Dolly Parton Used a Hit Song to End Notes to Reese Witherspoon
In the wake of Dolly Parton’s death at 80 following a brief battle with cancer, the world is learning even more about her giving spirit and kindness. Tributes have rolled in from around the world. Reese Witherspoon just shared the sweet way Dolly Parton signed off on notes she sent her, and it has fans in tears.
Dolly Parton Used One of Her Songs to Sign Notes to Reese Witherspoon
Reese Witherspoon was one of many celebrities who took to social media to pay tribute to Dolly Parton. In her emotional Instagram post, she revealed something that no one knew about Dolly until now. Reese noted that Dolly periodically sent her notes throughout her career, offering encouragement and support. The actor revealed that the country singer encouraged her to “be the light in people’s lives.”
The notes came in regularly from the star, she revealed, and while the contents of each letter differed, they were always signed with the same four words from one of her earliest hits. Reese said of the note, “Always signed: I will always love you.”
How Reese and Dolly Became Friends
Reese Witherspoon and Dolly Parton forged a friendship in the early 2000s, when Reese landed the role as June Carter Cash in Walk the Line. Before the project began filming, Dolly invited the actor to dinner to offer personal insight into June. She told the actor that June charmed the country music world. That tidbit inspired Reese’s performance. The performance earned Reese Witherspoon an Academy Award.
That dinner led to a two-decades-long friendship. Reese has spoken lovingly of Dolly several times over the years. She praised the music star’s consistency, warmth and kindness.
The Meaning Behind “I Will Always Love You”
The notes that Dolly Parton sent Reese Witherspoon over the years always changed, but the sendoff remained the same, and the four words she chose had a lot of meaning. The song Dolly opted to sign her notes with came from her 1973 hit, “I Will Always Love You.”
While the song is often remembered as a love ballad after Whitney Houston sang it in The Bodyguard, it was not originally written for that purpose. Parton used the song as a heartfelt goodbye and a show of gratitude to her longtime creative partner, Porter Wagoner. The song was recorded as she prepared to strike out on her own as a solo artist. It was a thank-you disguised as a love song, an acknowledgment of everything Wagoner had done for her career.
The song became a genuine phenomenon in its own right, hitting number one on Billboard’s Hot Country Songs chart in 1974. Eight years later, in 1982, it was used in “The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas.” Then in 1992, Whitney Houston’s version soared to the top of the Hot 100 for 14 weeks.
Wagoner died at 80 in 2007, just a couple of years after Dolly and Reese had that first fateful dinner. The song was clearly written with gratitude in mind, and it seems she was grateful for the friendship she shared with Reese and was happy to take on the role of mentor to the younger starlet.
Tributes to Dolly Parton continue to roll in. A public memorial service does not appear to be in the works. A private celebration of her life is planned.
