Seven months after Dolly Parton's husband, Carl Dean, died, his will has been revealed. Carl was 82 when he passed away in March 2025, and according to court documents filed by Dolly, her late husband left behind a will signed on January 16, 2013, that was never amended. Dolly is the trustee of the Carl Thomas Dean Trust, the sole beneficiary of his estate, and asked the court to name her the executor of the estate. She will inherit all of Carl's right, title, and interest in any personal effects relating to her music and entertainment career, including pictures, costumes, jewelry, musical instruments, and equipment, as well as all interest in furniture, art, automobiles, and other items, according to the filing obtained by Us Weekly.
Carl's will also noted that he had five nieces and nephews, and Dolly had 14, and if his wife was unable to serve as executor, he nominated his niece to take her place. He also stated that he would leave a handwritten note that detailed who would receive his personal and household property, but if the list was not found, then Dolly would be responsible for distributing the property. If Dolly passed away before her husband, then Carl's estate would be distributed equally among his and Dolly's nieces and nephews.
Dolly broke the news of Carl's passing via an Instagram announcement, writing: "Carl Dean, husband of Dolly Parton, passed away March 3rd in Nashville. He will be laid to rest in a private ceremony with immediate family attending. He is survived by his siblings Sandra and Donnie. Carl and I spent many wonderful years together. Words can't do justice to the love we shared for over 60 years. Thank you for your prayers and sympathy. The family asks for privacy during this difficult time."
Dolly and Carl met on the same day she moved to Nashville in 1964, and they married two years later in Georgia. They would have celebrated their 59th wedding anniversary on May 30, 2025. In 2016, they celebrated 50 years of marriage by tying the knot again. "We're going to get married again!" Dolly gushed to People ahead of their vow renewal.
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© Instagram"I'll have a beautiful wedding dress, 'cause I didn't have a big, long wedding dress when we got married, and we've got a suit for him, so we're going to dress up and take a bunch of pictures." Despite their decades-long marriage, the couple never welcomed any children, although Dolly previously admitted it wasn't for lack of trying.
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© Instagram"Early on, when my husband and I were dating, and then when we got married, we just assumed we would have kids," she told Billboard in 2014. "We weren't doing anything to stop it. In fact, we thought maybe we would. We even had names if we did, but it didn't turn out that way. Now that Carl and I are older, we often say, 'Aren't you glad we didn't have kids? Now we don't have kids to worry about.'"
