Who is Dolly Parton’s husband of over half a century, Carl Thomas Dean? The ‘Jolene’ singer met her spouse at a laundromat in 1964, and they have an ‘open’ marriage – but no kids
- Dolly Parton recently shared details about the first time she met her then-to-be-hubby Carl Thomas Dean, in her Channel 5 documentary, Dolly Parton: In Her Own Words
- The country superstar never had kids with her husband of over five decades – but she is the godmother to Billy Ray Cyrus’ pop singer daughter and Disney alum, Miley Cyrus
After meeting for the first time back in 1964 at the Wishy Washy Laundromat on Parton’s first day in Nashville, she and Dean would end up dating for two years before tying the knot in 1966. This is when the “Jolene” singer’s career was just beginning to take flight with the release of debut album Hello, I’m Dolly in 1967, according to her new Channel 5 documentary, Dolly Parton: In Her Own Words.
According to the Grammy award-winning singer’s 2017 book Dolly on Dolly, Interviews and Encounters, having an “open” marriage has contributed to their success.
“Men are my weakness. Short, fat, bald or skinny – I’ve had crushes on some very unusual men, but Carl knows I’ll always come home and I’m not having sex with these people – I’m just flirting and having fun,” she said.
“He’s not jealous and I’m not jealous of him. He knows I flirt. He flirts too,” she added.
The country star clarified, however, that there was nothing sexual about their external encounters: “Yes, it’s an open relationship, but not sexually and I would kill him if I thought he was doing that. He would shoot me too. At the end of the day we love each other madly.”