Dolly Rebecca Parton

Dolly Rebecca Parton was conceived in Pittman Center on January 19, 1946. She was raised in Sevierville to Avie Lee Parton (a housewife) and Robert Lee Parton (a tobacco farmer). At the age of 12, she began performing on Knoxville TV and at 13 she was already recording with a small label , and was performing on the Grand Ole Opry. After having graduated from high school in 1964, she moved to Nashville to launch her country-singing career. She became a fan of Carl Dean, who ran an asphalt-paving business. They were married on May 30 June, 1966, and they are still together. In 1967 , her singing attracted the attention of Porter Wagoner, who hired her to appear on his program, The Porter Wagoner Show (1961). She was on the show for seven years. Her duets were made famous and she was a part of the group that Porter Wagoner had at the Grand Ole Opry. She also sold records and performed on tour. When her hit single from 1970 "Joshua" hit #1, her fame was just too big to rival the fame of his. In 1974, she toured on her own and recorded duets alongside his. In 1974, she left for a new solo artist. Dolly became a huge hit as a singer/songwriter. Dolly was awarded many Country Music Association awards (1968-70 1971-1972, 1975-1976, and 1976). This diminutive (5'0") beauty was an ideal candidate for TV, and by the mid-1970s she was often appearing on TV specials and talk shows prior to launching her own, Dolly (1976). Dolly was awarded her first Grammy award in 1977 for Best Female Country Vocal Performance. Dolly's debut film appearance came in 9-to-5 (1980) and she won an Oscar nomination for her song title and Grammy awards 2 and 3. She also won Grammy awards 2, and 3. Best Country Song and Best Female Country Vocal Performance, for the song "Nine to Five." Her most notable role was in The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas (1982) and Rhinestone (1984) where she sang "Tennessee Homesick Blues". She is the founder of Dolly Parton Enterprises, a $100 million media company, and in 1986 she created Dollywood A theme park in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, in celebration of her Smoky Mountain upbringing. She was a part of the TV show Dolly (1987 TV series) as her character. In 1988 she was awarded another Grammy: Best Country Performance Duo or Group with Vocals for "Trio".