March 31: 'Goodnight With Dolly' Story Series Starts Thursday
As was teased here Sunday night, Dolly on Monday announced her "Goodnight With Dolly" series of Imagination Library storybook readings on YouTube for 10 weeks starting Thursday night. The first book she will read will be The Little Engine That Could, which is the first book in her literacy program and which releases its 90th anniversary edition with an introduction by Dolly next week. Check out the announcement video here or in the media player above. In a press release, the announcement notes the series was to premiere the same night as the release in 330 theatres of her documentary The Library That Dolly Built, which is now expected to show the week of Sept. 21 in honor of the 25th anniversary of the program's founding. The new videos will become available at 7 p.m. Eastern time each Thursday evening. In the release, Dolly said: "Although it was the right thing to do, postponing the screening of our documentary was a disappointment. So many of our Imagination Library affiliates had organized events around the nationwide screenings, however things do have a way of working out so the documentary will still have its day. This is something I have been wanting to do for quite a while, but the timing never felt quite right. I think it is pretty clear that now is the time to share a story and to share some love. It is an honor for me to share the incredible talent of these authors and illustrators. They make us smile, they make us laugh and they make us think." Other titles to be read include Dolly's own I Am A Rainbow and Coat Of Many Colors as well as Loren Long's There's A Hole In The Log On The Bottom Of The Lake, Anna Dewdney's Llama Llama Red Pajama, Sophy Henn's Pass It On, Patty Lovell's Stand Tall Molly Lou Mellon, Steve Breen's Violet The Pilot, Floyd Cooper's Max & The Tag-Along Moon and Matt de la Pena's Last Stop On Market Street. The videos will be available across the Imagination Library, official Dolly, her dinner theatres', and Dollywood media channels.
Kenny Duets Re-Enter U.S. Charts As expected, sales from news of Kenny Rogers' passing light up the charts this week, Billboard revealed Monday. When the full charts are released Tuesday, Kenny will have a dozen songs in the top 50 sales tally, including four in the top 10. While "The Gambler" was the week's biggest-selling song with 21,000 downloads, his first duet with Dolly, "Islands In The Stream," was No. 2 with 15,000 downloads and his last duet with her, "You Can't Make Old Friends," was No. 28 with 5,000 downloads. "Islands In The Stream" will also appear on the country streaming, airplay and sales-based charts, coming in at No. 20 Hot Country Songs with 3.1 million streams and radio reach of 1.1 million listeners.
Dolly's 1977 New York Concert Available For Download Although it has come out on CD and vinyl a few times in recent years, a recording of Dolly's RCA coming out concert from 1977 at New York's Bottom Line Club was released for digital download on Monday. Live At The Bottom Line 1977 is available for purchase here.
March 30: A&E Airs Two Dolly Movies, Two Specials April 12 A&E has revealed that its April 12 programming will feature a Dolly marathon in advance of its American premiere of last Christmas' BBC documentary Dolly Parton: Here I Am under the title of its Biography series. Before that airs, however, the cable channel will show her 1999 Lifetime movie Blue Valley Songbird at 1 p.m., followed by her 2012 theatrical release Joyful Noise at 3 p.m., followed by a repeat of November's NBC special Dolly Parton: 50 Years At The Grand Ole Opry at 6 p.m., before the new two-hour Biography premieres at 8 p.m., followed by a new Biography installment on pal Willie Nelson before hers repeats at midnight. Then the new Biography on Kenny Rogers, featuring the unaired performances from her farewell tribute show that included Dolly, premieres at 8 p.m. April 13, followed by a new Biography on pal Merle Haggard, and then a repeat of Kenny's episode at midnight.
Australian Chart Update Down Under, the "gold series" re-issue of The Very Best Of Dolly Parton (Australian Tour Edition) slips six spaces to No. 11 its 445th chart week on the Australian country albums chart since its original 2007 release.
