Dolly Parton is opening up about life without her longtime husband, Carl Dean. Dean was 82 years old when he passed away on March 3.
“He did suffer a lot for the last few years,” Parton tells Entertainment Tonight. “And there’s a part of me that’s happy he’s at peace and at rest. But then of course, there’s that part of me that will miss him forever and long for him every day. For the rest of my life, I’m sure.”
Parton might be happy Dean is not ill anymore, but she still acutely feels his absence, after spending the last six decades with him.
Of course I miss him,” Parton, who met Dean when she was just 18 years old, acknowledges. “I’m having to really go through a lot trying to figure out how to be without him because I was with him for so long.”
The Grand Ole Opry member is staying busy with her numerous projects, including her Dolly: An Original Musical, which will premiere in Nashville this summer. The musical has been in process for a couple of years now, a project that Dean sadly was never able to see, due to his declining health.
“He’s not been well for a few years now,” Parton reveals. “But he’ll see it from afar.”
In addition to the musical, Parton also has her upcoming Songteller Hotel, her line of food — including a new line of frozen meals — her Dolly Wines, line of cosmetics and more. The 79-year-old has found solace in staying busy.
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“It’s always hard to lose someone you love, but you do the best you can,” Parton says. “And the fact that I’ve got my work has been probably the best blessing, that I’m involved in so many things. It at least keeps me occupied, instead of just folding in on myself.”
After Dean passed away, Parton released “If You Hadn’t Been There,” in tribute to her late husband.
“I’m doing as well as one can after 60 years of being with and loving somebody,” Parton says. “When Carl did pass away, I thought, ‘I gotta do something, so I’m just gonna put that song out as a tribute to him.'”
“I’m holding up,” she adds, “I’m doing as well as one can after 60 years, being with and loving somebody.”
Parton is a global superstar, but the East Tennessee native was still blown away by the amount of people who reached out to her when news of Dean’s passing was announced.
“I couldn’t believe the amount of support worldwide that people sent my way, with the flowers and the cards and the calls and everything,” she shares.
Parton recently celebrated the opening of her exhibit, Dolly Parton: Journey of a Seeker, at the Country Music Hall of Fame.
“Being inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame was one of the greatest moments of my life, and being able to have a personal exhibit for the fans that put me there is a very big deal to me,” Parton said when the exhibit opened. “This seeker is very proud and honored, and I hope you enjoy my journey. I will always love you.”