Profile of the Day: Dolly Parton

Posted January 19, 2021 by Amanda | No Comment

Happy birthday to Dolly Parton! Today the music icon turns 75.

Image: Dolly Parton / Wikimedia Commons

Parton was born on January 19, 1946 in a one-room cabin in Pittman Center, Tennessee. The fourth of twelve children, Parton has described her family as dirt poor. From a young age, she showed a passion for music and by the age of 10, she was performing professionally. As soon as she graduated from high school, Parton set out for Nashville to pursue a career in music.

Since scoring her first hit, Parton has sold over 100 million records worldwide and earned 50 Grammy Award nominations. A gifted songwriter, Parton has also written over 3,000 songs, including “I Will Always Love You,” which was a hit for both Parton and Whitney Houston. She’s also appeared in several projects on the big screen, including a starring role in 9 to 5. The film would earn her an Academy Award nomination for Best Original Song.

A philanthropist, Parton has also supported many charitable causes to give back to her community. She established her own non-profit organization, the Dollywood Foundation, and started the Imagination Library, which provides free books to children monthly, up until the age of 5. The program has donated more than 10 million books to children annually. It was also recently revealed that Parton had donated $1 million towards COVID-19 research at Vanderbilt University Medical Center. Her donation helped to fund the research that lead to Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine.

Explore Dolly Parton’s family tree on Geni and share how you’re connected to the beloved singer and philanthropist.