Country legend Dolly Parton dies at 80, days after health update

Joseph Wilkinson, New York Daily News on Aug 25, 2026

By clicking submit, I authorize Arcamax and its affiliates to: (1) use, sell, and share my information for marketing purposes, including cross-context behavioral advertising, as described in our Privacy Policy , (2) add to information that I provide with other information like interests inferred from web page views, or data lawfully obtained from data brokers, such as past purchase or location data, or publicly available data, (3) contact me or enable others to contact me by email or other means with offers for different types of goods and services, and (4) retain my information while I am engaging with marketing messages that I receive and for a reasonable amount of time thereafter. I understand I can opt out at any time through an email that I receive, or by clicking here

Dolly Parton — country music icon, movie star, theme park owner, sex symbol and philanthropist — has died at 80.

The news was shared in an Instagram video on her account by Parton’s nephew, Brian Seaver.

Parton had recently canceled multiple engagements, including the opening of a new ride at her theme park, and updated fans Friday to apologize for her absence, saying she was “dealing with some health issues that I just didn’t pay attention to when I was watching over Carl,” her late husband Carl Dean.

Known to many as the “Queen of Country,” Parton began her show business career as a Nashville songwriter, later singing her own tunes to commercial success and critical acclaim.

But as her name recognition expanded, so did her ambitions. She became a movie star and Playboy cover model, then purchased an amusement park in Tennessee and renamed it “Dollywood.”

“My desire to do things is greater than my fear of it,” she told Tim McGraw for Lyric Magazine in 2021, speaking about her decision to star in 1980’s “9 to 5,” which marked her film debut.

“It did turn out to be pretty good,” she said. “So that was when I got a taste of (acting) and I thought, ‘Well, what took me so long?’”

Though she became world famous — so famous that she inspired the name of the world’s first cloned animal — Parton came by her country stardom honestly. She started as a songwriter, released her first album, “Hello, I’m Dolly,” in 1967, and the hits followed not long after. She first hit the Top 100 chart with one her enduring favorites, “Jolene,” in 1974.

Parton went on to top the country charts numerous times, with her 1977 pop crossover “Here You Come Again” hitting No. 3 on the Top 100. Other late ‘70s hits included “Two Doors Down,” “Heartbreaker” and “You’re the Only One.”

During that run of hits, Parton made one of her many branches into other parts of American culture, appearing (in clothes) on the cover of Playboy.

“That was when I was beginning to grow and cross over in the business,” she told CMT in 2007. “I think people gasped when I was on the cover of Playboy because they thought I probably had some nude layouts inside, but I did not. I just wore that cute little bunny suit that the girls wear at the club — well, my own version of it — and the little bunny ears and all.”

Two years later, she starred in “9 to 5” alongside Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin — and wrote the theme song, which became her first and only solo No. 1 hit. The song, if not the film, endured for the rest of her life, and even earned her an Oscar nomination for Best Original Song.

“‘9 to 5’ will always be special to me because it was my first movie. It’s kind of like my first love,” she told CMT. “I thought, ‘Wow, this can only be great. And if it’s a big success, then I’ll just be in there with them, and I’ll be part of it. And if it’s a big flop, I’m just gonna blame them. I’ll go back to singing.’”

It was a big success, skyrocketing Parton to even greater fame and stardom.

In 1986, she’d earned enough money to buy part of a small theme park near her hometown, then known as Silver Dollar City, and renamed it Dollywood.

Though it was off the beaten path in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, Parton always made sure to return in person to open up new attractions. One of the first hints of her health struggles in 2025 was when she missed a grand opening in mid-September.

In 1988, she founded the Dollywood Foundation, which promotes child literacy in her home state. In 1995, she launched the Imagination Library literacy program, which has since distributed more than 300 million free books around the world.

Additionally, Parton has been inducted into numerous music museums, including the Grammy Hall of Fame, Country Music Hall of Fame, Gospel Music Hall of Fame and Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, the last one in 2022.

“The older I get, the more I realize how lucky that I’ve been,” she told CMT when asked about her status as an icon. “I’m willing to work, though. I work hard for everything I get. I’ve been blessed, and it’s like when people know my name, that’s a great, great honor.”

In addition to her career, Parton also considered her longtime marriage to Carl Dean one of her greatest achievements. Dean, to whom she was married for 59 years, died in March 2025 at the age of 82.

_____