Dolly Rebecca Parton is a country music singer-songwriter, actress, and businesswoman from the United States.
Following her success as a songwriter for others, Parton released her first album, Hello, I’m Dolly, in 1967, which led to continued success throughout the 1960s (both as a solo artist and with a series of duet albums with Porter Wagoner), before her sales and chart peak occurred in the 1970s and continued into the 1980s.
Parton’s records did not sell as well in the 1990s, but she regained financial success in the new century and has issued albums on a variety of indie labels, including her own Dolly Records, since 2000.
She has sold over 100 million records all around the world.
Parton’s music has won gold, platinum, and multi-platinum accolades from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).
She has 25 songs that have reached number one on the Billboard country music charts, which is a new high for a female singer (tied with Reba McEntire).
She has 44 Top 10 country albums in her career, which is a record for any singer, and 110 charted singles in her 40-year career.
She’s written over 3,000 songs, including “I Will Always Love You,” “Jolene,” “Coat of Many Colors,” and “9 to 5” (which was a two-time country chart-topper and an international pop smash for Whitney Houston).
She has won 11 Grammy Awards and received 50 nominations, including the Lifetime Achievement Award; ten Country Music Association Awards, including Entertainer of the Year; five Academy of Country Music Awards, including Entertainer of the Year; four People’s Choice Awards; and three American Music Awards.
Dolly Parton Early life and career
Dolly Rebecca Parton was born in a one-room cabin in Pittman Center, Tennessee, on January 19, 1946. Parton has three siblings, all of whom had died.
Her maternal great-great-grandmother Rebecca (Dunn) Whitted gave her the middle name Parton.
Parton’s father, “Lee,” toiled as a sharecropper in East Tennessee’s mountains before starting his own modest tobacco farm and land.
To boost the farm’s meager income, he also worked in construction. Despite her father’s illiteracy, Parton has said that he was one of the most business-savvy persons she had ever met.
Porter Wagoner, a musician and country music singer, persuaded Dolly Parton to join his organization in 1967, promising her a regular slot on his syndicated television show The Porter Wagoner Show as well as a spot in his touring show.
Initially, much of Wagoner’s audience was upset that Norma Jean, the singer that Parton had replaced, had departed the program, as chronicled in her 1994 autobiography, and was hesitant to embrace Parton (sometimes chanting loudly for Norma Jean from the audience).
However, with Wagoner’s help, Parton was eventually accepted. Wagoner was able to persuade RCA Victor to sign her. By releasing her first single as a duet with Wagoner, RCA was able to preserve their investment.
Her song “I Will Always Love You,” written about her professional break from Wagoner, reached No. 1 on the country charts in 1974.
At the same time, Elvis Presley expressed an interest in recording the song. Colonel Tom Parker, Presley’s manager, told Parton that the songwriter had to sign over half of the publishing rights to any song recorded by Presley as customary procedure.
Parton turned down the offer. This choice is credited with helping her earn millions of dollars in royalties over the years from the song.
Dolly Parton Private Life
Parton married Carl Thomas Dean (born July 20, 1942 in Nashville, Tennessee) on May 30, 1966 in Ringgold, Georgia.
Parton has stated that her passport reads “Dolly Parton Dean” and that she occasionally uses Dean when signing contracts, despite the fact that she does not use Dean’s surname professionally.
Dean, who is retired from running an asphalt road-paving business in Nashville, has always shunned publicity and rarely accompanies his wife to any events.
Parton has jokingly said he has only seen her perform once. She has also stated in interviews that, despite the fact that they appear to spend little time together, it is merely because no one sees him in public.
Dean’s romantic side has been discussed by her, with her claiming that he does unexpected things to surprise her and even writes poems for her on occasion.
Parton said in 2011: “Our marriage is something we’re quite proud of. It’s our first time together. Last but not least.”
