Dolly Parton (born January 19, 1946) is an American country singer, songwriter, composer, author and actress.
She was born Dolly Rebecca Parton in Sevierville, Tennessee, the fourth of twelve children born to Robert Lee Parton and Avie Lee Owens, and grew up "dirt poor" in a rustic one-room cabin in the Smoky Mountains, also described as a "run-down farm" near Locust Ridge. Her siblings are Willadeene Parton (a poet), David Parton, Denver Parton, Bobby Parton,Stella Parton (a singer), Cassie Parton, Larry Parton (who died shortly after birth), Randy Parton (a singer), twins Floyd Parton (a songwriter) and Freida Parton, and Rachel Dennison (an actress).
Parton was raised Assembly of God, a Pentecostal denomination, and music was a very large part of her church experience. She once told an interviewer that her grandfather was a Pentecostal "Holy Roller" preacher and today, when appearing in live concerts, she frequently performs spiritual songs. Parton, however, professes no denomination, claiming to be only Christian while adding that she believes that all Earth's peoples are God's children.
She began her entertainment career as a child, singing on local radio and television in East Tennessee. At age 12 she was appearing on Knoxville TV, and at 13 she was recording on a small label and appearing at the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville. When she graduated from high school in 1964 she moved to Nashville, taking many traditional folkloric elements and popular music from East Tennessee with her.
On May 30, 1966, at the age of 20, she married Carl Dean, who ran an asphalt-paving business (whom she met upon her first day in Nashville two years earlier), in Ringgold, Georgia. She has remained with Dean, who has always shunned publicity and stayed in the background to an extraordinary degree, refusing to accompany his wife to almost every public appearance she has made since their marriage. Her extramarital relationships have been the subject of tabloid speculation for decades, with her heterosexuality often being questioned. When asked once, "Do you love women?" she replied "Yes, my mother was a woman."
Parton is known by many for her wit and distingushing wardrobe, as well as her boundless compassion and kind-heartedness.
Early career
Parton's initial success came as a songwriter, with her songs being covered by Kitty Wells, Hank Williams, Jr., Skeeter Davis, and a number of others. She signed with Monument Records in late 1965, where she was initially pitched as a bubblegum pop singer, resulting in just one chart single, "Happy, Happy Birthday Baby," which went to No. 108 pop in 1965. After a series of additional pop singles that failed to chart, label executives decided to allow her to sing country music after the success of her composition "Put It Off Until Tomorrow" as recorded by Bill Phillips. With Parton singing uncredited harmony on the single, Phillips' version of her song went to No. 6 on the country charts in 1966. Her first country single, "Dumb Blonde" (one of the few songs she recorded during this period that she herself did not write), reached No. 24 country 1967, followed later the same year with "Something Fishy," which went to No. 17. The two songs anchored her first full-length album, Hello I'm Dolly, that same year. (She had previously contributed vocals to a compilation album, Hits Made Famous by Country Queens, in late 1963 on the now defnct Somerset label.)
Porter Wagoner and Dolly Parton: "Just Between You and Me," RCA, 1967Late in that same year, Parton was asked to join the weekly syndicated country music TV program hosted by Porter Wagoner, replacing Norma Jean (singer) who was semi-retiring. She also signed with RCA Records, Wagoner's label, during this period, where she would remain for the next two decades. Wagoner and Parton immediately began a hugely successful career as a vocal duet in addition to their solo work and their first single together, a cover of Tom Paxton's "The Last Thing on My Mind," reached the top ten on the U.S. country charts in late 1967, and was the first of over a dozen duet singles to chart for them during the next several years.
Parton is a hugely successful songwriter, having begun by writing country songs with strong elements of folk music in them based upon her upbringing in humble mountain surroundings. Her songs "Coat of Many Colors" and "Jolene" have become classics in the field, as have a number of others. As a composer, she is also regarded as one of country music's most gifted storytellers, with many of her narrative songs based on persons and events from her childhood.
