Dolly Parton has maintained her modesty throughout her extraordinary career as a performer, businesswoman, and philanthropist, while accumulating enormous recognition and wealth. Success has unsurprisingly followed her throughout her journey.
Parton knows the hardships of poverty having grown up in a large family. Despite her success as a hugely important Hollywood actress today, she has never forgotten her lowly roots.
In Nashville, Tennessee, in 1955, Dolly Parton posed for a picture. | Source: Getty Images
The genuine Dolly Rebecca Parton, the music icon, was welcomed home by her parents on January 19, 1946, at their home on Locust Ridge in Sevierville, Tennessee. She has eleven siblings and was born in a one-bedroom cottage.
Her father, sharecropper Robert Lee Parton, worked in construction to augment his income because he was unable to attend school and was hence illiterate.
The legendary country singer grew up surrounded by music because of her family’s strong musical heritage. Despite their challenging living conditions, singing brought them together and brought them joy.
In 1965, in Nashville, Tennessee, Dolly Parton posed for a picture. | Source: Getty Images
Parton learned to sing from her mother, the entertainer Avie Lee Owens. She played her a variety of melodies, including Elizabethan ballads and church hymns that had been passed down through the years in her family.
Parton’s grandfather, Jake Robert Owens, composed the hymn “Singing His Praise” while serving as a priest. A number of Parton’s siblings developed a passion for music, and a few of them participated in her family band.
Sam Owens, a musician and singer-songwriter in his own right, was another uncle of Parton. When she was a little child, her uncle—who loved music—was the first to see that she had the ability to become a well-known musician.
Stella Mae, Cassie Nan, the twins Freida Estelle and Rachel Ann, Willadeene, David Wilburn, Coy Denver, Bobby Lee, Robert, and Larry are among Parton’s siblings. After a fight with cancer, Robert passed away in 2021, while Larry passed away at birth.
Parton often assisted her parents in taking care of the younger children because she was the fourth of her twelve siblings. She shared a little roof with her family.
Their log cottage had no running water or electricity at the time, and it only had a living room and one bedroom. The building is still standing today.
Parton has never shied away from talking about her modest upbringing or how it shaped the way she saw the world. She knows what it’s like to be poor; she grew up in a huge household with little money.
In a promotional picture for her 1984 movie “Rhinestone,” Dolly Parton beams. | Source: Getty Images
Parton talked back to The Guardian in 2016 on her early years spent in the remote Tennessee highlands, emphasizing the happy memories from that time in her life. She stated:
“Obviously, there were problems, but I would rather look back on the good times.”
She recalled the times she had spent with her siblings, singing in church, and doing household chores that she didn’t really enjoy. She also remembered all of the laughs she had with her family in the past.
Parton talked about how her siblings would always sing and how she would always attempt to get them to back her up when she pretended to be the lead vocalist on stage, but they would never show any interest.
Parton remembered that her brothers would frequently cram themselves into their small home, which resulted in a lot of mocking and fighting. But they remained a family through all of the turmoil.
The cottage was too small for them to comfortably hang out in, she said, so they spent most of their time outside. The courtyard functioned as an addition for socializing over meals, entertainment, and games.
Parton stated that her family was constantly appreciative of their access to food and a roof. Her parents consistently stressed that other families suffered more than their own, even though it was not exactly what they desired. She remembered:
“I never felt poor, even though we were.”
Parton’s enthusiasm and musical ability would ultimately enable her to become one of the most popular and successful country music artists of all time, despite her family’s humble beginnings.
Growing Up in Poverty
Parton said that although she had happy childhood memories, being poor meant having to endure difficult living circumstances. She and her 14-member family essentially lived in a shanty and had little access to needs.
She revealed that she was just eight years old when she first saw a toilet and bathroom in her aunt’s house and was attracted by them in a March 1978 Playboy magazine interview with journalist Lawrence Grobel.
Parton revealed that she and her siblings were terrified to use the restroom because they believed it would swallow them up, while laughing at how naive and innocent they were at the time. “It was just very strange,” she remembered.
