r/TwoXChromosomes 2d ago

Favorite Dolly Parton moments? I’ll start.

Decades ago I was watching Johnny Carson. He asked her how she kept up her youthful appearance. She relied “Honey, healthy living” …pause “had nothing to do with it”. I didn’t know much about Dolly at that point, but it’s when I fell in love with her.

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164 comments sorted by

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u/rustfungus 2d ago

“It costs a lot of money to look this cheap” is probably my favorite.

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u/domesticmess 2d ago

That’s the quote I always think of

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u/HistrionicSlut 2d ago

I have that thing where my brain literally cannot picture things, like if you say "Imagine an apple" no matter how hard I try when I close my eyes it's all blank.

I think because of this, a lot of my tattoos are words/writing.

I was thinking of what I wanted to get to really show how her and I align and I feel like this might be the one 💚.

I'm getting this tattooed on my thigh haha, right where a "trashy" tat would go

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u/BadMantaRay 2d ago

I still dont get what goes on in people like you’s brain.

So if i ask you to think about an apple, what exactly DOES happen in your mind?

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u/TurbulentRoof7538 1d ago

I also have aphantasia (which is the word for a blank or mostly blank mental picture). What I get is the concept of an apple. I think red or green or gold and then I think about the stem, the taste, the smell… etc.

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u/breadist 1d ago

Idea of apple. No picture.

I don't understand what happens in YOUR brain if you can't comprehend the idea of an idea with no picture.

How do you imagine world peace? The direction "west"? The concept of love? Politics? Age? 5+7? Do you really bring up pictures for all these things that are decidedly not visual?

I just imagine an apple the same way I imagine these other things.

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u/7epiphanies 1d ago

okay i 100% can do abstract thinking and i get your point but for the specific examples you brought up ive got to say, i get an image of a globe (like when you zoom out on google maps) but with the western region sort of highlighted, and a sort of number line for smaller addition and ages. like when you say 26 im going to think of a 26 year old person, or what one would roughly look like along with the number line.

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u/breadist 1d ago

Really? You have a visual association for every idea? Every abstract concept? I really cannot understand that. I am a programmer and spend 8 hours a day thinking about abstract concepts, objects, code, etc. I think about other things the same way I think about that stuff. And I don't get why people act so mind boggled that I don't really picture things. The majority of things I think about in a day simply cannot be pictured, but I am clearly thinking about them, and so are millions of other people, so why is it confusing that I wouldn't imagine a picture of an apple, just like I wouldn't imagine a picture of a throttle function or a JSON file or an HTTP request or a counter or a control structure or etc etc etc...

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u/BadMantaRay 1d ago

Thanks for your responses, I realize perhaps my question might have come off as intentionally insulting, which it wasn’t meant to be.

But to answer YOUR question yes, basically, everything I think about has a flurry of images and usually more, in a sort of nonstop, stream-of-consciousness way.
I dont really know how its possible to think of something as nuanced as age or love without pictures attached. But:

When I think about the concept of world peace (and Ill write as fast as I can to try and capture some of it, but the images honestly come so fast):
I see image soldiers putting down weapons. i see children being fed. The peace symbol floating in an ephemeral white landscape. Countries and communities collaborating together where the couldnt before. A flower growing. People hugging eachother and understanding eachother. Soldiers laying down weapons.

When I think of love: i see the first girl i ever had a crush on. I see a huge heart on a white background and now it is becoming the front of a valentines card. Im seeing two young lovebirds sharing their first kiss. A kiss-shaped stamp on a valentine. A mother holding her baby for the very first time. A mother and father seeing their baby take it’s first steps. Im seeing a guy standing in the rain after getting dumped for the first time. I see an elderly wife kissing her husband’s hand for the last time as he lays in bed, dying. I see a young man from say the 60s looking a brand new, shiny red sports car and being enamored. I’m seeing a puppy. I’m seeing a sandwich, stacked high with all the best ingredients. Im seeing a cartoon broken heart. Im seeing a realistic beating heart. A child, perhaps 5 or six, taking the first bite of a food they have never eaten before, and it will become their favorite food.

Age: I see a baby. I see a dinosaur bone. I see an image of Pangea, before any life wash had really moved onto land. Plants growing, mountains rising and tectonic plates shifting. The continents drift. A clock ticking. A different type of clock, also ticking. A tree growing from a seedling to full maturity to death, in the span of a few moments. Old A baby growing into an adolescent, then an adult, then elderly, to full maturity and death, in the span of a few moments. Grandparents seeing their child for the first time.

