www.dollymania.net                News                          November 2008

Nov. 29:
Christmas Collection Moves Up
An old holiday greeting from Dolly and Kenny Rogers continues to increase its position on the charts released this week. Their 1984 duet album Once Upon A Christmas rises three more places to No. 13 in its third week this year on the U.S. country catalog albums chart, Billboard's Dec. 6 tallies showed for the CD's 51st week since its release. The collection also makes its annual return to the Canadian country albums chart, where it enters the top 50 at No. 15, up from last week's debut in the top 100 at No. 55. Her current album, Backwoods Barbie, remains in the Canadian country top 50 for a second week following her recent concerts north of the border, dipping seven to No. 39 for its 10th cumulative week on that tally since its February release. And stateside, her 16 Biggest Hits inches up two to No. 62 country in its 59th week. Jessica Simpson's Do You Know, featuring Dolly on the Parton-penned title tune, loses three to No. 48 country in its ninth week. In Canada, the album drops off the top 50 country list, down from No. 46 the previous week. Randy Owen's solo debut, One On One, with the Dolly-written track "Holding Everything," drops 10 to No. 40 country in its third week. Patty Loveless' Sleepless Nights, with her cover of Porter & Dolly's "The Pain Of Loving You," regains three to No. 53 country in its 11th week. Emmylou Harris' All I Intended To Be, featuring Dolly on "Gold," dips two in its 23rd week, coming in at No. 73. Brad Paisley's Time Well Wasted, with Dolly on "When I Get Where I'm Going," jumps up 10 to No. 9 on the country catalog albums chart and down six to No. 48 Canadian country. Taylor Swift's Fearless holds steady at No. 1 country and slides three to No. 4 pop with 217,000 copies sold in its second week, while Faith Hill's Christmas collection Joy To The World gains five to No. 2 country and eight to No. 16 pop in its eighth week.

Up On CMT, Down In Ireland
Dolly's music video for "Shinola" from Backwoods Barbie sees a major resurgence on this week's countdown on CMT's digital music channel, Pure Country. The video shoots up 10 spots to recapture the No. 2 position on its Internet-voted 12-position Pure 12 Pack in its 10th week. Cast your ballot for it in next week's list here! And across the pond, The Very Best Of Dolly Parton, Vol. 1 falls seven places this week to No. 74 in its 67th week on the Irish pop albums chart, it was announced Friday.

More From Backstage
Thanks to Kelly for sending over from all the way in Scotland her shots with Dolly backstage in Des Moines here and here and Green Bay here!

Dolly The Bunny
FOX News has chosen Dolly's 1978 cover shot for Playboy as the fourth-sexiest celebrity cover in the magazine's history. Beating her out for the top three were Sharon Stone, Ann Margaret and Raquel Welch, who holds their No. 1 spot. Read more here.

Another Compilation On Its Way
Although no real details are available yet, SonyBMG has announced another Dolly collection, presumably the next in their long line of compilation discs, will hit streets Jan. 13. This one, titled From The Heart, is available for pre-order here.

More 'Hannah' On DVD
Disney last week finally got around to releasing the complete first season of the network's hit show Hannah Montana, which is available here and contains Dolly's first appearance on the program in the "Good Golly, Miss Dolly" episode (which had previously been available in a four-episode DVD).

More Dolly On GAC
Great American Country's (GAC) program On The Streets usually discusses CDs being released that week, but this week the program focuses on discs from throughout the year that would make perfect stocking stuffers, including Dolly's most recent release. Catch the show premiering Tuesday at 1:30 p.m. Eastern with repeats at 9:30 p.m. that night and again at 1:30 a.m. Wednesday, 2 p.m. and 10 p.m. next Saturday and 2 a.m. the following Sunday.

Latest Library Update
Another community has kicked off Dolly's Imagination Library literacy program for its children, The Republican News in Oakland, Md., reported here this week.


Nov. 27:
HAPPY THANKSGIVING!
What's Dolly Doing Today?

What going on this Thanksgiving in Dolly's house? Well, she gave some insight to Knoxville TV station WBIR, which aired a story this week about her holiday traditions. View it in the player below! Thanks, Jeremy!

Helping Another Good Cause
Through Sunday, if you make a $10 contribution to Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS, you will be entered in a contest to win an autographed copy of Dolly's Backwoods Barbie CD, Broadway World reported here on Wednesday. Those who make contributions of $20 are entered to win a poster from the show Equus signed by the cast, including Daniel Radcliffe. Donations are accepted here through 11:59 p.m. Sunday night.





Another Community For Dolly's Library
Tuscola County, Mich., has joined Dolly's Imagination Library literacy program, Tuscola Today reported here Wednesday.


Nov. 26:
More From Kentucky
Thanks to Sarah, who traveled all the way from England to meet Dolly at her recent Richmond, Ky., charity concert, for sharing her photos with her idol backstage. Check them out here and here.

Thank You!
As has been the case for the past several years, Dollymania once again reigns as the world's No. 1 rated Internet resource for a country music performer, the tens of thousands of voters of the 2008 BT Digital Music Awards sponsored by British Telecom have decided. Out of the thousands of unofficial websites about music and musicians, ballots cast this year placed Dollymania No. 19, a rise from No. 29 last year. Once more, it was the highest-ranked unofficial or official site dedicated to a country artist. The top three unofficial sites were dedicated to Avril Lavigne, Linkin Park and Muse. The top three official sites were operated by Coldplay, Keane and Westlife. Thanks to all who voted!


