Dolly Parton Was ‘Hypersensitive’ to Any Kind of Criticism

Dolly Parton is a near-universally beloved figure. Here's how she reacted whenever she received criticism early in her career.

Dolly Parton is a widely beloved celebrity, but she still deals with criticism. Over the years, Parton’s music, acting, appearance, and personality have been picked apart. While she has said she appreciates publicity no matter where it comes from, those who knew her said any kind of critique used to send her spiraling.

Dolly Parton was sensitive to criticism in the early days of her career

Writer Alanna Nash spent time with Parton while putting together her book Dolly. In their time together, Nash said she “heard [Parton] tell reporters how much she disliked their stories, how they embarrassed her in print, and how, as a result, she and the reporter could never be friends, since she didn’t trust him anymore.” She found Parton to be “hypersensitive” to any kind of criticism. Others who knew Parton agreed.

“She couldn’t even understand if you wanted to sit next to someone else on the bus,” her guitarist, Don Roth, said.

Her friends said negative coverage could completely ruin Parton’s day.

“A horrendous writer in Green Bay tried to write a negative piece, but it didn’t come off,” reporter Dave Hershey said. “The woman quoted Dolly as saying ‘Ah’ for ‘I,’ and Dolly got a little rankled at that. She said, ‘She tried to make me sound like a country bumpkin.’”

The singer’s friend said she desperately wanted to be liked

One of Parton’s friends said the singer cared deeply about people liking her. The friend claimed Parton shaped her public image into a figure everyone could like. This could be why criticism stung so much.

“I think the most important thing in Dolly’s life is that people like her,” her friend said. “Because it’s real obvious that she does not think they do. She once told me, ‘If I showed myself just like I was, nobody would like me. No one would think that I was a star.’”

Her friend believed this stemmed from Parton’s low self-image.

“With Dolly, she wants you to love her, but maybe she doesn’t want to have to give it back,” they said. “She really enjoys the adulation. It helps her. She has a poor self-image. Dolly doesn’t think she’s pretty. If she did, she wouldn’t wear wigs and rhinestones. People making over her is enjoyable to her.”

Dolly Parton said there was only one kind of criticism that upset her

Parton said she got used to criticism the longer she was famous. She didn’t mind the coverage, understanding that it came with her job.

“I set myself up for a lot of it,” she told The Province. “I’m very famous for the boobs, and I certainly don’t do anything to hide them. That makes me appealing on a cover, especially now with this silicone scare. With the way I look, I’m going to be the one that they put on the cover and say those things about, whether it’s true or not.”

Still, she said there was one type of coverage that would always bother her.

“The only time I do get a little concerned about what the tabloids say is when it involves an issue like this that’s so important to women,” she said. “A lot of people don’t know the difference between the real press and the tabs and they believe that I’m sick. When you’re a celebrity, you have millions of fans and you’re like a member of the family. They get afraid when you’re ill. They think you’re going to die and they don’t want to lose you.”