Dolly Parton had to miss out on being given yet another award as she battles mysterious ‘health challenges’ that left her fans in dread.
Parton, who will turn 80 in January, became the subject of frightened speculation last month when her sister Freida asked the public for prayers amid the singer’s illness.
However the Jolene singer quickly allayed her admirers’ fears by posting a video of herself in full hair, makeup and costume for an ad shoot, saying: ‘I ain’t dead yet!’
Nevertheless, her undisclosed medical problems forced her to skip this past Sunday’s Governors Awards, where she appeared virtually via video message in order to accept the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award.
Now it has emerged that she was also unable to attend Monday’s International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions (IAAPA) Hall of Fame ceremony.
She was being inducted into the Hall of Fame because of her world-famous theme park Dollywood in Tennessee, but she once again had to receive the honor virtually, featuring in an Instagram video to express her gratitude for the bauble.
Dolly Parton had to miss her induction into the International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions (IAAPA) Hall of Fame, posting a video acceptance speech instead
‘Well, hey there! It’s Dolly, and I sure wish I could be with you in person today, but you probably heard that I’ve been dealing with a few health challenges this fall and my doctors told me to take it easy for just a little while,’ she said.
She kept her energy up as she explained she was ‘truly sorry I can’t be there, but I sure wanted to take the chance to say thank you for this incredible honor.’
Parton then offered a tip of the hat to Jack and Pete Herschend, her business partners in Dollywood, which opened 40 years ago next May.
She thanked the Herschends ‘for being my partners and my friends for more than 40 years. You’ve been a blessing to me and I love you dearly,’ Parton added.
‘You know, our partnership is truly special. I trust them and they trust me and they always listen when I come in with one of my big ideas and dreams, and somehow the amazing team at Dollywood finds a way to make those dreams come true.’
Parton recalled having the idea to open Dollywood in her native Great Smoky Mountains in Tennessee, as a place ‘where my family could perform and where we could provide steady work for the good people in our community, and where families could come and laugh and play and have fun and make memories together.’
On the opening day of the park, she was ‘as nervous as a kid waiting to see if anybody was gonna show up at a birthday party,’ but to her delight she peered out the window of her bus to see ‘all those cars lined up, and would you believe it? They’re still lining up today.’
Parton discussed her medical issues in late September when she announced that her Las Vegas residency, which was meant to take place in December, had to be pushed to September 2026 because of ‘some health challenges’ she left undisclosed.
Parton – whose husband of 59 years Carl Dean died this March at the age of 82 – has yet to divulge the nature of her medical issues
In late September she announced that her Las Vegas residency had to be postponed because of ‘some health challenges’; Parton pictured January in Las Vegas
Then in early October, Parton’s younger sister Freida – pictured at Dollywood – struck fear into the hearts of fans by pleading with them to pray for the country icon
Parton herself then posted a video of herself in hair, makeup and costume at an ad shoot for the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville in order to comfort her fans
Then in early October, Parton’s younger sister Freida struck fear into the hearts of fans by pleading with them to pray for the country icon.
‘Last night, I was up all night praying for my sister, Dolly,’ Frieda wrote on Facebook on October 7. ‘Many of you know she hasn’t been feeling her best lately. I truly believe in the power of prayer, and I have been led to ask all of the world that loves her to be prayer warriors and pray with me.’
As the panic mounted, Freida backpedaled, trying to assure the public her sister had ‘been a little under the weather’ but that she never intended to ‘make it sound so serious’ and merely issued her request out of a belief in ‘the power of prayer.’
Parton herself then posted a video of herself in hair, makeup and costume at an ad shoot for the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville in order to comfort her fans.
‘Do I look sick to you?’ she chirpily asked, adding that ‘I appreciate your prayers, because I’m a person of faith, I can always use the prayers for anything and everything, but I want you to know that I’m okay!’
However Parton – whose husband of 59 years Carl Dean died this March at the age of 82 – has yet to divulge the nature of the medical issues she is experiencing.