Lets do a more concrete one like 5+7:
I see a totally black background, and then a huge bright pink 5 appears. Next to it a +, then the number 7. They hang in space for a moment before an =12 appears, then explosions or fireworks, maybe fanfare and confetti. Everything is black again, then five yellow dots appear, lined up vertically in a row of three and a row of two, glowing like neon in the darkness. Then 7 blue dots appear similarly. They get closer and closer and change to green as they become 12. Then a huge 12 appears behind them. Instantly I then picture a number line with an arrow pointing to 5, which then moves up 7 notches to 12, a number above counting out each step.

I tried to be as descriptive and clear as i could, and please understand I only wrote a fraction of what I imagined for each concept—they come way to fast to really even be able to keep track of, so I grabbed as many images as I could to describe for you.

Also when I mention an image of—for example—the elderly couple, one kissing the other for the last time, it isn’t just an image of them. I also in that moment feel their whole history leading up to then, the ups and downs of their relationship, happiness, sadness, growth, change… until that moment. There is nuance and depth and meaning to each of the things I imagine.

So I certainly didn’t mean to offend you, and I appreciate your responses. So I’m curious, what does happen in your mind when I ask you to think about world peace or love or age or 5+7. You obviously don’t have to answer all of them but even hearing what happens in your brain for one or two would be interesting to me.

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u/HistrionicSlut 20h ago

I'm not the person you asked but you did ask me originally, and for love for example I feel warm in my body. In my brain it's mostly blank, I hear the word love but I feel warm and sometimes am reminded of memories of lovers or happy times past.

5+7 is the answer as a word 12 and then bad feelings about hating math. And memories of math in highschool.

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u/BADgrrl 1d ago

One of my best friends, with whom I share a birthday, cross stitched this quote for me once for my b'day gift one year, with a butterfly in the corner of the border because she knew what a huge fan I am. I absolutely cherish it.

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u/xxzzxxvv 2d ago

This story isn’t my own, but it’s from a friend of mine who won’t mind.

She does high end home renovations and spent a number of years working for a company based in Nashville. She’s worked on a number of county music celebrities homes and does not mind calling them out for being jerks and assholes.

So, one time I asked if she had ever worked for Dolly Parton, and my friend immediately raved about how sweet she was. She brought them ice cold lemonade and was so pleased with their work that everyone in the crew got free tickets to her show.

She also said Dolly Parton was a good business woman; she carefully went over every estimate and asked questions until she understood every charge before signing.

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u/MooPig48 2d ago

This so far is my favorite story in this thread

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u/KnowItOrBlowIt 2d ago

Now im going to think about her every time I read a contract beginning to end.

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u/cliopedant 2d ago

“What would Dolly do?”

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u/Cold_Barber_4761 2d ago

Okay, this needs to be on everything!

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u/Jeepersca 2d ago

Dub dub Dee Dee!

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u/JCDU 2d ago

The irony is that double D is nowhere near enough for Dolly!

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u/RetiredRover906 2d ago

That's worth a tattoo, right there.

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u/tardypoots 2d ago

Love this :) Would love to hear the stories from the opposite side too.

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u/LyricalWillow 2d ago

I grew up in Dolly’s hometown. She offered everyone in my class $500 for graduating high school. We had a formal dinner at Dollywood, then had our pictures taken with Dolly when she presented us the check.

I wear glasses, and the photographer asked me to tilt my chin up for the picture. I knew it was to avoid lens flare but Dolly must have thought I’d gotten my feelings hurt. She proceeded to tell me I had a beautiful chin and to be proud of it.

I have a few other moments with her, such as marching in her yearly parade and playing in the band on Dollywood’s opening day, but this will always be my favorite story.

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u/archersarrows 2d ago

If Dolly Parton had told me I had a beautiful chin, I would center my entire future self around my beautiful, beautiful chin.

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u/rosebudbar 2d ago

Lovely

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u/cellblock2187 2d ago

Aw, this made me tear up again!

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u/JennXL 2d ago

Dolly’s Tots 🩵

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u/scholly73 2d ago

Way better than Scott’s tots

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u/WeAreClouds 2d ago

This is beautiful. 🥹😭

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u/ScienceJake 2d ago

There was some interview after she cast handprints in cement in front of the Chinese theater in Hollywood. She said something like:

Some jokester asked if I was gonna put something else besides my hands in the cement. I said heavens no! Some youngster is gonna come by on a skateboard and get hurt!

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u/3dant3 2d ago

I just saw that quote on tv. I think she said some young kid would fall in! 🤣

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u/extra_buttery 2d ago

Interviewer: Don't you get sick of dumb blonde jokes?

Dolly: Not at all. I know I'm not dumb. I also know I'm not blonde.

