Carl Dean, the husband of legendary country music star Dolly Parton, died on Monday at the age of 82.
Known for his intensely private nature, Dean shared nearly six decades of marriage with Parton, remaining largely out of the public eye.
His passing in Nashville, Tennessee, was confirmed in a statement released by Parton on social media.
Reflecting on their long and loving relationship, Parton expressed her grief and gratitude, stating: “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.”
The couple first met outside a laundromat on Parton’s very first day in Nashville, according to the BBC.
At the time, she was an 18-year-old aspiring singer with big dreams of breaking into the country music scene.
Recalling that life-changing encounter, Parton shared, “I was surprised and delighted that while he talked to me, he looked at my face a rare thing for me. He seemed genuinely interested in getting to know who I was and what I was about.”
Their relationship flourished quickly, and two years later, on May 30, 1966, they tied the knot in an intimate ceremony in Ringgold, Georgia.
While Parton’s career skyrocketed to international fame, Dean preferred a quiet life, running his asphalt-paving business in Nashville rather than stepping into the spotlight.
Despite staying behind the scenes, he had a lasting impact on Parton’s music.
One of her most iconic songs, Jolene, was inspired by a real-life encounter with a bank teller who had a crush on Dean.
“She got this terrible crush on my husband,” Parton revealed. “And he just loved going to the bank because she gave him so much attention.
“It became a running joke between us I’d tease him, saying, ‘You sure are spending a lot of time at the bank, and I don’t think we’ve got that kind of money.’ So, while the song sounds dramatic, it was really just a bit of innocent fun.”
Because of Dean’s preference for privacy, rumors swirled for years that he was nothing more than a fictional character invented by Parton.
Addressing the speculation in a 1984 interview with the Associated Press, she quipped, “A lot of people say there’s no Carl Dean, that I just made him up to keep other people off me.”
In May 2016, as the couple celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary, Carl Dean made a rare public statement about his wife.
Reflecting on their first meeting, he wrote, “My first thought was, ‘I’m gonna marry that girl.’”
He continued, “My second thought was, ‘Lord, she’s good-lookin’.’ And that was the day my life began. I wouldn’t trade the last 50 years for anything on this earth.”
To mark the milestone, Parton and Dean renewed their vows in an intimate ceremony in Nashville.
“If I had to do it all over again, I would,” Parton shared at the time. “And we did.”
With her signature humor, she added, “I’m dragging him kicking and screaming into the next 50 years. Wish us luck!”
One of the most unexpected revelations Parton made about their relationship was that it was “open”—but not in the way most people might assume.
“Yes, it’s an open relationship, but not s**ually and I’d kill him if I thought he was doing that,” she joked.
She added with a laugh, “He’d shoot me too! But at the end of the day, we love each other madly.”
Though Parton and Dean shared a deep and enduring marriage, they never had children together.
According to Parton, Dean is survived by his siblings, Sandra and Donnie.
