1. Dolly Rebecca Parton was born on January 19,1946 and is an American singer, songwriter, musician, actress, and philanthropist, known primarily as a country musician.
147 Facts About Dolly Parton
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Dolly Parton's music includes Recording Industry Association of America -certified gold, platinum and multi-platinum awards.
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Dolly Parton has had 25 singles reach No 1 on the Billboard country music charts, a record for a female artist.
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Dolly Parton has 44 career Top10 country albums, a record for any artist, and she has 110 career-charted singles over the past 40 years.
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Dolly Parton has received various accolades, including 11 Grammy Awards from 50 nominations.
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Dolly Parton has won ten Country Music Association Awards, including Entertainer of the Year, being one of seven female artists to achieve it.
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Dolly Parton has five Academy of Country Music Awards, four People's Choice Awards, and three American Music Awards.
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Dolly Parton is in a select group to have received at least one nomination from the Academy Awards, Grammy Awards, Tony Awards, and Emmy Awards.
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Dolly Parton was the second woman to be inducted into both the Country Music Hall of Fame and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
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Dolly Parton has founded a number of charitable and philanthropic organizations, chief among them being the Dollywood Foundation, who manage a number of projects to bring education and poverty relief to East Tennessee, where she was raised.
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Dolly Rebecca Parton was born on January 19,1946, in a one-room cabin on the banks of the Little Pigeon River in Pittman Center, Tennessee.
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Dolly Parton is the fourth of 12 children born to Avie Lee Caroline and Robert Lee Parton Sr.
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Dolly Parton's father, known as "Lee", worked in the mountains of East Tennessee, first as a sharecropper and later tending his own small tobacco farm and acreage.
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Dolly Parton worked construction jobs to supplement the farm's small income.
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Dolly Parton has long credited her father for her business savvy, and her mother's family for her musical abilities.
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When Dolly Parton was a young girl, her family moved from the Pittman Center area to a farm up on nearby Locust Ridge.
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Years after the farm was sold, Dolly Parton bought it back in the late 1980s.
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Dolly Parton would write a song about Dr Thomas when she was grown.
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Dolly Parton outlined her family's poverty in her early songs "Coat of Many Colors" and "In the Good Old Days ".
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Dolly Parton was brought up in the Church of God, in a congregation her grandfather, Jake Robert Owens, pastored.
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The Dolly Parton family was well-fed despite their poverty, and the 2024 cookbook Good Lookin' Cookin' recalls numerous family meals.
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Dolly Parton began performing as a child, singing on local radio and television programs in the East Tennessee area.
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Dolly Parton's songs were recorded by many other artists during this period, including Kitty Wells and Hank Williams Jr.
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Dolly Parton signed with Monument Records in 1965, at age 19; she initially was pitched as a bubblegum pop singer.
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Dolly Parton released a string of singles, but the only one that charted, "Happy, Happy Birthday Baby", did not crack the Billboard Hot 100.
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In 1967, musician and country music entertainer Porter Wagoner invited Dolly Parton to join his organization, offering her a regular spot on his weekly syndicated television program The Porter Wagoner Show, and in his road show.
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Dolly Parton's first solo single for RCA Victor, "Just Because I'm a Woman", was released in the summer of 1968 and was a moderate chart hit, reaching number 17.
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Wagoner had a significant financial stake in her future; as of 1969, he was her co-producer and owned nearly half of Owe-Par, the publishing company Dolly Parton had founded with Bill Owens.
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Dolly Parton, who had always envisioned a solo career, made the decision to leave Wagoner's organization; the pair performed their last duet concert in April 1974, and she stopped appearing on his TV show in mid-1974, although they remained affiliated.
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Dolly Parton was interested until Presley's manager, Colonel Tom Parker, told her that it was standard procedure for the songwriter to sign over half of the publishing rights to any song recorded by Presley.
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Dolly Parton had three solo singles reach number one on the country chart in 1974, as well as the duet with Porter Wagoner, "Please Don't Stop Loving Me".
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Between 1974 and 1980, Dolly Parton had a series of country hits, with eight singles reaching number one.
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Dolly Parton began to embark on a high-profile crossover campaign, attempting to aim her music in a more mainstream direction and increase her visibility outside of the confines of country music.
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In 1978, Dolly Parton won a Grammy Award for Best Female Country Vocal Performance for her Here You Come Again album.
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Dolly Parton served as one of three co-hosts on the CBS special Fifty Years of Country Music.
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In 1979, Dolly Parton hosted the NBC special The Seventies: An Explosion of Country Music, performed live at the Ford Theatre in Washington, DC, and whose audience included President Jimmy Carter.
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Dolly Parton had another Top10 single that year with "Making Plans", a single released from a 1980 album with Porter Wagoner, released as part of a lawsuit settlement between the pair.
