<p id=”par-1_61″>In 1989, <a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/tag/dolly-parton/”>Dolly Parton</a> hosted <em><a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/tag/saturday-night-live/?swcfpc=1″>Saturday Night Live</a> </em>for the first and only time. While on the show, Parton poked fun at her appearance and parts of her career. Parton has always had a strong sense of humor and hasn’t been afraid to make fun of herself. When she arrived at 30 Rockefeller Plaza, she only had two off-limit areas for the show.</p>
<h2 class=”wp-block-heading” id=”h-dolly-parton-only-had-two-requests-as-the-host-of-saturday-night-live”>Dolly Parton only had two requests as the host of ‘Saturday Night Live’</h2>
<p id=”par-2_59″>Parton spent <a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/dolly-parton-1989-snl-monologue-didnt-have-jokes-gag-body.html/”>her opening monologue</a> poking fun at her appearance, proving that little would be off-limits when she hosted. She was happy to be a part of jokes at her own expense. <em>SNL </em>cast member Jan Hooks said this was a quality that made Parton one of her favorite guests. She only had two demands when she arrived to work on the episode. </p>
<figure class=”wp-block-image size-full” id=”emb-1″><img decoding=”async” fetchpriority=”high” width=”1200″ height=”796″ src=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Dolly-Parton-SNL.jpg?strip=all&quality=89″ alt=”A black and white picture of Dolly Parton on stage with the cast of ‘SNL.'” class=”wp-image-3649628″ srcset=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Dolly-Parton-SNL.jpg 1200w, https://www.cheatsheet.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Dolly-Parton-SNL.jpg?w=640&h=425 640w, https://www.cheatsheet.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Dolly-Parton-SNL.jpg?w=1024&h=679 1024w, https://www.cheatsheet.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Dolly-Parton-SNL.jpg?w=150&h=100 150w, https://www.cheatsheet.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Dolly-Parton-SNL.jpg?w=768&h=509 768w, https://www.cheatsheet.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Dolly-Parton-SNL.jpg?w=528&h=350 528w, https://www.cheatsheet.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Dolly-Parton-SNL.jpg?w=255&h=169 255w, https://www.cheatsheet.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Dolly-Parton-SNL.jpg?w=200&h=133 200w, https://www.cheatsheet.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Dolly-Parton-SNL.jpg?w=764&h=507 764w, https://www.cheatsheet.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Dolly-Parton-SNL.jpg?w=90&h=60 90w” sizes=”(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px”><figcaption class=”wp-element-caption”>Dolly Parton on ‘Saturday Night Live’ | NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty Images via Getty Images</figcaption></figure>
<p id=”par-3_57″>“I loved Dolly Parton,” Hooks said in <em>Live From New York: An Uncensored History of Saturday Night Live</em> by James Andrew Miller and Tom Shales. “She came in and said, ‘Look, okay, here’s the deal. I won’t use any cuss words and I won’t make fun of Jesus. Those were her two demands. And anything else was carte blanche.”</p>
<h2 class=”wp-block-heading” id=”h-dolly-parton-admitted-hosting-saturday-night-live-was-exhausting”>Dolly Parton admitted hosting ‘Saturday Night Live’ was exhausting</h2>
<p id=”par-4_70″>While Parton made the writers’ job easy, she said her appearance on the comedy program was a challenge. Parton hosted a New Year’s Eve special with Miley Cyrus which <em>SNL </em>creator Lorne Michaels produced. As they worked on the program, Parton and Michaels discussed her potential return to the long-running comedy series. While she would be open to hosting again, she said she would likely do it in a more reduced capacity.</p>
<p id=”par-5_74″>“When I did the show with Miley [Cyrus]—the New Year’s Eve show from Miami—that was produced by Lorne Michaels,” she told <a href=”https://www.eonline.com/news/1361952/heres-how-dolly-parton-is-spending-her-77th-birthday” target=”_blank” rel=”noreferrer noopener”>E! News</a>. “I talked to Lorne about me doing it again because when I was on that before I was hosting, I was the musical guest and I was in the skits. It <a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/dolly-parton-says-snl-appearance-almost-killed-me.html/”>about killed me</a>. I might have to pull back a little bit but I’d love to be on it at some point.”</p>
<h2 class=”wp-block-heading” id=”h-she-has-no-problems-making-fun-of-herself”>She has no problems making fun of herself</h2>
<p id=”par-6_23″>Though Parton didn’t seem to have any problems making fun of herself on <em>SNL</em>, she said she once shied away from <a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/dolly-parton-overcame-embarrassment-meanspirited-jokes-looks.html/”>jokes about herself</a>.</p>
<figure class=”wp-block-image size-full” id=”emb-2″><img decoding=”async” width=”1200″ height=”1193″ src=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Dolly-Parton-5.jpg?strip=all&quality=89″ alt=”Dolly Parton wears a cowboy hat and flannel shirt.” class=”wp-image-3643284″><figcaption class=”wp-element-caption”>Dolly Parton | 20th Century-Fox/Getty Images</figcaption></figure>
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<p id=”par-7_67″>“In the early days, I think it used to bother me when people [made fun of me],” Parton said on <em>The Oprah Conversation</em>. “It didn’t change me. It didn’t make me do it different, but I kind of get a little embarrassed sometimes if somebody made too much fun of it. That was when I knew they didn’t know who all I was or what all I was.”</p>
<p id=”par-8_30″>Parton has grown comfortable enough with herself and her appearance that most insults just roll off her. She has also learned to beat people to the joke with self-deprecating humor.</p>