Dolly Parton’s sister Stella reveals what the late country star looked like without her makeup

Marina WattsThu, September 10, 2026 at 2:37 PM UTC

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Stella Parton and Dolly Parton at Stella Parton’s Red Tent Women’s Conference in Nashville in April 2014Credit: Terry Wyatt/GettyKey Points -

Dolly Parton’s sister Stella revealed whether or not she ever saw the late country star without her signature glam.

“She would sleep in her makeup when she’d come spend the night with me,” Stella told Gayle King on CBS Mornings.

Stella and Dolly, who died in August, had a weekly catch up on Tuesday mornings over the phone while drinking coffee.

It seems that no one knows what Dolly Parton looks like without makeup — not even her sister Stella.

The late country star’s sister made the revelation during an interview with Gayle King on CBS Mornings while speaking about her sister’s legacy. When King asked if Stella ever saw the “Jolene” singer without makeup, Stella admitted that she hadn’t.

King, gobsmacked, followed up by asking if Stella indeed never saw her sister without makeup. “Not after she got to be ‘Dolly Parton,’” Stella clarified. “She would sleep in her makeup when she’d come spend the night with me.”

King then asked Stella if she ever requested to see her sister without her makeup. “Oh, I knew what she looked like. She looked like me without her makeup,” Stella said, laughing. “So I knew what she looked like without it.”

Stella Parton on ‘CBS Mornings’Credit: CBS

Stella and Dolly had a close relationship. Elsewhere in the CBS Mornings interview, she spoke about how they would catch up together every Tuesday morning on the phone over coffee. “Her optimism is what I’m gonna miss the most. She was the most optimistic person I ever met. I’m gonna miss that,” she said.

Stella added that she will remember Dolly as “a sweet, kind, loving, brilliant [person], and so talented.” “Her creativity had no bounds. She could dream bigger than anybody.”

The “9 to 5” singer was famous for her glamorous makeup — and unapologetic about her look. She told Voguein 2020 that she likes “to wear a lot of makeup.” “I think more is more and whoever made up that ‘less is more’ is full of it.”

Dolly also admitted to Bustle in 2024 that even when she’s sitting around at home, she likes to wear makeup.

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“It makes me feel better all day. Sometimes when I’m on a writing binge, I’ll have makeup on to start with, but I don’t worry about it after that. So, there are times when I’m not conscious of it or dwelling on the fact that ‘Oh, I should get up and put on some makeup.’”

Added Parton, “If I’m going to go outside the house, I will definitely wear makeup. And usually, if I’m not writing, I’ll get up, put on my makeup, and fix my hair a little bit. Even if I’m off that day, I never know who’s going to come to my door, and I don’t want to go to the door looking like a hag.”

Dolly Parton and Stella Parton at the premiere of ‘Dolly Parton’s Coat Of Many Colors’ at the Egyptian Theatre in Hollywood in December 2015Credit: Gregg DeGuire/WireImage

Dolly died on Aug. 25 at 80 “after bravely facing a brief battle with cancer,” her rep announced. Days later, Stella shared her own tribute on Instagram. “If anyone gets to heaven I’m sure she made it right on time,” she wrote. “I know she’s showing out big time, in all her sparkles and shine. That was my sister’s way.”

Stella called Dolly “one of the most generous, thoughtful and kind people I’ve ever known”: “What the world saw was exactly who she was.”

Dolly Parton at Stella Parton’s Red Tent Women’s Conference in Nashville in April 2014Credit: Terry Wyatt/Getty

“Dolly loved the world and everyone in it,” she continued. “I would criticize and complain about it and she would laugh and say, ‘shoot, Tedda, we’ve got more important things to do than worry about their silly asses.’ She was right, and she proved it every day.”

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Watch Stella Parton’s full conversation with Gayle King on CBS Mornings below.

on Entertainment Weekly

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