March 28: Dolly Tells Fans To 'Keep The Faith' During Coronavirus
Dolly on Friday released a video on her social media encouraging fans to "Keep the faith" during the COVID-19 pandemic. She explained she thought she could see God in the crisis and believed He was holding us up to the light so we could see each other through the eyes of love. Watch it here or in the media player above. In related news, Imagination Library affiliate leaders posted in Facebook Dolly fan groups that Dolly will begin April 2 releasing videos via social media of her reading Imagination Library books for 10 weeks for families at home during the pandemic, and that they are working to reschedule the national one-day release of their documentary The Library That Dolly Built, hoping for the week of Sept. 21. In less happy news, the Sevierville Chamber of Commerce this week announced its May 15-16 Bloomin' BBQ & Bluegrass Festival, which features the annual Mountain Soul Vocal Competition where contestants give their take on songs written by Dolly, has been cancelled for 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Rogers Sales Increase Greatly Post-Death Kenny Rogers' music, including his duets with Dolly, have seen significant sales increases in the days following his March 20 passing, Billboard reported this week here. On-demand streams of his music jumped 1,687 percent from 1 million the two days prior to his death to 18 million the two days following his death, sales of his albums soared 7,709 percent from negligible to 15,000 copies, and digital downloads rose 11,163 percent from 1,000 to 82,000. Specifically, "Islands In The Stream" with Dolly was his second-biggest-song of the week with a 9,769 percent increase from a negligible figure to 12,000 digital sales and 720 percent streaming increase from 200,000 to 1.6 million. His album The Best Of Kenny Rogers: Through The Years is expected to move 25,000 album equivalents to top the Top Country Albums chart when it comes out next week and could break the top 20 or even the top 10 of the Billboard 200 all-genre pop albums chart.
'I Will Always Love You' Makes Library Of Congress Registry The U.S. Library of Congress this week announced the induction of the Whitney Houston cover of Dolly's signature composition, "I Will Always Love You," into the National Recording Registry. It marks Dolly's second entry in the catalog of recordings of such cultural or artistic significance they deserve permanent protection by the Library of Congress, as her 1971 autobiographical single "Coat Of Many Colors" was inducted in 2011.
U.S., U.K. Chart Updates Dolly's collaboration "Faith" with Galantis featuring Mr. Probz dips three to No. 17 on the hot dance/electronic songs chart, the March 28 Billboard charts released Tuesday showed, as the band's album with the track, Church, falls off the top dance albums chart, down from No. 23 in its fifth week. Across the pond, Kenny Rogers' death allows the digital single of "Islands In The Stream" (released there under the name "Dolly Parton and Kenny Rogers") to re-enter the top 100 pop singles chart at No. 63 – the original physical single of the song (under the name "Kenny Rogers and Dolly Parton") peaked at No. 7 there in 1983. Emmylou Harris's Original Album Series: Volume 1 (with two Dolly covers, one track with Dolly harmony and one track with Trio harmony by Dolly and Linda Ronstadt) drops eight to No. 20 on the British top 20 country compilation albums chart this week, while Ronstadt's Original Album Series (featuring one Dolly cover and one track with Dolly harmony) gains three to No. 13, Essential Dolly Parton adds two to No. 6 and The Complete Trio Collection Deluxe falls back off the top 20, down from No. 15.
March 24: Dollywood Extends Closure To At Least May, Shutters Resort As most observers expected, Dollywood on Monday announced they will be extending their COVID-19-induced closure for the immediate future, and its resort hotel/spa is also closing down for the same period. The park now hopes to open at a yet-to-be-determined date in May, it was noted in a press release and statements posted to social media. The park opened as planned for season passholder preview day March 13 but originally postponed the public opening to March 28 and revealed her dinner theatres would also close until then, but their closure period was soon extended to May 9, the soonest that revised CDC recommendations advised for any groups larger than 10 people to congregate. Dollywood Smoky Mountain Cabins are remaining open for the time being, presumably because people can self-isolate more easily in the individual cabins. The virus has also postponed productions of her stage musical in both London and Australia. The full press release is as follows:
PIGEON FORGE, TN (Monday, March 23, 2020) --- Based on daily changes in the status of the coronavirus pandemic and guidelines by the Centers for Disease Control, we are delaying the opening of Dollywood and suspending the operations of Dollywood's DreamMore Resort and Spa as of March 24. Dollywood's Smoky Mountain Cabins remains open at this time.
