Gotta LOVE Dolly Parton

[Guest eastburbguy]

When she appeared at the National Press Club today:

"I've been asked to run for President. I said no. I think there have been enough boobs in the White House."

[caeron]

I like Dolly.

Stealing from a couple of internet sites to refresh my memory

-When asked her opinion of gay marriage, Dolly said joking that 'gay people should have the right to be as miserable as married straight people are.'

and she helped produce the academy award winning Common Threads documentary on the AIDS quilt

"Above all, Dolly is honest. She is the first to say that, like many of us, the emergence of the AIDS pandemic was foreign to her. "As you probably know, I came from the country in East Tennessee, and I suppose I was as naive and ignorant as anyone," Dolly says. "When I went to Los Angeles, I became best friends with my manager, Sandy Gallin, who is gay. Many of Sandy’s associates, friends, and creative teams were gay people. They are some of the finest, most creative folks there are.

"Because I became friends with many of them–like Steve Rubell of Studio 54…in New York–it wasn’t long before I learned firsthand of the devastating impact of AIDS," she says. "I have lost many dear friends from it…both gay and heterosexual. That’s when I really began to understand and get involved in the fight."

And get involved she did, though, in characteristic Dolly fashion, she downplays her own good works. "My Sandollar Productions Company [named for both Sandy (Gallin) and Dolly] was responsible for the public awareness production of the Common Threads quilt program that traveled all over the nation," Dolly says.

"I guess I could have been more prominently involved, but I helped. It was Howard Rosenman, Carol Baum, and Sandy that really led the project."

[TotallyOz]

I have always adored her. But, growing up in the deep South, I was lucky to see her in person many many times. Always a great performance and a joy to see. I am so happy she has been so accepting of gays and a fighter for our rights.