Nov. 25:
Another Couple From Diane
I joked with Diane today that pretty soon her face will be on Dollymania as often as Dolly's! She's sent in her shot with Dolly from the Kentucky benefit show here, as well as her husband Mark's here. Thanks!


Nov. 24:
More Images From Meet-And-Greets
Thanks to Bianca for submitting her shot of meeting Dolly backstage in Des Moines, which is available here. Also, a shout out to Diane for sending in another picture, this one with BFFs Kelly and Beth joining Dolly at the same concert. View it here! Thanks to Scott for sending in his two poses with Miss Dolly from Green Bay here and here. And thanks as well to Teddy Wayne for sending in an image of him and Dolly from Richmond, Ky., here and with Dolly and his mom here.


Nov. 22:
Couple More Shots From Backstage
Thanks to Courtney for sending in her picture backstage with Dolly from this week's Green Bay concert. View it here. And thanks to Michael for submitting the shot of him and Jonathan backstage in Raleigh. Take a look at it here.

Down On CMT, Irish Tallies
The Very Best Of Dolly Parton, Vol. 1 dips 13 digits this week to No. 67 in its 66th week on the Irish pop albums chart, it was announced Friday. Back home, her music video for "Shinola" from Backwoods Barbie could be nearing its end on CMT's digital music channel, Pure Country. The video drops eight to No. 12 on the network's fan-voted 12-position Pure 12 Pack in its 10th week. Vote for it in next week's list here!

Miley Wants To Sing With Dolly
Miley Cyrus, Dolly's goddaughter and offspring of Mr. Acky Breaky, Billy Ray Cyrus, would like to do a country album, she told MTV this week, adding that her ultimate dream is to collaborate with Dolly. "I would love to work with her again 'cause she's just fabulous . . . I think that'd be fun to work with someone as legendary as she is," the Hannah Montana star said. Watch that segment of the interview and read a story about it here.

Makes Ya Go Hmmmm
What did Dolly do to express her appreciation to Kevin Costner for choosing her composition "I Will Always Love You" for Whitney Houston to sing in The Bodyguard? Well, he ain't tellin'! "She said something to me off the record, so I won't ever repeat it, but it was so beautiful, and it was so Dolly," he explained in an interview with CMT.com. "It was generous and it was funny -- everything that she is -- but it was a big thank you. It was a big, fat thank you." He talks about his current country band and having to fight for that song in the film in the story here.


Nov. 21:
'Backwoods' Tour Comes To Close
"I'm heartbroken," one devoted fan tells Dollymania now that Dolly's Backwoods Barbie World Tour, which kept her on the road for the majority of 2008, has come to a close. "Now we're going into Dolly depression," noted another. The tour wrapped up Wednesday night in Des Moines, Iowa, and although I'm told the overall crowd wasn't anywhere near as energetic as other recent stops, Dolly still put on a show worth seeing. They say she sang "Jesus and Gravity," the night's encore number, "like there was no tomorrow." She spoke of being glad to go home and spend the holidays with her family. Thanks Kelly, Diane, and Bonnie! The Gazette called her "an ageless beauty, ageless artist and ageless dynamo in a package that's teeny-tiny – mostly." Their review of the Des Moines show, here, added "If you weren't a die-hard Dolly fan going into the concert, you were one going out." The Des Moines Register said here "The goods were definitely there for an impressive variety of songs." The tour, which ran from April 22 through Nov. 19, took in 62 shows in 55 cities across the United States, Canada, England, Scotland, Wales, Ireland, Northern Ireland, Sweden, Denmark, Norway and the Netherlands. Eleven of her U.S. dates and eight across the British Isles sold out. It had originally been planned as a two-year tour into 2009, but Dolly announced a few weeks ago that she would be taking 2009 off from touring to focus on her other projects, such as her upcoming Broadway musical. Lucky Diane got backstage to see Dolly twice: once in Green Bay (here) and again in Des Moines (at left, click on picture for larger view). Thanks for sharing!

Christmas CD Up, 'Barbie' Back In Canada
It's nearly a quarter-century old, but Once Upon A Christmas by Dolly and Kenny Rogers is again one of the best-selling country titles of the week, gaining seven points to No. 16 in its second week this year on the country catalog albums chart, Billboard revealed in the Nov. 29 numbers released Thursday. The album has spent 50 weeks on the chart over the years, returning each holiday season for a few weeks. Her current CD, Backwoods Barbie, re-enters the Canadian country albums chart this week, coming in at No. 32 in the top 50, its ninth week on that tally, with sales pumped up thanks to publicity surrounding the four Canadian dates last week on the tour. Back in the States, her 16 Biggest Hits slides two to No. 64 country in its 58th week. Jessica Simpson's Do You Know, with Dolly on her own written title track, tumbles 10 to No. 45 country in its eighth week and falls off the top 200 pop albums, down from No. 190 the previous week. In Canada, the CD drops 11 to No. 46 country. Randy Owen's debut solo collection, One On One, with the Dolly-penned track "Holding Everything," loses 16 to No. 30 country in its second week, falling off the top 200 pop albums, down from No. 77 the previous week. Patty Loveless' Sleepless Nights, featuring her cover of Porter & Dolly's "The Pain Of Loving You," inches down two to No. 56 country in its 10th week. Emmylou Harris' All I Intended To Be, with Dolly on "Gold," re-enters the 75-position country albums list for a 22nd week, coming in at No. 71. Brad Paisley's Time Well Wasted, including Dolly on "When I Get Where I'm Going," falls nine to No. 19 on the country catalog albums chart and loses five to No. 42 Canadian country. Taylor Swift's Fearless debuts at No. 1 country and pop with 592,000 units sold in its first week, while Rascal Flatts sees its Greatest Hits hold steady at No. 2 country, dropping five to No. 15 pop in its third week.