"The coronavirus crisis is unprecedented, and based on the ever-changing developments, we are constantly re-evaluating our options and hoping to open in May," Craig Ross, Dollywood President said.
Ross continued, "We are looking daily at all of our options to present an exciting and entertaining 2020 season that is a great experience for our guests, but our first priority is the safety of our hosts and guests."
Dollywood will continue to watch the conditions within our region, consult with our medical experts and follow CDC guidelines to determine the re-opening date for the parks and resort. We will continue to communicate any additional changes as they occur.
For guests with resort reservations or tickets for this period of temporary closure, please contact 1-800-DOLLYWOOD for rescheduling information.
March 23: In Memoriam: Kenny Rogers
Kenny Rogers, Dolly's most frequent duet partner other than Porter Wagoner, with whom she performed regularly off and on for nearly 40 years, died Friday night at age 81. The family said in a statement posted to his official social media account that he "passed away peacefully at home from natural causes under the care of hospice and surrounded by his family." On Saturday, Dolly released an emotional video via her official social media reacting to his death. The text accompanying the video read: "You never know how much you love somebody until they're gone. I've had so many wonderful years and wonderful times with my friend Kenny, but above all the music and the success I loved him as a wonderful man and a true friend. So you be safe with God and just know that I will always love you, dolly."
In the video, viewable here or in the media player above, Dolly shared: "Well, I couldn't believe it this morning when I got up and turned on the TV checking to see what the corona virus was doing and it told me that my friend and singing partner Kenny Rogers had passed away. And I know that we all know Kenny's in a better than we are today, but I'm sure he's gonna be talking to God sometime today if he ain't already and he's gonna be asking Him to spread some light on a bunch of this darkness going on here. But I loved Kenny with all my heart, and my heart's broken, and a big ole chunk of it has gone with him today. And I think that I can speak for all his family, his friends, and fans when I say that I will always love you. I just happened to have this picture when I walked out this morning (pause as she tries to keep her composure) of us, I walked out and I thought, well, (through tears) maybe I'll hold that up, everybody. So I know you're sad as I am, but God bless you Kenny. Fly high, straight to the arms of God. And to the rest of you, keep the faith. "
On Sunday, the family shared Dolly's video to Kenny's official social media accounts, the first posting after their announcement of his passing. Shortly thereafter, they shared a note of appreciation for the fan support: "The Rogers family would like to thank you for the generous outpouring of love and support coming in from all over the world these past two days. It's a beautiful reminder of the positive impact Kenny has had and will continue to have on so many. The music lives on! #SweetMusicMan" They added that memorial gifts may be made to The COVID-19 Relief Fund of the Recording Academy/GRAMMYs and its MusiCares Foundation.
In the wake of his passing, sales of his music skyrocketed, with several songs making the iTunes charts on Sunday including Dolly collaborations "Islands In The Stream" at No. 2 and No. 93 pop (the first with Kenny's name first and the second listed with Dolly's name first) and No. 1 country songs, with "You Can't Make Old Friends" at No. 56 and No. 73 pop (the first with Kenny's name first and the second with Dolly's name first) and No. 27 and No. 34 country. In honor of Kenny, AXS TV will rebroadcast his The Big Interview with Dan Rather, in which he speaks at length about his partnership with Dolly. The episode, from 2014, airs at 9 a.m., 3 p.m. and 9 p.m. Eastern Monday and 8 p.m. Wednesday. His A&E Biography special including his farewell tribute concert, including performances and interviews with Dolly, is slated for airing April 13. Billboard paid tribute with a column here about how big of a star he was and its "Forever No. 1" column here focusing on the signature Hot 100 No. 1 pop single of a recently deceased artist. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution provided an overview of his relationship with Dolly here.
