The pair were married for nearly 60 years
Carl Dean, husband of Dolly Parton for nearly 60 years, has passed away at the age of 82. The country superstar shared the news via social media on Monday (Mar 3rd).
“Carl and I spent many wonderful years together. Words can’t do justice to the love we shared for over 60 years. Thank you for your prayers and sympathy,” she writes.
Dean will be laid to rest in a private ceremony with immediate family attending. He is survived by his siblings Sandra and Donnie.
The family has asked for privacy during this difficult time.
The pair met the day after Parton moved to Nashville at 18 in 1964. They married on May 30, 1966 in Ringgold, Georgia, but Parton didn’t disclose their relationship until 1984.
Dean, who led a private life and mostly kept out of the spotlight, was a businessman who owned an asphalt-paving business in Nashville. Dean never attended public events with his famous counterpart, and very few photos of him were shared throughout the years.
Her monster hit “Jolene” was inspired by an interaction Dean had with a flirtatious bank teller in the early 1970s.
