Dolly Parton: An Opinion or Two

By Gary Geyer

The woman just seems too good to be true. Dolly Parton has always been a straight shooter and has never been shy to speak her mind. What follows is an opinion or two.

More patriotic than political.

Dolly seems more socially liberal than conservative. When asked by Bill O’Reilly if she was a conservative she told him “Not really, I’m more patriotic than political.”

Prostitution.

She has said, “I don’t believe in judging anyone for the way they live their lives.” That appears to be true. When she made The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas, Dolly made several comments supporting prostitution.

Nudity.

Dolly has been asked to pose nude on several occasions and has said that she never would. She has said she has no problem if others choose to do it. Of course Dolly’s refusal to pose herself hasn’t stopped her from wearing outfits that accentuate, shall we say, certain physical attributes. (Dolly has appeared on the cover of Playboy in a bunny outfit she designed herself.)

Racial harmony.

Dolly is a long time advocate of racial harmony and very much admired and supported Marin Luther King, JFK and Robert Kennedy.

Semi-feminist.

Over the years, Dolly has written several songs with themes that could be interpreted as (sort of) feminist. That’s no surprise since she has long been a supporter of equality for women.

AIDS.

She also has been very vocal on AIDS issues. As a matter of fact, Dolly’s production company’s first project was an Academy Award-winning documentary on the AIDS quilt.

All God’s children.

Dolly’s fan base covers a large range -she has both straight fans and gay fans. She has said, “I think it’s great when people accept themselves for exactly who they are and accept other people. I think that’s the key to happiness and success. It doesn’t matter who you are, as long as you do that really good. We’re all God’s children. He loves us all the same. We have to learn to love each other and ourselves a little better.”

Gay marriage.

When asked her opinion of gay marriage, Dolly said joking that “gay people should have the right to be as miserable” as married straight people are.”

Religion.

As for Dolly’s religious beliefs, she says she is a Christian but has never publicly identified herself with any one particular denomination. She was raised Pentecostal (She said her grandfather was a Pentecostal “Holy Roller” preacher.) Dolly says she’s not a real “religious” person but says she is very “spiritual” and has a strong, personal relationship with God. She says she relies on God for strength and believes that is where all of her gifts, talents and successes come from.

Like I said, too good to be true. <<

Basic Bio

Dolly Parton was born January 19, 1946 near Locust Ridge Tennessee. Not in it-near it. She has been married to Carl Dean since May 30, 1966. Dolly has 11 siblings. She has written over 3000 songs (Her biggest hit “I Will Always Love You, was a country hit in 1974, 1982 and 1995 and [sung by Whitney Houston] the biggest selling pop single of 1992.). Wrote 1 autobiography, (My Life and Other Unfinished Business), owns a restaurant chain (Dixie Stampede Restaurants), a theme park (Dollywood), a record label (Blue Eye) and a production company (Ca-hoots).

The information in this article has been gathered from various sources, among them the Online Dolly Parton Newsmagazine dollymania.net.