Seeking the Seeker
A new exhibit at The Country Music Hall of Fame explores the life of Dolly Parton.
Credit: Wes McFee on Unsplash
The Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum explores the life and career of a Tennessee icon in a new exhibit, Dolly Parton: Journey of a Seeker.
Credit: Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum
The exhibit focuses on major turning points in Parton’s more than 60-year career where she overcame obstacles and ignored naysayers to become one of the most beloved and widely recognized celebrities across the world. The exhibit is open until September.
“Being inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame was one of the greatest moments of my life, and being able to have a personal exhibit for the fans that put me there is a very big deal to me,” Parton said. “This seeker is very proud and honored, and I hope you enjoy my journey. I will always love you.”
Access to the the exhibit is included with museum admission. However, a limited number of timed tickets for the exhibit are available each day. Advance reservations are encouraged and ticket availability can be found on the museum’s website.
““Being inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame was one of the greatest moments of my life, and being able to have a personal exhibit for the fans that put me there is a very big deal to me.””
The exhibit includes clothing, awards, handwritten lyrics, instruments, photographs, exclusive interview footage, and more.
Examples of items to be displayed include:
• Parton’s first draft of handwritten lyrics to her classic song and No. 1 country hit “Jolene.”
• A custom-built Gibson five-string banjo with rhinestones and butterflies used by Parton at performances in 1992 and on her “Halos & Horns Tour” in 2002.
“After accomplishing enough for three lifetimes, Dolly Parton continues to astound and amaze us with her boundless talent, her vivacious wit, and her tremendous generosity,” said Kyle Young, CEO of the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum. “Like all great artists, Parton has demonstrated consistently that she can transform adversity and setbacks into works of stunning beauty and insight into the human condition.”
Credit: Country Music Hall of Fame Fame and Museum
Dolly Parton was born the fourth of 12 children 15 miles east of Sevierville. The remote cabin had no plumbing, electricity, or access roads. Embracing her father’s enterprising work ethic and her mother’s love of traditional Scots-Irish folk music, she pursued her dream of becoming an entertainer despite limited opportunities. By age 10, Parton performed regularly on radio and television shows in Knoxville, recorded teen-pop tunes in Louisiana at age 13, and signed with Mercury Records in Nashville at age 16 — moving there to pursue her career the day after finishing high school.
The Dolly exhibit at the Hall of Fame explores the many times persistent triumphed over critics and norms in the pursuit of her dreams. Some of the these include:
• At age 13, Parton made her Grand Ole Opry debut, but only after she and her uncle Bill Owens persuaded singer Jimmy C. Newman to give her one of his time slots after an Opry manager refused to schedule her, citing her youth.
• After establishing herself in Nashville, Parton resisted advice from record executives who warned that her flamboyant fashions would overshadow her talent — determined to present herself as boldly as she dreamed as a young girl with a vivid imagination and a desire to stand apart and experience life beyond the Smoky Mountains.
Credit: Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum
• When Parton collaborated with L.A. pop producer Gary Klein for her 1977 album ”Here You Come Again,” many in the Nashville community accused her of abandoning country music in search of pop success. The album became Parton’s first million-selling album, earning her first Grammy Award. It also led to her film debut as Doralee Rhodes, in Jane Fonda’s film “9 to 5,” after Fonda heard Parton’s hit “Two Doors Down” from the album.
• To encourage an interest in reading in children five and under in Sevier County and to honor her father, who never learned to read but insisted on his children becoming readers, she founded Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library in 1995 — shocking skeptics when 1,700 books reached mailboxes from the first month on. She launched the Dollywood Foundation in 1998, with the Imagination Library as its flagship program, which is now active in all 50 states, as well as in Australia, Canada, Ireland, and the United Kingdom.
• A singer, songwriter, movie and television actor, author, businesswoman and philanthropist, Parton is a member of the Country Music Hall of Fame, Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame, Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and Songwriters Hall of Fame, and has received the National Medal of Arts and the Kennedy Center Honors.