In Memoriam: Aunt Dorothy Jo
The Rev. Dorothy Jo Owens Parton, Dolly's beloved aunt, died Wednesday night in Sevierville, Tenn. She was 79. An evangelist, Dorothy Jo also was a songwriter, composing several songs with her niece, including the Porter & Dolly duet "Daddy Was An Old Time Preacher Man," about the Rev. Jake Owens, the father to Dorothy Jo as well as Dolly's mother, Avie Lee Owens Parton. She also formerly performed at Dollywood and had received an Honorary Doctorate of Sacred Music from Emmanuel Baptist University. She and Bill Parton had married just 14 months ago, with Dolly giving her away at the ceremony. In addition to her husband, she is survived by children Dale Puckett, Donna Faye Cudd, Dwight Puckett, Debra Jo Hess, and Rena Conley; 13 grandchildren, 15 great-grandchildren, brothers Louis Owens, Bill Owens and Alden Owens; step-children Tammy Parton, Cindy Taylor, Scott Parton and Craig Parton; six step-grandchildren, six step-great-grandchildren, and many nieces, nephews, family and friends, including best friend Carolyn Sadler. Services will be held at 2 p.m. Sunday in the West Chapel of Atchley Funeral Home in Sevierville with the Rev. Donnie Jester officiating. Interment follows in Caton's Chapel Cemetery. Visitation is 5 p.m. until 8 p.m. Saturday at Atchley Funeral Home. Family and friends will also gather following the funeral on Sunday at Gatlinburg World Outreach Center/Gatlinburg Community Church on Byrds Creek Road in Sevierville. Our thoughts and prayers go out to Dolly and her family.

Originial '9 To 5' Coming To CD
The soundtrack to Dolly's first film 9 To 5, will be issued on CD for the first time next month, it has been announced. Likely due to new attention from her 9 To 5: The Musical, opening on Broadway next year, Intrada Records will release a limited edition pressing of the 1980 film soundtrack on CD featuring Dolly's hit title song and the complete original score by Charles Fox. It will be limited to a run of 3,000 copies, so you may need to get them directly from the manufacturer here. Dolly and Fox shared a Grammy nomination for the soundtrack album as Best Album Of Original Score Written For A Motion Picture Or Television Special, but they didn't win. Dolly did win two Grammy Awards for the title song, though: Best Country Song and Best Country Vocal Performance By A Female.

More From Dolly
Some coverage of Dollywood's Smoky Mountain Christmas, including a little interview with Dolly herself, made The Bristol Herald Courier on Friday. See a note here on Dolly, read a story here on the park's festival and listen to audio of her talking about Miley Cyrus here.


Nov. 20:
Wisconsin Loves Dolly
I'm told Dolly was spectacular as usual on Tuesday night in Green Bay, Wis. "Jesus & Gravity" and "Little Sparrow" returned to the set list, and "she is clearly giving it everything possible." Thanks, Kelly! The press agrees, with The Green Bay Press Gazette summing up here as "after an evening in the presence of Dolly Parton, you get the feeling she alone could be the whole reason for global warming," calling Dolly "warm, gracious, unapologetically upbeat and eternally optimistic -- a little like a ray of sunshine in rhinestones crossed with a hug in heels." Her Backwoods Barbie World Tour came to an end Wednesday night in Des Moines, although as of press time no reports of that show had been received.

Park: New Show Starts In May
Dollywood has announced the premiere date for "Sha-Kon-O-Hey," the new musical about the Smoky Mountains featuring music written by Dolly. The show will begin on May 9, the day Dolly should be on the park grounds for her Homecoming following her Pigeon Forge parade the day before. If you want a season pass, buy it before season closing day on Jan. 3 to get it for the 2008 price and get free admission through the end of the current season.


Nov. 19:
'Milwaukee Here I Come'
I'm told Dolly was "hot hot hot" in Milwaukee Monday night as she began the final three nights of her Backwoods Barbie World Tour. Several mega-fans were on the front row, and she interacted with them quite often during the evening. An energetic crowd and energetic Dolly fed off of each other. "Jesus & Gravity" and a few other songs were missing, however, and she didn't take an intermission. The Milwaukee Journal Senintel had tons of praise for her performance, saying she was "every bit the iconic image she has crafted through her career" and that "both her musical chops and the Smoky Mountain-bred, home-spun personality . . . were on full display during the 90 minutes of songs and charming stories." Read the full review here. She moved on to Green Bay Tuesday night, and tickets are still available for Wednesday night's tour closer in Des Moines. Thank, Kelly, Diane and Debbie for your recaps! Marquee photo at left courtesy Debbie Poole.

