“I would love to grow old with [Carl]. If he should die first, I may never marry again,”Dolly Partonsaid in 1981.
Decades after she made the solemn statement, her words now take on a deeper meaning as the music icon mourns the death of husbandCarl Thomas Dean.
HighlightsDolly Parton announced the death of her longtime husband Carl Thomas Dean this week.“Carl and I spent many wonderful years together,” the country singer said.The pair met at a laundromat on the very first day the country music icon moved to Nashville to fulfill her dreams.For one of their first dates, she recalled pulling up to a drive-in window and getting McDonald’s.
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Dolly Parton announced the death of her longtime husband Carl Thomas Dean this week
Image credits:dollyparton
“Carl and I spent many wonderful years together,” the country singer said in a social media post.
“Words can’t do justice to the love we shared for over 60 years,” she continued. “Thank you for your prayers and sympathy.”
Despite being married to America’s sweetheart, Carl largely stayed out of the spotlight and focused on his asphalt-paving business in Nashville over the years.
Meanwhile, his wife went on to becomeone of the most famous singers of all time.
Their 60-year story of love, support, and romance has fans gushing
Dolly was 18 when shemoved to Nashville in 1964 to fulfill her music dreams.
On her very first day in the new city, the singer met 21-year-old Carl outside the Wishy Washy Laundromat.
The pair struck up a conversation, and Dolly said he was “genuinely interested in finding out who I was and what I was about.”
Image credits:SevierFun
“I was surprised and delighted that while he talked to me, he looked at my face (a rare thing for me),” she said on herwebsite.
Carl described the encounter as “the day my life began.”
The pair met at a laundromat on the very first day the country music icon moved to Nashville to fulfill her dreams
Image credits:Katherine Bomboy/NBC
“He came up every day that week and we set out on the porch,” she told theNew York Timesin 1976. “I wouldn’t even take him in the house.”
“He knew right the minute he saw me that that’s the one he wanted,” the country queen said.
Image credits:LaurenRock
For one of their first dates, sherecalledpulling up to a drive-in window and getting McDonald’s.
Dolly reflected on how she had a clear purpose on moving to Nashville and “hadn’t intended to marry.” And Carl “understood” this.
“Nobody could make me quit,” she told theNew York Times. “He never tried to make me give it up. And he’s proud of me, but he’s not necessarily a fan. He don’t particularly like to hear me sing.”
They tied the knot in 1966 with only her mother, the pastor, and his wife as witnesses
Image credits:dollyparton.com
Two years into their relationship, the couple exchanged wedding vows on May 30, 1966, in Ringgold, Georgia.
They chose the city lying 150 miles southeast of Nashville to escape any attention from Tennessee newspapers.
“My mother made me a little white dress and a little bouquet,” Dolly wasquotedtellingCMT.
She was determined not to get married in a courthouse. So they found a little Baptist church in town and got married with only her mother, the pastor, and his wife as witnesses.
Carl accompanied his wife to an awards show in 1967 and said he was “uncomfortable the whole night”
“To him, I’m his star.” 🥹 We’re honoring Dolly Parton’s husband, Carl Dean’s passing with this look back on their relationship.pic.twitter.com/hayPOCO9RA
— E! News (@enews)March 4, 2025
Image credits:enews
Over the years, Carl has stayed out of the public eye, especially after Dolly once convinced him to accompany her on one glitzy night.
In 1967, Dolly rented him a tux and begged him to join her at the BMI Awards.
Theyreturned home that night with her awardfor the BMI Song of the Year. But Carl admitted to her that he was “uncomfortable the whole night.”
“He said, ‘Look, now I want you to do everything you want to do, and I wish you the best, but don’t ever ask me to go to another one of these damn things because I ain’t going,’” she said on Bunnie Xo’sDumb Blondepodcast in December.
“And he never did,” she added.
Nevertheless, they went on to enjoy a 60-year love story before Carl passed away.
The singer revealed that her hit song ‘Jolene’was based on a red-haired woman who had a “terrible crush” on her husband
The Oscar nominee revealed in the past thather 1973 hitJolenewasbasedon a “little bit of truth” about her husband and a red-haired woman at the local bank.
“She got this terrible crush on my husband,” she toldNPRin 2008. “And he just loved going to the bank because she paid him so much attention.”
It became a “running joke” between her and Carl, she added.
“I was saying, ‘Hell, you’re spending a lot of time at the bank. I don’t believe we’ve got that kind of money,’” she continued. “So it’s reallyan innocent song all around, but sounds like a dreadful one.”
Image credits:RussOnPolitics
The Oscar nominee recalled wearing the “most beautiful gown” for the intimate affair, while her husband dressed like “a handsome dude of Hollywood.”
It was a “simple little ceremony at our chapel at our place,” she toldRolling Stonein 2016.
“If I had it to do all over, I’d do it all over again, and we did,” she added. “I’m dragging him kicking and screaming into the next 50 years. Wish us luck.”
The longtime sweethearts renewed their vows on their 50th wedding anniversary
Dolly revealed that one of the secrets to her long-lasting marriage was not being “in each other’s face all the time.”
“We have different interests, but yet we have the things we love to do together,” shetoldETin 2022.
“So it was meant to be, I think,” she added. “He was the one I was supposed to have and vice versa.”
“He was the one I was supposed to have,” Dolly said about her late husband
As Dolly mourns the loss of her late husband, fans are gushing over the couple’s romance and sharing in the singer’s grief.
“She fiercely protected that love,” one said, while another wrote, “I hope he will be waiting for her in heaven!”
“Heartbreaking news, their love story was one for the ages. Carl is now her guardian angel,” another fan said.
“I can’t imagine being married to someone for 60 years and then losing them,” one said. “Gosh how hard that must be.”
Another wrote, “WHAT a blessing they have been to each other. They leave a legacy of love and devotion. Bless you all!”
“60 years with the same person is a life,” one social media user remarked
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