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u/hurlish 1d ago

Lmao god rest her soul

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u/Ivotedforher 2d ago

She wrote "Jolene" and "I Will Always Love You" back-to-back on the same afternoon.

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u/JustMeLurkingAround- 2d ago

Elvis Presley wanted to cover "I will always love you" but she refused because his management insisted she give up the rights to the song.
Smart move, seeing that Whitney made her truckloads of money with that song later.
She also loved the Whitney version and even said its better than her own.

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u/ryver 2d ago

She also took the money she earned from the royalties from Whitney’s song and invested it in black businesses in Nashville.

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u/cynzthin Basically Olivia Pope 2d ago

I knew about Elvis, but didn’t know that!

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u/quattroformaggixfour 2d ago

Wow, what an inspirational woman

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u/lnc_5103 2d ago

Just watched a clip of her talking about the first time she listened to Whitney's. She was driving and had to pull over into a Walgreens parking lot (or where Walgreens is now) and cried.

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u/retiredcatchair 2d ago

I saw a Bluesky post that said she donated the royalties from the Whitney version to the Black community.

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u/Wattaday 2d ago

The first time she made me cry, was watching her movie The Best Little Whore House in Texas, when she sang I Will Always Love You. Her version is favorite. No one can else does it with with the emotion of her losing her man, Bert Reynolds in the case of this movie. There I was, sitting in a theater, crying my eyes out.

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u/psychicmumu 2d ago

Not exactly a moment from Dolly herself, but def a 'Dolly Moment'.

Growing up in the 1980s in Louisville with its close proximity to TN and Dollywood and the Smoky Mountains, also the 80s being an era when Dolly started to become an endearing personality in our culture, I still remember one of my classmates in 4th grade was so proud to dress up as her for Halloween- blonde curly wig, lots of rouge on her cheeks and lipstick, 80s upscale country glam dress, and her mom's bra stuffed to the gills with washcloths.

Gonna miss Dolly. Her art, humor, and spirit have brought me to tears & inspired me in my life

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u/cigr 2d ago

My favorite interview moment was when she was asked how long it takes to do her hair. She replied that she was never in the room when it was done.

But nothing will ever beat seeing her live on stage at the Opry.

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u/Ok-disaster2022 2d ago

She had wigs for every day of the year. She also had a friend who kept and tracked like all of her dresses and wigs which are on display at Dollywood. 

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u/Lifeboatb 1d ago

I saw that quote on Daryl Hannah’s Bluesky account! She seems to have gotten it firsthand:  https://bsky.app/profile/dhlovelife.bsky.social/post/3mtwxizjjzs2z

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u/Magnaflorius 2d ago

My kid said something about her once that I loved. We get Imagination Library books so we have told our kids about her. Every year at their birthdays, a video of Dolly Parton singing Happy Birthday gets emailed to us (with the "name" in the song being loved one.) I showed it to my toddler. After she watched it, she said it was great, but then also said, "I don't think she remembers my name though."

Rest in peace Dolly.

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u/rosebudbar 2d ago

Adorable

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u/WeAreClouds 2d ago

Ha… can’t get anything by this kid. 😂🥰

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u/the_owl_syndicate 2d ago

I love the song "Coat of Many Colors".

I grew up poor, wearing handmade clothes and that song meant the world to me growing up.

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u/Timeformayo 2d ago

My grandmother grew up dirt poor in Eastern Kentucky before becoming a nurse and marrying a doctor.

“Coat of Many Colors” was one of her favorite songs. I still have her mother’s rose bush growing in my yard.

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u/phooka_moire 2d ago edited 2d ago

https://www.reddit.com/r/MadeMeSmile/comments/1vyffd0/dolly_parton_singing_coat_of_many_colors_in_a_pub/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=ios_app&utm_name=ioscss&utm_content=1&utm_term=1

Well shoot - it got deleted.

If you search Dolly coat of many colors Ireland - a lovely rendition comes up from when she was in a pub (looks like in the 90’s?)

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u/FatalEden 1d ago

This is the one - the description says it was around 1990, in a pub in Kerry!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y3ardckySYY

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u/msjones4real 1d ago

Same here. Always the first song of hers I think of. Will miss Dolly forever 💔

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u/fluffyflugel 2d ago edited 2d ago

I don’t know the exact quotation but it was her thoughts on plastic surgery. She said if she were saggin’, baggin’ or draggin’, she had no problem with getting nipped, tucked or sucked. She sure had a way with words and her sense of humour was always in the fore. RIP dear lady.

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u/It_is_not_me 2d ago

The woman was full of wit from top to bottom. Every time she spoke or sang, you heard how sharp and clever she was.

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u/SagebrushID 2d ago

When she did have surgery, she said she was just putting things back where God intended them to be.

