Stella Parton is sharing new details about her sister Dolly Parton’s final days, revealing in her first television interview since Dolly’s death that the country icon appeared calm and prepared as the end approached.
Speaking to Gayle King on CBS Mornings on Thursday, September 10, Stella, 77, described being able to read her sister’s emotional state simply by looking at her, even after long stretches apart.
“I know she was at peace,” Stella said. “I could always tell by looking at her face, even if I hadn’t seen her in months. On camera, I could tell if she was hurt, angry, happy or sad, or felt bad. I could see it on her.”
Stella spoke movingly about her sister’s spiritual outlook heading into her final days, saying, “She knew where she was goin’. She wasn’t goin’ anywhere bad. She was going to be with Mama and Daddy.”
She also addressed speculation about whether the death of Dolly’s husband, Carl Thomas Dean, in March of last year, played a role in her decline, saying she doesn’t believe that was the cause, even though the loss clearly weighed on her sister deeply.
“I know their relationship was very unique and very deep and loyal. And I think it broke her heart to see him in the shape he, you know, got to before he passed away,” Stella said.
“But I don’t think that’s what made her sick. I think my sister worked so hard for so long and just kept going. You know, even to the last conversation I had with her, she was working. That was her passion.”
Stella also touched on Dolly’s famously guarded approach to politics, explaining it as a business instinct as much as a personal one.
“She had an opinion about things but she never shared any of that.”
Dolly died August 25 at age 80 following what her team described as a brief battle with cancer, a diagnosis she kept largely private from fans and even some family members.
Just days after her death, Stella had shared on Instagram that Dolly had told her she would allow doctors to try experimental treatments on her, even without hope for herself, purely in case it might help others in the future.