For Parton and her family, taking a daily shower was not an extravagance. Frequently, they would produce their own soap, and occasionally, they would cram themselves into the truck and head to the river to have a bath.
Although there was a brook close by, they all chose to bathe in the river since it served as their “big bath.” As their homemade soap cascaded down the river, they would swim together and give each other’s hair a bath.
Parton compared their river bath to a “bathtub,” jokeing about how filthy they were back then and how it would have left a ring around the Little Pigeon River. For them, taking a river bath was a midsummer rite.
Every member of the household would have a pan of water to wash as much as possible in the winter. Parton answered Grobel’s question about how frequently she and her family took winter baths by saying:
“Well, as the saying goes, we bathed once a week whether we needed to or not.”
Parton started to value bathing more after she started high school. She would bathe every night because her younger siblings would not wash their hands before bed. She disclosed:
The children urinated on me each night. In the bed, we slept three and four. Every night, I would wash. The kids would also wet on me as soon as I went to bed, so I would have to get up in the morning and repeat the entire process.”
On November 5, 2019, in New York City, Dolly Parton is present at the We Are Family Foundation event held at Hammerstein Ballroom. | Found via Getty Images
Parton was not hesitant to express her opinions, explaining that while getting peed on would seem unhygienic to some, the urine actually provided some warmth during the winter.
She remembered how cold it would get at home because she lived in the mountains, and she even mentioned that it was almost enjoyable to get pissed on because the room was just as cold as the outside. They would all curl up in bed, she claimed.
distributing millions
Parton has said that her family is wealthy and content in other ways, despite their lack of material wealth. She became humble as she grew older, and even after becoming wealthy, she never stopped helping those in need, just like her family had done when she was younger. She said:
“My greatest love will always be my family.” Although it might occasionally get lost in the shuffle, family is a part of all I do.
Parton claimed that her family was the inspiration behind her music and that her theme park, Dollywood, and one of its acts, Dixie Stampede, are meant to be places where families can enjoy themselves and spend quality time together.
Parton is a self-made millionaire, with a projected net worth of $375 million in 2022 according to Forbes. Her theme park and ownership rights to music publishing were the main sources of her financial success.
In the 1970s, she refused to share the critically praised song “I Will Always Love You” with Elvis Presley, one of the nearly 3,000 songs that she is in ownership of. When Whitney Houston performed the song in the 1990s, this choice paid off.
In addition, Parton is paid a publishing fee for songs that are sold, aired, or featured in motion pictures. According to Forbes, her songs are valued at $150 million, while her royalties have brought in between $6 and $8 million.
But the source of the music icon’s enormous wealth is her well-known theme park, Dollywood, which is one of Tennessee’s most popular travel destinations. According to reports, it earns $3 million annually.
When the theme park was still known as Pigeon Forge in 1968, the country music artist made an investment in it. Later, she gave it a new name, “Dollywood,” a pun on the word “Hollywood.” There is a water park and a hotel in the park.
In addition, Parton just unveiled Doggy Parton, a pun on her well-known name, as a new business. The business, which makes apparel and toys for dogs, was founded because of her passion for animals.
Parton learned the value of sharing her accomplishment with others from her early experiences. She is a businessman and singer in addition to being involved in a number of social and humanitarian organizations and having given millions of dollars to people in need.
In order to collect $13 million for the survivors of the East Tennessee wildfires that devastated Pigeon Forge and Gatlinburg in 2016, Parton teamed together with a group of musicians.
At “Smoky Mountains Rise: A Benefit for the My People Fund,” other well-known performers included Chris Stapelton, Kenny Rogers, Lauren Alaina, Alison Krauss, Reba McEntire, Cyndi Lauper, and Chris Young.
Following her niece’s leukemia treatment at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, Parton donated $1 million to the Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital in 2017.
Apart from extending monetary support to individuals impacted by natural calamities, Parton made a noteworthy impact on the healthcare industry through her magnanimous financial contributions.
