The inimitable, irreplaceable Dolly Parton died Tuesday after a brief battle with cancer. She was 80. The country legend and cultural icon was perhaps our last universally beloved celebrity, bridging the widening political and social divide in America.
\n\nIn addition to creating classic tunes like “Jolene” and “I Will Always Love You,” selling over 100 million records, taking home 11 Grammy Awards and starring in celebrated films such as “9 to 5,” “The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas” and “Steel Magnolias,” Parton worked tirelessly away from the cameras to make the world a better place.
\n\nHere are some extraordinary things Parton did that you probably didn’t know.
\n\nIn 1995, Parton founded The Imagination Library, a charity that gifts books to children under the age of 5 for free, in honor of her late father. The Imagination Library was the result of a partnership between her Dollywood Foundation and local organizations, and began distributing books to kids in her local Sevier County, Tennessee, before expanding worldwide. Last year, the Imagination Library announced that it had gifted over 300 million books since its inception, including 40,356,668 in 2025 alone, or a book every 0.78 seconds). Parton created The Imagination Library in honor…
Original source: https://variety.com/v/tv/