As country legend Dolly Parton turns 80, she gets the surprise of her life with an Irish twist
Dolly Parton’s life is a real "rags to riches story" or rhinestones if you prefer to keep it country, beginning in rural Tennessee, where she was born in 1946.
Parton grew up fourth in line in a family of 12 children in a one-room cabin, and honed her musical skills while listening to her mother singing folk songs.
She rose from performing on local radio to national stardom in a very short space of time, launching her career in Nashville the day after she left school, and co-writing hits with some well-known established names in the business of country music like Porter Wagoner, Kenny Rogers, Linda Ronstadt and Emmylou Harris.
She built a massive empire through hard work, music, acting, and having a savvy business brain.
Her wealth has allowed her to become a beloved philanthropist, giving millions to charities and founding her own foundation Dollys Imagination Library, providing millions of books to children in an effort to improve literacy worldwide.
Parton’s business acumen has seen her reap the rewards of her songwriting, as she insisted on owning the rights to all of her material, and today her songbook is estimated to be worth in the region of $150 million.
She was almost as famous for her 60-year marriage to Carl Dean, her rarely seen husband, who preferred to stay out of the limelight, but who was Dolly’s rock and the love of her life.
Carl passed away in March 2025, leaving Dolly devastated and causing her to step back from recording to rest and recuperate.
But yesterday, January 19th, the legend that is Dolly Rebecca Parton turned 80 years old and catching her unawares, was a surprise gift from none other than U2’s Bono.
As Dolly sat discussing plans in her office, an Irish born bag-pipe playing musician, Patrick D’Arcy, walked into the room, playing Happy Birthday, while an assistant brought in a cake resplendent with birthday candles and a greeting to Dolly from Bono, inscribed in icing on the cake.
Later, Dolly jokingly wondered if the bagpipes were Bono’s way of calling her "an old bag".
* This article was originally published on Extra.ie.
