Dolly Parton Mourns the Loss of Husband Carl Thomas Dean After Nearly 60 Years of Marriage

Dolly Parton has shared the devastating news that her husband of nearly 60 years has died.

Carl Thomas Dean, the ultra-private husband of the country star, died Monday at 82. Married to the music icon since May 30th, 1966, Dean avoided the public eye, rarely attending events with his wife.

Parton posted the grim update on Instagram, writing, “Carl Dean, husband of Dolly Parton, passed away March 3rd in Nashville at the age of 82. He will be laid to rest in a private ceremony with immediate family attending. He is survived by his siblings Sandra and Donnie.”

“Carl and I spent many wonderful years together. Words can’t do justice to the love we shared for over 60 years,” Parton added. “The family asks for privacy during this difficult time.”

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Born in the city in 1942, Dean met Parton in 1964 outside a laundromat.

“I’d come to Nashville with dirty clothes,” she recalled to The New York Times in a 1976 piece. “And this guy hollered at me, and I waved… It was Carl, my husband.”

Dean has also gloated about his wife during his few public comments over the years.

“My first thought was ‘I’m gonna marry that girl,’” Dean told Entertainment Tonight in 2016. “And that was the day my life began.”

Despite Parton’s fame, Dean maintained his privacy, running an asphalt business.

“He’s sort of shy and quiet,” she previously told People. However, he inspired her classic song, “Jolene.”

Parton and Dean renewed their vows in 2016, marking 50 years of marriage. “We just like to be together,” she said.

Dean was last spotted in public in December 2019 in Brentwood, Tennessee. His cause of death remains unclear.