Four days before the shock announcement of her death at age 80 on Tuesday, country music’s long-reigning queen Dolly Parton had given fans one final glimpse behind the rhinestones.
In a short interview with People magazine, the singer admitted that the strain had been taking a toll. Her husband, Carl Dean, had died in March last year at age 82 and, after nearly 60 years of marriage, the loss had sent Parton into a protracted period of solitary grief.
‘I am dealing with some health issues that I just didn’t pay attention to when I was watching over Carl,’ she told People on Friday.
The star’s pain
To provide well-rounded coverage and a breadth of insight across various events, we rely on contributions from several staff writers, each bringing their own area of expertise to our publication.