<p id=”par-1_66″><a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/tag/dolly-parton/”>Dolly Parton’s</a> husband, Carl Dean, rarely spoke to the press, but that didn’t stop them from writing about him. Dean <a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/tag/celebrity-relationships/?swcfpc=1″>married</a> Parton in 1966, and she eventually became one of country music’s brightest stars. While she embraced fame and all it had to offer, he shied away from it. The mystery of their relationship led to a great deal of media speculation, which upset Parton’s family.</p>
<h2 class=”wp-block-heading” id=”h-dolly-parton-s-family-didn-t-like-to-see-stories-about-carl-dean-in-the-press”>Dolly Parton’s family didn’t like to see stories about Carl Dean in the press</h2>
<p id=”par-2_41″>Parton and Dean <a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/the-real-reason-dolly-parton-eloped-with-carl-dean-instead-of-dream-wedding.html/”>secretly eloped in 1966</a>. Her record label warned her not to marry, as it might hurt her burgeoning career. News of her nuptials didn’t do anything to damage her music career, but it did take away Dean’s privacy.</p>
<p id=”par-3_81″>“The fact that one of country music’s most dazzling and magnetic stars (and its foremost sex symbol) was married to an almost total recluse was of enough interest that one of the Nashville newspapers ran a non-story about him on page one,” wrote Alanna Nash in the book <em>Dolly: The Biography</em>. “Non-story since Carl Dean had practically nothing to say; he didn’t want to be interviewed, he explained, but would gladly go sit down with the reporter and have a beer.” </p>
<figure class=”wp-block-image size-full” id=”emb-1″><img decoding=”async” src=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Dolly-Parton-1.webp?strip=all&quality=80″ alt=”A black and white picture of Dolly Parton sitting in front of a fence.” class=”wp-image-3785044″><figcaption class=”wp-element-caption”>Dolly Parton | Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images</figcaption></figure>
<p id=”par-4_15″>Before long, a number of other papers wrote about Dean, all reaching the same conclusions. </p>
<p id=”par-5_55″>“Several other publications followed suit, all arriving at about the same conclusion — Carl Dean was as tall, thin, and dark as his famous wife was short, voluptuous, and fair, and as withdrawn as she was outgoing. Nobody knew him, the stories said, adding that he didn’t even have a best friend, an erroneous statement.”</p>
<p id=”par-6_15″><a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/dolly-parton-said-carl-dean-culture-shock-met-family-getting-used.html/”>Parton’s family found</a> the endless speculation about Dean frustrating. Her mother, in particular, was furious.</p>
<p id=”par-7_40″>“When the stories appeared, the family was anything but overjoyed,” Nash wrote. “‘Did you see that thing in The Banner about Carl?’ Avie Lee Parton asked me, so red hot she couldn’t keep still. ‘It’s hardest on Carl and us.’”</p>
<h2 class=”wp-block-heading” id=”h-he-shared-why-he-didn-t-like-to-speak-to-the-press”>He shared why he didn’t like to speak to the press</h2>
<p id=”par-8_37″>Dean was considerably more reclusive than his famous wife and never attended events with her. He said that the reason <a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/dolly-partons-husband-revealed-romantic-reason-talks-press.html/”>he didn’t give interviews</a> had more to do with his desire to keep the spotlight on Parton.</p>
<p id=”par-9_80″>“I have a good business,” he once said. “Dolly has her work and I have mine. We didn’t plan our lives to come out this way. It just snowballed. If I run for president one day, then I’ll talk about me. But Dolly is the one in the public eye, not me. If I went out looking for publicity, it would only detract from what she’s doing. And I’m not going to take anything away from her. She’s earned it.”</p>
<h2 class=”wp-block-heading” id=”h-dolly-parton-recently-shared-that-carl-dean-died-at-82″>Dolly Parton recently shared that Carl Dean died at 82</h2>
<p id=”par-10_15″>On March 3, 2024, Parton announced that <a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/dolly-partons-husband-carl-dean-dies-82.html/”>Dean had died</a> at the age of 82.</p>
<p id=”par-11_44″>“Carl Dean, husband of Dolly Parton, passed away March 3rd in Nashville at the age of 82,” read her <a href=”https://www.instagram.com/dollyparton/?hl=en” target=”_blank” rel=”noreferrer noopener”>Instagram</a> post. “He will be laid to rest in a private ceremony with immediate family attending. He is survived by his siblings Sandra and Donnie.”</p>
<figure class=”wp-block-image size-full” id=”emb-2″><img decoding=”async” src=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Dolly-Parton-Carl-Dean-1.webp?strip=all&quality=80″ alt=”Dolly Parton wears a dress and sits on a rock with an acoustic guitar on her lap.” class=”wp-image-3784268″><figcaption class=”wp-element-caption”>Dolly Parton | Katherine Bomboy/NBC/Getty Images</figcaption></figure>
<div class=”related-article related-article–simple”>
<span class=”related-article-flag”>Related</span>
<p class=”related-article__title”>
<a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/brenda-lee-said-dolly-partons-old-friends-threat.html/”>
Brenda Lee Said Dolly Parton’s Old Friends Were a ‘Threat’ to Her </a>
</p>
</div>
<p id=”par-12_8″>They spent over six decades as a couple.</p>
<p id=”par-13_40″>“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 post continued. “The family asks for privacy during this difficult time.”</p>