Maya Talks To Dolly
Thanks to David for passing along the audio posting on Oprah.com of Dolly's interview via telephone with poet Maya Angelou which aired this week on the XM/Sirius channel Oprah and Friends radio show. Dr. Angelou calls her "a blessing." Take a listen here!

Talk In D.C.
Although her topic of discussion has yet to be revealed, Dolly has been announced as the Feb. 10 speaker for the National Press Club's luncheon in Washington, D.C. The event will be open to NPC members and their guests only. Her most recent NPC address occurred in March 2000 for her first national announcement that her Imagination Library literacy program was being expanded nationwide. Speeches to the Press Club usually air the same day on CSPAN.

Another Library Opens
Speaking of Imagination Library, it is coming to Midland, Texas, The Midland Reporter-Telegram reported here on Monday. That was the same day that Middletown, Ohio, held a celebration kicking off the program in that city, covered by The Middletown Journal here.

Dolly In Razzie Fest
Dolly has a couple of connections to an upcoming television film marathon that she might not want to be in. In honor of the Golden Raspberry Awards next year, nominations for which will be announced January 21, STARZ is showing a selection of "Razzie" winners, including Shining Through and Rhinestone. The first film, which was made by her Sandollar Films production company, won Worst Picture, Worst Director for David Seltzer and Worst Actress for Melanie Griffith (Michael Douglas was nominated for Worst Actor and the film was nominated for Worst Screenplay). Dolly's 1984 film with Sylvester Stallone earned a Worst Actor award for Sly and a Worst Song award for Dolly for the track "Drinkenstein" (it was also nominated for Worst Picture, Worst Supporting Actor for Ron Liebman, Worst Director for Bob Clark, Worst Screen Story, an additional Worst Song nomination for Dolly for "Sweet Lovin' Friends" and nomination for Worst Original Score for Dolly and Mike Post).

Get Faithfull's Disc
Amazon has added an advance order page for Marianne Faithfull's upcoming CD, Easy Come, Easy Go, coming out Dec. 9 and featuring a cover of Dolly's emotional "Down From Dover." It will be available in a single-disc version here and three-disc special edition with interview-filled DVD here.

And Make Porter's Fudge
Thanks to Maggie for passing along that the Grand Ole Opry has posted former Dolly partner Porter Wagoner's recipe for chocolate fudge to get visitors to its website in a holiday mood. See it here!


Nov. 17:
Dolly Rocks Canada
Thanks to Sheldon for sending in his notes and photos from Dolly's Winnipeg and Saskatoon shows. He said the crowd was good in Winnipeg, but was better in Saskatoon. At the first concert, she commented on her sore throat, explaining she'd be drinking a lot of water and joking "And it is water in here. I melted snow to get it." That night, she skipped "Shattered Image" and the Q&A section of the show. Business was brisk at the souvenir stand, although it was even better at the next performance, with pretty much every item completely selling out. That night, she noted she was on antibiotics and felt much better, adding that she almost cancelled her previous show because she had felt so bad. With pretty ample flows of beer in the crowd, they were much more energetic and excited. There were also a few new jokes, such as talking about how Jennifer Aniston has recently complained in the press about Angelina Jolie stealing Brad Pitt and how she may have to change "Jolene" to "Jolie." Check out his photos here. The StarPhoenix in Saskatoon gave her a big thumbs up for Friday night's engagement there. "What a gal," they said. Read more here. The tour is nearing its final night, heading to Milwaukee on Monday night, Green Bay Tuesday and wrapping up in Des Moines Wednesday. Tickets remain available for all shows. Also, thanks to Toni for sending in some shots over the weekend from Dolly's soundcheck at her Boca Raton show a few weeks back. They've been posted here.

Another Library Expansion
Grand Junction, Colo., has signed on to Dolly's Imagination Library early childhood literacy program, according to television station KJCT. Read the story here. Other Library mentions over the weekend came from Middletown, Ohio, which is starting the program this week, in a story here and Burlington, Vt., which is about a year into it, from its local paper here.


Nov. 15:
Tour Close To Wrapping Up
Dolly's Backwoods Barbie World Tour hit Saskatchewan, Canada, Friday night, playing Saskatoon, although no word had been received yet on how the show went as of press time. The Winnipeg Sun, though, gave her show there Thursday night four out of five stars, saying here that she "served notice she's still a force to be reckoned with, while demonstrating her own particular brand of genius has as much to do with her campy persona as it does her crystalline soprano and unparalleled abilities as a storyteller." TV network CTV posted a brief and photo here. In advance of next week's final three concerts on the tour, including Green Bay, Wis., The Green Bay Press Gazette on Friday published a telephone interview with her here.

Irish, CMT Tally Updates
The Very Best Of Dolly Parton, Vol. 1 rebounds 14 places this week to No. 54 in its 65th week on the Irish pop albums chart, it was announced Friday. In the States, her music video for "Shinola" from Backwoods Barbie rises two to No. 4 in its ninth week on the Pure 12 Pack, the Internet-voted countdown on CMT's digital music channel, Pure Country. Vote for it in next week's list here!

Talking About '9 To 5'
An interview about writing 9 To 5: The Musical made Songwriter Universe Friday here.

