LDN.😢 The Healing Stage: Dolly Parton Cries Over Song About Late Husband Carl Dean.LDN

Country music legend Dolly Parton is channeling her grief over the loss of her husband of nearly 60 years, Carl Dean, into her latest creative endeavors. Ahead of the release of her new book, Star of the Show: My Life on Stage (set for release on November 11, 2025), Parton revealed that reliving their love story on the Broadway stage is a profoundly emotional, yet healing, experience.

The Tears Behind the Triumphs

Carl Dean, who famously shunned the spotlight throughout their lengthy marriage, passed away on March 3, 2025, at the age of 82. His death marked a difficult year for Parton, who also had to postpone her 2025 Las Vegas residency due to health issues, which she plans to fulfill in 2026.

Parton spoke to Entertainment Tonight about the process of watching her life story performed in her new Broadway-bound musical, DOLLY: A True Original Musical, which premiered in Nashville in the summer of 2025 and is headed to New York City in 2026.

• The Emotional Peak: Parton admits she “cries every time” she watches the part of the show featuring the song “From Here To The Moon and Back,” which details her love for Dean.
• The Healing Process: She described the experience as a form of catharsis: “In a way, it’s kind of healing to relive my life like that. To sit back and watch it, instead of having to live it.”
• The Actor: The emotional weight is successfully carried by actor John Behlmann, who plays the role of Carl Dean in the musical.

The Unconventional Love Story

The musical highlights the famously unconventional love story of Parton and Dean:

• The Meeting: They met outside the Wishy Washy laundromat in Nashville in 1964—the very day Parton moved to Music City.
• The Secret Wedding: Two years later, despite her record label’s insistence that marriage would “tarnish her image,” the couple secretly ran off to Ringgold, Georgia, and married in a small ceremony with only Parton’s mother, Avie Lee, as a witness on May 30, 1966.
• The Legacy: Their bond inspired some of her most iconic songs, including “Jolene”, which Parton revealed was inspired by a flirty bank teller who seemed too interested in Dean.

Parton’s decision to continue working, releasing her book and developing the musical, is a testament to the resilience that has defined her career, using her deep, personal experiences to create art that resonates globally.