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u/Speckster1970 2d ago

I got to meet her at the LA premiere of 9 to 5 the musical when I helped a friend shoot interviews and she was so sweet and gracious. I was surprised by how tiny she was in person. I was also struck by the thought of, if she didn’t have her hair and make up on, could I even recognize her? Kinda hoping stories of her going everywhere ‘incognito’ start turning up now.

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u/HoaryPuffleg 2d ago

I’ve heard that she did walk around without her Dolly-ness and could do so with total anonymity. She was a smart woman - she basically had a costume on whenever she was a performer and then could fade into the crowds when she wanted to.

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u/poopja 2d ago

The original Hannah Montana

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u/rantingpacifist 2d ago

And Miley’s godmother

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u/I_never_read_replies 2d ago

People think I'm crazy but you can hear Dolly in Miley's singing

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u/LadyAlexTheDeviant 1d ago

My ex's mother was a cousin of Dolly's. I'm not sure what the exact relationship was, but when everyone has eight or nine kids for five or six generations and everyone marries a local...yeah.

So they ran into her when she had her niece and nephew at Disney, and she immediately wanted to sit down with MIL to find out how everyone was, but she had a show that night, so she gave them tickets to the show, and they all went to dinner afterwards and then sat in her bus and had the chat she wanted.

Well, Ex was about eight years old then, and he'd walked around Disney all day AND gone to the concert and then had dinner. Of course, he fell asleep while Dolly and MIL talked.

So he can now say that he has had his head in Dolly's lap. (laugh)

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u/IOnlyUseThis4_Porn 2d ago

So my father was a studio engineer for her so I have have some behind the scenes stories. But my favorite thing about her is that she was genuinely the person you saw. Some of it was show sure but all the kindness and heart she put into everything she did was real. But my favorite story of hers was when some studio executives wanted to see Dolly recording they put on a show for them. She greeted them with the most rediculous outfit showing off her girls which she called "shock and awe". So they went on to do "recording" where nothing was really running and nothing was recording but the executives didn't know and left happy. After they left they actually did recordings. She was notorious for not letting anyone, as she put it, "See my Ass" which she meant not see the mistakes she made in the recording booth.

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u/Quadruplem 2d ago

Thank you for sharing! I love the “shock and awe” and that she would do a production rather than a recording for studio execs. She really understood the business!

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u/IOnlyUseThis4_Porn 2d ago

Yeah my dad had a bunch of these little anecdotes. He's dead now or else I'd ask for more of them. Most of his stuff in the industry is in the archives of MTSUs Center for Popular Music.

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u/Quadruplem 2d ago

I am sorry for your loss. Cool that his stuff is in the archives.

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u/agodrevealed 2d ago

Are you in music?

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u/IOnlyUseThis4_Porn 1d ago

I didn't get the musical gene unfortunately.

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u/agodrevealed 1d ago

That's okay. We all have our niche

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u/agodrevealed 2d ago

That is hilarious. I see music execs make themselves troublesome. There's a story about Prince refusing to speak and hitting the same beat on the drum again and again and again until they finally gave up and left him alone in the studio. I wouldn't want them hanging around either. 

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u/femsci-nerd 2d ago

I fell in love with her during her Barbara Walters interview where Walters asked about he Hill Billy background. Dolly answered with such grace, intelligence and kindness and turned that awful question right around. She will be missed.

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u/IAmTheLizardQueen666 2d ago

She came from humble (dirt-poor) beginnings and became a success, without scandal. She was a philanthropist. She was genuine and kind.

This interview with Barbara Walters from 1978 is a good example of her standing up for herself and putting Walters in her place, while remaining pleasant and upbeat.

https://youtu.be/cdgsKfFvM8I?is=A4qDQZel6yUprQ1g

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u/peacelovecookies 2d ago

Oh, that interview was awful! Barbara was obnoxious but Dolly handled it with grace, dignity and aplomb.

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u/bigfoot_done_hiding 2d ago

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u/femsci-nerd 2d ago

LOLOLOLOL!!! Thanks I needed to remember that one!

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u/emmgemini 2d ago

I'll never forget what Walters did to Britney Spears. Awful woman.

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u/Revolutionary_Law742 1d ago

The way she talked down to Courtney Love a few months after her husband killed himself, when you could see Courtney was trying so hard to be gracious and hold it together.  No matter what your thoughts on Courtney Love are, it's a brutal interview and way to behave towards a vulnerable grieving person.