He and Dolly first performed together on her variety television show's third episode, which aired Oct. 2, 1976 (available on DVD here). They didn't reunite until 1983 when producer Barry Gibb suggested Dolly join him on "Islands In The Stream" when they were on the fourth day of unsuccessfully recording the track, and upon learning she happened to be down the street in Los Angeles, she came in and the rest was history. The song was the biggest-selling tune of the year and topped charts worldwide. The next year they released a holiday album, Once Upon A Christmas, containing half duets, one-quarter Dolly solos and one-quarter Kenny solos (although when Kenny left RCA records he took the U.S. rights to his solo recordings with him, so they had to be removed from all U.S. re-releases and Dolly's "Hard Candy Christmas" was added). Over the course of the next three and a half decades, they toured together several times in the U.S. as well as Australia/New Zealand and recorded the No. 1 country duet "Real Love" in 1985, No. 21 country single "Love Is Strange" in 1990, album cut "Undercover" in 2003, uncharted single "Tell Me That You Love Me" in 2009, and No. 57 country airplay single "You Can't Make Old Friends" in 2013. They also starred together in three television specials (1984's network special Kenny & Dolly: A Christmas To Remember, 1985's HBO concert Kenny & Dolly: Real Love, and 1989 network special Kenny, Dolly, & Willie: Something Inside So Strong with Willie Nelson). He also appeared on an episode of her 1987-1988 ABC variety series and with her in concert at Dollywood. She recorded his song "Sweet Music Man" in 1977 and he recorded her unreleased songs "The Stranger" in 1984 and "Christmas In America" in 1989 (as well as her classic "I Will Always Love You" in 1996).
Australian Chart Update Down Under, the "gold series" re-issue of The Very Best Of Dolly Parton (Australian Tour Edition) remains steady at No. 5 in its 444th chart week on the Australian country albums chart since its original 2007 release.
March 21: New Billboard Up, '9 To 5' Closes Down Under
Dollywood on Friday put up a new interstate billboard for travelers heading to the park featuring an excerpt from Dolly's quote in the press release announcing cancelation of last week's planned park expansion announcement and repeated in the press release announcing the COVID-19-related closure of the park until at least March 28: "Brighter days are ahead" above her "Dolly" signature logo. A photo from Facebook is posted above. Meanwhile, on the other side of the globe, the infection has shuttered the planned Australian production of her 9 To 5: The Musical, following the London production in closing due to public health concerns. Producers announced Friday that both the Sydney and Melbourne productions are postponed until further notice due to the pandemic.
U.K. Chart Updates Emmylou Harris's Original Album Series: Volume 1 (with two Dolly covers, one track with Dolly harmony and one track with Trio harmony by Dolly and Linda Ronstadt) slips five places to No. 12 on the British top 20 country compilation albums chart this week, while Ronstadt's Original Album Series (featuring one Dolly cover and one track with Dolly harmony) falls two to No. 16, Essential Dolly Parton rises three to No. 8 and The Complete Trio Collection Deluxe moves up one to No. 15.
March 20: COVID-19 Closes London '9 To 5' At Least To April 26 Dolly's 9 To 5: The Musical will shut down in London at least through April 26, producers of the West End show announced Thursday amid new COVID-19 closures.
Dinner With Dolly Raises $40K For Ole Miss The University of Mississippi Ole Miss Women's Council for Philanthropy recently held its 20th anniversary celebration, and Dolly was recognized with the 2020 Legacy Award for exceptional leadership, mentorship and philanthropy. The evening featured a live auction hosted by Leigh Anne and Sean Tuchy, whose lives were portrayed in the film The Blind Side, and one of the two biggest-ticket items was dinner for 10 with Dolly hosted by her friends and business partners, Ole Miss alums Sam and Mary Haskell, which went for $40,000.
Watch 'Christmas At Dollywood' This Weekend Hallmark Channel is bringing some holiday cheer to the COVID-19 self-quarantine by running a marathon this weekend of 27 original "Countdown to Christmas" films starting Friday at noon. About halfway through the marathon, 1 p.m. Eastern Saturday, Christmas At Dollywood airs. In related news, it was announced Thursday that overseas television distributor Red Arrow Studios International has acquired the film's overseas rights as part of its spring and summer slate of new shows to sell to networks outside of the U.S.