More Library Coverage
A discussion of Dolly's Imagination Library in Gaylord, Mich., made The Gaylord Herald Times Friday here.


Nov. 14:
Have A Holly, Dolly Christmas
Dolly and Kenny Rogers are back on the charts with their 1984 holiday collection Once Upon A Christmas. The CD makes its annual return to the country catalog albums chart in the Nov. 22 Billboard numbers, it was announced Thursday, coming in at No. 23 on the 25-position tally in its 49th chart week. Her 16 Biggest Hits dips two to No. 62 country in its 57th week. Two more concerts make the magazine's BoxScore box office list this week: Oct. 24 in Atlanta, which grossed $267,000 with 63 percent of the venue's 6,700 tickets sold, and Nov. 6 in Norfolk, which grossed $104,000 with just 35 percent of the nearly 6,000 available seats sold. Jessica Simpson's Do You Know, featuring Dolly on the Dolly-penned title track, loses two more to No. 35 country in its seventh week and eight to No. 190 pop albums. In Canada, the CD tumbles 13 to No. 35 country. Randy Owen's debut solo collection, One On One, with the new Dolly-written song "Holding Everything," debuts at No. 14 country and No. 77 pop. Patty Loveless' Sleepless Nights, with her cover of Porter & Dolly's "The Pain Of Loving You," drops six to No. 54 country in its ninth week. Emmylou Harris' All I Intended To Be, featuring Dolly on "Gold," falls off the 75-position country albums list, down from No. 73 in its 21st week. Brad Paisley's Time Well Wasted, including Dolly on "When I Get Where I'm Going," holds steady at No. 10 on the country catalog albums list and gains one to No. 37 Canadian country. His Play debuts at No. 1 country and No. 9 pop with 54,000 units sold in its first week, while Rascal Flatts sees its Greatest Hits hold steady at No. 2 country, falling four to No. 10 pop with 39,000 copies moved in its second week.

Latest From The Road
Dolly was back on stage Thursday night in Winnipeg and heads over to Saskatoon, Sask., on Friday to wrap up the small Canadian section of her Backwoods Barbie World Tour before closing with the three final U.S. dates next week. Thanks to Trevor for sending in his picture from backstage at one of her Casino Rama shows outside of Toronto (click on it for a larger view)! The Winnipeg Free Press said here that Dolly swept the crowd off of its feet. With the final night coming up soon in Des Moines, The Des Moines Register on Thursday featured two stories here and here (you may also listen to audio of her complete telephone interview on the site). Meanwhile, Knoxville's Volunteer TV caught up with Dolly on the road via satellite. Watch the interview here, and read a couple of her comments in their written story about the CMAs here.

Mag Praises Dolly
Rolling Stone has named Dolly one of just seven country vocalists on its list of the Top 100 Singers Of All Time. She ranked at No. 73 on the tally, with editors noting people "hear her childlike quaver and soulful delivery as effervescent, joyful, heartbreaking — sometimes all in the same song." The top five were 1. Aretha Franklin, 2 Ray Charles, 3. Elvis Presley, 4. Sam Cooke, and 5. John Lennon. Other country acts on the list were Johnny Cash at No. 21, Hank Williams at No. 27, George Jones at No. 43, Patsy Cline at No. 46, Merle Haggard at No. 77 and Willie Nelson at No. 88. Read more here.

Flippo Says CMAs Need Dolly
What was missing from Wednesday night's Country Music Association Awards? Dolly, according to CMT.com columnist Chet Flippo. He lamented that the show was mostly dead, missing luminaries such as Dolly, "who can light up a whole downtown Nashville on her own," Faith Hill, Tim McGraw and Toby Keith. Read more of his recap here.

Park Delay Makes News
A month after it was announced, the Associated Press on Thursday picked up on the decision by Dollywood to postpone the park's 2009 addition, Adventure Mountain, until at least 2010 due to cost increases (from $5 million to $7 million), thanks to coverage from The Knoxville News Sentinel here and Knoxville's Volunteer TV here.

Another City Joins Library
Another community has signed on to Dolly's Imagination Library early childhood literacy program: Temecula, Calif., The Californian reports here.


Nov. 13:
Another Fan Shares Meet-And-Greet
Special thanks to Lance, another fan who sent in his backstage shot with Dolly from Monday night's Casino Rama engagement in Ontario, Canada. See it here! Dolly's Backwoods Barbie World Tour rolls into Winnipeg, Man., Thursday night. Tickets were still available as of Wednesday night.

Stampede's Orlando Doors Still Closed
It's been 10 months since Dolly closed the Orlando location of her Dixie Stampede dinner theatre, and The Orlando Sentinel reported Wednesday that the deal to sell the land which she had stated necessitated the closing has fallen through. Her company continues to look for another buyer for the Florida property as well as a different location to re-open the venue in the area, as a spokesperson said there are no plans to return to the same property. The full story is available here.

Maureen Gushes Again
See what The Brady Bunch star Maureen McCormick had to say about interviewing Dolly recently in the new edition of Country Stars Central. Take a read here.