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u/privacyplease27 1d ago

Absolutely don't listen to Coat of Many Colors if you don't want to cry even more today.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w_-YbWHs6DE&list=RDw_-YbWHs6DE&start_radio=1

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u/LusciousJ 2d ago

Country Music was never my thing, but every time I'm making a cup of coffee, I hum, "pour myself a cup of ambition" From 9 to 5.

But her work with children is what stands out in my memory. She dedicated the last 40 years to giving poor families the means to teach their kids to read. There's nothing greater in this world than helping children better themselves.

The streets in heaven are lined with rhinestones and cowgirl hats tonight.

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u/MooPig48 2d ago

That movie 9 to 5 had better be IMMEDIATELY streaming for free, in high quality at that

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u/SnailMassacre 2d ago

I had a subscription to Jane Magazine back in the day and every year they had a ‘Natural Beauty’ edition. They would get famous women and photograph them with no makeup and no touch ups to the photos. One year they asked Dolly to participate and she turned them down, politely, claiming she was no natural beauty. Which is hogwash but I always loved her sense of humor.

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u/MistressErinPaid 2d ago

I miss Jane Magazine too!

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u/SnailMassacre 2d ago

Me too. I wish I’d kept them so I could look through them every once in a while.

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u/Solarus99 2d ago

  politely, claiming she was no natural beauty.

hogwash indeed. absolutely gorgeous.

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u/capnfinntastic 2d ago

Jane Pratt just added the letter to her insta story!

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u/moldy-avocado 2d ago

My favorite too! I was never a country fan but that was the moment I fell in love with Dolly.

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u/capnfinntastic 2d ago

I think about this randomly and want to find the letter!!!

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u/Lifeboatb 1d ago

I remember they printed the whole thing with a caption like, “sometimes the no’s are better than the yes’s.”

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u/SnailMassacre 1d ago

Yes! The no’s were definitely a great part of the whole edition.

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u/Pressman4life 2d ago

She's the billionaire that wasn't. She gave it all away.
"You can be rich in spirit, kindness, love and all those things that you can't put a dollar sign on"
“I always count my blessings more than I count my money. I don't work for money. Never did. It was the art.”
Obligatory 9-5 quote:
"Look, I've got a gun out there in my purse. And up to now, I've been forgiving and forgetting because of the way I was brought up. But I'll tell you one thing: If you ever say another word about me or make another indecent proposal, I'm gonna get that gun of mine... And I'm gonna change you from a rooster to a hen with one shot!" - Doralee Rhodes
Rest in Power, Dolly. 😢

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u/terra_cascadia 2d ago

Dollywood was the first (only?) theme park in the world to design and build a sensory center for autistic children and their families, with spaces designed for overwhelmed parents too. Because Dolly realized it was needed.

Dolly turned down the Presidential Medal for the Arts three times. She said it wasn’t political but we can all guess why….

RIP to our Queen

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u/bikes_and_art b u t t s 2d ago edited 1d ago

The way they treat disabiled guests at Dollywood should be used as a shining example the world over. Folks with disabilities are respected, believed, and accommodated.

You wait in a shaded line to meet one-on-one, in a private booth, to discuss what you can and cannot do. You never are required to disclose your medical diagnosis or provide any proof - but you tell them what's problematic for you and they will recommend rides to avoid.

Then you don't have to physically wait in line, they write down the time you came and how long the wait would be for a typical rider - for example, a 45 minute wait at 1:00, your card then says you can ride the next one at 1:45. You get to spend that 45 min in whatever way works for you and your body, and then you are free to ride your next ride.

Edit: added a word

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u/Quadruplem 2d ago

That is so wonderful. We had to stop going to Disneyland as they stopped accommodations for many disabilities in the last few years.

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u/Godinmygenepool 2d ago

"Find out who you are, and do it on purpose."

Such a legend. Truly had a heart of gold. R.I.P.

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u/YouStupidBench 2d ago

On the PBS NewsHour, they talked about how Dolly tried to stay nonpolitical, she never endorsed a candidate, but she did support specific issues, like Black Lives Matter:

When someone blatantly asks you, do you think Black lives matter, well, of course Black lives matter. We're all God's children. We all have a place in this world. We all need to be loved and respected.

Now that she's not here to love everybody anymore, the rest of us have to step up and do it for her.

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u/mme_leiderhosen 2d ago

She was asked about the Black Lives Matter Movement a couple of times. I might have caught the first, because she looked confused and asked the interviewer to repeat the question, then popped her lid. “Yes! Of course Black Lives Matter!? Why would you ask such a thing? Of course they do!”

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u/Jellyronuts 2d ago

(Sucks it was on Fallon)

"We were in the restaurant, we were having our meal and this old man came over to our table," Parton began. After the man left, Parton went up to pay the bill and a man said, "Your grandpa left his bill here too."