Love is Like a Butterfly, RCA, 1974She stayed with the Wagoner show and continued to record duets with him for seven years, then made a break to become a solo artist. In 1974, her song "I Will Always Love You" was released and went to #1 on the country charts, though the single did not "crossover" to the pop charts (as "Jolene" had done). Around the same time, Elvis Presley indicated that he wanted to cover the song. Parton was interested until Presley's manager, Colonel Tom Parker, told her that she would have to sign over half of the publishing rights if Elvis recorded the song (as was the standard procedure for songs Elvis recorded). Parton refused and that decision is credited with helping make her many millions of dollars in royalties from the song over the years.
During the mid-1970s, Parton had her eyes set on expanding her audience base. The first step towards meeting this goal was her attempt a variety show, Dolly. Even though it had high ratings, the show lasted merely one season, with Parton asking out of her contract due to the stress it was causing her vocal chords.
Breakout
Despite originally being typecast in many circles as a "Country and Western" singer, Parton later had even greater commercial success as a pop singer and actress. Her 1977 album "Here You Come Again" was her first million-seller, and the title track became her first top-ten single on the pop charts; many of her subsequent singles charted on both pop and country charts simultaneously. Her albums during this period were more tightly produced and were designed specifically for pop/crossover success.
Polly Darton, a character appearing on Sesame Street in the 1980sIn 1980, Jane Fonda decided Parton was a perfect candidate for her upcoming film, 9 to 5. She was looking for a brassy Southern woman for a supporting role and felt the singer was perfect. Parton was signed, and went on to steal the notices and score a major hit with the title song.
She wrote and performed "9 to 5" which earned her an Academy Award nomination for Best Original Song. She received a Golden Globe nomination for Best Original Song - Motion Picture. And she won two Grammy Awards, for Best Female Country Vocal Performance and Best Country Song. It reached #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 and was also #78 on American Film Institute's 100 years, 100 songs.
She also received Golden Globe nominations for Best Motion Picture Actress - Musical/Comedy and New Star of the Year in a Motion Picture - Female.
Parton's other films include The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas (1982), for which she received another Golden Globe nomination, and Steel Magnolias.
In 1982, she recorded a second version of "I Will Always Love You" for The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas; the second version proved to be another #1 country hit and also managed to reach the pop charts, going to #53 in the United States.
In 1986, she was inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame.
The following year, along with Emmylou Harris and Linda Ronstadt, she released the decade-in-the-making Trio album to critical acclaim (a second collaboration, "Trio II", would be released in 1999). Also in 1987, Parton switched record labels, moving from RCA to Columbia Records, and took a second stab at her own TV variety show, also titled Dolly, which lasted only one season. Ratings started strong but quickly fell.
Dolly Parton hosting Saturday Night Live in 1989Parton has also done voice work for animation, playing herself in the TV series Alvin & the Chipmunks (episode: Urban Chipmunk) (1987) and her voice role as Katrina Eloise "Murph" Murphy in The Magic School Bus (episode: The Family Holiday Special) (1994).
Standing at an even 5 feet tall (152 cm), Parton's physical trademark is her large breasts; her petite dimensions elsewhere accentuate her large bosom. She has often mocked this reputation with quips such as "I would have burned my bra in the 60s, but it would have taken the fire department three days to put it out," or "The reason I have a small waist and small feet is that nothing grows well in the shade." In 1994, she told Vogue magazine that her measurements were 40-20-36. [1] And she has publicly denied the often-reported allegation that her chest is insured for $600,000.
In 1992, "I Will Always Love You" was performed by Whitney Houston on The Bodyguard soundtrack. Houston's version became the best-selling hit ever written and performed by a female vocalist, with worldwide sales of 12,000,000. As Parton owned the song, she raked in huge profits from Houston's cover. The song was also covered by music legend Kenny Rogers on his 1997 album "Always and Forever," which sold over 4 million copies worldwide, as well as by Leanne Rimes. Melissa Etheridge covered the song on a tribute album to Parton.
In 1993, she teamed up with fellow country music queens Loretta Lynn and Tammy Wynette to record the Honky Tonk Angels album.
