Dolly Parton’s husband of nearly 60 years, Carl Thomas Dean, dies at 82

Carl Thomas Dean, Dolly Parton’s husband of almost 60 years, passed away on Monday at the age of 82.

The news was shared on Parton’s Instagram account the same day.

“Carl Dean, husband of Dolly Parton, passed away on 3rd March in Nashville at the age of 82. He will be laid to rest in a private ceremony with only immediate family present. He is survived by his siblings, Sandra and Donnie.”

A statement from Parton was also included, reading, “Carl and I shared many wonderful years together. Words cannot express the love we had for over 60 years. Thank you for your prayers and sympathy.”

The post added, “The family has requested privacy during this difficult time.”

Dean, who famously avoided the limelight throughout their long marriage, first met Parton outside the Wishy Washy Laundrette on the day she moved to Nashville at 18. They married two years later, on 30th May 1966, in a small ceremony in Ringgold, Georgia, and kept their relationship largely private.

A businessman, Dean owned an asphalt paving company in Nashville.

In a 2008 interview with NPR, Parton revealed that Dean had inspired her iconic song Jolene, explaining that she wrote it about a flirtatious bank teller who took an interest in him.

“She had a terrible crush on my husband,” Parton said. “And he just loved going to the bank because she gave him so much attention. It became a bit of a running joke between us—I’d say, ‘You’re spending a lot of time at the bank. I don’t think we have that much money!’ So it’s really an innocent song, even though it sounds like a heartbreaking one.”

Parton often spoke about Dean’s desire to stay out of the public eye. In a 2020 interview with Entertainment Tonight, she addressed long-standing speculation about his absence from the spotlight.

“Over the years, people have even wondered if he really exists because he never wants to be in the public eye,” she said at the time. “That’s just not who he is—he’s a quiet, reserved person.”

She added that Dean had always believed that stepping into the limelight would mean losing his privacy, a sentiment she respected.

“I’ve always appreciated that about him, and I’ve tried to protect his privacy as much as possible,” Parton said. “He told me, ‘I didn’t choose this world, I chose you, and you chose that world. But we can keep our lives separate and together.’ And that’s exactly what we’ve done. We’ve been together for 56 years, married for 54.”

Speaking about their lasting relationship, Parton joked, “People ask me why it’s lasted so long, and I always say, ‘Because I stay gone!’ There’s a lot of truth in that—we’re not constantly in each other’s space.”

“But we have a deep respect and admiration for each other. We both have a great sense of humour, so we have a lot of fun,” she added.

In December 2022, Parton told ET Canada that their shared “warped sense of humour” was key to their long-lasting marriage.

“I think humour is one of the most important things in a marriage. Even if you have disagreements, if you both have a great sense of humour, you can usually find a way to laugh your way out of it,” she said. “But most of all, I just really like him.”