Dolly Parton on 54 Years of Marriage: 'I’m Sick of Him and I’m Sure He’s Sick of Me'

Ever the bright spot in the gray sky that is our lives, Dolly Parton did an interview with Jessie Ware for her Table Manners podcast, in which she spoke about her husband of fifty-freaking-four years, among other things.

“My husband and I have been together for 57 years and married for 54, and I’m sick of him and I’m sure he’s sick of me,” she said, which…yeah! Mr. Dolly Parton, formally known as Carl Thomas Dean, rarely accompanies his wife to public events, and has apparently only seen her perform once. Perhaps this is the secret to longevity? Not pretending to be interested in your spouse’s profession? According to Oprah, Dean runs an asphalt-paving company, which she probably doesn’t watch him do either.

Perhaps relatedly, Parton also told Ware that, “My weaknesses have always been men, sex and food and not necessarily in that order.” Her forthcoming album, A Holly Dolly Christmas, includes a song recorded with Michael Buble. Unfortunately, covid (I assume it was covid, anyway) kept her from indulging in at least one of those weaknesses:

“I wanted to cuddle up and cozy up with him but I couldn’t very well do that, not this year anyway,” she said. “So maybe next year I’ll get to do a Christmas special of the same album and maybe I’ll get to cuddle up with him then.”

If the climbing death tolls aren’t enough to convince you to wear a mask and vanquish coronavirus, maybe the idea of Dolly Parton being denied her opportunity to crawl onto Michael Buble’s lap will do the trick? Whatever it takes!