Parton's last lead role in a theatrical film was in 1992's Straight Talk, opposite James Woods. She played the plainspoken host of a radio program that has people phoning-in with problems. The film, while not a blockbuster, did respectably well upon its release. She later played an overprotective mother in Frank McKlusky, C.I. with Dave Sheridan, Cameron Richardson, and Randy Quaid.
After Parton (in common with many other performers of her generation) was dropped from country radio stations' playlists in the mid-1990s, she rediscovered her roots by recording a series of critically acclaimed bluegrass albums, beginning with "The Grass is Blue" (1999) and "Little Sparrow" (2001), both of which won Grammy Awards. Her 2002 album "Halos and Horns" included a bluegrass version of the Led Zeppelin classic Stairway to Heaven. In 2005, Parton released Those Were The Days, her interpretation of hits from the folk-rock era of the late 1960s through early 1970s. The CD featured such classics as John Lennon's "Imagine," Cat Stevens' "Were Do The Children Play," Tommy James' "Chrimson & Clover," and the folk classic "Where Have All The Flowers Gone", as well as the title track.
Business
Parton invested much of her earnings into business ventures in her native East Tennessee, notably Pigeon Forge, which includes a theme park named Dollywood and a dinner show called Dolly Parton's Dixie Stampede. The area is a thriving tourist attraction, drawing visitors from large parts of the Southeastern and Midwestern United States. This region of the U.S., like most areas of Appalachia, has suffered economically for decades; Parton's business investment there allow her to put something back into the community where she was born and raised.
She also owns Sandollar Productions, a film and television production company, which produced the Fox TV Show "Babes" and Buffy the Vampire Slayer and the features "Father of the Bride I & II", , "Straight Talk", "Sabrina" and Academy Award-winning (for Best Documentary) Common Threads: Stories From The Quilt amongst other shows. Sanddollar is co-owned by Sandy Gallin, former manager and openly gay long-time friend of Dolly's.
Dolly Parton in 1987She has reportedly turned down several offers to pose for Playboy magazine and similar publications; however, she jokes that she told Playboy she would pose naked -- on her 100th birthday. Russ Meyer wanted to make movies about her breasts. Although she has admitted over the years to having a great deal of cosmetic surgery, it wasn't until 2002 that she admitted to having breast implants. However, she says she didn't get them until she lost a great deal of weight in the mid-1980s, because as a result of the weight loss she had lost a great deal of now-famous bosom. [2]
Parton, alongside Johnny Cash, is one of the few country stars to be admired and acclaimed by fans from all walks of life. She said that she has long admired the look of some outcasts from society (such as prostitutes, whose long fingernails and big blonde wigs inspired her). She is an icon in the gay community, and is often portrayed by drag queens. She has said that if she were not born a woman, she would be a drag-queen.
Her music of the late 1990s and beyond has moved towards bluegrass and more traditional folk style1, resulting in a second wind of critical and commercial success.
In Concert
Parton toured extensively from the late 1960's until the early 1990's. Since the early 1990's, Parton's concert appearances were primarily limited to one weekend a year at her Dollywood theme park benefiting her Dollywood Foundation. After a decade long absence from touring, Parton decided to hit the road in 2002 with an 18 city, intimate club tour to promote the "Halos & Horns" CD. The House of Blues Entertainment Inc. produced show sold out all of its U.S. and European dates (her first in two decades). In 2004, she returned to mid-sized stadium venues in 36 cities in the US and Canada with her "Hello I'm Dolly" tour, a glitzier, more elaborate stage show than 2 years earlier. With nearly 140,000 tickets sold, the "Hello I'm Dolly" tour was the 10th-biggest country tour of the year and grossed more than $6 million. In late 2005 Parton completed a 40 city tour with "The Vinatage Tour" promoting her new album, Those Were The Days.
Honors
Parton is perhaps the most-honored female country performer of all time. She holds 25 U.S. gold, platinum and multi-platinum honors from the RIAA. She has seen 24 songs reach No. 1 on the Billboard country charts, a record for a female artist. She has 41 career top 10 country albums, a record for any artist, and 110 career charted singles over the past 40 years. All inclusive sales of singles, albums, hit's collections, paid digital downloads and compilation usage during Parton's career have reportedly reached 100 million records around the world.
