Dolly Parton Biography

Singer, songwriter, actress. Born Dolly Rebecca Parton on January 19, 1946 in Locust Ridge, Tennessee. Raised in a poor family with 12 children, Parton learned to escape her life by making up songs. By age 11, she was singing on a local radio station and after graduating from high school, she moved to Nashville to pursue a career in music.

Parton launched her solo career in 1967, and though she partnered with Porter Wagoner for his television show from 1967-1975, she remained primarily a solo act. (It was for Wagoner that Parton dedicated the ever-popular "I Will Always Love You.") She won the Country Music Award for female vocalist in 1975 and 1976.

In 1987, she recorded Trio with Emmylou Harris and Linda Ronstadt. In 1993, she put out another collaboration with Loretta Lynn and Tammy Wynette titled Honky Tonk Angels. In 1999, she returned to acoustics with The Grass Is Blue, which won a Grammy for best bluegrass album. Parton was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2000.

In addition to music, Parton also became interested in acting, starring in 1980’s 9 to 5, 1982’s Best Little Whorehouse in Texas and 1989’s Steel Magnolias. She also opened the Dollywood theme park in 1985, which continues to be one of the South’s most popular vacation destinations. Parton married Carl Dean, who runs an asphalt-paving business, in 1966.

In 2006, Dolly Parton received special recognition for her lifetime contributions to the arts. She was one of five artists feted at the annual Kennedy Center Honors. This achievement is just the latest award for this remarkable performer who has forged her own place in country music history.

This Kennedy Center honoree has continued to keep busy. Her most recent release is Backwoods Barbie (2008), which featured two country hits “Better Get To Livin’” and “Jesus & Gravity.” That same year, Parton got into public feud with satellite radio shock jock Howard Stern after he aired a segment in which previous spoken recordings were manipulated to make it sound like she made some obscene statements.

After writing so many of her own hits, Parton had penned the songs for a new musical based on her earlier hit workplace comedy, 9 to 5. The show will debut in the fall of 2008 in Los Angeles and is expected to have a Broadway run.

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