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Dolly Parton became one of the few female country singers to have a number-one single on the country and pop charts simultaneously.
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Dolly Parton's singles has appeared consistently in the country Top10.
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Dolly Parton continued to make inroads on the pop chart as well.
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Dolly Parton recorded "The Day I Fall in Love" as a duet with James Ingram for the feature film Beethoven's 2nd.
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Similar to her earlier collaborative album with Harris and Ronstadt, Dolly Parton released Honky Tonk Angels in the fall of 1993 with Loretta Lynn and Tammy Wynette.
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Also in 1994, Dolly Parton contributed the song "You Gotta Be My Baby" to the AIDS benefit album Red Hot + Country produced by the Red Hot Organization.
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Dolly Parton's recorded music during the mid-to-late-1990s remained steady and somewhat eclectic.
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Dolly Parton's 1995 re-recording of "I Will Always Love You", from her album Something Special won the Country Music Association's Vocal Event of the Year Award.
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Dolly Parton's recording of Stevens' "Peace Train" was later re-mixed and released as a dance single, reaching Billboard's dance singles chart.
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Dolly Parton was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1999.
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Dolly Parton recorded a series of bluegrass-inspired albums, beginning with The Grass Is Blue, winning a Grammy Award for Best Bluegrass Album; and Little Sparrow, with its cover of Collective Soul's "Shine" winning a Grammy Award for Best Female Country Vocal Performance.
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Dolly Parton earned her second Academy Award nomination for Best Original Song for "Travelin' Thru", which she wrote specifically for the feature film Transamerica.
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Dolly Parton returned to number one on the country chart later in 2005 by lending her distinctive harmonies to the Brad Paisley ballad, "When I Get Where I'm Going".
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In September 2007, Parton released her first single from her own record company, Dolly Records, titled, "Better Get to Livin'", which eventually peaked at number 48 on Billboard Hot Country Songs chart.
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On October 27,2009, Parton released a four-CD box set, Dolly, which featured 99 songs and spanned most of her career.
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Dolly Parton released her second live DVD and album, Live From London in October 2009, which was filmed during her sold-out 2008 concerts at London's The O2 Arena.
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Dolly Parton is featured on "The Right Time", which she co-wrote with Cyrus and Morris Joseph Tancredi.
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On January 6,2011, Dolly Parton announced that her new album would be titled Better Day.
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In 2013, Dolly Parton joined Lulu Roman for a re-recording of "I Will Always Love You" for Roman's album, At Last.
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In 2014, Dolly Parton embarked on the Blue Smoke World Tour in support of her 42nd studio album, Blue Smoke.
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At the ceremony itself, Dolly Parton was honored with the Willie Nelson Lifetime Achievement Award, which was presented by Lily Tomlin and preceded by a tribute featuring Jennifer Nettles, Pentatonix, Reba McEntire, Kacey Musgraves, Carrie Underwood and Martina McBride.
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In 2017, Dolly Parton appeared on Rainbow, the third studio album by Kesha performing a duet of "Old Flames Can't Hold a Candle to You".
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Dolly Parton co-wrote and provided featuring vocals on the song "Rainbowland" on Younger Now, the sixth album by her goddaughter Miley Cyrus.
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In July 2019, Dolly Parton made an unannounced appearance at the Newport Folk Festival in Rhode Island, and performed several songs accompanied by the Highwomen and Linda Perry.
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In 2020, Dolly Parton received worldwide attention after posting four pictures, in which she showed how she would present herself on social media platforms LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.
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On May 27,2020, Dolly Parton released a brand new song called "When Life Is Good Again".
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Dolly Parton released a music video for "When Life Is Good Again", which premiered on Time 100 talks on May 28,2020.
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In 2019, Dolly Parton collaborated with Christian alternative rock duet For King and Country and released a version of their hit "God Only Knows".
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Dolly Parton followed this by recording a duet with Christian music artist Zach Williams in the song "There Was Jesus".
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In October 2020, Dolly Parton was featured on the single "Pink" alongside Monica, Jordin Sparks, Sara Evans and Rita Wilson.
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In early 2022, Dolly Parton was nominated for induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
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Dolly Parton initially declined the nomination believing that the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame was "for the people in rock music", but after learning that this was not the case Dolly Parton said she would accept her induction if she were chosen for the honor.
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In October 2022, Dolly Parton stated in an interview that she would no longer tour, but would continue to play live shows occasionally.
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On December 31,2022, Dolly Parton co-hosted NBC's New Year's special Miley's New Year's Eve Party.
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On January 17,2023, Dolly Parton announced she would release her first rock album, titled Rockstar, later that year, during an interview on The View.
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On February 14,2025, Dolly Parton featured on Sabrina Carpenter's song "Please Please Please" on the deluxe edition of her album Short n' Sweet and its accompanying music video.
