Dolly Parton Reveals She Was Whipped By Grandfather Over The Way She Dressed

Dolly Parton Is Famously Known For Modeling Her Look After The “Town Tramp”

Dolly Parton recently sat down with The Guardian to talk about many aspects of her career, including her infamous fashion choices. Her style has always been bright, bold, and recognizable, which she says was modeled after the “town tramp” – a local woman that Parton encountered growing up who wore high heels and tight skirts.

“She was flamboyant. She had bright red lipstick and long red fingernails. She had high-heeled shoes, little floating plastic goldfish in the heels of them, short skirts, low-cut tops, and I just thought she was beautiful. When people would say, ‘She ain’t nothing but trash,’ I would always say, ‘Well, that’s what I’m gonna be when I grow up.’”

Parton Reveals That Her Grandfather Used to Physically Punish Her Over Her Appearance

In the interview, Parton reveals that her grandfather, a preacher, and her father, a sharecropper, both hated the way she dressed. Her grandfather would even go so far as to physically punish her. 

“I was willing to pay for it,” she says. “I’m very sensitive, I didn’t like being disciplined – it hurt my feelings so bad to be scolded or whipped or whatever. But sometimes there’s just that part of you that’s willing, if you want something bad enough, to go for it.” 

Parton shared that her song “The Sacrifice” on her 2011 album Better Day sums up how she was willing to make sacrifices in order to make a name for herself: 

‘I was gonna be rich no matter how much it cost / And I was going to win no matter how much I lost / Down through the years I’ve kept my eye on the prize / And you ask if it’s worth the sacrifice.’

Dolly Parton Will Release A New Book Later This Month

Dolly Parton’s new book Behind the Seams: My Life in Rhinestones is set to release on October 17, and will celebrate her style and fashion choices over the years. It is available for pre-order now. 

Featuring behind-the-scenes stories from Dolly’s life and career, and the largest reveal of her private costume archive, this gorgeously photographed book spotlights her most iconic looks from the 1960s to now… Along the way, Dolly discusses memorable outfits from her past, from the clothes her mother would sew out of feed sacks (including her “Coat of Many Colors”) and the bold dresses and hairdos that shook up Nashville… and the daring styles that continue to entertain and inspire today. – via DollyParton.com

Watch Dolly Parton perform the song that was inspired by her Grandfather – “Daddy Was An Old Time Preacher Man” – below.