Tag: Dolly Parton

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Concerts Dolly Parton Vegas

Dolly Parton announces six date mini residency in Las Vegas this December

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It’s been nine years since Dolly Parton went on tour. Granted, she’s kept busy since then with a new (rock) album, an upcoming Broadway musical based on her life, and an exhibit at the Country Music Hall of Fame. She’s also performed since, but we haven’t gotten a full-on tour since “Pure & Simple” ended in 2016. Well, now the wait is over! Dolly just announced that she’s doing a mini-residency in Las Vegas! Dolly: Live in Las Vegas will run for six dates, from Dec. 4 – 16, at the Colosseum at Caesars Palace and feature a setlist full of Dolly’ greatest hits.

Officially named “Dolly: Live in Las Vegas,” the mini-residency will run at the resort from Dec. 4 through Dec. 13. Fans will of course be hoping for an extension on that, given the likely demand, but for now, at least, it’s just a half-dozen shows… all happening during National Finals Rodeo, when country stars have been known to take a special liking to Vegas bookings.

Tickets go on sale Wednesday at 10 a.m. PT via Ticketmaster.

No special presales have been announced for prior to that general on-sale date. But VIP packages are promised for fans who want to go the extra mile. According to the announcement made Monday morning, “Offers may include a personal photo op with Dolly herself, an onstage tour, access to Dolly’s Rhinestone Lounge, a deluxe gift set and more.”

“To say I’m excited would be an understatement. I haven’t worked Vegas in years and I’ve always loved singing there,” Parton said in a statement. “I’m looking so forward to the shows in The Colosseum at Caesars and I hope you are as well. See you there.”

The previous run Parton is referring to was at the Mirage in the early ’90s, a much more extensive one than this is initially announced to be. From 1990 through 1993, the singer performed nearly 50 shows at the Mirage.

Few other details were offered about the shows, other than that “Live in Las Vegas” will be “a hit-driven concert event,” in case anyone imagined they might not be hearing “Jolene,” “I Will Always Love You” or “9 to 5.”

[From Variety]

This is so exciting. I wish I could go, but I can’t swing something like that so close to the holidays. Tickets go on sale at 1:00 p.m. ET today, June 25, and I bet they sell out pretty quickly. That VIP package sounds amazing! Honestly, I’d even just settle for access to Dolly’s Rhinestone Lounge. Can you even imagine getting an onstage tour and a pic with Dolly? Even without the bells and whistles, this sounds like it’s going to be a really fun concert series. She’s done so many duets and collaborations over the decades, I wonder if she’ll bring out any special guests. How crazy would it be if Beyonce randomly popped in to sing “Jolene” with her one night? I think Miley will definitely show up. Ahhh, I’m getting ahead of myself here, but I bet Dolly really brings it. Good luck to everyone out there who is trying for tickets!

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Debbie Allen Dolly Parton Oscars Tom Cruise

Dolly Parton, Tom Cruise and Debbie Allen to receive honorary Oscars

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As CB noted the other day, I had finished writing up my thoughts on Lucasfilm studio head Kathleen Kennedy lobbying hard for her business daddy, Disney CEO Bob Iger, to be given an honorary Oscar, when the Academy went ahead and announced this year’s awardees (none of whom were named Bob Iger). And the four recipients who will be feted at the Governors Awards in November are: production designer Wynn Thomas, actor/director/choreographer Debbie Allen, singer/songwriter/actor Dolly Parton, and actor/producer/stuntman/cult member Tom Cruise. Guess years of handing out all those Christmas coconut cakes has now paid off for Tom! Here’s more on the honorees:

Academy president, Janet Yang, called them “four legendary individuals whose extraordinary careers and commitment to our film-making community continue to leave a lasting impact” in a statement.

The honorary Oscars are given “to honour extraordinary distinction in lifetime achievement, exceptional contributions to the state of motion picture arts and sciences in any discipline, or for outstanding service to the Academy”.