Nov. 11:
Canada Welcomes Dolly
Dolly apparently put on another awesome show Sunday night at Casino Rama in Ontario, Canada, The Toronto Sun reported here, noting she looked "like a technicolor candy cane" and kept all of her old comic material sounding fresh, even if her humor and appearance sometimes overshadow "just how talented a singer, songwriter and musician she really is." Thanks to Melissa for sending in her backstage shot from the concert at left (click on it for a larger view). And thanks to Brian for sending in his shot here (he says she got a kick out of his tattoo) and comments from her Monday night show, which he said was even better than Sunday (he attended both, noting they were the abbreviated casino sets running about an hour and 20 minutes – no "Drive Me Crazy," "Jesus & Gravity" or "Little Sparrow," and she didn't leave the stage before her encore of "I Will Always Love You").

Another 'Greatest Hits' Coming
Another Dolly compilation set is on its way. Reserve your copy of the "Gold Tin" boxed set Greatest Hits as an import here. It should hit stores on Nov. 18 from SonyBMG. The three-CD collection features the following track listing:

  • Coat Of Many Colors
  • In The Good Old Days
  • Higher And Higher
  • Touch Your Woman
  • We Used To
  • My Tennessee Mountain Home
  • Love Is Like A Butterfly
  • All I Can Do
  • Jolene
  • I Will Always Love You
  • Here You Come Again
  • It's All Wrong But It's All Right
  • 9 To 5
  • Old Flames (Can't Hold A Candle To You)
  • Baby I'm Burning
  • Sweet Summer Lovin'
  • The Bargain Store
  • Think About Love
  • The Seeker
  • Don't Call It Love
  • Save The Last Dance For Me
  • You're The Only One
  • Heartbreak Express
  • Single Women
  • Great Balls Of Fire
  • Almost In Love
  • To Daddy
  • She Don't Love You (Like I Love You)
  • Traveling Man
  • Heartbreaker
  • I Really Got The Feeling
  • The Last Thing On My Mind (with Porter Wagoner)
  • Tie Our Love (In A Double Knot)
  • Do I Ever Cross Your Mind
  • I Really Don't Want To Know (with Willie Nelson)
  • We'll Sing In The Sunshine

    Notes From The Past
    The Tennessean has several Dolly appearances in its slideshow of top CMA moments from the past decade. Watch it here.

    Martin CD Gets Noticed
    A note on Steve Martin's upcoming banjo CD, which features a Dolly duet with Vince Gill, made The Tennessean here on Monday.

    Whitney Cover Lauded
    A survey of British music students placed Whitney Houston's over-the-top cover of the Dolly classic "I Will Always Love You" as the fifth-best vocal performance of all time, it was reported here. Aretha Franklin's "Respect" topped the tally, followed by Amy WInehouse's "Back To Black," Freddie Mercury's "Somebody To Love" and Bob Marley's "No Woman, No Cry."


    Nov. 10:
    Latest News From The Road
    I understand Dolly was her usual spectacular self on stage Friday night in Reading, Penn. Brian says you could have heard a pin drop during "Little Sparrow" and Dolly mentioned several times that she has the sniffles from a cold. She also discussed her aunt's battle with cancer, saying she went to visit her for a few days, and said she had several family members in the audience. The Reading Eagle said here said she "was full with energy" and "rarely stood still." In advance of her sold-out two-night engagement Sunday and Monday nights in Canada at the Casino Rama outside of Toronto, she spoke with The Toronto Star, repeating that she'll take next year off from the road – but this was the first to mention she's supposedly doing a movie next year. No further details were included. Read the piece here. Thanks to Serena for sending in her pic of meeting Dolly backstage in Reading (click on it for a larger view). And the final set of shots from Dolly's Kentucky benefit show have been added to that section of the site here.

    Dreamin' Of A Smoky Mountain Christmas
    Need some help getting in that holiday spirit? Well, Dollywood over the weekend rolled out the 19th annual Smoky Mountain Christmas festival, complete with this year's Polar Express 4-D Experience. In a statement, Dolly said: "This Christmas, I'm inviting families to take a spectacular holiday journey where dreams become real, and everybody knows I dream bigger than just about anybody else. On The Polar Express 4-D Experience, all you have to do is believe, and I sure do!" The park's holiday extravaganza won this year's Golden Ticket Award for Best Christmas Event and ends Jan. 3.

    One Major Fan
    Check out a profile of Dolly fan Jason Denton from his local paper, The Telegraph in Alton, Ill., here.


    Nov. 8:
    Dolly Rocks Norfolk
    I understand Dolly "outdid herself" Thursday night in Norfolk, Va. Only about half of the seats were filled, but she still performed as if it were a sell-out. She also interacted with a group of her most dedicated fans, located at the front of the venue. Thanks, Jonathan. Thanks, also, to Bryce for sending in his shot backstage at left (click on it for a larger view). Finally, The Virginian Pilot offered a glowing review here, saying if she's faking her bubbly, inviting personality, then she's "the best actress who ever lived." The paper noted she also commented from the stage that she prays that Barack Obama will be "the best president we ever had" because the country needs to come together and find a solution to its serious financial problems, to which the audience cheered. She played Reading, Penn., on Friday night, which caught the attention of TV station WFMZ (see a clip of her on stage there here). She heads up to Ontario for back-to-back dates at Casino Rama Sunday and Monday.

    Irish Chart Update
    The Very Best Of Dolly Parton, Vol. 1 slips another four spots this week to No. 68 in its 64th week on the Irish pop albums chart, it was announced Friday.

