Dolly Parton made her debut on SiriusXM’s The Howard Stern Show, sharing details about her cosmetic procedures and the heartbreak of turning down Elvis Presley’s request to record her iconic ballad, “I Will Always Love You.”
The 77-year-old singer, adorned in a sparkling lime-green outfit with her signature platinum-blonde hair and long red nails, discussed various topics — including her new book, Behind the Seams: My Life in Rhinestones, and her latest album, Rockstar.
Parton didn’t shy away from explaining why she’s open to discussing plastic surgery she’s had done over the years. “I always say, ‘Just find the best doctors,'” she advised, emphasizing the importance of moderation and caution. “You’ve just got to be very careful not to overdo it because you never know, anytime you go under the knife you could come out looking not good.”
The legendary singer disclosed her approach to cosmetic procedures, stating, “I try to do just little bits at a time — I don’t do like really big stuff. I do fillers, Botox … only when I have to do something a little more, and even then, I try to be careful.”
In her new book, Behind the Seams: My Life in Rhinestones, the 77-year-old singer-songwriter unveiled that she routinely goes to bed with a full face of makeup.
Dolly’s intriguing nightly beauty routine traces its origins back to the 1980s when she first arrived in Los Angeles. She humorously explained, “I started sleeping with my makeup on, partly because of the earthquakes. I thought, ‘I’m not heading out on the streets without makeup in case there are cameras out there! I’m going to be ready to go!'” It seems that the prospect of being caught off-guard by photographers was enough to persuade the country legend to maintain her glamorous appearance even in her slumber.
However, beyond earthquakes and impromptu photo ops, Parton offered a more sentimental reason for sticking with her unconventional bedtime beauty ritual. She confessed, “I don’t want to go to bed looking like a hag with Carl,” referring to her husband of over 50 years, Carl Dean.
In a recent interview with ET, Parton revealed she has hundreds of wigs, and says her husband, Carl, isn’t a fan of all of them.
Parton told ET that her wigs are “all big and they’re all sexy,” but noted, “When I wear my hair too stationary, I said, ‘You don’t like my hair?’ And he said, ‘Well, it looks too important.’ There’s a certain look that looks important.”
As for the specific number of wigs she has, Parton said, “Once somebody asked me, ‘How many wigs do you have?’ I said, ‘Well, I must have at least 365, because I wear one almost every day.'”
While on Stern, Parton also told the story about the creation of “I Will Always Love You,” written by her in 1973 as a farewell to her mentor and collaborator, Porter Wagoner.
Reflecting on Elvis Presley’s interest in recording the song, Parton shared the disappointment when Colonel Tom Parker, Presley’s manager, attempted to renegotiate the deal, ultimately causing the collaboration to fall through. “I cried all night about that,” Parton recalled.
However, Parton’s decision to retain the publishing rights paid off when Whitney Houston recorded a powerful rendition of the song for The Bodyguard soundtrack in 1992. The song became the bestselling single of the year, validating Parton’s choice. She described hearing Houston’s version for the first time as overwhelming, saying, “I couldn’t believe my little country sad song could even be done like that.”
