Carl Dean, the husband of renowned country music star Dolly Parton, passed away on Monday at the age of 82.
Parton, in a statement shared on social media, disclosed that Dean died in Nashville, Tennessee.
The 79-year-old singer also expressed her grief over Dean’s demise, adding that “words can’t do justice to the love we shared for over 60 years”.
The statement said he will be laid to rest in a private ceremony with immediate family in attendance.
The family also asked for respect and privacy.
“Carl and I spent many wonderful years together. Words can’t do justice to the love we shared for over 60 years. Thank you for your prayers and sympathy,” the statement reads in part.
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The couple’s love story began when Parton, then an 18-year-old aspiring singer, met Dean outside a laundromat on her first day in Nashville.
Recalling their first encounter, Parton said, “I was surprised and delighted that while he talked to me, he looked at my face (a rare thing for me). He seemed to be genuinely interested in finding out who I was and what I was about.”
Two years later, on May 30, 1966, Parton and Dean tied the knot in a private ceremony in Ringgold, Georgia.
During their marriage, Dean remained out of the public eye, focusing on his asphalt-paving business in Nashville.
The couple did not have any children together.
Dean is survived by his siblings, Sandra and Donnie.
In a 2008 interview with NPR, Parton revealed how Dean inspired her hit song ‘Jolene’.
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