Perhaps, the Southern background (or, in Bruce’s case, residence) of many of my gay friends makes Dolly Parton appear to rank with Judy, Barbra and Ethel in our diva pantheon. And it seems nearly all (yes, I said that right, nearly all) of my gay conservative friends love Dolly.
In sixteen days, she’s appearing for the first time ever at the Hollywood Bowl. And two films at Outfest (opening tonight) feature this country diva. On Saturday, July 16, you can catch Hollywood to Dollywood, a documentary about gay twins who, in an RV named Jolene, set out on a cross country trek to get their script to the buxom blond.
And on Wednesday, July 13, you can singalong with Dolly (et al.) in the Best Little Whorehouse in Texas on a very big screen at the John Anson Ford Amphitheater.
Click on the movie titles for ticket information; you may well find the greatest concentration of gay conservatives at an LA event since Ethel Merman last appeared at the Hollywood Bowl.
The always candid Dolly Parton has revealed that she’s in favor of granting gays and lesbians the rights to marry.
“Sure, why can’t they get married? They should suffer like the rest of us do,” the outspoken superstar told CNN show host Joy Behar. When Behar suggested Dolly’s Southern roots might not mesh with the idea of marriage equality, the singer agreed, “I know that’s true.”
. . .
As for Dolly, the flamboyant entertainer admits she feels a certain kinship with her many gay and lesbian fans.”I think it’s because they know I’m different too, and it took me a long time to be accepted,” she reasons.
“Plus, a lot of my gay guy friends love to dress up,” she adds. “I think they just appreciate the fact that I love everybody for who they are.”
Dolly did have some strong words, however, for Houston megachurch pastor Joel Osteen, who earlier this month stated that “homosexuality is not God’s best work.” “I don’t want to talk about him,” she said with a laugh. “I think God made us who we are and how we are, and I don’t think if [Osteen] was a religious person, he would be judging people.”
http://www.theboot.com/2009/11/17/dolly-parton-gay-marriage/
Any mention of the number of gay members at Lakewood Church?
Contrary to popular belief, you don’t have to be gay to love Dolly or Judy or………………well, I do have trouble with Barbara.
Richard beat me to it. I adore Dolly too, even if her theology is more suspect than even Osteen. Judy doesn’t do anything for me thro and I never understood that other person…
Diva pantheon?
I would bet most of your liberal gay friends love Dolly, too.
I always thought Dolly Parton was sort of ridiculous when I was a kid in the 70s and a teenager in the early 80s, but at that time I knew her more for her image than for her music (some of which I’d heard but didn’t really know and couldn’t identify as hers). It has only been in recent years that I’ve begun to appreciate Dolly. (Then again, it has only been in the last 10 years that I’ve been open with myself about my sexual orientation. Coincidence? Possibly not!)
And like Richard and Kevin, I don’t care for Barbra, but I can definitely appreciate Ethel, and my opinion of Judy (or “St. Judy,” as an Australian friend calls her) really depends on my mood and the song or performance in question.
I’ve always liked Dolly Parton. My favorite gay-related quote of hers (besides the one you mentioned) dates from about 1986. She stated she always liked dresses and makeup and laughingly said she was glad she was born a woman or “…I would have made one hell of a drag queen!”
Rob, a lot of them do. đ
Last night I dreamed I was an archaeologist from the future and had just discovered Dolly Parton’s corpse preserved, Austrian Iceman-style, in a glacier. I blame this post for that.
Dolly Parton. . .a quote machine
http://www.torontosun.com/2011/07/04/dolly-parton-a-quote-machine
1. Her new album Better Day is her personal response to todayâs tough times.
The economy, the weather, all these disasters, theyâve got everybody so down, explains Dolly, who singlehandedly wrote all but one of the songs on the album. âI just wanted to be a little ray of sunshine, to remind people that things will get better.â
2. Donât let her smile and laughter fool you: Dolly is as worried about the state of things as you are.
âPeople say to me, âYou must be happy all the time.â And I think, âWhat kind of shallow, silly person would that make me?â â She has her troubles just like everyone, she says. Sheâs âas big a sinnerâ as the next person. And sheâs getting more scared, just like everybody else.
âGod has given man this world, and weâre doing our best to screw it up.â
3. One thing screwing it up that sheâd love to change: People judging each other.
We need to stop, she insists. âWhether youâre a Baptist or a Catholic or a Republican or a Democrat, everybody is so convinced that theyâre the only one whoâs right.â Instead, people need to start looking at things from the other personâs perspective.
