Dolly Parton’s death brought out the best in people. The Royal Family posted a video of a royal band of some sort playing 9 to 5 in tribute. The tweet said, “Remembering the late, great Dolly, who brought joy, comfort and inspiration to so many—including the millions of children given free books through her Imagination Library. We will always ❤️ you.”
President Trump ordered flags flown at half-staff in her honor.
Born in a one room cabin with a half dozen siblings, they were dirt poor in money but richer than Midas in family.
Dolly rose. Porter Wagoner gave her a big boost that was controversial as the woman she replaced on his TV show was quite popular. It was not easy, but she Breeze’d her way through the situation.
When she went off on her own, he sued her. Instead of being bitter, she wrote I Will Always Love You in his honor. When paying back taxes bankrupted him and he had to sell his music catalog, she bought it back for him.
In the 1970s, she decided to go mainstream. She made some movies with Best Little Whorehouse In Texas being my favorite.
Part of her marketing was a Barbara Walters interview in 1977. It went well for both women.
But in the 21st century, everybody is a busybody who is easily offended. Remember Bewitched? The nation is now overrun by Gladys Kravitzes.
Objections pile up over this exchange.
Walters: “Dolly, where I come from, would I have called you a hillbilly?”
Parton: “If you had have, it would have been something very natural, but I would have probably kicked your shins or something.”
Walters: “But when I think of hillbillies, am I thinking of your kind of people?”
Parton: “I think you probably are. The people that grew up where I was were the ones that you would consider the Li’l Abner people, Daisy Mae and that sort of thing. They took that kind of thing from people like us. But we were very proud people, people with a lot of class. It was country class, but it was a great deal of class. And most of my people were not that educated, but they are very, very intelligent. Good common sense, horse sense we called it.”
Greta Van Susteren was among those who denounced the questions. Why? You don’t elicit great answers by asking what’s your favorite color. Walters did Dolly a big favor by giving her a national audience to address the hillbilly stereotypes.
At the time, most Americans didn’t know who she was and half of those who did know her name knew little about her beyond her bosom. That exchange had to make a million fans easily. She said yep, I’m a hillbilly and that’s a good thing.
She never forgot her roots. She arranged to keep Dollywood open rather than shut down in tribute because she did not want to inconvenience people who had planned their trip months ago.
The current reaction to a 49-year-old clip says more about 2026 media habits than it does about Dolly or about what hillbilly meant to her. She spent a lifetime turning the caricature into something she owned.
What I am trying to say is we lost a grownup on Wednesday.