U.S. Chart Updates Dolly's collaboration "Faith" with Galantis featuring Mr. Probz inches up one to No. 14 on the hot dance/electronic songs chart, the March 21 Billboard charts released Tuesday showed, as the song falls back off the digital song sales chart, down from No. 17. The band's album with the track, Church, regains two to No. 23 in its fifth week on the top dance albums chart.
'Dolly Parton's America' Up For Podcast Award The New York Festivals 2020 Radio Awards Finalists have been announced and Dolly Parton's America is up for best podcast.
March 17: More COVID-19 Dolly Closures The COVID-19 pandemic continues this week to negatively impact Dolly and her projects. It was announced Monday that the documentary The Library That Dolly Built one-night-only national release date of April 2 has been cancelled and that a new date, likely months away, will be announced later. In Pigeon Forge, Myrtle Beach, and Branson, her dinner theatres announced Monday they will extend their closure to May 9 and that it also includes her other Pigeon Forge properties: The Comedy Barn Theater, Hatfield & McCoy Dinner Feud, and Smoky Mountain Opry (the number of attendees in the Frizzle Chicken House Café will be limited so that it may remain open). And across the pond, the West End production of her 9 To 5: The Musical is suspended until further notice. The show is scheduled to run in London through May 23.
March 16: COVID-19 Claims Aussie Festival, CDC Wants Longer Closures The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in cancellation of another Dolly-related event: the April 17-19 Dolly Festival planned in Narromine, Australia. Read more here. Meanwhile, the closure of Dollywood and Dolly's dinner theatres in Pigeon Forge, Branson and Myrtle Beach could last longer than the planned two-week postponement, as the CDC on Sunday issued guidelines that Americans should avoid any gatherings of 50 or more people for eight weeks, which would be around May 10, or the weekend of the scheduled opening of the new Flower & Food Festival. While the park has not given any indication of plans to extend its closure, park officials have said they will monitor the situation, consult with medical experts, and follow CDC recommendations. A park spokesperson confirms that while DreamMore Resort and Dollywood Cabins are operating during the closure, they are working with patrons to provide refunds or rebookings of cancellations.
Australian Chart Update Down Under, the "gold series" re-issue of The Very Best Of Dolly Parton (Australian Tour Edition) rises five to No. 5 in its 443rd chart week on the Australian country albums chart since its original 2007 release.
March 14: Coronavirus Closes Dollywood, Restaurants For Two Weeks Coronavirus has caused the temporary closure of Dolly's theme park and dinner theatres, it was announced Friday. Although Dollywood was open Friday for season passholder preview day – and Dolly's media appearances for the day had already been cancelled – the park revealed the public opening scheduled for Saturday will be postponed for two weeks due to the "escalating" coronavirus pandemic. It now opens March 28. Dolly's dinner theatres – Stampede in Pigeon Forge and Branson, Mo., and Pirates Voyage in Pigeon Forge and Myrtle Beach, S.C. – will also close for the same period after Sunday's performances. Dollywood's DreamMore Resort and Smoky Mountain Cabins are scheduled to remain open, the release noted. Dollywood President Craig Ross said: "We have been following the coronavirus crisis very closely and based on developments within the last 24 hours and in consultation with health experts, we are going to delay our season opening until March 28. Despite the delay in opening, we are committed to taking care of our hosts while the park remains closed." The release repeated part of Dolly's comment from the press release on Thursday that announced her media appearance cancellation: "We need to focus on good health and praying for those who are affected. We know brighter days are ahead." Its sister park, Silver Dollar City in Branson, will also delay its opening to March 28. Season passholders will be eligible for an additional bring-a-friend-free ticket for summer 2020 due to the delay, park officials said.
'Southern Living' Names Dolly Southerner Of The Year Southern Living magazine on Thursday announced it had selected Dolly as its 2020 Southerner Of The Year in recognition of her Imagination Library early childhood literacy program. Read more here.
Governor Tells People At Home For Virus To Sign Up For Dolly Books Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine took a moment in his daily coronavirus press conference on Friday to tell parents stuck at home with their children during the pandemic to read to their kids and encourage them to register for Dolly's Imagination Library early childhood literacy program if they are not currently enrolled. He noted almost all counties in the state now have the program open for registration and that it will be in all counties in another month or two.
