Married for 59 Years, Dolly Parton Reveals 3 Habits That Keep Relationships Strong
On her first day in Nashville, at the age of 18, Dolly Parton met Carl Dean outside a laundromat. After dating for two years, they married in 1966, and their marriage lasted 59 years, until Dean’s death in March 2025. One of the questions Parton was asked most often over the years—before she died in August—was what made their marriage last so long. Her answers offer a few clues for couples hoping to build a lasting relationship.
Let’s take a look…
The two were opposites in many ways.
In a 2015 interview, Parton said her husband enjoyed taking short trips but didn’t like being away from home for long: “I’m the exact opposite. The more places I go and the more things I do, the better.”
Psychotherapist Amy Morin says differences can strengthen a relationship, but only in certain ways. For instance, a quiet person may be drawn to someone who’s more talkative, making social situations easier to navigate. But when partners have different core values—or aren’t both committed to the relationship—it can be much harder to make it work.
Each retained its independence.
In 2006, Parton said, “He likes staying home, and I like going out. It works just fine for us.” Morin says it’s essential for both partners to have some independence and meet certain needs outside the relationship.
“When each partner has their own interests, they have different things to talk about. Independence can help you remain interesting to each other,” Morin says.
They laughed at the same things.
Parton once said of her husband, “He has a wonderful, slightly quirky sense of humor.” According to relationship author Sara Nasserzadeh, research consistently shows that a shared sense of humor is one of the key predictors of long-term relationship satisfaction. When two people laugh at the same things, she says, they tend to process information in similar ways.
Morin’s final piece of advice is straightforward: “Don’t try to change your partner. Support them for who they are and what they want to achieve.”
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