It will mark Cruise’s first Oscar after the actor has been nominated on four occasions for performances in Born on the Fourth of July, Magnolia and Rain Man, and for producing best picture nominee Top Gun: Maverick. This year has seen him returning to the role of Ethan Hunt in the eighth Mission: Impossible film.

Parton will receive the Jean Hersholt humanitarian award to recognise how she has brought “credit to the industry by promoting human welfare and contributing to rectifying inequities”. Previous winners have included Richard Curtis, Michael J Fox, Tyler Perry and Angelina Jolie.

The singer and actor has previously been nominated for two Oscars for best original songs from 9 to 5 and Transamerica.

Allen has previously won five Emmys and been nominated for two Tony awards. She is known for starring in Fame and Grey’s Anatomy and also for directing and producing with credits including A Different World, Empire and Insecure. She has also worked as a choreographer for the Oscars ceremony on multiple occasions.

As production designer, Thomas’s credits include films such as Hidden Figures, Do the Right Thing, Da 5 Bloods, A Beautiful Mind and Malcom X. In a statement, Yang said that he has brought “some of the most enduring films to life through a visionary eye and mastery of his craft”.

[From The Guardian]

I can’t lie, when I first saw the list I wrote to CB right away and said, “Ugh, not Xenu Cruise!” Look, I understand how he qualifies; he’s been in the business for 40 years, he’s a prolific producer, he’s known for giving astute advice to colleagues, and he advocates for people going to the theater to see movies. These are all great qualities that have made for a long, fruitful career. I just can’t look past the Scientology of it all. To me, it undercuts all of his good works, as I’ve commented here before. (And ok yes, I also hold a grudge against him for the way he treated Nicole Kidman during their divorce.)

But I have no reservations whatsoever in giving my full-throated congratulations to Wynn Thomas, Debbie Allen, and Dolly Parton! And yes, The Guardian wrote that correctly, Dolly has been nominated for Best Original Song only twice, and never won. “Travelin’ Thru,” the song she wrote for Transamerica, is a gorgeous song that I still listen to regularly. It lost to “It’s Hard Out Here for a Pimp,” which is the perfect illustration of apples and oranges. Those songs cannot be compared! And to tie everything together, guess what “9 to 5” lost to? “Fame,” from the film starring Debbie Allen.

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Photos credit: Jimmy James/Avalon, Cover Images, Jules Annan/Avalon, Getty Images for Netflix, Xavier Collin/Image Press Agency/Avalon, Backgrid

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Dolly Parton Meghan Markle

Was Dolly Parton ‘livid’ to receive an invitation to appear on ‘With Love, Meghan’?

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In 2023, we learned that the Prince and Princess of Wales had invited Dolly Parton over to Kensington Palace for a cup of tea, and Dolly turned down the offer. Dolly’s excuse at the time was that she was too busy promoting an album. Well, last month, Dolly sat down for a HuffPo interview, and she was asked a ton of questions about the Windsors for some reason. She was asked if she would ever consider appearing on With Love, Meghan, and Dolly said “Well, never say never. You never know where you’re gonna go.” She also confirmed that she’ll probably meet Queen Camilla in October, when she plans to be in the UK, in what would probably be some kind of promotion for Dolly’s Imagination Library. She was asked about turning down William and Kate’s invitation too, and she said that if the offer still stands, she’d love to pop around, and the Wales kids would always be welcome at Dollywood. I bring all of this is up because, clearly, Dolly is not taking sides and she’s simply a peaceful person who should not be used as a cudgel against either side. Unfortunately, a Daily Mail got a hot tip that Dolly is furious because… the Duchess of Sussex invited her on With Love, Meghan.

This week caps a particularly inglorious run for our duchess, who has been furiously recasting her losses as wins, her fresh humiliations as triumphs, and her supply chain shortages as strategic business moves. Among the many golden nuggets of irresistible info: As royal reporter Kinsey Schofield exclusively revealed on my podcast, The Nerve with Maureen Callahan, Meghan allegedly approached none other than Dolly Parton to appear on her Netflix show, ‘With Love, Meghan’ — and was summarily dismissed.

