While her most famous song “Jolene” was about a beautiful woman with “flaming locks of auburn hair” stealing her man, in real life Dolly Parton stayed with her husband, Carl Thomas Dean, for nearly sixty years.
He died on March 3, 2025, after 59 years of loving marriage. Carl Dean was reportedly suffering from the effects of Alzheimer’s disease during the last years of their union. Dolly Parton lovingly — and discreetly — cared for him. They were there for each other in good times and bad. Though the couple never had children, they raised several of Dolly’s younger siblings as their own, providing for them when her parents and other relatives were unable to.
Carl Dean Thomas didn’t enjoy the spotlight, didn’t like to attend concerts of his wife or do interviews. He didn’t ever want to distract from her fame or draw attention to himself that he believed his wife was owed. He happily stayed in her shadow, and was perfectly comfortable there.
