Dolly Parton once described her relationship with her husband as "open." She said she formed connections with other people.

Dolly Parton has made her first public appearance since her husband, Carl Dean, died at the age of 82. The country icon turned up in person at the 2025 opening of Dollywood on Friday (March 14), putting aside her personal troubles to smile and wave at fans who had traveled from all over the country to be there.

Dolly Parton and her late husband, Carl Dean, kept their life together as private as they possibly could, but a new report sheds some light on his final days — and a promise she made him on his deathbed.