Dolly, that absolute legend, joins Taylor Swift and Beyoncé in reportedly turning down Meghan’s entreaties to join her in any given enterprise.

As Kinsey told me, Dolly’s team were ‘livid… they don’t want to risk Dolly’s epic popularity by associating with Meghan Markle.’

When the best you can get is Chrissy Teigen —who will be joining season two of ‘With Love’ and is known, among other things, for bullying a young starlet to the point she considered suicide — well, your brand is in the gutter.

Meanwhile, the final episode of Meghan’s new podcast dropped Tuesday, to zero buzz or fanfare.


Lemonada, the company producing said podcast, has yet to announce a renewal — and normally, they’re announced well ahead of a season ending. Also: Most podcasts, for what it’s worth, don’t have ‘seasons’. They just keep going. Apparently, Meghan’s buzz-less ‘Confessions of a Female Founder’ — which follows ‘Archetypes’, Meghan’s last flop in this lane — needed an entire year to produce just eight episodes. By all metrics, that’s terrible output.

[From The Daily Mail]

Re: COAFF… I love this podcast more than Archetypes and I hope there’s another season. I think the delay in “greenlighting” a second season is more about Meghan’s schedule right now more than any reluctance from Lemonada. Lemonada seems like a great partner for Meghan, and they seem pleased with COAFF. Plus, Meghan has already said that other female founders have contacted her, wanting to be on the pod. I’d be willing to bet that a second season is coming, but it will probably happen next year (or much later this year).

As for Dolly… what I don’t understand is how a story about “Meghan approached a celebrity to see if they would appear on the pod or show” gets twisted into “this celebrity is violently furious that Meghan would even DARE TO ASK!” Do these people not understand “booking guests for a show” at all? Celebrities get invitations to appear on all kinds of shows – the celebs rarely get mad at the bookers for daring to invite them. I don’t believe Meghan approached Dolly to appear on WLM, although Dolly would be an excellent guest on COAFF. It’s also worth noting that Kinsey Schofield is a Deranger who styled herself into a “royal reporter” as some kind of grift. She has no exclusive information.

Photos courtesy of Cover Images, Avalon Red, Netflix.

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Broadway Dolly Parton Holidays

Dolly Parton is looking for someone to play her in a musical about her life

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Casting call! After 20 years in the making, everything is finally coming up Dolly on Broadway. Our little sparrow has been hands-on in developing a musical about her life, penning original songs and co-writing the book (theater-speak for the script), and now it’s time to cast the players. Dolly announced last week on her Instagram (dressed in head-to-toe champagne-colored sequins) that video submissions are currently being accepted to fill roles throughout many stages of her life. And in a move that is so fitting to Dolly’s generous, gracious personality, the production has made a point of emphasizing that they want to hear from (as-yet) undiscovered talent. Then in the new year, the actors whose rhinestones sparkled just a little brighter will be invited to audition in person. All right, bitches, who among us is gonna enter the #SearchForDolly?!

Dolly Parton needs help finding Dolly Parton.

The iconic country star shared Thursday that casting has begun for a forthcoming Broadway show about her life, “Dolly: An Original Musical.”

“Now I’m announcing the search for Dolly,” Parton said in a video. “Whether you’re chasing your dreams from a small town or you’ve spent years performing on stages across the country, I want to give you a chance to help me bring my story to Broadway and maybe even play me.”

According to the show’s site, they are “searching for performers of all ages to portray Dolly at different stages of her incredible life.”

“This is your chance to bring your brand of rhinestone sparkle to the role of a lifetime,” the site states. “Ready to step into the high heels of a legend?”

In her announcement video, Parton, 78, said, “This show is a celebration of my music, my life and all the amazing people who’ve been with me along the way.”

