Yeah. Dolly Parton passed away today. She was 80, and her family said she passed away peacefully Tuesday at her home in Nashville.
AP has that from her publicist too. CNN named her nephew Bryan Seaver on the family statement. Nobody has given a cause.
I keep thinking about Dollywood. She opened it in 1986 with Herschend, back when that place was still Silver Dollar City Tennessee, because she wanted jobs in the Smokies. They called her the dreamer in chief there, and if you have been to that park you already know what she put into it. (It is one of the prettiest parks I have ever been to, honestly.)
She was even on a video for NightFlight Expedition when that ride opened August 19, as Theme Park Insider has it. Two weeks ago, basically.
NightFlight is closed through Sunday, August 30, and that shutdown is NOT this. The manufacturer asked for more time on the turntable, and that note went out this morning before the family said anything. I have not seen Dollywood or Herschend put out a statement yet, and I have not seen them close the park.
Man. She really did that for her hometown, and the legacy she left is sitting right there on that mountain, plus all the kids who got books from her Imagination Library, plus everybody who grew up hearing her. She is going to be missed. Rest in peace, Dolly. Prayers for her family and the people closest to her.