Carl Dean, the longtime husband of country music legend Dolly Parton, has passed away at the age of 82.
A statement shared by Parton on social media confirmed that Dean, known for his intensely private nature throughout their nearly six-decade marriage, died in Nashville, Tennessee.
“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 statement read.
Their love story began outside a laundromat when Parton, then an 18-year-old aspiring singer, had just arrived in Nashville.
Parton, now 79, reminisced about their first encounter, recalling, “I was surprised and delighted that while he talked to me, he looked at my face (a rare thing for me). He seemed to be genuinely interested in finding out who I was and what I was about.”
Marriage followed two years later when the couple exchanged vows in a private ceremony in Ringgold, Georgia, on May 30, 1966.
Privacy defined their relationship, with Dean choosing to stay away from the spotlight while running his asphalt-paving business in Nashville.
Despite his preference for a low profile, Dean had a lasting influence on Parton’s music, notably inspiring her hit song “Jolene.”
During a 2008 interview with US media, Parton revealed that the song was inspired by a bank teller who had developed a crush on her husband.
“She got this terrible crush on my husband,” Parton shared. “And he just loved going to the bank because she paid him so much attention. It was kinda like a running joke between us—when I was saying, ‘Hell, you’re spending a lot of time at the bank. I don’t believe we’ve got that kind of money.’ So it’s really an innocent song all around, but sounds like a dreadful one.”
Speculation about Dean’s existence became so widespread over the years that Parton once laughed off the rumors.
“A lot of people say there’s no Carl Dean, that he’s just somebody I made up to keep other people off me,” she told the Associated Press in 1984.
Children were never part of their union, but Dean is survived by his siblings, Sandra and Donnie, according to Parton’s statement.