“We’re looking for talented performers who can capture the spirit of my journey, whether you’re an experienced theater professional or an undiscovered gem with that little special something,” she said.

Parton said a select few will get to audition in person for the show’s casting director. Applications can be submitted at the show’s site.

“Dolly: An Original Musical” will include music and lyrics written by Parton, with a book by the star and Maria S. Schlatter. Bartlett Sher is listed on the musical’s site as the director.

[From CNN]

Bartlett Sher is directing?! That is yet another faux-ostrich feather in Dolly’s cap. Bartlett Sher is booked and busy, directing everything from classic musical theater revivals (My Fair Lady, South Pacific, The King and I) to new dramas (Oslo, Aaron Sorkin’s adaptation of To Kill a Mockingbird). I am extra intrigued now to see how his and Dolly’s sensibilities match up and play out. In fact, the only thing I’m not excited about with this show is the name change — six months ago it was called Hello, I’m Dolly, both the title of her first album and a fun wordplay on the musical Hello, Dolly! By contrast, Dolly: An Original Musical is a very unoriginal name, in my humble opinion.

There’s no set opening date yet, just “coming soon” in 2025, so if you need an immediate Dolly fix she has a few books out. One is a cookbook she wrote with her sister, Good Lookin’ Cookin’: A Year of Meals, and the other is a children’s Christmas book. Inspired by her French bulldog Billy the Kid, as well as Dolly’s own practice of being home with family for every Christmas, Billy the Kid Comes Home for Christmas follows a singing pup who must decide between making it home for the holiday or taking a gig at “the Barcafella Center.” She had me at bulldog.

Have a Holly Dolly Xmas to those who celebrate! And let us know if you audition!!

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Dolly Parton LGBTQ politics

Internet rallies around Dolly Parton after right wing site targets her for LGBTQ support

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Dolly Parton is one of those celebrities whom everyone loves. Late last year, however, you could see some a-holes on the right were testing the waters. After all, one of the things that Republicans are most bothered by is a strong, powerful, well-liked woman. Dolly, who is 77, performed at the Thanksgiving Day halftime show for the Dallas Cowboys/Washington Commanders game. She dressed up as a Cowboys cheerleader, looking incredible in a crop top and white mini shorts. Oooh, some right-wing trolls got big mad at that! The fake outrage died down fairly quickly when everyone else made it pretty clear that you do not come for Dolly Parton.

Well, in the neverending Republican culture war, if at first you don’t succeed, look deeper to create something even more heinous to make a big deal over. Last week, right-wing magazine The Federalist, which is co-founded by Meghan “Do You Know Who My Father Is” McCain’s husband, decided it was time to fire another shot at Dolly. This time, writer Ericka Andersen went after Dolly’s Christian faith and support for the LGBTQ community. Big mistake. HUGE. Alarms were sounded and the cavalry rode to Dolly’s defense in one collective, ”Oh no you didn’t.”

Fans of 11-time Grammy Award–winning singer Dolly Parton came to her aid this week, in response to a tacky, homophobic hit piece published by a right-wing magazine. The Federalist is a conservative outlet that has previously taken aim at Taylor Swift, accusing her of indoctrinating her listeners into man-hating feminism, a thinly veiled grievance about their inability to control the thoughts of young women. Now it’s taken aim at the Queen of Country herself, likely for much the same reason.

The newest article took issue with Parton using her Christian faith as a rationale for her acceptance of all people, including those who identify as LGBTQ .

“Parton’s version of love, which includes condoning immoral sexual behavior, (be who you are she said), is unaligned with God’s vision for humanity,” the author wrote, going on to compare Parton to a secular leader spreading “false gospel.”

Trying to cut down such a beloved figure and awarded philanthropist is pretty ridiculous, and especially ironic for a publication that previously published an article pushing for her to be the next president of the United States.

