Dolly Parton is mourning the loss of her husband, Carl Dean. He was 82.
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Parton took to social media to reveal the passing of her partner to whom she was married to for nearly 60 years. “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.”
While an official cause of death was not revealed, Dean had been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s in 2019.
Parton met Dean at the Wishy Washy Laundromat in Nashville the day she moved to town. As an 18-year-old chasing a career in music, Parton has said the last thing she was looking for was a boyfriend, but Dean swept her off her feet.
“I thought, ‘the last thing I want is a boyfriend,’” she told BunnieXo in a recent episode of the Dumb Blonde Podcast. “The very day I got to Nashville, I met Carl Dean and sixty years later — I’m still with Carl Dean… he’s quiet, I’m loud… we love each other, respect each other, but we have a lot of fun.”
Dean will be laid to rest in a private ceremony with immediate family.