She has received seven Grammy Awards and a total of 42 Grammy nominations. In the American Music Awards, she has taken home the AMA trophy three times but seen 18 nominations. At the Country Music Association, she has received 10 awards and 42 nominations. At the Academy of Country Music, she has been given five awards and 36 nominations. She has been nominated for both an Academy Award and an Emmy Award. She has received four Golden Globe nominations.
She has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for Recording at 6712 Hollywood Boulevard in Hollywood, awarded in 1984; a star on the Nashville Star Walk for Grammy winners; and a bronze sculpture on the courthouse lawn in Sevierville, Tennessee.
She was inducted into the Grand Ole Opry in 1969. In 1986, she was named one of Ms. Magazine's Women of the Year. She was given an honorary doctorate from Carson-Newman College in 1990.
In 1999, Parton received country music's highest honor, induction into the Country Music Hall of Fame. This was followed by induction into the National Academy of Popular Music/Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2001.
She was honored in 2003 with a tribute album called "Just Because I'm a Woman." The artists who recorded versions of Dolly's songs included Melissa Etheridge ("I Will Always Love You"), Alison Krauss ("9 to 5"), Shania Twain ("Coat of Many Colors"), Me'Shell NdegéOcello ("Two Doors Down"), Norah Jones ("The Grass is Blue"), and Sinéad O'Connor ("Dagger Through the Heart").
Parton was awarded the Living Legend medal by the U.S. Library of Congress on April 14, 2004, for her contributions to the cultural heritage of the United States. This was followed in 2005 with the National Medal of Arts, the highest honor given by the U.S. government for excellence in the arts.
Her efforts to preserve the bald eagle through the American Eagle Foundation's sanctuary at Dollywood earned her the Partnership Award from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in 2003. And her national literacy program, Dolly Parton's Imagination Library, has resulted in her receiving the Association of American Publishers' AAP Honors in 2000, Good Housekeeping's Seal of Approval in 2001 (the first time the seal had been given to a person), the American Association of School Administrators' Galaxy Award in 2002, Chasing Rainbows Award from the National State Teachers of the Year in 2002, and Child and Family Advocacy Award from the Parents As Teachers National Center in 2003. The program distributes more than 2.5 million free books to children annually across more than 40 states.
She is one of only five solo women (others include Reba McEntire, Barbara Mandrell, Shania Twain, and Loretta Lynn), to win the Country Music Association's highest honor, "Entertainer Of The Year"
White Stripes: Under Blackpool Lights (2004) (V) (song "Jolene")
Garfield (2004) (song "9 to 5")
... aka Garfield: The Movie (USA: promotional title)
Sweet Home Alabama (2002) (song "Marry Me")
Moulin Rouge! (2001) (song "I Will Always Love You")
Whitney Houston: The Greatest Hits (2000) (V) (song "I Will Always Love You")
Blue Valley Songbird (1999) (TV) (title song)
Women Talking Dirty (1999) (songs "Jolene", "It's All Wrong, But It's All Right")
Office Space (1999) (song "9-5")
... aka Cubiculos de la oficina (USA: Spanish title)
Unlikely Angel (1996) (TV) (two original songs)
The Bodyguard (1992) (song "I Will Always Love You")
Straight Talk (1992) (original songs)
Wild Texas Wind (1991) (TV)
Pink Cadillac (1989) (song "Two Doors Down")
Rhinestone (1984) (songs)
Koks i kulissen (1983)
... aka Ladies on the Rocks
Dolly In Concert (1983) (TV) (songs)
... aka Dolly in London (USA: video title)
The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas (1982) (songs)
... aka The Best Little Cathouse in Texas (Canada: English title: bowdlerized title)
"9 to 5" (1982) TV Series
Olivia in Concert (1982) (V) (song "Jolene")
The 53rd Annual Academy Awards (1981) (TV) (song "Nine to Five")
Nine to Five (1980) (title song)
... aka 9 to 5
Norma Rae (1979) (song "It's All Wrong, But It's All Right")
"Butterflies" (1978) TV Series (theme song "Love is Like a Butterfly")
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