    Down On CMT
    Dolly's music video for "Shinola" from Backwoods Barbie loses four to No. 6 in its eighth week on the Pure 12 Pack, the Internet-voted countdown on CMT's digital music channel, Pure Country. Vote for it in next week's list here!

    Magazine: Dolly's Song Is Best
    Billboard says "Holding Everything," the Dolly-written track on the solo album of Alabama lead singer Randy Owen, One On One, is "easily" the CD's best cut. Read the full review here.


    Nov. 7:
    'Barbie' Falls Off Again
    Dolly's Backwoods Barbie is once again off the charts, Billboard announced Thursday. The disc drops off the 75-position country albums chart, down from No. 69 the previous week, its 34th on the tally. Her 16 Biggest Hits falls three to No. 60 country in its 56th week. Another concert made the magazine's BoxScore box office list this week: Oct. 17 in Boca Raton, Fla., which grossed $102,000 with 60 percent of the venue's 3,408 tickets sold. Jessica Simpson's Do You Know, with Dolly on the title track that she wrote, dips nine to No. 33 country in its sixth week, 66 to No. 182 pop albums and off of the 200-position comprehensive albums list, down from No. 134. In Canada, the CD inches down one to No. 17 country. Patty Loveless' Sleepless Nights, featuring a cover of Porter & Dolly's "The Pain Of Loving You," loses six to No. 48 country in its eighth week. George Jones' Burn Your Playhouse Down, featuring the Dolly duet "Rockin' Years," falls off the country albums tally, down from No. 75 last week, its 10th. Emmylou Harris' All I Intended To Be, with Dolly on "Gold," drops six to No. 73 country in its 21st week. Brad Paisley's Time Well Wasted, with Dolly on "When I Get Where I'm Going," rises one at No. 10 on the country catalog albums list and gains six three to No. 38 Canadian country. Toby Keith's That Don't Make Me a Bad Guy debuts at No. 1 country and No. 5 pop with 91,000 units sold in its first week, while Rascal Flatts sees its Greatest Hits debut at No. 2 country, No. 6 pop with 89,000 copies moved in its first week.

    Tour Continues
    I'm told Dolly gave another great show Wednesday night in Raleigh, performing the same set she has for the past few days. The first few rows were some of her die-hard fans, generating a great deal of energy in the crowd. Thanks, Solomon and Helena! The tour rolled into Norfolk, Va., on Thursday, and heads to Reading, Pa., on Friday. She offered a great little Q&A with The Virginian Pilot published Thursday here on her business, CD, image and more. And in advance of the Canadian dates of the tour that start this weekend, The Canadian Press posted an interview available here covering her childhood, musicals and Imagination Library.


    Nov. 6:
    Ky. Concert Attendees Get Discount
    Thanks to Father Jim for alerting me that fans who attended Dolly's Kentucky benefit concert last month from out of state can return next year for Patti LaBelle's holiday concert and get a great hotel discount: St. Mark Catholic Church will pay half of the room cost for the Holiday Inn Express in Richmond. You have to purchase tickets prior to the end of 2008. The order form is available here. He also tells me that the letter has gone out to the charity show's meet-and-greet purchasers with instructions regarding receipt of their photos with Dolly, so keep an eye open for the letter, y'all! Meanwhile, another set of images from the show have been added to that section of the website here. Dolly's Backwoods Barbie World Tour rolled into Raleigh, N.C., on Wednesday night and was to make its way to Norfolk, Va., on Thursday (tickets still available).

    Another Cover On Its Way
    Singer Marianne Faithfull has covered Dolly's classic "Down From Dover," according to The River Cities Reader in Iowa. The newspaper reports here that the track appears on her import CD Easy Come, Easy Go.


    Nov. 5:
    FCC Opens White Space
    The Federal Communications Commission apparently didn't care what Dolly had to say about "white space," the frequencies between television stations that are used for wireless microphones, because commissioners on Tuesday voted to open them up for unlicensed use by computers and telephones. Dolly was singled out by many media outlets as the biggest name opposing the vote (which was also opposed by nearly all television networks and Broadway producers, while corporations such as Google and Microsoft supported it). British newspaper The Register went so far as to headline its story on the development that the "FCC Defies Dolly." Read it here.

    Fortunately, A Good Outcome
    I'm told that there was an unfortunate incident which took the attention of several audience members at Dolly's Connecticut concert the other night. Right before Dolly came on stage, an elderly woman in a wheelchair close to the stage stopped breathing. Several fans around her began to administer CPR as Dolly took to the stage. Venue staff carried her out a side exit, but no one on stage could see what was going on. The attendee who reported the circumstances to Dollymania said that venue staff reported when asked after the show that the woman had recovered after being taken into the hallway.Thanks, Bill.

    More Pics Available
    Enjoy the next set of Dollymania photos from the Richmond, Ky., benefit concert which have been posted to that section of the site here.

    Another Library Expansion
    Another Ohio community is getting Dolly's Imagination Library, with a story from The Middletown Journal about the program launching there here.

    'I'm Not The Dolly-Bama'
    Singer Mary McBride says Dolly is her greatest influence and the only person who can stand alongside her is Barack Obama. Read the interview in the U.K. publication The Guardian here.