Trio Returns To U.K. Charts Emmylou Harris's Original Album Series: Volume 1 (with two Dolly covers, one track with Dolly harmony and one track with Trio harmony by Dolly and Linda Ronstadt) rises three to No. 7 on the British top 20 country compilation albums chart this week, while Ronstadt's Original Album Series (featuring one Dolly cover and one track with Dolly harmony) dips two to No. 14, Essential Dolly Parton gains four to No. 11 and The Complete Trio Collection Deluxe re-enters the top 20 at No. 16.
March 13: Dolly Appearance At Dollywood Opening Cancelled Dollywood on Thursday afternoon cancelled Dolly's appearance at the park scheduled for Friday's season passholder preview day to open its 35th season. A statement noted the cancellation was due to "the constantly changing coronavirus situation and under an abundance of caution." Dolly had been expected to announce the park's largest-ever financial investment. In the statement, she explained: "The exciting economic news we planned to share does not seem appropriate based on what is going on. It doesn't feel right. We need to focus on good health and praying for those who are affected. We know brighter days are ahead." The announcement is expected to be rescheduled for later in the season. Dolly had been at the park's DreamMore Resort on Thursday but left in her tour bus shortly after the cancellation announcement was released. The Paley Center for Television had earlier in the week cancelled her scheduled appearance there in Los Angeles that was to take place on Saturday. As of press time, the park planned to continue operating its normal hours for season passholders on Friday and open to the general public on Saturday but any changes to its operating schedule past Saturday have not been announced. Competitor Disney revealed on Thursday it was taking the unusual step of closing all of its parks starting Sunday and continuing through the end of the month; it had previously closed its parks in China and Japan but now will also close Disneyland/California Adventure in California, Disney World in Florida and Disney Paris. It is unknown whether the planned premiere of the documentary The Library That Dolly Built will still take place April 2 in New York City with Dolly in attendance, as New York's governor on Thursday banned all gatherings of 500 or more people in the state and ordered venues holding fewer than 500 people to only sell half their seats. It is unknown when the ban will be lifted. The theatre hosting the premiere seats 479 and therefore isn't subject to the ban but could only seat a maximum of 239 guests if the restriction remains in effect on April 2.
March 12: Coronavirus Stops Dolly's LA Panel This Weekend Dolly's Saturday appearance at the Paley Center for Television in Los Angeles to discuss her television career and Netflix series Heartstrings has been postponed due to coronavirus concerns, The Paley Center announced Wednesday night. The panel discussion, and others that had been originally scheduled for this weekend as well, are expected to be rescheduled for a later date. Read more from Varietyhere.As of press time Wednesday, a Dollywood spokesperson confirmed her media event on Friday morning to announce the largest investment in the park's history was still scheduled to proceed as planned. Knoxville television station WBIR reported here the park is taking safety precautions and monitoring the situation.
New Porter & Dolly Four-On-Two Coming BGO Records has announced it will release a third four-on-two-CD set of Porter & Dolly's duet albums next month. We Found It/Porter 'N' Dolly/Say Forever You'll Be Mine/Porter & Dolly will come out April 24. Its release leaves just Just The Two Of Us as their sole duet studio album not included in the series (Maybe they'll release a fourth one next featuring that one remaining album, their original "Best Of" album, Dolly's covers album of Porter-composed songs, and her first live album, on which they performed a handful of duets). Reserve your copy here!
'9 To 5' London CD To Be Released That's not the only CD coming soon, as Absolute Records will be releasing a British CD version of the 9 To 5: The Musical West End Cast Recording on March 27, which Amazon will have available as an import here. The digital version of the cast album was released here a month ago.
Dolly Writes Kids Who Made Movie Dolly wrote a letter to some kids whose class made a video inspired by her Imagination Library literacy program, according to The Louisville Courier-Journalhere.