When she gave $1 million to vaccine research in 2020 amid the global COVID-19 pandemic, which affected people all over the world, she made headlines. Her input was useful in developing the Moderna vaccine.
Parton’s unwavering commitment to advancing early childhood literacy is another well-known quality. Each month, she provides over a million youngsters with free books through her nonprofit initiative, Imagination Library.
In order to assist kids in learning to read and write, Parton and Robert Lee established a non-profit organization in 1995, drawing inspiration from her father’s personal experience with illiteracy. Although it began in eastern Tennessee, it has expanded to assist children in all 50 states as well as the District of Columbia.
Other nations, like Australia, Canada, and the United Kingdom, have also been affected by the literacy initiative. Parton announced at the Library of Congress in 2018 that the initiative has distributed its 100 millionth book.
When the campaign first began, Parton just wanted to support her father and her hometown; she had no idea it would become so popular. She said with joy, “But then it just took its own wings, and I guess it was meant to be.”
Parton was also pleased that her father was quite proud of having contributed something valuable. Before he died in 2000, he had the opportunity to witness the results of their labor.
Her goals for the Imagination Library are also very lofty. She acknowledged having lofty goals and wishing to donate one billion books in her lifetime.
Despite having a difficult upbringing, Parton never lost sight of the value of community and family. She made the most of her riches by giving millions of dollars a year to a range of humanitarian causes, such as health, education, and disaster relief.
Her lowly beginnings instilled in her the virtues of perseverance, hard effort, and the unifying power of music. She also recalls the love, laughter, and happiness that characterized her childhood home and the family who stood by her side no matter what as she reflects on her life.
Meu vizinho de baixo me pediu para ficar mais quieto à noite, mas não estou em casa há uma semana
Quando Piper retorna de uma viagem com suas amigas, ela mal pode esperar para chegar em casa e ver seu marido. Mas enquanto ela desfaz as malas do carro, uma vizinha se aproxima dela, reclamando do barulho do seu apartamento. Se Piper não estava em casa, quem Matthew estava entretendo na ausência dela?
Eu tinha acabado de voltar de uma viagem de acampamento de uma semana com meus amigos. Era tudo sobre nós tirarmos um tempo de nossas vidas e aproveitar estar longe da cidade.
Meu marido, Matthew, ficou para trás, alegando que precisava ficar em casa.
Uma mulher sentada do lado de fora e olhando a vista | Fonte: Midjourney
“Tenho que ir para casa, Piper”, ele disse quando eu estava arrumando minhas malas. “São apenas responsabilidades de trabalho. Há reuniões e apresentações chegando.”
“Você tem certeza?”, perguntei a ele. “Por que você não vem junto, e então podemos encontrar um lugar para você trabalhar entre tudo isso?”
Matthew sorriu para mim e sentou-se na cama.
Uma mulher sentada em uma mala | Fonte: Midjourney
“Está tudo bem, querida”, ele disse. “Vá se juntar aos outros e divirta-se. Você precisa de um tempo longe deste lugar.”
Ele continuou me persuadindo a fazer a viagem e, por fim, eu cedi.
Um homem sorridente | Fonte: Midjourney
“Se você tem certeza, então está resolvido. Eu vou”, eu disse. “Mas eu vou preparar sua comida antes de ir.”
Duas semanas depois, eu estava de volta em casa, me sentindo rejuvenescida e feliz por estar de volta com meu marido.
Um close-up de alimentos em recipientes | Fonte: Midjourney
“Senti sua falta”, eu disse quando entrei em casa.
Matthew estava cozinhando para nós, havia música tocando ao fundo, e eu me senti grata por poder voltar para casa e encontrá-lo.
“Vou só desempacotar o carro”, eu disse. “Mas o jantar está com um cheiro ótimo!”
Um homem cozinhando | Fonte: Midjourney
Saí e comecei a desempacotar minhas coisas quando nossa vizinha de baixo, Sra. Peterson, se aproximou de mim pelo carro. Sua expressão severa me fez parar tudo.