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On March 7,2025, Dolly Parton released the single "If You Hadn't Been There", as a tribute to her husband, who had died a week before; in the United Kingdom, single peaked at number 21 on the sales and downloads chart components.
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Dolly Parton had turned down several offers to pose nude for Playboy magazine, but did appear on the cover of the October 1978 issue wearing a Playboy bunny outfit, complete with ears.
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Dolly Parton replied that cosmetic surgery was imperative in keeping with her famous image.
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Dolly Parton, though influenced by big name stars, often credits much of her inspiration to her family and community.
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Dolly Parton was not only an evangelist, she played banjo, she played guitar, and she wrote some great songs.
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Dolly Parton is a prolific songwriter, having begun by writing country music songs with strong elements of folk music, based on her upbringing in humble mountain surroundings and reflecting her family's Christian background.
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On November 4,2003, Dolly Parton was honored as a BMI Icon at the 2003 BMI Country Awards.
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Dolly Parton has earned over 35 BMI Pop and Country Awards.
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Dolly Parton said she writes something every day, be it a song or an idea.
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Dolly Parton wrote the score for 9 to 5: The Musical, a musical-theater adaptation of Dolly Parton's feature film 9 to 5.
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Dolly Parton received nominations for Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Music and Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Lyrics as well as a nomination for Tony Award for Best Original Score.
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In June 2024, Parton announced an autobiographical musical about her life and career initially titled Hello, I'm Dolly, with a goal of opening on Broadway in 2026 with direction by Bartlett Sher.
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Dolly Parton revealed that she has been working on the musical for the last decade.
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Dolly Parton invested much of her earnings into business ventures in her native East Tennessee, notably Pigeon Forge.
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Dolly Parton is a co-owner of The Dollywood Company, which operates the theme park Dollywood, a dinner theater, Dolly Parton's Stampede, the waterpark Dollywood's Splash Country, and the Dream More Resort and Spa, all in Pigeon Forge.
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On September 29,2012, Dolly Parton officially withdrew her support for the Nashville park due to the restructuring of Gaylord Entertainment Company after its merger with Marriott International.
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Dolly Parton was a co-owner of Sandollar Productions, with Sandy Gallin, her former manager.
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Francis turned down Dolly Parton's offers, as she was already in negotiations with singer Gloria Estefan to produce the film, a collaboration now ended.
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Dolly Parton was named Top Female Box Office Star by the Motion Picture Herald in both 1981 and 1982 due to the film's success.
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In 1989, Dolly Parton returned to film acting in Steel Magnolias, based on the play Steel Magnolias by Robert Harling.
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The film was popular with critics and audiences, grossing over $95million in the US Dolly Parton starred in the television movies A Smoky Mountain Christmas, Wild Texas Wind, Unlikely Angel, portraying an angel sent back to earth after a deadly car crash, and Blue Valley Songbird, where her character lives through her music.
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Dolly Parton starred with James Woods in Straight Talk, which received mixed reviews, and grossed a mild $21million at the box office.
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Dolly Parton made a cameo appearance as herself in The Beverly Hillbillies, an adaptation of the long-running TV sitcom The Beverly Hillbillies.
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Dolly Parton has guest-starred in several sitcoms, including a 1990 episode of Designing Women as herself, the guardian movie star of Charlene's baby.
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Dolly Parton made a guest appearance on Reba portraying a real-estate agency owner and on The Simpsons.
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Dolly Parton appeared as herself in 2000 on the Halloween episode of Bette Midler's short-lived sitcom Bette, and on episode 14 of Babes.
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Dolly Parton made cameo appearances on the Disney Channel as "Aunt Dolly", visiting Hannah and her family in fellow Tennessean and real-life goddaughter Miley Cyrus's series Hannah Montana.
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Dolly Parton was nominated for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series.
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Dolly Parton was featured in The Book Lady, a documentary about her campaign for children's literacy.
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Dolly Parton expected to reprise her television role as Hannah's godmother in the musical comedy film Hannah Montana: The Movie, but the character was omitted from the screenplay.
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Dolly Parton co-starred with Queen Latifah in the musical film Joyful Noise, playing a choir director's widow who joins forces with Latifah's character, a mother of two teens, to save a small Georgia town's gospel choir.
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Dolly Parton had a cameo in the sequel, which aired in November 2016.
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In June 2018, Dolly Parton announced an eight-part Netflix series, featuring her music career.
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The series, called Dolly Parton's Heartstrings, aired in November 2019.
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In November 2021, Dolly Parton was confirmed to be appearing in the final season of Grace and Frankie in a guest-starring role, reuniting with her 9 to 5 co-stars Lily Tomlin and Jane Fonda.
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In July 2022, Dolly Parton appeared as a simulation of herself on sci-fi show The Orville in the episode "Midnight Blue".
