25/08/2026
Today I’m deeply saddened by the passing of Dolly Parton.
I knew Dolly through my longtime friend and client Sandy Gallin, her best friend and business partner. When Sandy was in New York, we’d meet at the Fifth Avenue apartment he shared with Dolly before heading to Central Park to train.
Sometimes Dolly would be there. She’d pour me coffee, and we’d talk. One morning, she even let me see her without makeup.
As I wrote in Wrestling with Angels, she laughed and said, “Oh honey, nobody sees me without my makeup, but you’re like family—come on in.”
And she meant it.
At one of their Christmas parties, Dolly and Sandy made sure Kirsten and our boys, Colin and Luke, came. Luke was about a year old and grew tired during the evening. Dolly noticed and let him sleep in her bedroom.
That simple memory says so much about who she was.
Kirsten and I also shared an anniversary dinner at Spago with Sandy and Dolly. We didn’t experience her as a distant star. She made us feel like family.
The world will remember Dolly’s music, talent, humor, generosity and extraordinary legacy.
I’ll remember coffee on Fifth Avenue, Christmas with our young family, little Luke sleeping peacefully in Dolly’s bedroom, and a woman who made everyone around her feel welcome.
Rest in peace, Dolly. Thank you for your kindness to me, Kirsten and our boys.
And somewhere, I like to think Sandy (pictured here with Dolly) is welcoming his old friend home. ❤️🙏
Dolly Parton
1946–2026