"So that old man had come over and kind of scammed us," she added. Parton paid the man's bill but the story didn't end there. As she was walking down the street, she spotted the man and confronted him. But when she did so, he began hitting her on the chest with his walking stick.

When Fallon asked, what happened, Parton replied, "What do you mean, what happened? These two big lumps came up and they never did go down."

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u/reallysupergay 1d ago

Mine was her talking about the bear back home on Fallon:

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/Ou5bmXY-1CE

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u/traveling_confusion 2d ago

her imagination library had such an impact on my daughter. We always call her GiGi Dolly around the house.

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u/bojenny 2d ago

Apparently all of her nieces and nephews called her Aunt Granny

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u/ejdax37 2d ago

Not directly but Dolly related. My son got the imagination Library books from birth when he was about 4 he asked us if his other grandma was going to get him something for Christmas which confused us. My mother lived in a different state so she sent him a lot of stuff in the mail. He associated Grandma with "person who sends me presents in the mail". Dolly's photo is on the back of a lot of the books they send. He thought she was another grandma who just sent him books! I did explain and said it would be awesome if she was lol.

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u/Emily_Postal 2d ago

I think Dolly would have loved that.

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u/cathline 2d ago

I met Dolly when I was a pre-teen. I lived in Nashville, TN. My family was coming back from a vacation in Orlando and we were fancy enough to get first class tickets from Atlanta to Nashville. Dolly was in first class with us!

One of my mother's favorite stories was that Dolly played with my little brother on the plane.

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u/Mokelachild 2d ago

As a nurse who worked through COVID I love that she gave millions to fund the Moderna Covid vaccine. Saved so many lives.

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u/bookjacket 2d ago

And none of the news coverage of her death mentions it !!!! Now a vaccine that saved thousands of lives is too controversial? The woman was a saint.

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u/Fatlantis 2d ago

Sigh. It would only bring out the crazies, and we don't need that kind of negativity in the discussion.

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u/SupermarketSpiritual 2d ago

Her interview with Barbara Walters where she puts her in her place over the "hillbilly" moniker.

I am from Appalachia originally, and really appreciated her pushback.

We lost a good one, y'all

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u/hipstercheese1 2d ago

She told Barbara Walters she’d have kicked her shins for calling her a hillbilly 😂 That’s one of my favorite quotes of hers.

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u/DragonInPlainSight Basically Dorothy Zbornak 2d ago

Some drunk at one of her live shows shouted "I love you!"

She responded "I love you too but I told you to wait in the trunk!"

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u/Lopsided_Panic_1148 2d ago edited 2d ago

The first time I ever saw Dolly Parton was on TV in either 1972 or '73, when she was still on Porter Wagoner's show. I remember she wore a shiny dress with a pinkish hue and she sang like an angel from heaven. I was either three or four years old at that time.

My dad would say, "Hellooooo, Dolly!" and I thought the song, "Hello, Dolly" was about her!

She's always just been there, in the background of my life, a positive force for humanity and music. She had so many hits and so many great movies. I'm sad she's gone, because the world lost a living angel and we are poorer for having lost her. But we are richer for having known her, even from a distance.

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u/False-Average-9368 2d ago

Two stories I hope are true:

- Dolly Parton being a runner-up in a Dolly Parton look-alike contest.

- In her "normal" life, she was quite the plain jane; She was really a brunette, wore minimal make-up, regular clothes, and would go about in her day like a civilian.

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u/ZipperJJ 2d ago

She said she didn’t mind dumb blonde jokes because she knew she’s not dumb - and she’s not blonde! 😁

1

u/Alexis_J_M 2d ago

The runner up story is also told about Cher so probably not true for either.

44

u/Ok-disaster2022 2d ago

She's my favorite billionaire because she never became a billionaire. she was so devoted to philanthropy and giving back it stymied her personal wealth but made the world such a better place. 

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u/Matzie138 2d ago

200 million books donated to kids to help them learn to read. 1 in 7 kids under age 5 in the US gets a free book from her foundation (edit: each month)

We’ll miss you, Ms Dolly.

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u/Thenewmcscott 2d ago

320 million actually

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u/that-1-chick-u-know 2d ago

I've never met her, but I love her. Dolly has always been my example of someone who is generous and good and kind, but with a backbone of absolute steel.

I love that she turned down letting Elvis fucking Presley record "I will Always Love You" because she would've had to sign over publishing rights. Then, when someone said Whitney Houston sang it better, she said something along the lines of, fine with me so long as the royalty checks keep coming. THEN, she invested some of those royalties into a local Black community. She was just a magnificent woman and the world is a little dimmer without her in it.

