Dolly Parton recalled her marriage advice in past interviews after husband’s death
The late singer Dolly Parton said she often answered questions about her 60-year marriage to Carl Dean with a brief quip, and reflected on their relationship in several interviews.
Dolly Parton, who died on Aug. 25 at age 80, had often responded to inquiries about the secret to her six-decade marriage with a two-word answer. In a 2018 interview with People, she said she jokes, “Stay gone!” and added that they enjoy each other’s company when together despite her frequent travel. > "I always joke and laugh when people ask me what’s the key to my long marriage and lasting love. I always say ‘Stay gone!’ and there’s a lot of truth to that. I travel a lot, but we really enjoy each other when we’re together and the little things we do," she told the outlet.
The couple eloped in 1966 and remained together until Dean’s death in March 2025. Over the years Parton made light-hearted remarks about their partnership, noting in a 2022 E! News interview that she liked to dress up for him, and in a 2024 television appearance joking that some fans thought he was fictional. She also recalled their first meeting outside a Nashville laundromat when she was 18 and he was 21, saying he was one of the few who looked directly at her face.
Dean kept a low profile, working in an asphalt-paving business and avoiding the spotlight, which Parton highlighted in a 2023 interview: "Carl has never been in the limelight and never wanted to be in it. He don’t like it."
Parton also referenced the 1973 hit “Jolene,” noting that Dean felt a little embarrassed by the song’s premise, which she described as a playful jealousy. After Dean’s passing, she said, “Carl and I spent many wonderful years together. Words can’t do justice to the love we shared for over 60 years.” She will be interred beside him at Woodlawn Memorial Park and Mausoleum in Nashville.