Dolly Parton’s ‘jealous’ husband on her Dallas Cowboys cheerleader outfit: Don’t show ‘your butt at that age’
Bless his heart.
Dolly Parton joked Tuesday that her husband was “jealous” after he saw her now-viral Dallas Cowboys cheerleading outfit when she performed during the 2023 Thanksgiving Day halftime show at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.
“It turned out pretty cool, and my husband liked it. He said, ‘Those shorts were a little too short.’ “
“I said, ‘Jealous,’ ” Parton, 78, told People. “And I said, ‘They weren’t as short as the other girls’!’ “
“He was just being funny,” the “9 to 5” hitmaker said. “I think he thought — because everybody’s making a to-do over it — he thought, well, maybe you shouldn’t be showing your butt at that age. But anyway, he got a kick out of it, too.”
Carl Dean, who married Parton in 1966, isn’t the only one who lost their mind when she stepped out in the sparkling, sheer outfit for the Salvation Army’s Red Kettle Kickoff Halftime Show.
“She’s 77 and Dolly Parton just showed Madonna how it’s done,” one enamored user said on X (formerly Twitter).
“Joe Biden is 81. Donald Trump is 77. If we have to elect an old person, let it be Dolly Parton,” a second user proclaimed.
“HOLY HELL,” a third user bluntly remarked.
During the show, the “I Will Always Love You” songstress demonstrated that she still has it by performing several of her iconic tunes, such as “Jolene” and “9 to 5,” before transitioning to Queen’s “We Are the Champions” with the help of several professional cheerleaders.
Former Cowboys quarterback-turned-NFL commentator Tony Romo was also taken aback by Parton’s age-defying appearance.
“I mean, she looks amazing, right?” Romo, 43, said at the time. “She’s wonderful. Who doesn’t like Dolly Parton?”
Barstool Sports later joked that Romo seemed to be “horned up” by the performance.
Several critics of Parton, however, slammed the icon by telling her that she should act her age.
“Bite me,” said “The View” moderator Whoopi Goldberg, 68, regarding Parton’s critics while discussing the topic on the talk show. “Everybody that participated in this, you should be ashamed of yourself.”
The EGOT winner’s reaction was met with tumultuous applause from the show’s studio audience.
Co-host Sunny Hostin agreed.
“If I look like that in one of them Cowboys things, I might have everything out,” the 55-year-old laughed. “I don’t know if that’s a belly ring or what, but I want what she has.”
