2026 has been a brutal one for celebrity deaths, and the world is still reeling after Dolly Parton passed away at 80. In the days that passed fans have been re-watching 9 to 5 (streaming with a Hulu subscription), and both Lily Tomlin and Jane Fonda wrote touching tributes to their co-star. The latter actress recently spoke more about Dolly’s kindness, and I’m getting emotional from the touching anecdotes she shared.
Tributes to Dolly Parton keep rolling in, each one speaking to the strength of the late icon’s character. Fonda recently spoke to Democracy Now! about her relationship with the “Jolene” singer, and shared an anecdote that highlights just how kind she was. The Grace and Frankie star was quoted by saying:
She meant love, she really did. She loved everyone. We were having a photo session, me, Dolly, and Lily. And, for fun, we crossed our eyes and they took a picture of us with our eyes crossed, and she got very upset. She said, ‘We never can show this to anybody.’ She said, ‘It looks like we’re making fun. I have a relative who’s cross-eyed. I don’t ever want to see this picture.’
Talk about someone who leads with love. While many of us have taken silly cross-eyed photos, Dolly Parton thought about the deeper message this might send if images of her and her 9 to 5 costars were seen doing this. Namely because she had a relative who was cross-eyed, and she didn’t want anyone to think she was making fun of someone who had that condition. And it’s making me misty-eyed to think about the way Dolly lead with empathy.
This anecdote feels truly on brand, especially considering what we know about the late music icon. She constantly shared messages of love and acceptance, especially where the LGBTQ+ community was concerned. She also donated a whopping $1 million toward COVID-19 vaccines at the height of the pandemic.
Later on in the same interview, Fonda also spoke about traveling around with Dolly Parton while she was researching for her role in The Dollmaker. She spoke about how adored the singer/actress was, offering:
I was in deep hollows of Tennessee and Arkansas, where people lived in tarp paper shacks with no electricity or running water, and she would come in in her full regalia. I never saw her without full regalia. And they loved her so much that they accepted my presence, and it was so clear that she absolutely respected them. That was why there was so much love. She never played down. She always was pulled together. She was always who she was, out of respect for her fans. She taught me the importance of acknowledging and respecting fans.
It certainly sounds like Parton had a big impact on Fonda, both on and off camera. I love hearing what a bond the 9 to 5 stars had, and the way that Dolly helped to encourage everyone around her to lead with kindness. That, and her truly iconic aesthetic.
Stories about Parton keep coming out, some of which came from the late singer’s own words. For instance, a bit from her autobiography Dolly: My Life and Other Unfinished Business has recently resurfaced, where she revealed how the director of Steel Magnolias didn’t originally think she could act. But she won him over, just like she did with so many others.
Our thoughts are with Dolly’s loved ones and generations of fans who are still reeling from her death at 80. While she’ll be missed she leaves behind an incredible legacy, for both in her career and personal life.
