Dolly Parton expertly dodged Johnny Carson’s creepy joke about her body in resurfaced TV clip
Fondly known as the Queen of Country, Dolly Parton is a music legend whose impact spans generations. However, even icons face awkward and unexpected moments in the spotlight. During an appearance on 'The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson,' Parton handled an awkward remark from Johnny Carson, leading to a memorable on-air moment. In the resurfaced clip from Parton's 1977 interview, the host is seen joking about the 'Jolene' singer's physical appearance. As the conversation started, Parton revealed that she had developed "a thick" skin regarding jokes about her body, as per Cheat Sheet.
"There’s a lot of jokes," she told Carson, prompting him to ask if they bothered her. Parton admitted, “It used to be when I was real young in the business when I first moved to Nashville." She explained that she initially struggled with how to handle such comments. However, over time, she adapted and said, "Anymore, there’s not a road show on the road that doesn't make some sort of joke. A lot of the country music people—good friends of mine—they do jokes." Carson then asked, "Have you always been rather zaftig?" to which she responded with a knowing remark, "Healthy, I guess... Um, bosomy."
For a brief moment, Parton appeared uncomfortable but quickly regained her composure, shifting the conversation to how people frequently gossiped about her body. "I've always been pretty well blessed. People are always, uh, asking if they're real and... this and that. No, you don't have to ask. I'll tell you what, these are mine." Carson couldn’t resist making a bold remark and said, "But I would give about a year’s pay to peek under there." The comment made Parton and the audience laugh, though she briefly covered her face. Notably, despite the awkward exchange, Parton later wrote a song for Carson and considered them friends when she returned to the show in 1979.
In her 1978 Playboy interview, Parton addressed the persistent gossip about her figure, revealing that such rumors had affected her growing up, as per The Things. "It was always a problem, to a degree. But I had a real open personality. I don’t think I was teased openly; it was more what people were sayin’ behind my back, 'No, they're not real, she's got Kleenex in there.'" Parton admitted that comments like these were embarrassing but felt the discussion around her body was exaggerated.
Parton then added, "It was kind of embarrassing, but it must not have bothered me too much. I'm a real obvious person; all the things you see are obvious. But my body is not really as extreme as people make it out to be." She then clarified her proportions, countering misconceptions. "I am just a small, tiny, little person, five feet tall, with a small frame. I have plenty, but it's not like what people say, 'Oh, gosh, she must be 45 inches.' I’m not nowhere near it, you know."