DOLLY Parton has revealed the key to her decades-long marriage with her husband, Carl Dean, and the strict rule she must follow.
The couple have kept their relationship out of the spotlight since tying the knot in May 1966.
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However, that’s not the only reason their love has stood the test of time, as Dolly, 78, opened up about how they’ve kept the passion alive.
In an interview with E! News, the country singer admitted she and Carl, 81, frequently spending time apart has helped them maintain a healthy marriage.
“I’m just saying, anything new gets old,” the 9 to 5 singer said. “And I think if you just kind of stay together so much, you just nitpick every little thing and notice all that.”
Dolly also added that their focus on different things makes them feel “excited” when they’re together.
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The actress shared some of the activities the pair enjoy doing, including cooking, traveling in their RV, and having picnics.
CARL’S DEMAND
However, one firm boundary that Carl set early in their relationship is that he wants no part of Dolly’s fame.
“Carl has never been in the limelight and all, never wanted to be in it,” Dolly confessed on her Apple Music radio show What Would Dolly Do? in November.
She then recalled a time when he accompanied her to a glitzy event that solidified his stance on staying out of the public eye.
“He went to one thing with me early on when we first married to a BMI Song of the Year, and he came out there taking off his tuxedo, his tie, and all that, and said, ‘Don’t ever ask me to go to another one of these damn things because I ain’t going,'” Dolly reminisced on her show.
“I never asked him and he never did.”
While Dolly has respected Carl’s wishes, she’s continued to stay on top in the industry and doesn’t appear to be slowing down anytime soon.
Earlier this month, The Sun exclusively reported that the country music legend has been secretly working on a new album dropping later this year.
“It is an album that documents her whole life. It has been a huge undertaking which involves the whole family,” Dolly’s niece, Jada, revealed.
“It is an album she has produced with more than 30 tracks with over 20 family members. She sings with us on every track.”
Dolly Parton’s Career Highlights
Dolly Parton is one of the most well-known country stars in the business, and her career has continued to flourish. Here’s a look at the highlights of the music legend’s decades-long career.
- Dolly wrote and released her first single, Puppy Love, including the B-track Girl Left Alone, on Goldband Records when she was 11 years old.
- Although her single wasn’t a big hit, she ended up performing at Nashville, Tennessee’s Grand Ole Opry for the first time at 13 years old and was introduced by Johnny Cash.
- Dolly made the Billboard country charts in January 1967 with two singles from Monument Records: Dumb Blonde and Something Fishy.
- The singer earned her first number-one hit in 1971 with her single Joshua.
- In 1974, Dolly’s arguably most well-known song, Jolene, reached number one on the country charts.
- Her music continued to succeed, and she was awarded the Female Vocalist of the Year award at the CMAs in 1975.
- Dolly’s track, Here You Come Again, achieved platinum status in 1978, and the album earned her a Grammy award for Best Female Country Vocal Performance.
- In 1980, Dolly starred in her first film, 9 to 5, alongside Lily Tomlin and Jane Fonda and released her hit song of the same name.
- The star opened her famed amusement park, Dollywood, in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, in 1986.
- Later that year, she was inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame.
- At 75 years old, Dolly recreated her 1978 Playboy Cover for her husband Carl Dean’s birthday.
- In May 2022, it was announced that Dolly would officially be inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, alongside Eminem, Lionel Richie, Carly Simon, Eurythmics, Duran Duran, and Pat Benatar.
Jada continued, “The album covers songs written about her childhood, her mother and father, aunts and uncles, brothers and sisters, all the way to her nieces and nephews.
“We all get to share interpretations of her songs or write our own songs for it. It has been a huge crazy project.”
Days earlier, The Sun reported that Dolly also has a four-part docu-series in the works, which documents her family’s journey from London to the United States – specifically Tennessee.
Aside from her music career, Dolly recently made headlines after fans feared her popular amusement park, Dollywood, in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, was closing.
The theme park suddenly shut down on May 8, leading many to wonder if the closure would be permanent.
Fans were later relieved to learn that the park only temporarily closed due to poor weather conditions in the area and reopened the following day.
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