“Está tudo bem?”, perguntei a ela, pronta para fazer o que ela precisasse.
“Não, Piper,” ela disse, cruzando os braços. “Eu sei que você e seu marido são um casal jovem e ficam acordados até altas horas. Mas você poderia tentar manter isso quieto à noite? Pelo menos a partir das nove e meia. Na semana passada, eu mal conseguia dormir.”
Uma mulher mais velha | Fonte: Midjourney
Pisquei, surpreso.
“O quê? Sra. Peterson, não estive em casa a semana toda. Tem certeza de que veio de nossa casa?”
A velha franziu a testa, e percebi que ela estava tentando ver se eu estava brincando ou não.
“Bem, alguém estava fazendo muito barulho, Piper,” ela disse. “Parecia uma festa toda noite.”
Pessoas reunidas em um apartamento | Fonte: Midjourney
Eu não tinha certeza do que estava ouvindo. Eu sabia que Matthew era um cara legal, mas estávamos no último andar, e não havia ninguém morando acima de nós.
Havia a possibilidade de eu não conhecer meu marido tão bem quanto eu pensava?
Pedi desculpas profusamente, minha mente acelerada. Assim que ela se afastou, corri escada acima para confrontar Matthew. Eu precisava saber do que a Sra. Peterson estava falando.
Uma mulher olhando para frente | Fonte: Midjourney
Se ele estivesse entretendo as pessoas, então isso era uma coisa, e estava tudo bem.
Mas e se ele estivesse tendo um caso?
Uma silhueta de um casal | Fonte: Midjourney
“Pare com isso”, murmurei para mim mesmo enquanto estava no elevador.
Encontrei meu marido deitado no sofá, assistindo TV.
“Matt, precisamos conversar”, eu disse, minha voz me denunciando.
Ele olhou para mim, pegou o controle remoto e desligou a TV.
Um homem sentado no sofá assistindo TV | Fonte: Midjourney
“O que há de errado, Piper?”
“A Sra. Peterson reclamou do barulho vindo do nosso apartamento toda noite na semana passada. Eu não estava aqui, Matthew. Que diabos está acontecendo, e com quem você estava fazendo tanto barulho?”
O rosto do meu marido empalideceu, e ele enterrou o rosto nas mãos. Meu coração afundou.
Um homem segurando a cabeça | Fonte: Midjourney
Havia algo sobre a resignação de seu corpo que me fez pensar que ele era culpado. Mas culpado de quê?
Ele era simplesmente culpado de ter amigos em casa? Ou de ter um caso?
“Por favor, me diga a verdade”, implorei, sentando-me no sofá em frente a ele.
Uma mulher carrancuda | Fonte: Midjourney
“Eu não estou tendo um caso,” ele murmurou, quase inaudível. “E eu sei que é isso que você está pensando. Mas eu estava com vergonha de te contar a verdade.”
“Que verdade? O que você quer dizer? O que está acontecendo?”, perguntei, as perguntas se lançando em Matthew.
Meu marido respirou fundo e olhou para cima, seus olhos cheios de algo que eu não conseguia entender.
Um close-up de um homem | Fonte: Midjourney
“Perdi meu emprego há alguns meses, Piper. Não sabia como te contar. Mas estava desesperada para ganhar dinheiro para que você não percebesse o déficit. Enquanto você estava fora, aluguei nosso apartamento para ganhar algum dinheiro. Fiquei na casa do Trent enquanto o apartamento estava alugado.”
Dois homens sentados em um sofá | Fonte: Midjourney
Suspirei, o alívio e a confusão se dissipando do meu corpo.
“Então, o barulho era das pessoas que alugaram o lugar?”, perguntei, precisando ouvir isso dele.
Ele assentiu.
“Desculpe, querida”, disse Matthew. “Eu simplesmente não sabia como te contar. Eu não queria que você se preocupasse. E eu não queria que você perdesse a viagem só por minha causa. Eu também tive uma entrevista durante a primeira semana, e eu não estava prestes a remarcá-la.”