The publication of this wildly homophobic tirade was timed to hitch a ride on the wave of attention Parton has received since announcing her new musical, Hello, I’m Dolly! Now, as one user on X declared, “they came for Dolly. we ride at dawn.”

Users warned conservatives not to hurt themselves, dying on a hill against the army of the Backwoods Barbie. “If you ever doubted that MAGA is a suicide cult, they’re coming after Dolly Parton. Kool-aid can’t be far behind,” wrote one user.

“Folks, a land war in Asia is the SECOND biggest blunder anyone can make. The first? Coming for Dolly Parton,” wrote another. A different user simply proclaimed, “No. You do not come after Dolly Parton. You absolutely do not.”

Hundreds of X users joined in a chorus of support for their beautiful, blonde, big-haired leader. At the end of the day, old homophobes can’t hold a candle to the influence of stars like Parton—no one can light up the masses like they do. And as the old Parton adage goes: “A loose tongue can lead to broken teeth.”

[From New Republic]

Imagine thinking that you could come for Dolly Parton – during Pride no less! – and believe that it would end well. Dolly espouses more of the values that Jesus Christ taught than any of these Christian nationalist wannabe authoritarians ever have. It’s hilarious that Andersen did the whole “false gospel” route because last I checked, Jesus preached to love your neighbor, treat others as you want to be treated, forgive, and reject hatred. But preaching tolerance does not win votes, apparently. And if Andersen thinks that they won’t come for her eventually, then I’ve got a face-eating leopard to sell her. (She did repent, telling Yahoo! Entertainment that she regrets “Using Dolly as the example for the point I was making.”)

Anyway, conservatives, cry more. Dolly is talented, inclusive of all fans, and has a heart of gold. Her charitable organization, Dollywood Foundation, has given millions towards children’s literacy, scholarships, hospitals, and animal rescue organizations. Meanwhile, megachurch leaders are buying private jet and big homes with church tithing. Dolly also famously donated $1 million for Covid vaccine research. Oh, and in 2020, she told The Guardian that she isn’t “that good a Christian to think that I am so good that I can judge people. That’s God’s job, not mine.” So yeah, Dolly rocks and everybody knows it.

they came for Dolly. we ride at dawn. pic.twitter.com/PMbSJYHB46

— shauna (@goldengateblond) June 7, 2024

Dolly Parton has been more Christ-like than every mega church pastor and most so-called Christians. And she does it quietly and without a big fuss. https://t.co/zWYFSV4V0v

— sheologian (@sheologian) June 7, 2024

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Dolly Parton Elle King

Dolly Parton on Elle King’s drunken tribute performance: ‘let’s just forgive and forget’

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The Grand Ole Opry hosted a tribute concert for Dolly Parton last month to celebrate her 78th birthday. Unfortunately the event ended up making headlines for all the wrong reasons. When Elle King took to the stage she forgot lyrics, started swearing (a big no-no at the Opry), and admitted “I’m f–king hammered.” It wasn’t good. The venue took to Twitter to apologize to the concert goers, others piled on to slam Elle online, and yet more chatter poured in to harangue the people slamming Elle. Up until now we haven’t heard a reaction from Dolly. Now that she has chimed in, she’s showing nothing but kindness to Elle, and asking for others to do the same:

Dolly Parton will always love Elle King.

The country music legend recently broke her silence on the “Exes and Ohs” singer’s drunken performance at a star-studded tribute concert held in celebration of Dolly’s 78th birthday.

“Elle is really a great artist, she’s a great girl,” Dolly told ExtraTV in an interview published Feb. 9. “She’s been going through a lot of things lately, and she just had a little too much to drink.”

Encouraging others to lead with kindness as well, she added, “So let’s just forgive that and forget that and move on ‘cause she felt worse than anybody ever could.”

