As a journalist in the Hollywood Foreign Press I interviewed and photographed Dolly Parton a few times.
Dolly Parton, Lily Tomlin, Elisa Leonelli, Jane Fonda © HFPA 1980
In 1980 with her costars Lily Tomlin, Jane Fonda and Dabney Colman about Nine to Five.
Parton said about the first time she acted in a movie: “They were real kind and considerate to write my part very close to my real personality. So it wasn’t real hard for me to try to do that. But I enjoyed doing it. it was like getting to play, being kids again and having girlfriends, and today we get to play secretary.”
About being sexually harassed by men in real life: “I have six brothers, a father and a husband, so I’ve always understood the nature of men. It does happen a lot, and I’m sure that we all have been bothered by and had trouble with bosses or business associates. But I have a stubborn personality, so if this happened, I would always try to keep the upper hand, or if I saw it getting out of hand, I would turn it into a joke or I would just stand firm.”
Dolly Parton, Sylvester Stallone (c) Elisa Leonelli 1984
In 1984 with Sylvester Stallone about Rhinestone.
In 1989 with Sally Field, Daryl Hannah, Julia Roberts, Shirley MacLaine, Olympia Dukakis about Steel Magnolias.
I wrote an article about this movie for CIAK, the Italian film monthly, when I was their Los Angeles Correspondent (1987-1994). Click link to see.
I included a few quotes by Dolly Parton:
“Men are tougher than women, and especially those who grew up in the South, like my brothers, my father and my husband, are more macho than normal. They haven’t studied much and they have real trouble finding a decent job, they love hunting, they are country people not city folks. All the men in my family act tough but they have a tender heart, they are kind and generous.”
“If I had stayed in my small town and had not made it as a singer, I would probably have been a beautician, because I always loved doing hair and still do. I always fix the hair of every friend I have, my mom, all my sisters. and I only have a high school education, I never wanted to go to college so I’m pretty sure that I would have been a beautician. I felt very similar to the character I play, the lady that owned the beauty shop; we were both southern women with big hearts and big imagination, hopeless romantics. My husband in the movie is very similar to my own husband. He’s very shy, he looks very much like Sam Shepard. He doesn’t like to get out and go places, and I’m always telling him: Come on, dad, let s go somewhere. You’ve been cooped up in this house.”
Dolly Parton (c) Elisa Leonelli 1984
“It’s very important to have friends, male or female, but it’s especially important to have female friends, because you can talk about everything and be totally yourself. All women know about PMS, when you are in a bad mood and all that, we all understand that kind of thing. As it is important for men to have men friends, because you understand all those things that go on in your mind and body. I’m from a family of twelve kids, there’s six girls and six boys, so my five sisters are some of the best friends that I have in the whole world. On the set of this movie I really related to all these ladies in the way that I do with my sisters. I found pieces of my family in all of them and I responded to that a great deal.”
Lily Tomlin, Dolly Parton 1981 GG
The beloved country singer also attended the Golden Globes in 1981 as a presenter with Lily Tomlin. Tomlin turned around to show the back of her jacket featuring the Dolly Parton Fan Club.
Lily Tomlin, Dolly Parton 1981 GG
For the Golden Globes website I wrote her minibio as a 6 times nominee, and in 2019 a Golden Globe Moment
Lily Tomlin, Dolly Parton 1991 GG
“Lily Tomlin and Dolly Parton present a clip of the nominated movie comedy Nine to Five, where they co-star with Jane Fonda, on stage at the 30th Golden Globes, held at the Beverly Hilton Hotel on Saturday January 31, 1981. Backstage they pose with Timothy Hutton, who wins two Golden Globes, one as Best Supporting Actor for Ordinary People, directed by Robert Redford, the other for New Star of the Year.”
Dolly Parton, Timothy Hutton, Lily Tomlin GG 1981
Dear Dolly, Rest in Peace.