Parton, Dolly (1946–)

American musician. Born Dolly Rebecca Parton, Jan 19, 1946, in Sevierville, TN; dau. of Robert Lee Parton (tobacco farmer) and Avie Lee (Owens) Parton; sister of Rachel Dennison (actress), Stella Parton (actress), and Randy Parton (actor); m. Carl Dean (businessman), 1966.

Appeared on Cass Walker tv show at 10, Grand Ole Opry at 12, and was regular on Walker's radio show until 18; joined Porter Wagoner's country-music tv show and became popular as "Miss Dolly"; sang hit duets with Wagoner, including "Just Someone I Used to Know" (1969) and "Daddy Was an Old Time Preacher Man" (1970); had many solo country hits, including "Joshua" (1970) and "Coat of Many Colors" (1971); left Wagoner and released album, Jolene (1974), which included #1 country hit title track; had hit with her own song, "I Will Always Love You" (1974), which was also a blockbuster for Whitney Houston (1992); hosted tv music show, "Dolly" (1976); released platinum pop LP, Here You Come Again (1977), whose title track went gold (1978); other hits include "You're the Only One" (1979), "Islands in the Stream" (1983) and "Yellow Roses" (1989); nominated for Oscar for film debut, 9 to 5 (1980); other films include The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas (1982) and Steel Magnolias (1989); opened theme park, Dollywood (1986); with Emmylou Harris and Linda Ronstadt, released Grammy Award-winning Trio (1987); other albums include White Limozeen (1989), Straight Talk (1992) and Little Sparrow (2001); with debut bluegrass album, The Grass Is Blue (1994), won Album of Year at International Bluegrass Music Awards; established Dolly Parton Wellness and Rehabilitation Center. Received numerous Country Music Association Awards and Grammy Awards; inducted into Country Music Hall of Fame (1994).

See also autobiography, Dolly: My Life and Unfinished Business (1994).