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On Thanksgiving 2023, Dolly Parton performed songs during halftime at the Washington Commanders and Dallas Cowboys NFL football game.
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Dolly Parton's siblings are Willadeene, David Wilburn, Coy Denver, Robert Lee, Stella Mae, Cassie Nan, Randle Huston, Larry Gerald, twins Floyd Estel and Frieda Estelle, and Rachel Ann.
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Dolly Parton is a committed Christian, which has influenced many of her musical releases.
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Dolly Parton talked about her liberal approach to faith in the January 2024 issue of New Humanist magazine.
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Dolly Parton commented on Dean's romantic side, saying that he did spontaneous things to surprise her, and sometimes even wrote poems for her.
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Dolly Parton is the godmother of singer-songwriter and actress Miley Cyrus.
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Since the mid-1980s, Parton has supported many charitable efforts, particularly in the area of literacy, primarily through her Dollywood Foundation.
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Dolly Parton's literacy program, Dolly Parton's Imagination Library, which is a part of the Dollywood Foundation, was founded in honor of her father, who never learned to read or write.
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On May 8,2009, Dolly Parton gave the commencement speech at the graduation ceremony for the University of Tennessee, Knoxville's College of Arts and Sciences.
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In 2006, Parton published a cookbook, Dolly's Dixie Fixin's: Love, Laughter and Lots of Good Food.
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In December 2006, Parton pledged $500,000 toward a proposed $90million hospital and cancer center to be constructed in Sevierville in the name of Robert F Thomas, the physician who delivered her.
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Dolly Parton announced a benefit concert to raise additional funds for the project.
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Dolly Parton received the Woodrow Wilson Award for Public Service from the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars of the Smithsonian Institution at a ceremony in Nashville on November 8,2007.
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Dolly Parton has been a generous donor to Vanderbilt University Medical Center.
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In March 2021, Dolly Parton was vaccinated against COVID-19 at Vanderbilt University.
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Dolly Parton is one of the most-honored female country performers of all time.
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Dolly Parton has 42 career Top10 country albums, a record for any artist, and 110 career-charted singles over the past 40 years.
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Dolly Parton has earned 11 Grammy Awards and a total of 55 Grammy Award nominations, the third-most nominations of any female artist in the history of the prestigious awards.
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Dolly Parton is one of only six female artists, to win the Country Music Association's highest honor, Entertainer of the Year.
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Dolly Parton has been nominated for two Academy Awards and a Tony Award.
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Dolly Parton was nominated for an Emmy Award for her appearance in a 1978 Cher television special.
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Dolly Parton was awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for her music in 1984, located at 6712 Hollywood Boulevard in Hollywood, California; a star on the Nashville StarWalk for Grammy winners; and a bronze sculpture on the courthouse lawn in Sevierville.
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Dolly Parton has called that statue of herself in her hometown "the greatest honor", because it came from the people who knew her.
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Dolly Parton was inducted into the Grand Ole Opry in 1969, and in 1986 was named one of Ms.
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In 1999, Dolly Parton received country music's highest honor, an induction into the Country Music Hall of Fame.
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Dolly Parton received an honorary doctorate degree from Carson-Newman College in 1990.
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The artists who recorded versions of Dolly Parton's songs included Melissa Etheridge, Alison Krauss, Shania Twain, Meshell Ndegeocello, Norah Jones, and Sinead O'Connor.
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Dolly Parton herself contributed a re-recording of the title song, originally the title song for her first RCA album in 1968.
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Dolly Parton was awarded the Living Legend Medal by the US Library of Congress on April 14,2004, for her contributions to the cultural heritage of the United States.
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Dolly Parton is the focus of a Library of Congress collection exploring the influences of country music on her life and career.
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On December 3,2006, Parton received the Kennedy Center Honors from the John F Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts for her lifetime of contributions to the arts.
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On November 16,2010, Parton accepted the Liseberg Applause Award, the theme park industry's most prestigious honor, on behalf of Dollywood theme park during a ceremony held at IAAPA Attractions Expo 2010 in Orlando, Florida.
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In 2018, Dolly Parton received a second star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, inducted alongside Linda Ronstadt and Emmylou Harris in recognition of their work as a trio.
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Dolly Parton was recognized in the Guinness World Records 2018 Edition for holding records for the Most Decades with a Top20 hit on Billboard's Hot Country Songs Chart and Most Hits on Billboard's Hot Country Songs Chart by a Female Artist.
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Dolly Parton turned down the Presidential Medal of Freedom a third time during the Biden presidency to avoid the appearance of politics.
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In late 2022, Dolly Parton received a $100-million Courage and Civility Award from the founder of Amazon, Jeff Bezos.
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In 2023, Dolly Parton was awarded American Library Association Honorary Membership.
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Dolly Parton is a Kentucky Colonel, awarded to her by the governor of Kentucky.