Um homem sorridente em uma entrevista | Fonte: Midjourney
“Por que você simplesmente não me contou, Matt?”, perguntei. “Nós poderíamos ter descoberto algo juntos.”
“Eu sei,” ele disse, sua voz embargada. “Mas eu estava com medo de te decepcionar.”
Respirei fundo, tentando processar tudo.
Uma mulher sentada em um sofá | Fonte: Midjourney
“Somos um time, Matthew”, eu disse. “Você não precisa enfrentar coisas assim sozinho. Podemos lidar com isso juntos. É disso que se trata o casamento.”
Meu marido sorriu e me puxou para perto dele.
“Agora entendo isso”, disse ele.
Um casal sentado em um sofá juntos | Fonte: Midjourney
Ficamos em silêncio por um tempo, ambos tentando descobrir o próximo passo. Eu sabia que ele estaria tentando encontrar outro emprego, e eu não queria fazer um milhão de perguntas sobre isso.
Ele me avisava quando algo acontecia.
“Venha”, ele disse. “Vamos comer.”
Um casal sentado junto a uma mesa | Fonte: Midjourney
Nós nos sentamos à mesa e Matthew me perguntou sobre a viagem.
“Conte-me tudo”, ele disse. “Liam ficou bêbado e fez alguma coisa estúpida?”
“É claro que ele fez!” Eu ri enquanto Matthew me servia uma taça de vinho. “Ele tentou moonshine de outros campistas e acabou correndo, atravessando as barracas.”
Um homem bebendo | Fonte: Midjourney
“Aposto que Sasha não ficou impressionada”, Matthew riu. “Aquele casal está sempre discordando.”
Enquanto lavávamos a louça juntos naquela noite, Matthew suspirou e se encostou no balcão.
“Obrigado por entender”, ele disse. “Obrigado por não pensar que eu estava encobrindo um caso.”
Sorri para meu marido, envergonhada por ter pensado na possibilidade de ele ter outra mulher em nossa casa.
Um close-up de uma mulher sorridente | Fonte: Midjourney
“Mas você se certificou de trocar a roupa de cama?”, perguntei a ele. “Não vou dormir em uma cama em que outras pessoas já estiveram.”
Matthew riu alto.
“Nosso quarto estava trancado, querida”, ele disse. “Eles só usaram o quarto de hóspedes.”
Um quarto com janelas abertas | Fonte: Midjourney
Nos dias seguintes, conversamos sobre tudo. Falamos sobre a perda do emprego dele, a pressão financeira e nosso plano para seguir em frente.
“Estou procurando ativamente, Piper”, ele disse enquanto tomava café e comia torrada na manhã seguinte. “Eu configurei alertas para posições de trabalho nas quais eu me encaixaria. E cortei quaisquer outras despesas desnecessárias. Isso não vai durar muito. Eu posso te prometer isso.”
Quanto à Sra. Peterson, desci até o apartamento dela, pronto para explicar tudo.
Um casal conversando | Fonte: Midjourney
“Sinto muito”, eu disse. “Eu não sabia de tudo o que Matthew estava passando. E ele acabou alugando nosso apartamento como Airbnb por uma semana, só para ganhar algum dinheiro com isso.”
“Oh, querida,” ela disse, seus olhos suavizando enquanto ela colocava a chaleira no fogo. “Está tudo bem! Eu entendo agora. Eu só pensei que vocês dois estavam tirando vantagem da situação. Mas eu entendo agora.”
“Obrigado por entender”, eu disse. “Só precisamos de um minuto para nos recompor.”
Uma velha sentada à mesa | Fonte: Midjourney
A Sra. Peterson andou pela cozinha, preparando chá para nós.
“Olha, Piper,” ela disse, me dando um prato de biscoitos. “Estou aqui e disposta a te ajudar se você precisar de ajuda.”
Acontece que, em sua juventude, a Sra. Peterson passou por momentos difíceis e sabia o quanto era difícil pedir ajuda.
Uma mulher segurando um prato de biscoitos | Fonte: Midjourney
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