Dolly Rebecca Parton was born on January 19, 1946, one of twelve children of Robert Lee Parton, a tobacco farmer, and Avie Lee Parton. Partly of Irish descent, her childhood was poor and she grew up on a run-down farm in Locust Ridge, Tennessee. By the time she was thirteen, she was already recording on a small label and appearing at the Grand Ole Opry. After graduating from high school in 1964, she moved to Nashville to develop her career as a country singer. She fell in love with businessman, Carl Dean, and the couple married on May 30, 1966 (and are still together). The next year, Porter Wagonner asked her to sing on his program, “The Porter Wagonner Show” where Dolly remained for seven years. Their duets became famous, and by 1970, her hit song, “Joshua,” reached number one, and her fame out-shadowed Porter’s. Dolly branched out on her own even though she and Wagonner continued to record duets together.
Dolly gained immense popularity as both a singer and a songwriter. The petite beauty has won numerous Country Music Awards and by the mid 1970s, was appearing frequently on television specials and talk shows. In 1977 she earned her first Grammy Award as “Best Female Country Performer” for her song, ”Here You Come Again.” Her movie debut was in 1980 with the film, “Nine To Five,” which costarred Jane Fonda, Lily Tomlin and Dabney Coleman. She is the head of Dolly Parton Enterprises, a $100 million dollar media empire, and founded theme park, “Dollywood,” in 1986 to honor her Smoky Mountain heritage.
During the 1990s, she appeared in 15 movies and won more Country Music Association Awards. In 2000, she received her fifth Grammy Award. She said of her music, “My music is my greatest love. It’s what took me everywhere I’ve been and everywhere I will go. I’ll always keep making records.”
And Dolly…we will always be listening and buying those records!