The “Jolene” singer’s understanding words arrived less than a month after Elle confessed to being “f–king hammered” when she messed up the lyrics to Dolly’s 2001 hit “Marry Me” onstage at Nashville’s Grand Ole Opry. After stumbling her way through some of the lines, the 34-year-old proceeded to sing, “I don’t know the lyrics to this thing in this f–king town/ Don’t tell Dolly ‘cause it’s her birthday.”

Elle later quipped, “I’m not even gonna f–king lie, you bought tickets for this s–t? You ain’t getting your money back.”

In the aftermath of her concert blunder, the iconic country music hall — which operates on a strict no-profanity rule — issued an apology on X, expressing “deep regret” for “the language that was used” during the “America’s Sweetheart” singer’s Jan. 19 performance.

Elle — who has yet to publicly comment on the incident but did postpone a series of shows six days later — has previously spoken about her complicated relationship with alcohol.

“I get nervous before I go on stage,” she told the San Diego Union-Tribune in February 2022. “I have couple of drinks [first]. Drinking makes me less nervous about hitting the notes when I sing. If I don’t make them, it won’t sting as much.”

[From E! News]

There’s no sugarcoating that this was a low moment for Elle King. In a way, though, you could say she is very lucky it happened at an event for Dolly Parton. Not because Dolly deserves it, not that at all! But because of how gracious and encouraging a spirit Dolly is. She was generous to Jessica Simpson after Jessica stumbled while performing “9 to 5” at the Kennedy Center Honors, so it’s no surprise she’s being just as kind to Elle. As to that pre-show ritual Elle described, of drinking to subdue her nerves, that system cannot hold. I hope she is taking time now to seek out new methods of coping that are supportive instead of self-destructive. I bet Dolly herself would happily speak with Elle — without being preachy! — about sustaining a career in their industry and being good to yourself. Even I would wake up at 3-7am for that conversation with Dolly. (Ok fine, I’d probably just stay up from the night before. And show up with boxes of Dolly’s Duncan Hines cakes to bake. You get the point.)

Photos credit: Tina Rowden/Netflix, Rachpoot/BauerGriffin/INSTARimages, Xavier Collin/Image Press Agency/Avalon

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Dolly Parton

Dolly Parton explains why she’s worn wigs for decades

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Remember when years back Kylie Jenner said that she had invented wigs? That drove me nuts. It was in 2016 and it’s still something my subconscious associates with Kylie. We all know that Kylie is not a wig OG, but Dolly Parton definitely is. Huge beauty pageant style hair has always been a part of her look, and she’s been wearing wigs for decades. She shared her six fashion rules with Vogue to promote her new book Behind the Seams, which include wearing high heels, avoiding trends, and embracing wigs. Dolly started wearing wigs when she figured out that teasing and bleaching her hair was damaging it. Her first hairstylist, Colleen Owens, introduced her to her first “fall” (a piece you blend with your own hair for more volume). Dolly then realized she’d never have a bad hair day with wigs. The rest is history.

[My first hairstylist] Colleen Owens introduced me to my first hairpiece—they used to be called falls—that you could add to your own hair and give you extra bulk. And it was through her that we found wigs. She was so creative. The wigs were wearing me—I wasn’t wearing the wig! But I loved all the intricate little things that Colleen used to do. It was always the bigger, the better. I started wearing wigs because I quickly realized that bleaching and teasing my hair every day would cause breakage and not look good. It was handy to have several looks that I could just choose from, and never have a bad hair day.”

[From Vogue]

I’m very lucky to have naturally thick hair, but no matter how much I tease or spray it, and no matter how i style it, it does not hold volume at all near the crown of my head. So I would definitely turn to wigs if big floofy hair was the goal. It’s great that Dolly’s always been open about wearing wigs because hair thinning and hair loss is something that happens to so many women. That’s not why Dolly started wearing them, but I think she shows people that it’s okay to use something artificial if it makes you feel better about yourself or like how you look. Sometimes people equate being “authentic” with being unvarnished or being “au naturel”. But it’s really just about wearing what you like and what makes you happy.

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