Little Known Facts About Dolly Parton's 53 Year Marriage

Dolly Parton is one of country music's most beloved stars. Her success can be seen as emblematic of the American Dream, given her rural upbringing in a large family with little means in the mountains of Tennessee. One of Dolly Parton's lesser known accomplishments, however, is her long-lasting marriage to the ever elusive Carl Dean. Their love story is far from unusual, except for the part where she's a public figure, and he seemed to lead a mundane life away from the spotlight. Somehow, they've figured out a way to keep their relationship going. After years of speculation, Dolly is finally opening up about the secret to their success.

As excited as both the Partons and the Deans were for their children, Dolly would have to deflate their joy when her label called and gave her instructions as to how they wanted her wedding to play out. Given that she was on the verge of releasing her debut album, the executives didn't want her wedding to be a distraction from the work they'd done cultivating their image. Dolly was eager to please, but wouldn't be deterred just yet.

Dolly Parton is rarely seen with her husband by her side, but that doesn't mean he hasn't been behind the scenes for the majority of her career. Parton and her husband, Carl Dean have been married for more than 50 years, but getting to that milestone hasn't always been an easy road to travel. In her recently released book, Dolly on Dolly: Interviews and Encounters with Dolly Parton, she shared some surprising revelations about her long-lasting relationship.

Dolly Parton moved to Nashville the moment she graduated high school, and it seemed fate was on her side. The day after she moved, she happened to meet and fall in love with a handsome stranger who spotted her doing laundry at the Wishy Washy Laundromat. He was concerned that she would get a sunburn in her revealing clothing and saw fit to tell her so. Dolly said she immediately noticed he was looking at her face first, and the couple quickly fell in love.

Dolly Parton was enchanted by the tall, good-looking stranger who seemed so worried about her creamy skin. The attraction went more than skin deep, however, as Dolly found herself "surprised and delighted" that he was looking at her while they chatted, rather than just her body. The "rare thing for me," she said—and "seemed to be genuinely interested in finding out who I was and what I was about."