Dolly Parton Dismisses Rumours She And Judy Ogle Are Partners

Dolly Parton, who new album Better Day will be released in September in the United Kingdom, is profiled by the Guardian. According to the newspaper, one aspect of Parton's life that has not been seen for some time is her husband, Carl Dean. She has been married for 45 years, yet many of her fans have no idea what her husband looks like, or whether he actually exists. The few photos of him in the public domain show a handsome, shy-looking man. "Carl's never wanted to be in the limelight, so I didn't put him there. He wants to be left alone and be a homebody and then hear about what I've been up to when I get back. He's my anchor and I'm his excitement," she says. Dean's absence from the public eye has led to suspicion among some of her fans that Parton's real partner is her childhood friend and constant tour companion, Judy Ogle."Judy and I laugh and laugh when people say such things," she says. "It keeps me humble; having someone around who I know loves me for who I am and not what I've done. Judy and I have known each other since we were itty-bitty girls and we're like Siamese twins because we've grown together and if something happened to her, it would just kill me." Her voice cracks ever so slightly at the end. In this regard and many others Parton can be compared to Oprah Winfrey, another woman who worked her way out of a deprived childhood in America's south to become a no-surname-necessary superstar, and whose close friendship with her female best friend has led to similar speculation, despite frequent denials. "Oprah and I have talked about that a lot," Parton agrees. "We share many very special bonds and we have often spoken about how people try to make out that she and Gayle [King] are gay and Judy and I are gay. But we understand that very few people are lucky enough to have a very best friend and keep that best friend all your life."