4. Speaking of seeing it from the other side: Dolly is deeply religious â but in favour of gay marriage.
âI think gay people should be able to marry. I just hope that all those gay people who get married have friends who buy them Better Day as a wedding present,â she cracks. On a more serious note, she feels Christians who oppose gay marriage arenât acting very Christian:
Theyâve forgotten that the Bible preaches acceptance, tolerance and forgiveness.
What? Nothing about Reba? C’mon, folks.
I highly recommend all of Dolly’s blue grass albums: Grass Is Blue (1999), Little Sparrow (2001), & Halos & Horns (2002) along with her Coat of Many Colors (1973) & Jolene (1974). She is a gifted songwriter & that’s why I like her music.
I’ll have to disagree with Osteen. Homosexuality is not the work of God. Somehow, he gotten this wrong in terms of cupability.
As for Dolly, she is talented in music. Since when to pop divas become gay icons. It sort of changes the game.
Huh?????
Okay, simpler version.
Homosexuality is not God’s work or God’s fault. Blame Satan.
Dolly became a gay icon. It happened inadvertently unlike the “Born This Way” Gaga. Dolly’s music is clearly for the mainstream.
Anon, I really do respect your right to differ from me on homosexuality, but you are clearly wrong to blame it on Satan.
Everyone knows Satan is responsible for Kathy Griffin. đ
Yes Reba Rocks. . . next in line for Diva Status
Reba records âDuetsâ with bevy of country, pop stars
Homespun diva loves Justin, Kelly and her gay fans
http://goqnotes.com/features/feature2007/feature02_100607.html
Did you know any gay people when you were growing up in Oklahoma?
Not at all. Not until college.
What happened then?
I started hanging around the music department [laughs]. I had a music teacher, Bob Pratt, who taught me so much about singing. He helped me develop my voice and gave me such a passion for music. I just loved him so much. Gay or not, I made a lot of friends in the music department. It didnât matter to me. I mean, I was a hick from the sticks, and they accepted me.
Do you have any thoughts on gay marriage?
I have friends who have told me that if their partner gets sick, they wouldnât be allowed in the hospital room because theyâre not considered immediate family and they have no spousal rights. I think itâs very unfortunate that a person canât marry who they want to marry. Everyone should take care of their own business without judging others. Like I always say, âDonât judge me unless youâve walked a mile in my shoes.â
And the strange post of the day goes to…
Anyway, I don’t think any lasting ‘icon’ starts out intending to be an icon, Lady Gaggag included. Things become ‘iconic’ because they are referenced as the ultimate expression. Like how the scupture of David is the ‘iconic’ male nude or how Patton is the ‘iconic’ ‘Blood, Guts & Glory’ General. (Or how this administration is becoming the iconic failure).
I heard-tell Reba uses a drag queen as a stand-in during concerts.
I’m curious. Do you assign “Diva Status” based on their position on gay marriage?
I swear, TGC, you’re so southern, your rabbits poop grits, your grandma chews chickory, and you sweat corn whiskey. đ
I ain’t never lived further north than Raymond, MS. ner’none. Well, except for two months in Baltimore right after I was born, but that was because of Watergate. I’d’a been born in Jackson otherwise.
Dolly Rebecca Parton (born January 19, 1946) is an American singer-songwriter, author, multi-instrumentalist, actress and philanthropist, best known for her work in country music.
She is one of the most successful female country artists, garnering the title of “The Queen of Country Music,” with 25 number-one singles. and a record forty-one top-10 country albums. She has the distinction of having performed on a top-five country hit in each of the last five decades[ and
is tied with Reba McEntire as the only country artists with No. 1 singles in four consecutive decades.
She is known for her distinctive soprano, sometimes bawdy humor, flamboyant style of dress and voluptuous figure.
wiki
And TGC these two fine Diva’s (both with strong religious convictions)love their GHEYS!
With my roots in the Big Sky state of Montana, I have been following country music long before you were even a sparkle in your parents eyes.
She also has a painting in a closet that ages instead of her.
As long as people are nominating other folks for diva status, I’d like to throw the name of Bernadette Peters into consideration. Not only is she an awesome talent who, at 63, looks and performs as well as she ever has, but she’s one of those rare divas who has the potential to be as popular with straight men as with gay men.
I love Dolly, but I’m gonna have to throw my weight behind Taylor Swift for (future) diva status.