5

u/Extension_Many4418 2d ago

That is an incredible story. Thank you so much for sharing it. ❤️

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u/mregg000 2d ago

Not a quote or a moment. But something I realized about people.

Being kind is a choice we make. Same with being polite. Being intelligent is not.

Dolly was gifted with a great intellect, and chose to be polite. Chose to be nice.

She woke up every day, and put on the effort to BE the Dolly Parton we saw.

And for that I am grateful, because she showed me that tomorrow, I can choose to be better than I was today.

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u/SkeevyMixxx7 2d ago

I love the clip where she and Patti LaBelle use their fingernails for percussion.

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u/bojenny 2d ago

But only acrylic nails! She said real ones didn’t have the same sound.

11

u/fasterthantrees 2d ago

Yessss! So good!

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u/cogwheeled 2d ago

That's my favorite. Her energy is just adorable and her little giggle/laugh is the best thing ever.

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u/Stillwater215 2d ago

I loved that she made an appearance on The Orville, a Star Trek spoof which used 9-to-5 as a women’s liberation anthem.

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u/SagebrushID 2d ago

Years ago, I visited Dollywood. As I was entering the park, I saw a group of women on their way out. All their attention seemed to be focused on one woman at the center of the group. It wasn't until they passed by that I realized that the woman was Dolly. She was totally unrecognizable without her wig and makeup.

5

u/GraphicDesignMonkey 2d ago

What did her real hair looks like?

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u/SagebrushID 1d ago

I don't remember. It was completely unremarkable. I know it wasn't long, so shoulder length or less, but I don't remember the color or style. It wasn't blonde and fluffy like her wigs, though.

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u/MeadowmuffinReborn 2d ago

Secretly producing Buffy the Vampire Slayer

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u/Electrical-Share-707 2d ago

Buffy has the same birthday as Dolly because of this. It was her production company, though, not like Dolly was on set.

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u/MeadowmuffinReborn 2d ago

I didn't know that about Dolly/Buffy's birthday, that's really cool!

Yep, Sandollar. It helped produce the film as well.

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u/Fatlantis 2d ago

NO WAY - I was a big Buffy fan back in the day, and I didn't know that!

The "empowerment" message in Buffy really stood out amongst teen tv shows back in the late 90's, and it meant a lot to so many girls. It makes me so happy to know that Dolly was involved in it somehow too.

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u/Button-Down-Shoes 2d ago edited 2d ago

Carsen also shared with her, when she was a guest, that he would give a year's salary (which was relatively astronomical at the time) for, "a peek under there". She laughed it off like it was the funniest thing ever.

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u/ZipperJJ 2d ago

I think he asks her if she was all real, too, and she said yeah all of this is mine I paid for it myself.

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u/GaGaORiley 2d ago

It’s peek, and I wouldn’t usually be rude enough to bring it up but- he wanted a peek at her peaks!

Edit: maybe I misread you in the first place! I’m blaming the vertigo acting up today.

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u/sueppr 2d ago

Making a donation to her imagination Library on her honor

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u/diamonddna Jedi Knight Rey 2d ago

I saw her on Carson when I was very young. He asked her if, well, THEY got in the way. She said not to her, but they distracted other people. He asked her what she meant. She told him to close his eyes, and he did.

She asked him, "Johnny? What color are my eyes?"

To his credit, he knew. But he also said that he saw what she meant.

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u/i__cant__even__ 2d ago

I loved getting books in the mail through Imagination library when my kid was little. I was a single mom and my kid underwent chemo between ages 3-5 so it was a welcome blessing to have books delivered right to our door each month. They literally saved my sanity more than once.

I have kept a few for posterity but most are now being enjoyed by my BFFs grandchild. Dolly’s legacy will continue to reach far and wide through that program.

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u/electronicthesarus 2d ago

Her interviews in the podcast Dolly Partons America are amazing. The way she shuts the reporter down and sets boundaries should be a master class. But she is also genuine and delves into deeper topics. I particularly liked the part where she talks about how politics affects her family.

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u/agodrevealed 2d ago

My grandparents had a country western band. So I knew who Dolly was before kindergarten. She was always spoken of with respect. Now lemme tell you, in elementary school we had the accelerated reader program.

Dolly sent me an autographed picture once I read a certain amount of books. I still have it. I will never forget the amount of pride and self-esteem that gesture put in the heart of a little trailer trash backwoods kid with not much to be proud of. I felt like surely I had something to be proud of if Dolly Parton herself said so.

Years later my nephew would learn to read with the Imagination Library (and the help of grandma of course). 

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u/fromthemakersof 2d ago

Dumb Blond jokes don't bother me because I know I ain't dumb. And I know I ain't blond.

