I deserve it, then I'm certain I will stand proud in our great State Capitol as a grateful Tennessean.”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-28

Parton left open the possibility that Tennessee might honor her with a Capitol statue someday.

“I am honored and humbled by their intention, but I have asked the leaders of the state legislature to remove the bill from any and all consideration,”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-28

In 2021, Parton asked Tennessee lawmakers to withdraw a bill that would have allowed a statue of her at the state Capitol.

“It was just my mother and Carl and me,”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-27

Parton told CMT in 2016 about her private wedding ceremony in Ringgold, Georgia.

“star of my life story.”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-27

Parton's nephew Bryan Seaver said the family believed she had been reunited with the man she called the 'star of my life story.'

“I might, and if I do, I'm going to be at that opening,”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-27

Parton wrote in her 2020 book that she might attend the opening of the sealed box containing her unreleased song.

“started pulling off stuff”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-27

Parton recalled on Bunnie Xo's podcast that Dean started pulling off his tuxedo immediately after returning home from the BMI Awards.

“He seemed to be genuinely interested in finding out who I was and what I was about.”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-27

Parton recalled in a 2016 post on her official website her first conversation with Carl Dean at the laundromat.

“There's no telling what music is going to be by then,”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-27

Parton wrote in her 2020 book about the unreleased song sealed until 2046, joking about what music would sound like by then.

“I love to read, I love to cook, I love to be with my husband. I put on my little comfy clothes – I call them my baby clothes – and we just relax.”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-27

Parton described their low-key home life during a 2015 interview with People magazine.

“A lot of people have thought that through the years, because he does not want to be in the spotlight at all,”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-27

Parton weighed in during a 2020 interview with Entertainment Tonight on longtime rumors that Dean did not exist.

“So we just kind of have that respect, and I respected that because I didn't know he was gonna be that uneasy, but he doesn't even like to go out to, you know, to big dinners or anything like that,”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-27

Parton explained on Bunnie Xo's podcast that she respected Dean's discomfort with public events.

“But we do have a great respect and admiration for each other. We both have a great sense of humor. So, we have a lot of fun,”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-27

Parton told Entertainment Tonight that she and Dean shared great respect, admiration, and humor.

“We like to get out in our little RV and just be simple,”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-27

Parton described their low-key home life during a 2015 interview with People magazine.

“Hopefully, it will play and the whole thing ain't rotted.”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-27

Parton wrote in her 2020 book about the unreleased song, hoping it would still play and not be rotted.

“It's just not who he is. He's like, a quiet, reserved person and he figured if he ever got out there in that, he'd never get a minute’s peace and he's right about that.”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-27

Parton described Dean as a quiet, reserved person during a 2020 interview with Entertainment Tonight.

“I've always respected and appreciated that in him and I've always tried to keep him out of the limelight as much as I can,”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-27

Parton told Entertainment Tonight in 2020 that she always tried to keep Dean out of the limelight.

“And, oh, he was so uncomfortable the whole night,”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-27

Parton recalled on Bunnie Xo's podcast in December 2024 how uncomfortable Dean was at the BMI Awards.

“straight from the country,”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-27

Parton said she greeted everyone because she was 'straight from the country' when she first arrived in Nashville.

“We went across the state line to Ringgold, Georgia. My mother made me a little white dress and a little bouquet and a little Bible.”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-27

Parton told CMT in 2016 about her private wedding ceremony in Ringgold, Georgia.

“He loves to go on vacation or on little trips, but he doesn’t want to be gone a long time,”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-27

Parton told People magazine in 2015 that Dean preferred staying close to home while she loved traveling.

“I was surprised and delighted that while he talked to me, he looked at my face, a rare thing for me,”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-27

Parton recalled in a 2016 post on her official website her first conversation with Carl Dean at the laundromat.

“Our joke about the fact, when people ask me why it's lasted this long, I say, ‘Because I stay gone,’”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-27

Parton told Entertainment Tonight about the joke she makes when asked why her marriage lasted so long.

“And there's a lot of truth in that — the fact that we're not in each other's faces all the time.”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-27

Parton told Entertainment Tonight that not being in each other's faces all the time helped their relationship.

“I imagine lives for all the people, you know, behind the stones there, and where they died and how they lived and if somebody was a little kid. And I get a lot of ideas.”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-26

In a 1984 interview, Parton said she often found peace, quiet, and inspiration in cemeteries.

“I would like to be a superstar. I guess all people dream of that. So in order to be a superstar you can't be just a superstar in one area. That means to you have to appeal to a majority of people, and that's what I'm trying to do.”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-26

In a 1977 interview with Walters, Parton predicted she would become a versatile entertainer and said she dreamt of becoming a superstar.

“I love to go home, but if I'm home more than two weeks straight, I get restless and bored, and I want to get back on the bus and I want to go.”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-26

Parton continued in a 1977 interview that she gets restless and bored if home for more than two weeks.

“And I've been blessed, and I've been lucky, and I don't take any of that for granted, but I just wanted to be remembered well.”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-26

In a 2023 interview with ABC News' Linsey Davis, Parton spoke about wanting to be remembered well.

“But I just knew it was right and…I got rid of all those people, started over with new people that did believe in my dreams.”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-26

Parton told ABC News' Robin Roberts in 2019 that she knew opening Dollywood was right and replaced non-believers with people who believed in her dreams.

“I thought, 'Yeah, they will, when they see [the talent] I've got.'”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-26

Parton said on a podcast in 2022 that she believed people would take her seriously when they saw her talent.

“I just know there's not another person in this world that could give me all those things that I've grown up with, that I've been with so many years,”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-26

Parton reflected on her long marriage to Carl Dean in a 1982 interview with Walters.