U.S. Chart Updates Dolly's collaboration "Faith" with Galantis featuring Mr. Probz holds steady at No. 15 on the hot dance/electronic songs chart, the March 14 charts released Tuesday showed, as the song re-enters the digital song sales chart at No. 17. The band's album with the track, Church, dips four to No. 25 in its fourth week on the top dance albums chart. "There Was Jesus", her duet with Zach Williams, falls out of the top 50 hot Christian songs, down from No. 40.
March 9: Dolly Gets '60 Minutes' Down Under Year's Best Ratings
Dolly was the featured interviewee Sunday on 60 Minutes Australia as part of her promotions for the Down Under production of her 9 To 5: The Musical. Several media outlets picked up on her quote that she'll never retire and hopes next year to re-create her famous 1978 Playboy cover shoot at age 75. Watch the interview here or in the media player above. The segment brought the show its largest audience of the year with 842,000 viewers Down Under, ratings reported on Monday.
'Heartstrings' Renewal Announcement Could Come Saturday Could Netflix be planning on Saturday to announce a second season of Dolly's Heartstrings series? Looks like that could be a possibility. Organizers of her panel discussion that evening at the Paley Center for Television in Los Angles say the night will feature Dolly, her co-producer Sam Haskell, actors Delta Burke and Gerald McRaney, showrunner Patrick Sean Smith, additional participants to be announced, highlights from Dolly's television career, a retrospective of the show's first season "and a special surprise!" The network hasn't commented yet on the show's status for the fall season, although it has announced renewals or cancellations for most of its other programs in recent weeks. A few tickets for the uppermost balcony still remain available here for Saturday night, which follows her scheduled appearance on the other side of the country Friday morning for season pass holders at Dollywood's preview day for the new season.
Library Doc Premiere Announced, Social Media Kits Available Cinemas around the country have started selling tickets for the one-night-only April 2 screening of the Imagination Library documentary The Library That Dolly Built. Look for information on your closest theatre showing it here! Dolly is scheduled to appear that morning on NBC's Today Fourth Hour with Hoda & Jenna to promote it, as well as at the official premiere that takes place that night at the Sillas SVA Theatre hosted by the United Way of New York City, which is expected that evening to announce a major expansion of the program's operations in the Big Apple. Fans are encouraged to promote the screenings in their areas using social media materials available here.
A&E 'Biography' Is U.K. Documentary Thanks to my friend Greg who noticed from the A&E trailer that the new Biography: Dolly Parton, a two-hour special on April 12 announced last week, is the American premiere of her BBC special documentary Dolly Parton: Here I Am, which aired over the Christmas holidays overseas before being picked up by Netflix for all foreign markets outside of the U.S. and U.K.
U.K., Aussie Chart Updates Emmylou Harris's Original Album Series: Volume 1 (with two Dolly covers, one track with Dolly harmony and one track with Trio harmony by Dolly and Linda Ronstadt) loses one to No. 10 on the British top 20 country compilation albums chart this week, while Ronstadt's Original Album Series (featuring one Dolly cover and one track with Dolly harmony) includes up one to No. 12, and Essential Dolly Parton re-enters the top 20 at No. 15. Down Under, the "gold series" re-issue of The Very Best Of Dolly Parton (Australian Tour Edition) falls six at No. 10 in its 442nd chart week on the Australian country albums chart since its original 2007 release.
'Kenny & Dolly' On 'Let's Make A Deal' Be sure to catch Let's Make A Deal on Thursday as Dolly fans Jason Denton and Sherry Gilleland compete dressed up as Kenny & Dolly for an '80s Day taping of the game show.
March 5: Library Doc Trailer Released, 'Today' Appearance Announced
NBC's Today on Wednesday premiered here the official trailer for the documentary The Library That Dolly Built, opening nationwide on April 2 for one showing only. They also announced that Dolly will be on the show's fourth hour with Hoda and Jenna that morning to promote the film and that it will be in their new studio with a studio audience (tickets available from hodaandjennatickets.com). Watch the trailer here or in the media player above. And get tickets to watch the film here. Half of box office proceeds will go to Imagination Library affiliates screening the film.