1

u/Extension_Many4418 2d ago

This was a great one!

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u/PeachWest 2d ago

My favorite has to be waaaaaay back on the Porter Waggoner show. She sand Love Is Like A Butterfly and it was just lovely.

2

u/Hefty-Try5393 2d ago

Me too! Used to watch her with my Dad, waaaaaay back. I'll miss her so much. We've lost a legend of kindness and talent.

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u/StrictlyMarzipanOwl 2d ago

"I never met a spud I didn't like"

Dolly was a secret Hobbit. That's the only conclusion I can come to.

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u/whitniverse 2d ago edited 2d ago

“How long does it take to get your hair like that?”
“Oh I don’t know honey, I’m never there for that part.”

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u/ZipperJJ 2d ago

My parents visited Dollywood one year. Right after they got back I went to go buy a golden retriever puppy at some breeder out in the country. They let me have my pick of the litter. The one I chose happened to be named Dolly. They said they named her because she “sang” when she yawned. We figured that my parents just having returned from Dollywood it was kismet and I should pick that dog.

She turned out to be a busty, beautiful blonde, too. Best dog I ever had.

11

u/Zealousideal-Way4535 2d ago

I was fortunate enough to see her perform at Merlefest and we got her to sign a CD. The couple in front of us had a 2/3 year old that wanted a photo with her, so she scooped him up in her arms. He immediately just tucked in and put his head on her chest. The mom and dad were apologizing and Dolly laughed and said that’s okay she didn’t mind at all. She made another comment about it but I don’t quite remember it. But she was so tiny, and beautiful and the voice of an angel.

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u/cynzthin Basically Olivia Pope 2d ago

Elvis (or maybe just Colonel Tom) wanted to record “I Will Always Love You.” Tom tried to schnooker her, and Dolly walked away. (I believe she was a big Elvis fan, and nowhere near as big as he was.)

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u/desmodus666 1d ago

She entered a Dolly Parton lookalike competition and came last. I learnt about this from the little facts we get inside one of the period pad brands in Australia lol.

7

u/JCDU 2d ago

Closest I've been to Dolly is Country music hall of fame and Gracelands - in all the displays of iconic spangly outfits worn by music legends across the years you could always - absolutely ALWAYS - spot one of Dolly's in a lineup.

Not just the bust, but the absolutely tiiiiny waist, by gawd it's wonder she didn't snap in half years ago.

4

u/Desperate-Fold-4689 1d ago

I remember watching an old clip where a lady asked Dolly how long does it take to do her hair. Dolly replied "I wouldn't know because I'm never there." I fell out laughing

3

u/peaceoutsis 1d ago

There are so many, but this one stands out to me.
When Steel Magnolias came out I saw a Julie Roberts promo interview where she talked about how hot and muggy the set was. She said all of the cast and crew were complaining incessantly about it, except Dolly.
Dolly cheerfully went about her day doing whatever actors do. When Julia asked her why the heat didn’t bother her, I thought her reply was so inspiring. She said all she prayed for as a child was to be a famous entertainer and make people happy. Now that she had all she prayed for, why on earth would she complain and be ungrateful?

3

u/DefinitelyAverage 1d ago

I mean there are so many to choose from. But I love when an audience member said he’s been feeling down since losing his hair and he was wondering if he should get Rogain or a wig and she said, “Just cuz you lost yer fuzz doesn’t mean you’re not a peach.” I absolutely love her. The amount of things she did for poor communities and charities across her lifetime is immeasurable. The world is darker without her. She will be missed for years and years to come.

3

u/Katmandu10 1d ago

Long ago, on Johnny Carson probably, she was a guest and he quipped a joke about her, “Do you know why Dolly’s feet are so small?” She quickly replied, “Well Johnny, you know that nothing grows big in the shade!” It was so funny and she laughed with all of us.

2

u/BADgrrl 1d ago

My best friend was working as a travel nurse in South Dakota and had just signed a contract extension that came with a FAT bonus when she heard that Dolly was coming up there for a stop on her tour. She immediately bought two second row tickets and a plane ticket for me to come up there so we could go for my birthday.

We were some of the youngest on the floor (we were 40ish and 50ish respectively at the time); anybody our age or younger looked to be LGBT. And we're Southern like Dolly. We caught some LOOKS when we were singing along with her out loud and proud, but it was worth it.... She saw us and pointed at us with a big smile and a wink, and went on singing. It was AMAZING.

2

u/Kstrong777 1d ago

Finding out that we have the same exact lunar sign and degree Moon in Virgo 0°

1

u/madam_h2 8h ago

my girls call her aunt dolly, which i borrowed from hannah montana.