Emotional Affairs, Bitter Sibling Rivalries and More of Dolly Parton’s Deepest Family Secrets

Dolly Parton has always been brutally honest about her struggles and her family’s.

She Was Punished For How She Dressed

“As a teenager … my father loathed the way I dressed,” Dolly told The Guardian. “My grandfather … even beat me for it. But I refused to back down. I’d rather go against my daddy than myself. I have to be who I am.”

She Had an Affair of the Heart

In the early 1980s, Dolly reportedly developed a deep emotional connection to another man that strained her marriage. But she says it did not become sexual, and she and Carl Dean worked through it. “I’ve never been with anybody else,” she says. “I’m not that kind of person.”

She Considered Suicide

That low point in her life almost ended in tragedy. One afternoon, Dolly “noticed in the nightstand drawer my gun that I keep for burglars. I looked at it a long time. … Then our little dog, Popeye, came running up the stairs. The tap-tap-tap of his paws jolted me back to reality. Then I prayed. I kinda believe Popeye was a spiritual messenger from God.”

She Had a Rivalry With Her Sister

Dolly Parton and her sister Stella shared a quiet professional rivalry, as Dolly’s fame overshadowed Stella’s own singing career. Stella admitted, “I’ve always adored my sister, but I’ve also had to fight to have my own identity.”

Her Family Battled Addiction

“I mean, we’ve got gays, we’ve got lesbians, we’ve got drunks, we’ve got drug addicts,” Dolly says of her diverse family on Larry King Now. “I don’t judge [anyone] because I’ve got some of everybody in my immediate family, whether they be trans, whether they be gay ….”

Her Parents Didn’t Have It Easy

Her mother, Avie Lee, faced health issues, and her father, Robert Lee Parton — who liked to drink — couldn’t read or write. That inspired Dolly to create her literacy program, Imagination Library.