    Nov. 4:
    FCC Ignores Dolly's Plea
    The Federal Communications Commission on Tuesday appeared poised to vote on the expanded telephone and computer use of "white space" radio communication bands located between television signals over the objections of television networks, sports broadcasters, concert promoters and Broadway producers, including Dolly, who joined the chorus wanting the vote delayed for public input. Although votes on a couple of other issues were cancelled Monday by the FCC, as of press time, this one remained on the agenda. The issue earned attention from The New York Times on Monday here, revealing that Dolly was recruited as a spokesperson for the issue by the theatre industry trade group the Broadway League because of her involvement in 9 To 5: The Musical. And CIO Today reports that a Google spokesperson belittled her opposition to the vote, responding to her involvement with the comment that "the 20,000 Americans who have petitioned the FCC to open up the airwaves may not be regulars in the pages of Us Weekly, but when it comes to expanding broadband access to underserved areas, it's consumers who are the experts, not celebrities." Read that item here.

    More Pics Posted
    Another next set of Dollymania images from Dolly's recent Kentucky charity concert have been posted to that section of the site here.

    Vote For Dolly
    Two Dolly videos, "Shinola" and "Better Get To Livin'," are among the 125 or so up for consideration in Great American Country's (GAC) top 50 videos of the year. Vote for your faves in the Internet-chosen poll here!

    Helping Out Another Cause
    Dolly has contributed an autographed poster for the 20th annual Rock For Kids Rock & Roll Charity Auction at Chicago's Park West Dec. 5. The charity raises money for the city's homeless and underprivileged children. Check out Dolly's poster here.

    Dolly In Photo Book
    Dolly has a classic shot in the new photo book Hollywood, Beverly Hills and Other Perversities: Pop Culture Of The 1970s And 1980s. Photographer George Rose captured her on stage at Universal City in 1981. See the photo courtesy USA Today here, and get your copy here!


    Nov. 3:
    On The Road Again
    I'm told Dolly was spectacular but the crowd was older and quite unenthused Saturday night at the benefit concert for the Providence Performing Arts Center in Rhode Island. Her set list was the same as her most recent concerts, including no "The Grass Is Blue." Thanks to Kelly and Helena for updates! The show marked her first concert in nearly a week on the Backwoods Barbie World Tour, which is close to wrapping up. She played Mashantucket, Conn., on Sunday night, where I understand she put on another stunning performance to an audience that was a bit more appreciative and lively than the night before but still more laid back than at most shows (which tends to be the case with the casino crowd). She next heads to Raleigh, N.C., on Wednesday, Norfolk, Va., on Thursday, and Reading, Pa., on Friday before moving on to Canada for a few dates. In advance of the Providence show, The Attleboro Sun Chronicle nearby in Massachusetts carried an interview here.

  • Thanks to Chris for alerting me to a cute little Dolly Q&A on MSN here, where although she says she loves performing before a crowd she relishes the end of the tour in a couple of weeks when she can eat whatever she desires without having to worry about fitting into her tight stage clothes, discusses her current single and revisits her recent Sarah Palin/AK-47 joke ("I was just trying to make a funny."). Read more here.
  • Over in Malmö, Sweden, where Dolly played this summer, enough fans complained about poor sound quality coming out of the speakers that they may get some of their ticket money back. Seems that there was something wrong with the sound and several fans said they could not hear Dolly clearly at the concert. A sizeable number contacted the country's complaints board, which has recommended to the local tour promoter that the company refund 30 percent of the ticket price back, but the recommendation is nonbinding. Coverage comes from two newspapers here and here. Thanks, Karen!
  • Your next set of Dollymania images from Dolly's Richmond, Ky., show have been posted to that section of the site here.

    Nov. 1:
    Dolly Up On CMT
    Voting must have picked up this week, as Dolly's music video for "Shinola" from Backwoods Barbie regained one spot to No. 2 in its seventh week on the Pure 12 Pack, the Internet-voted countdown on CMT's digital music channel, Pure Country. Thus far, the song has spent one week each at No. 1 and No. 3 while resting at No. 2 for five weeks. Vote for it in next week's tally here!

    But Down In Ireland
    The Very Best Of Dolly Parton, Vol. 1, however, loses quite a bit across the pond, sliding 14 places to No. 64 in its 63rd week on the Irish pop albums chart, it was announced Friday.

    Dolly Tapes Pearl Tribute Song
    The Texas Observer reported Friday that Dolly has recorded "A Bridge Across" with fiddle virtuoso Mark O'Connor. The song was written by Tom McBryde and Lynn Wilbanks in memory of fallen journalist Daniel Pearl. No word of for what project the pair laid down the track. Read the story here.

    Tour Rolls On
    Dolly's Backwoods Barbie World Tour rolls into Providence, R.I., on Saturday, to be followed by Mashantucket, Conn., on Sunday and Raleigh, N.C., on Wednesday. In advance of the latter show, The Raleigh News & Observer on Friday posted an interview here with a sidebar about her meeting local author Lee Smith here.

    Forbes Talks Dolly
    It's not everyday that Dolly's image versus her real self makes the opinion pages of economic magazine Forbes, but there it is this week. Take a read of the Halloween-inspired piece about how fake she appears on the outside but how real she is on the inside here.