Dolly Parton jumped to Hollywood in the 1980s, where she became a bona fide movie star.

Dolly Parton hosted two separate variety television shows called 'Dolly.'

Dolly Parton teamed up with country star Porter Wagoner in 1967 as a cohost on his popular TV show.

Dolly Parton wrote the song '9 to 5' on the set of the movie '9 to 5.'

'9 to 5' was Dolly Parton's first No. 1 pop hit.

Before becoming a country superstar, Dolly Parton recorded girl group-style singles as a teenager, including one that became a hit outside the US.

Dolly Parton released her first recording at age 13, a rockabilly number she cowrote called 'Puppy Love.'

Dolly Parton's 'I Will Always Love You' is a widely covered standard that's been a No. 1 hit multiple times.

Dolly Parton's 'Jolene' was based on a real woman who flirted with Parton's husband.

A young Dolly Parton felt confined by her partnership with country star and TV host Porter Wagoner.

Dolly Parton's Imagination Library program provides free books to kids.

Dolly Parton recorded two albums with Linda Ronstadt and Emmylou Harris under the name Trio.

Read a 1984 interview with Dolly Parton, conducted by artist Andy Warhol.

A Tennessee children's hospital changed its name to Dolly Parton Children's Hospital.

Explore the best Dolly Parton songs, including 'Jolene,' '9 to 5,' and many more.

Elvis Presley wanted to record 'I Will Always Love You,' but Dolly Parton refused.

Country musicians grappled with the outlaw archetype on screen

As country grew more popular, some of its biggest stars leapt to the silver screen, with Johnny Cash in "Five Minutes to Live," Kris Kristofferson in "Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid," and Dolly Parton in "9 to 5." Kristin Hunt notes that all of these films featured country stars toying with the outlaw archetype, a prevalent theme throughout the history of country music.

Dolly Parton initially declined her nomination for the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, though the Hall inducted her anyways.

As disco grew more popular, country star Dolly Parton experimented with the genre.

'The Wizard of Oz' flopped in theaters but exploded on TV

The film cost $2.7M to make—$1M more than the average production in 1939, but didn’t recoup it for almost two decades. Its success is mainly due to television. It aired annually from 1956 to 1965 and was watched by more than 49% of all television viewers.

Parton was famously apolitical and consistently declined opportunities to align herself with politicians.

Mel Brooks wanted Richard Pryor, then a relatively fresh stand-up comic, to star in 1974's 'Blazing Saddles,' but Warner Bros worried that he was not reliable enough for a leading role.

Dolly Parton's 'I Will Always Love You' was written as a goodbye for her musical collaborator, Porter Wagoner.

Bumble founder Whitney Wolfe Herd wanted the movie about her life shut down

Wolfe Herd was informed about the movie after its creation process had been started. Her lawyer told her there was nothing she could do. She said she was both terrified of the movie and slightly flattered by its existence.

Shirley Temple was rumored to be a potential Dorothy

The child star—who was a huge fan of Baum’s books—mentioned in a 1988 autobiography that she’d heard she was being discussed for the role before Judy Garland was officially cast. She said that Garland was, ultimately, the right pick. “Sometimes, the gods know best,” she wrote.

A 2026 survey found that Dolly Parton is far more popular in the US than the world's politicians.

Dolly Parton and Kenny Rogers' 'Islands in the Stream' was written by the Bee Gees.

The 'Wicked' movies turned an already-successful Broadway show into a behemoth

The production was already one of the most successful in Broadway history, but the release of the first movie kicked it into overdrive: It grossed 15% more in 2024, the year "Wicked: Part I" was released, than the previous year, bringing in more than $112M.

Brooks' Broadway adaptation of 'The Producers' was a massive hit when it debuted in 2001, and broke a record for most Tony wins.

The first cast members were relatively unknown 'enlightened amateurs'

“SNL” producers aimed to cast relative newcomers for the show’s first season, convinced that amateurs would infuse the show with the countercultural spirit Lorne Michaels envisioned.

The 'Wicked' movie is based on several previous ‘Oz’ adaptations

Gregory Maguire's novel "Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West," published in 1995, is based on"The Wonderful Wizard of Oz." It offers an adult-oriented retelling of the Oz story, focusing on Elphaba, the Wicked Witch of the West. The book was then adapted for the stage, which premiered on Broadway in 2003. The Broadway musical was then adapted for the screen—the first film in the series debuted in 2024.

'SNL' spinoffs have had mixed success

As “SNL” became more popular, Lorne Michaels sensed an opportunity to turn some of the show’s most popular sketches and characters into feature films. It’s a strategy that had mixed results: “Wayne’s World” and “The Blues Brothers” are modern classics, while others, like “It’s Pat” and “The Ladies Man,” performed poorly with audiences and critics alike.

‘Twin Peaks’ was David Lynch’s ode to the soap opera

In the 1980s, David Lynch was primarily known as the director of art films like “Eraserhead” and “Blue Velvet.” But “Twin Peaks,” his primetime ABC show with writer Mark Frost, was a take on the soap opera, leaning into the genre’s tropes: stilted dialogue, affairs, missing person, and melodrama.

The body of Dolly the sheep, the world's first cloned mammal, is preserved and kept on display at the National Museum of Scotland.

Soap operas earned their name thanks to the sponsorships of soap brands

Many early 20th-century radio programs for women were sponsored by brands that introduced each new episode. Because these dramas were aimed at women, many of their sponsors were for household products, like soap. The association led some to refer to the shows as "soap operas," a title that stuck.

Judy Garland's body double wore a sepia dress in the most famous scene from 'The Wizard of Oz' to create the illusion of moving from a black-and-white world to a color one.

A famous scene from "The Wizard of Oz" features Dorothy leaving behind her home in Kansas and walking into Oz. The filmmakers wanted the character to exit a colorless world and enter a Technicolor one, though the nascent technology required more than some clever postproduction tricks. The scene was painted sepia, as was Judy Garland's body double's dress. As she walks through the door, into Oz, the camera turns away. Then, Judy Garland strides back into frame, wearing her iconic blue dress.