Dolly Parton and her husband Carl Dean have been together for six decades, and their relationship still works as much as it did in the early years, maybe more. The 78-year-old says the secret to their longevity is in large part due to who Dean is as a person, and his unwavering, albeit quiet, support of her over the years.
“My husband and I have been together for 60 years,” Parton reflects to Closer. “We’ve been married 58 years and we dated for two years. He has a good sense of humor, as do I, and I think that has been a big key to us, because we’ve had a lot of fun, and when things get really bad, we somehow manage to find the humor in it, and that kind of lifts the load. But I think we’re also good friends. We have a lot of respect for each other, and we just take each other as we are.
“We don’t try to change each other and make a big deal out of all the little things that some people do,” she continues. “We just have a great life, and we’re different enough so when we are together, we have things to talk about, because he’s interested in what I do, but that’s not his world, and I’m interested in what he does, but that’s not my world. But together, it’s our world. We make our world work with all the things we do, and we’re just very close.”
Even in the early years of their relationship, the Country Music Hall of Fame member says Dean was encouraging and supportive of her, and how hard she worked to make her dreams come true.
“He knew why I came to Nashville,” Parton boasts on Apple Music 1’s What Would Dolly Do? Radio. “He was an independent person with his own stuff, and we got along so well. Because we’re not in the same business, we respect and admire and love each other. But he knew better than to tell me that I was going to have to stop for him because I wouldn’t have done it.”
Photo Credit: Courtesy of the CMA
It was her love for Dean that inspired Parton to stop doing major tours, a decision she announced in 2022, so they could spend more time together.
“I do not think I will ever tour again, but I do know I’ll do special shows here and there, now and then,” Parton told Pollstar at the time. “Maybe do a long weekend of shows, or just a few shows at a festival. But I have no intention of going on a full-blown tour anymore. I’ve done that my whole life, and it takes so much time and energy. … I like to stay a little closer to home with my husband.
“We’re getting older now, and I don’t want to be gone for four or five weeks at a time,” she continued. “Something could happen. I would not feel right about that, if I were gone and somebody needed me. Or I would feel bad if I had to leave a tour if somebody got sick at home and needed me and then I had to walk out on the fans.”
Parton just announced her Threads: My. Songs in Symphony dates in 2025, featuring her songs, and the stories behind them, with the Nashville Symphony, featuring Parton on screen, along with guest vocalists and musicians. The East Tennessee native just launched her Dolly Beauty line of cosmetics and her Dolly Wines, and released her cookbook, Good Lookin’ Cookin’: A Year of Meals— A Lifetime of Family, Friends, co-authored with her sister, Rachel Parton George. She is also building her own Songteller Hotel in Nashville, and will have her own Hello, I’m Dolly Broadway musical, premiering in 2026.
Keep track of updates at DollyParton.com.