Dolly Parton Day in the Singer’s Hometown Used to Make Her Family Uncomfortable

Dolly Parton Day began in the Queen of Country’s hometown of Seviervielle, Tennessee in 1970. That first year included several festivities, including a parade with Dolly serving as the grand marshal. The event and accompanying live album made the “Coat of Many Colors” singer proud, but it made her family “uneasy.” 

The Queen of Country was proud of Dolly Parton Day, but her family felt uncomfortable

Dolly Parton Day was largely put on by Porter Wagoner, the “Jolene” singer’s then-new boss at The Porter Wagoner Show. 

“He insisted that the event be produced as a live album, and he arranged for many well-known Nashville musicians to be a part of it,” Dolly wrote in her 1994 memoir, Dolly: My Life and Other Unfinished Business. 

The album was a success. The whole affair made the singer feel “very proud.” But her family had a different experience.  

“I can remember, though, how uneasy many of my relatives felt at having to dress up and attend the festivities,” she wrote.  

Dolly’s father was particularly uncomfortable

While many Partons were uncomfortable with the pomp and circumstance, the “Two Doors Down” singer’s father, Robert Lee, was perhaps the most uncomfortable. Dolly referred to her father as “a shy and very private man.” 

“I could tell how out of place he felt wearing a suit and standing next to the mayor and other dignitaries,” she wrote.  

In addition to Robert Lee being shy, he was also quite sentimental. 

“If someone gets to bragging on one of his children, he is likely to get misty-eyed,” she wrote. “He would rather fight a bear in the town square than have that side of himself revealed in public. I understand that. It comes from the deepest, most private part of him that every person should have the right to keep to himself.”

How Parton’s early fame affected her family

In general, during the early stages of Dolly’s career, none of her family felt comfortable “around the show business types.”

“I have often felt sympathy with my family for having to try to live up to my image,” she wrote. “It’s as though everyone expects all of Dolly Parton’s relatives to live in big houses and drive fine cars. That is simply not the case. I have tried to help them in every way I can, but nobody makes that much money.”

It didn’t take long for Dolly to realize just how much the Partons were affected by her newfound fame. She thought it was unfair to be the family member of a star. 

“It has often seemed to me that my relatives have been sunburned by the spotlight that always follows me around,” she wrote. 

But as time went on, Robert Lee adjusted to his daughter’s status. 

“As the years have gone by, Daddy has come out of his shell somewhat,” she wrote. “He is very proud of me and what I have accomplished, and he loves to ride in the Dollywood parade and wave to the crowd. He would not want to have to speak in public, but he’s real good at riding and waving.”