A&E To Show New Dolly, Kenny 'Biographies' A&E on Wednesday announced a new two-hour Biography: Dolly Parton will premiere on the network at 8 p.m. Eastern April 12. This marks the second installment based on Dolly's life in the long-running docu-series, as they produced a two-hour episode on her back in 2006. The new one goes from her childhood through her recent Opry 50th anniversary and features interviews with Chris Stapleton, Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin, among others. The network follows it at 9 p.m. April 13 with Biography: Kenny Rogers, chronicling his time from the First Edition to his 2017 farewell concert with Dolly and others. Check out the preview for Dolly's installment here or in the media player below.
March 4: Dolly Responds To Nashville Tornadoes
Several violent tornadoes ripped through the Nashville area Monday night, killing at least 25 people. On Tuesday morning, Dolly was one of the first Music City celebrities to address the disaster, saying on social media here and in the media player above: "Well I am here on the job today 'cause as they say the show must go on but we had a lot of damage out in our area. I know a lot of Nashville was just devastated with the storms. And I just wanted all of you to know that we are all with you and hope that your family's okay and your property's going to be able to get mended pretty soon, get your lights back on. But just wanted you to know you're being thought of and we love you and we're sorry that it all happened to all of us. But hopefully we're okay and to those who really lost family members, I'm sorry about that and our prayers are with you. And so I just wanted to shout out and say we're with you."
Library Doc To Be Noted On 'Today' Wednesday The Imagination Library website has added the list of venues that will be playing the documentary The Library That Dolly Built in its limited release on April 2, many of which are selling tickets now. The film's trailer is expected to be broadcast on NBC's The Today Show Wednesday morning to formally announce the nationwide screenings. Check out the list of cinemas here.
U.S. Chart Updates Dolly's collaboration "Faith" with Galantis featuring Mr. Probz loses three to No. 15 on the hot dance/electronic songs chart, the March 7 charts released Tuesday showed. The band's album with the track, Church, falls eight to No. 21 in its third week on the top dance albums chart. "There Was Jesus", her duet with Zach Williams, regains two to No. 40 hot Christian songs.
Dolly Look-A-Like Contest Profiled Interview magazine profiled the Dolly look-a-like contest Valley of the Dolly Partons in Brooklyn's Mable's Smokehouse. Check out the piece here.
March 2: 'The Winning Hand' Gets Digital Release Sony Music Entertainment on Friday released Dolly's 1982 Monument Records album with Kris Kristofferson, Willie Nelson and Brenda Lee, The Winning Hand, for digital download. The album famously was produced as a last-ditch attempt to save the struggling label where Dolly got her start from 1965 through 1968. It featured new duet recordings by the other three artists and a few duets of Dolly with them using their new vocals and her 1960s vocals, although she performed the tracks live for a syndicated special promoting the project.
More Details Emerge On 'Christmas On The Square' Actress Mary Jane Haskell, who played Miss Moody in Dolly's "Coat Of Many Colors" films, spoke recently with the My Year With Dolly Parton podcast about Dolly's Netflix Christmas film Christmas On The Square, which was postponed from last year's holiday season to this year's. She gives a little more detail on the plotline. Read a recap from Country Livinghere.
'Dolly' Show Continues On GET TV Get TV has announced its 6 a.m. Saturday showings of the 1976-77 variety series Dolly will continue through March with Freddy Fender March 7, Mel Tillis March 14, Chuck Woolery March 21 and Ronnie Milsap March 28.
U.K., Aussie Chart Updates Emmylou Harris's Original Album Series: Volume 1 (with two Dolly covers, one track with Dolly harmony and one track with Trio harmony by Dolly and Linda Ronstadt) inches up one to No. 9 on the British top 20 country compilation albums chart this week, while Ronstadt's Original Album Series (featuring one Dolly cover and one track with Dolly harmony) moves up one to No. 13, while Essential Dolly Parton falls out of the top 20, down from No. 18. Down Under, the "gold series" re-issue of The Very Best Of Dolly Parton (Australian Tour Edition) holds steady at No. 4 in its 441st chart week on the Australian country albums chart since its original 2007 release.
