"If we cheat we don't know it, so if we do cheat, it's very good for both us. I don't want to know it, if he's cheating on me. If I'm cheating on him, he wouldn't want to know it. And if we do, if that's what's making it work, then that's fine too.” - Dolly Parton, quoted speaking of her 30+ year marriage to her limelight shunning husband Carl Dean while opening a children's school in Rotherham, UK, December 5, 2007 What???? I don't know for sure, but if this is really true, I'm going to be one happy Dolly-lovin' woman. Who knew Dolly and Carl have a don't ask don't tell relationship? She's very careful to speak hypothetically, so this may or may not be actually true, but it sure seems like she's thought a lot about it.
I'm not condoning cheating, not at all. That said, I've always thought that polyamory would be a potential problem-solver for showbiz types with strong marriages.
I grew up in the next county over from Dolly. I used to be ashamed of her, I'm ashamed to say, but that was when I was young, stupid and caught up in the culture of rock and roll. As she and I both got older and she became so successful, I came to recognize her for the authentic, shrewd, open-minded and talented woman she truly is. I saw her concert in Fairfax, Virginia earlier this year. It was great. It was also entertaining to note the huge range of fans in the audience, from drag queens to young families with kids to a full row of geriatric folks in wheelchairs.
There have long been rumors that Dolly is having a lesbian or bisexual affair with her best friend, assistant and traveling companion, Judy "Sissy" Ogle, much like similar rumors about Oprah Winfrey. I'd sure love to know if it's true. Maybe she'll write an update to her original memoir that will be published once she's gone - which I hope won't be for a lot of years. She's 62 y.o. What with Cloris Leachman appearing on Dancing with the Stars at age 82, anything's possible for older women these days.
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