“I think probably what I'd like people to say 100 years from now is, 'Boy, she looks great for her age,'”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-26

Parton told ABC News' Barbara Walters in a 1982 interview about how she wanted to be remembered.

“I guess being brought up in the mountains, where you have little time to do anything but work, and things are so quiet and things are so calm that you grow restless if you have restless blood, and you grow more restless as the years go on, and you want to get out. And when you do, you enjoy it.”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-26

Parton explained in a 1977 interview why she found touring exciting, attributing it to her upbringing in the mountains.

“I like to go sit under trees and things. I walk around and I read the stories and I get a lot of ideas of lives,”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-26

In a 1984 interview, Parton said she often found peace, quiet, and inspiration in cemeteries.

“Even in the early days, a lot of people told me I should change my look or nobody's going to ever take me serious,”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-26

Parton said on a podcast in 2022 that people told her to change her look or she would not be taken seriously.

“My lawyers, and my accountants and a lot of people that I was working with at the time said I was making a big mistake,”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-26

Parton told ABC News' Robin Roberts in 2019 that her lawyers and accountants said opening Dollywood was a big mistake.

“It's excitement to me,”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-26

In a 1977 interview, Parton told Walters she loved being on the road and would get restless if home for more than two weeks.

“There may be some people that might turn my head a time or two, and have, but that don't mean that they could take Carl's place.”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-26

Parton reflected on her long marriage to Carl Dean in a 1982 interview with Walters.

“very special kind of sacred freedom.”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-26

Parton told Walters in a 1982 interview that her nearly 60-year marriage to Carl Dean gave her a very special kind of sacred freedom.

“It's somebody to plan with, somebody to grow old with, somebody to have fun with. We have a lot in common. We're good friends,”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-26

Parton spoke about her marriage to Carl Dean, who largely stayed out of the spotlight, in a 1982 interview with Walters.

“It's just a peaceful, beautiful place to go ... I don't hang out there at night.”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-26

Parton continued describing cemeteries as a peaceful, beautiful place to visit.

“They let you dream just to watch 'em shatter / You're just a step on the bossman's ladder / But you've got dreams he'll never take away,”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-26

Parton sings the second verse of her hit song "9 to 5," which delivers a message that women deserve equal pay and treatment in the workplace.

“I just want to see how much I can do in a lifetime,”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-26

In a 2023 interview with ABC News' Linsey Davis, Parton spoke about wanting to be remembered well.

“I've got an all-American heart,”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-25

Parton described her patriotism during a 1991 Vanity Fair profile that accompanied her to Fort Hood, Texas.

“So my Nashville doctor has kind of clipped my wings, saying, ‘You ain’t traveling this week.’”

Dolly Parton · said 2026-08-14 · reported 2026-08-25

Parton relayed that her Nashville doctor told her not to travel that week due to her health issues.

“You touch one of my men again and see what happens!”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-25

Parton continued her pointed message to Saddam Hussein while visiting Fort Hood, as reported by Vanity Fair.

“Saddam Hussein, you son of a b----!”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-25

During a visit to Fort Hood, Parton shouted a message aimed at Saddam Hussein, according to Vanity Fair.

“As I’ve shared in video messages throughout the past year, I am dealing with some health issues that I just didn’t pay attention to when I was watching over Carl,”

Dolly Parton · said 2026-08-21 · reported 2026-08-25

Parton shared a statement with People saying she was taking time to address health issues before the death of her husband.

“You know me — as I’ve often said — I’ve dreamed myself into a corner and I still have so many things I want to achieve, so I’m gonna keep on working as long as I can to see everything come to life.”

Dolly Parton · said 2026-08-21 · reported 2026-08-25

Parton said she still has many things she wants to achieve and will keep working as long as she can.

“Even though I’m still healin’, I’m still workin’!,”

Dolly Parton · said 2026-08-21 · reported 2026-08-25

Parton added hopeful words about her future while discussing her ongoing health issues in a statement to People.

“I wanted to put everybody’s mind at ease, those of you that seem to be real concerned, which I appreciate,”

Dolly Parton · said 2025-10-01 · reported 2026-08-25

Parton said she wanted to put everyone's mind at ease after concerns arose about her health.

“I’ve told you before, all my fans, that I’ve had a few little health issues and sometimes I get a little dizzy and I get dehydrated. And I’m dehydrated,”

Dolly Parton · said 2026-08-14 · reported 2026-08-25

Parton shared a recorded video instead of attending the opening of a new ride at Dollywood due to dehydration and dizziness.

“My immune system and my digestive system got all out of whack over the past couple three years, and they're working real hard on rebuilding [and] strengthening those, and hopefully I'll be up to snuff again soon,”

Dolly Parton · said 2026-05-04 · reported 2026-08-25

Parton discussed her health issues in a May 4 video announcement after canceling her Las Vegas residency.

“let a lot of things go that I should have been taking care of.”

Dolly Parton · said 2025-10-01 · reported 2026-08-25

Parton said she neglected her own health while caring for her late husband during his illness.

“When I got around to it, the doctor said, 'We need to take care of this, we need to take care of that,'”

Dolly Parton · said 2025-10-01 · reported 2026-08-25

Parton relayed that her doctor told her she needed to address multiple health issues, which she described as nothing major.

“I ain't dead yet,”

Dolly Parton · said 2025-10-01 · reported 2026-08-25

Parton posted a video proclaiming she was still alive after her sister asked for prayers.

“I’m not a bit political, but I’m extremely patriotic,”

Dolly Parton · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-25

Parton said this about her album For God and Country, released on Veterans Day 2003.